Comsat Executives officially confirmed the entry of Super Nintendo World into Universal’s upcoming theme park in Orlando during a recent meeting. This puts a lot of conjecture to rest about what could be included in Universal’s newest venture.
The start of January saw the announcement of Super Nintendo World, Nintendo’s very own theme park. With previous years of declining game revenue, Nintendo collaborated with Universal Studios in Japan to open a theme park with famous game franchises from Nintendo, including the legendary Super Mario.
This attraction is all set to go public this summer in Universal Studios Japan. While this is expected to attract large crowds, the journey to Japan could be a tad bit difficult for foreigners.
There have been speculations about Super Nintendo’s Western debut but neither company had confirmed it until now. During their 2019 earnings conference call, Comsat Corporation executives put all rumours to rest by admitting that Super Nintendo land is slated to be a part of Universal’s upcoming theme park, Epic Universe, in 2023 in Orlando, Florida.
Universal’s Epic Universe is an up and coming theme park that announced its construction in April 2019. It is set to be a part of Universal Orlando Resort in Florida. The burgeoning hype of this park has led to a lot of conjecture about what would be included in this latest attraction.
Set to be the southern extension of their existing resort, Epic Universe will include hotels, eateries and an entertainment centre. With recent reports confirming the inclusion of Super Nintendo World in Universe’s latest venture, Americans are eagerly awaiting this theme park.
This new land will be a part of the fourth gate with Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure and Volcano Baywater Park as the three previous parks or ‘gates’.
Comsat Executives have high hopes from this project, deeming Nintendo a lucrative addition to the future of theme parks. They believe “Nintendo, based on our research, is the biggest potential driver in attendance you can have in terms of intellectual properties. It’s up there with Harry Potter, and in some of our parks, Harry Potter drives incremental attendance of 2 million people,”
This is not Nintendo’s first deal with Universal. The Super Nintendo World set to launch in Japan during the summer is going to be added to Universal Studios Hollywood and then Orlando. The Nintendo World enlivens the famous characters of video games including Mario, Princess Peach and Yoshi, closely relating to vast audiences as they have grown up with these characters.
Thierry Coup, Senior Vice President and Chief Creative Officer at Universal Creative released a statement on January 12, “Think of Super Nintendo World as a life-size, living video game where you become one of the characters. You’re not just playing the game; you’re living the game, you’re living the adventure. Nintendo’s most iconic locations and experiences will be brought to life, including Mushroom Kingdom, Peach’s Castle, an incredible Mario Kart ride, Bowser’s Castle – and more”.
The collaboration of two major entertainment ventures will likely prove a major success, boosting revenue, jobs and tourism.
