UPDATE – Jake of Orlando Park Pass has pointed out that this expansion is not taking place near Back to the Future. It is to the left of the park entrance by the Space Fantasy roller coaster. This was not expected, but there is room for new development there.
In the past weeks, it has been a big rumor that Universal Studios Japan would be removing their Back to the Future attraction. Among the ideas for replacements were many things, but it was most expected to be Nintendo Attractions. It was announced last year that Nintendo and Universal were partnering to bring Nintendo attractions to their parks, and on Saturday, March 5th 2016, we got the first details of this new “Nintendoland.”
According to Kotaku, the deal to make the land is being finalized on Friday. They are reporting that the land will cost 40 billion yen, or $351 million. They have included a map in their article as to where the attraction will be located:
They also say that the park is attempting to get this new land open by 2020. The goal is to attract some of the visitors coming to Tokyo for the Olympics that year.
The land is going to be the Nintendo version of Harry Potter Land according to them. The level of immersion and scope of the two lands are supposed to be similar to one another.
I would like to note that this is not confirmed by the park at this time, although I do think it is accurate.
My Take: I am very excited to see what Universal will do with Nintendoland. I expect to see a Mario Kart racing attraction, possibly similar to that of Radiator Springs Racers and Test Track as the headliner attraction. When I think of Nintendo, this is what I think of. I also expect to see some smaller family attractions like those found in Super Silly Fun Land at Universal Studios Hollywood along with a dark ride. I think a hand motion controlled Triotech Dark Ride would be the coolest idea for a dark ride in the land, although Universal and Triotech have not worked together in the past. After the opening of this, I expect to see versions of this land at Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Studios Orlando.
As more details are revealed on this Universal Studios Japan, we will make sure to provide updates!
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