Super Nintendo World officially opened to guests yesterday (February 17). Universal Studios Hollywood was sold out as guests flocked to get a glimpse of this new land. The park is also sold out again for today (February 18).
There are lots of videos being posted online of the new Super Nintendo World and we have selected this one below from This Is How We Bingham, which shows everything the new land has to offer including a full video of Mario Kart Bowser’s Challenge augmented reality ride.
The soft opening of the first US Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Hollywood began on January 17 and brought with it a lot of excitement. Photos appeared online of guests getting to see and meet the popular characters, Mario, Luigi and Princess Peach.
Mario and Luigi have been sticking together to meet, hug, be photographed and sign autographs while guests have been able to meet Princess Peach near her castle in a gazebo which is painted white with a pink roof and has stars around the top. There are hearts surrounding the gazebo as an extra touch.
Now that Super Nintendo World is now officially open, guests have the opportunity to purchase an early entry ticket to access Super Nintendo World one hour prior to the scheduled park opening. You must also have a valid ticket for the date of your visit.
Early entry tickets start from $20 per person and also include a one-time express access to the Studio Tour (valid until 11 a.m.). Early entry tickets are limited and are available on select dates. For further information and to purchase, visit the official Universal Studios Hollywood website.
Super Nintendo World has been a massive success at Universal Studios Japan, drawing guests from all over the country to experience an immersive world where Mario, Yoshi, and other beloved Nintendo characters come to life. And though it will be several more years before Super Nintendo World will be ready to go at Epic Universe in Orlando, the first US-based version of this land at Universal Studios Hollywood is now open.
There was certainly much excitement surrounding the soft opening of the first US Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Hollywood. A video was posted by Attractions 360 degrees of Mario Kart: Bowser’s Revenge, which can be seen by following this link to YouTube.
The video shows footage of Super Nintendo World and then takes you onto the dark ride showing two views of Mario Kart: Bowser’s Revenge, the first POV ride through is filmed without the special AR goggles to show you all the physical sets and animatronics. The 2nd mini POV shows you what it looks like when you put the goggles onto your visor. Please note, it is always difficult to capture AR through a video so this gives you an idea of what to expect so not all objects appear in the correct places. From watching it certainly looks like Mario cart fans shouldn’t walk away disappointed.
This is incredibly exciting for Nintendo fans, and if you just can’t wait to see what’s inside this new land, we’ve got a little preview for you that includes what you can expect from the very first Super Nintendo World in America.
Just like inside Universal Studios Japan, the entrance to this new land will be a big green pipe, the likes of which Mario fans are very familiar with. As guests travel through the pipe they’ll hear a familiar noise, and then will be able to see the world of Super Nintendo Land as they reach the other side.
Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge will be the main attraction
The anchoring attraction of Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Hollywood will be Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge, which is an AR-assisted dark ride that allows guests to compete against one another in a three-dimensional world where they can race on iconic Mario Kart courses alongside Mario, Luigi, and Princess Peach.
Guests who board this attraction will need to put on a special pair of goggles in order to see the world of Mario Kart come to life around them. Once the ride gets started it will use a combination of AR, projection mapping, and physical, moving set pieces that are placed along a moving ride track while riders collect coins, throw shells and more to win the Golden Cup.
The ride itself will be housed inside a massive replication of Bowser’s Castle, and assuming the layout is similar to Japan, guests who enter the queue will find plenty of details from the various Mario games to check out as they make their way to the ride loading station.
Power-Up bands and interactive elements will be found throughout the land
One of the most popular elements of Super Nintendo Land in Japan is the area’s use of power-up band wearable devices, which allow guests to feel like they’re a part of the video game world and interact with certain elements around the land. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it looks like these special bands will be available at the Universal Studios Hollywood version of this land as well, allowing guests to trigger specific activities in the land, including the ability to save scores and see ride data from Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge, and make certain characters come to life inside the new land with sounds and movement.
Guests in Japan are also able to participate in an over-arcing game in the land that allows them to fight bad guys and defeat bosses around the land using these bands. Though nothing has been confirmed yet about this specific experience coming to this version of the land, it seems likely that this type of activity will be available at Universal Studios Hollywood, especially since guests will need something else to do in this land besides ride the Mario Kart attraction, and it will be easier to sell Power-Up bands if they are as central to the experience of the land as the wands are at the nearby Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
Design choices for the power-up band have not been released yet, but character bands featuring Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Princess Daisy, Toad, and Yoshi are currently available in Japan, and we’d imagine a similar lineup will be available early next year when the land opens.
Themed shopping and dining will be available
As you might expect, there will be plenty of shopping for Nintendo fans inside this upcoming new land, with several stores around Universal Studios Hollywood already carrying merchandise that will eventually be housed in this land. In addition, a new store is opening on Universal CityWalk this month that will have even more sneak-peek merchandise from this upcoming land and will also have some kind of preview for guests to check out as well.
In addition to plenty of shopping experiences, there will also be a restaurant inside this upcoming land as well. No information has been released about what kind of restaurant will be available here, but if we had to guess it would probably be a themed quick-service eatery with Mario themed goodies, similar to what can be found at Universal Studios Japan
No Yoshi’s Adventure at Universal Studios Hollywood
Some fans may be disappointed to learn that the Yoshi’s Adventure dark ride (which is already in operation at Universal Studios Japan and is currently being constructed at Epic Universe in Orlando) will not be a part of Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Hollywood, due to space constraints. However, between the Mario Kart interactive attraction and the different opportunities to interact with this land using power-up bands, there is still a lot to look forward to from the very first Super Nintendo World in the US.
While the first Super Nintendo World in the US will not be as big as its counterpart that is coming to Florida (or the original Super Nintendo World in Japan), its imminent opening is still an exciting development for Nintendo fans in the US, and the attention to detail in this upcoming area looks on par with what we’ve seen from the immersive Wizarding World of Harry Potter lands, and should continue Universal’s trend of making fantastical worlds feel real.
For more on Universal Studios Japan’s version of this land, check out this walkthrough of the land from 2020 featuring Shigeru Miyamoto. Are you excited to visit this new land? Let us know by leaving us a comment below or on our Facebook page.
