Just the other day, there was a vague and mysterious video released teasing possible concepts for a new theme park in Universal Studios Japan called Super Nintendo World, set to open in 2020 around the time of the Tokyo Olympic Games. The park seems to recreate Mario and bring the video game to life. The trailer is all animated, so it is only a concept idea at the moment. However, we could see this theme park spring to life in the future. The trailer leaves us with lots of questions and room for speculation.
Super Nintendo World is portrayed in the trailer to be a life-sized Mario game, basically. All of the scenery and attractions look like they jumped straight out of the popular and successful Nintendo game. However, the types of rides and attractions that will be in the park are not specified in the trailer. This is the part that is left to the imagination of the viewers and fans. (More on that below.)
From what we’ve seen so far, I believe that this park may focus more on scenery rather than rides. Considering this park looks like it came straight out of a level from Mario, the scenery will be the most impressive and memorable aspect of Super Nintendo World. Surely there will be some ride and attractions — Universal promises at least a “Mario Kart Experience” — but I believe they could potentially focus more on immersion in the setting and scenery that makes the fans feel like they are in Mario’s world. The trailer seemed to have an emphasis on the appearance and aesthetic of the park, so this could be their main focus.
This could be something new and completely out of the box for Universal Studios. They have already mastered theme parks with rides and attractions, but this could be something amazing that would hold its own compared to all of the other themes. Considering how popular Nintendo has been with the recent release of the Switch, this would attract many avid fans of Mario and Nintendo.
Since it is just a short animated concept at the moment, there is not much to go on, so we can only guess and assume what the park will be like when it opens. Considering the timing of this trailer release, I believe that it is a genius idea. Since Nintendo is in a high point now, this park would attract many newcomers and long time fans. I applaud Universal Studios Japan for coming up with such a creative and innovative idea, and attempting to bring such a popular and loved video game to life.
What are you most looking forward to about Nintendo’s first theme park experiences? Share your wishlist in the comments!
