The Factory near downtown Saint Pete Florida manufactures some fun for the whole family, or an awesome date day. 

THEME:
The Factory is an artistic installation but is centered around the mid century modern aesthetic... and aliens. You are warped into the past via a winding road and a portal. You come out the other side of this portal and see a motel. This is the main attraction that you will interact with as they use the motel’s different rooms to tell different parts of the story. There are  a wide range of themes, such as a shrimp cocktail room, a frozen yogurt spaceship and a lounge area with a large panoramic video screen. 

ACTIVITIES:
There are 2 types of scavenger hunts to do while wandering through. The one we did required us to locate little square boxes that had different shapes and then use a UV flashlight they provided to find the number on the square. You note that number down on your sheet and move on to the next one. At the end you input the code you generated and a special little surprise happens. I do wish that the surprise was something a little more special or that the code was unique to you (knowing full well there can only be so many combinations). 
The other hunt was a little more in depth and was not geared towards a younger crowd. But it involved some of the same principles. 
While doing the square hunt we discovered that there was another narrative being told. There was a secret that had to be discovered - this secret was free, too! The short version is that you have to unlock a code to activate an effect that takes over a part of the overall installation. 
After you have had your fill of the shrimp room (no real shrimp included). You can move on to the other offerings of The Factory. There are other artistic installations, a vintage record shop (with legit cassette players) and of course a gift shop. 

SOUND:
The sound is a main focal point to this attraction. There are speakers everywhere and it seems like each one plays a different tune. They have rooms with heavy bass tones and mellow music to the chirps of crickets and a gentle rain. Oh? Did I hear you ask if there is a button that kids can spam that says “bird poop”? Well, yes there is and I too spammed it because it was funny. Overall the quality and quantity are top notch and even if you just went for the audio experience you would be satisfied. 

LIGHTING:
Elaborate lighting creates vibrant settings. The use of light here gives an otherworldly feeling but familiar enough to feel grounded like just maybe you are still on Earth. The lighted reeds mix with cat toys, the projected mapped water flows in the under belly of a city bridge, the tiny TVs in the dioramas, all of these things brought to you by the power of light. It's no simple feat to mold light like this. 

CONCLUSION:
The main area is small but impactful. It has things to do and look at in all places. These always seem to be some small text hiding a bit of a story or an interesting sight to unpack and understand. It is by all definitions artistic and pleasant. Outside of that, this is a great half day adventure that the whole family can take part in, even though the meaning and nuances will fly right over the little one’s heads.