First Super Nintendo World theme park in the US will open in 2023
The theme park is slated to open in Universal Studios Hollywood.
Nintendo fans in the US will soon be able to step into the world of Mario and Luigi. Universal Studios Hollywood announced that Super Nintendo World—a ride and interactive area in the style of the Super Mario videogames—will debut at the California theme park in 2023. It’ll be the first Nintendo-themed park in the US and will follow last year’s launch of the first Super Nintendo World in Japan.
The launch of the Nintendo park in Osaka was delayed by nearly a year due to the pandemic, and opened to a limited number of guests in March 2021. Hopefully, the California park will debut in a very different environment. Los Angeles County lifted its outdoor mask policy in public places earlier this month. But if the pandemic worsens, it’s likely we’ll see the park open with COVID-19 safety measures.
According to the Los Angeles Times, fans can expect an interactive area, a special themed-ride and (of course) plenty of themed shopping and dining. Super Nintendo World will be an expansion of the current Universal Studios Hollywood, and will be located in the lower area of the park. It’ll be the first major expansion of the Hollywood park since 2016, when it debuted the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.
What can fans expect from the US park? The original Super Nintendo World in Osaka has a ride where fans can race on a life-sized Mario Kart course, as well as a slower ride on Yoshi’s island. While Universal representatives aren’t giving details on which rides are coming to Hollywood, it’s fair to say we can expect a heavy AR component and plenty of gamified experiences throughout the area.
