Universal Studios Hollywood Opens Super Nintendo World

Universal Studios Hollywood, Universal City, CA

Well hello there! Today’s update covers a momentous recent event at Universal Studios Hollywood—the opening of their all-new expansion, Super Nintendo World! Two years after opening in Universal Japan and two years before planned locations opening in Universal Studios Singapore and the upcoming Epic Universe Universal park in Florida, this ode to Super Mario Bros. has debuted at the original Universal Studios theme park!

Westcoaster was privileged to receive a media preview just before last week’s official opening day. Since I was busy on a family trip overseas, we sent our OG photographer, Dan the Diabetic Italian to cover in my stead. Between that afternoon’s visit (which was unfortunately cut short when Nintendo top brass VIP’s apparently made an unplanned call to close out the land and essentially force Universal to kick out all media and social media attendees later in the afternoon) and technical rehearsal and passholder preview visits that Dan had made earlier, we actually got a pretty good taste of how the land and its marquee Mario Kart attraction operate.

Special thanks go out to Universal Studios for inviting us out, even though this wasn’t Halloween Horror Nights! We appreciate the opportunity.

So without further ado, we’ll dive into the warp tunnel of photos and commentary to encompass our coverage for Universal Hollywood’s shiny new addition! Let’s-a Go!

Ambiance

For anyone who has ever dreamed about being immersed in the land of Super Mario, Universal Studios Hollywood’s latest offering is for them. The environment around Super Nintendo World is largely identical to Universal Japan’s, which means it really looks straight out of a video game! The aesthetics, animatronic characters, architecture, colors, and even the landscaping all feel whimsical and video game-like. There’s a great dynamic energy throughout the cozy land, with kinetic theming, lighting and sound effects, and vibrant elements combining to really envelope guests into Mushroom Kingdom.

Glorious golden hour over Super Nintendo World, as seen from the Star Way elevators.

From the moment visitors enter the warp pipe—a moment of compression before the land unveils itself to stunned entrants on the other side—Super Nintendo World feels like what children who grew up on the Super Mario video games would have envisioned a theme park setting to be like. Although there are a few sporadic sightline issues owing to Universal Studios Hollywood’s geography and adjacent construction (nowhere near as bad as in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, though), for the most part, the Super Mario atmosphere is pretty evocative of the video games brought to life.

It won’t be this empty anytime soon now that the land is open (except for at the start of the annual passholder early entry hours), but everything does look pretty fantastic.

Guests can encounter facades of Princess Peach’s Castle and Bowser’s Castle, the stratified geology of Yoshi’s Island, toadstool canopies, and various Nintendo characters portrayed as theming and in animatronic form. Towers of Goombas slip along, while Yoshi marches above them. Sadly, there is no Yoshi’s Adventure attraction. But there are spinning coins, power up boxes, menacing Thwomps, friendly-looking Koopa Troopas, stray Koopa shells and Super Mushrooms, spiny moving Pokeys, and even some Piranha Plants! Elsewhere, a few Pikmin creatures can be spotted by eagle-eyed observers.

There are plenty of great details throughout the land and many recognizable characters.

Throughout the day, guests can have meet-and-greets with prominent Nintendo characters, including Princess Peach at a gazebo near her castle, and Mario and Luigi at the central meet-and-greet area in the middle of the courtyard layout of the themed land. All three characters are masked characters but have cartoon-like facial controls and what seem to be pre-recorded voice interactions, not unlike what guests can encounter with various characters at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge over in Disneyland. Meeting times are posted throughout the day, and obviously, the demand for these popular characters is high.

Mario and Luigi are, of course, a very popular meet-and-greet.

All in all, though more compressed than the Universal Japan version and lacking several attractions present in Osaka, Hollywood’s Super Nintendo World nevertheless provides an enchanting and fantastical trip into Nintendo’s biggest and most beloved franchise.

Guests come in through the Warp Pipe and through Princess Peach’s Castle.

Interactivity

It would be enough for many simply to see their favorite video game brought to life in a dazzling and spirited form, with forms and theming that look convincingly like they were lifted from the console into real life. But the theme park experience has evolved over the past decade to embrace interactivity and “gamification,” merging the physical experience with somewhat of a virtual one to create more media-immersive features. At Universal Studio Hollywood’s last expansion, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, engaging certain gestures with interactive wands could trigger certain effects at certain parts of the land, giving guest the ability to summon their inner wizard and enrich their day. In Super Nintendo World, the video game inspiration lends an obvious tie-in to action and effect features that further immerse guests into the video game realm.

Super Nintendo World is full of various hidden and not-so-hidden interactive features that enhance and gamify the guest experience.

Guests have the opportunity to purchase Power-Up Bands that they can use to engage with different theming elements throughout the land. Guests can play interactive games, track their scores on the Mario Kart attraction, collect digital coins for bonus redemption opportunities, complete virtual challenges, and even unlock access to a “secret world”—Bowser Jr’s Hideout—for the opportunity to play a bonus game! The Power-Up Bands also amplify one’s experience with Mario, Luigi, and Princess Peach. In that respect, this is similar to the accessories that guests can purchase at Avenger’s Campus in Disney California Adventure to enhance their experience on board WEB SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure. Only this is more expansive and usable throughout the land—as well as at home via its use as an Amiibo for the Nintendo Switch.

The Power-Up Band is available at the 1-UP Factory and Power-Up Band kiosks in Super Nintendo World and the Character Shop in the Lower Lot. Use the Universal Studios app to set it up.

What’s pretty cool is to watch guests play through Super Nintendo World and interact with the theming elements to trigger effects and collect virtual incentives to deepen their experience. Given the land’s limited traditional attractions, this is a good way to increase the enjoyability of the area—though one that is entirely optional. Of course it’s a smart way for Universal to earn some extra income via merchandise sales, as the Power-Up Band joins the Harry Potter wands as an integral souvenir that’s compelling to the die-hard fans who visit. In addition, the Universal Studios app also interfaces with the Power-Up Band and offers a list of the interactive activities available in Super Nintendo World.

Merchandise

Speaking of souvenirs, the main headquarters for Super Nintendo World collectibles is the 1-UP Factory, which features a plethora of wardrobe, plushie, key chain, food and beverage container, and figurine collectibles themed to Super Mario Bros. Guests can purchase Super Nintendo gifts at the Character Shop as well, but inside the land, the 1-UP Factory is the literal one-stop shop. The plushies in particular are pretty adorable, with both primary and side characters of both the hero and villain alignments offered. Looking for Mario or Luigi? Of course, they’re covered. But if you want a Goomba or Blooper stuffed figure, they have those too. And of course, the aforemention Power-Up Band is available for purchase here too.

The 1-UP Factory offers everything guests are looking for in Nintendo memorabilia.

Toadstool Cafe

If you’re feeling hungry, Super Nintendo World has one main dining establishment for patrons, a quick serve eatery called Toadstool Cafe that is very similar to Universal Japan’s version. Lets start with the plusses: the menu features a variety of absolutely adorable dishes that give guests a good idea of the dining experience in Japan, with whimsically themed and decorated mains and sides that are colorfully inspired from the video game. In person—at least in Dan’s experiences—the dishes do look very similar to the promotional images provided by Universal. Little details reflecting the Super Mario characters and iconic elements make for very Instagrammable dishes, and the food really does look great.

The quality, on the other hand, seems to be in a state of flux and was still being worked on during early visits. The Luigi Burger was absolutely overcooked when Dan ordered it, though the Chef Toad Short Rib Special was certainly better and more flavorful. Some of the items sampled were a little lukewarm upon serving though, which was unfortunate. We hope and expect the food production to improve as the employees get into the groove of operations, but at least from early meals, the gourmet in Super Nintendo World looked better than it tasted.

The food items are all pretty freaking cute.

Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge

Of course, the star attraction at Super Nintendo World is its one and only ride, Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge, which is a clone of the marquee feature at Universal Japan. Over in Osaka, it is called Mario Kart: Koopa’s Challenge, but in Japan, Bowser is King Koopa. In Hollywood, the queue incorporates some aspects of the Osaka Yoshi’s Adventure ride that is missing in Hollywood, but the ride itself matches that in Japan. In short, Team Mario takes on Team Bowser in a race on the “Universal Cup” through several Mario Kart 8 courses in a vehicular battle for Mushroom Kingdom supremacy!

The Mario Kart attraction mixes practical sets with projected visualizations through augmented reality (AR) glasses provided to each rider. This is Univeral’s latest advancement in evolving the theme park ride experience, blending practical and video media together into a sensory-rich experience that is full of action and sound and visual triggers. In fact, for some guests, the ride might even feel like a bit of sensory overload, at least upon the first cycle through, because of how much is going on. The technology is certainly impressive, and the resulting special effects can be literally dazzling. But the ride itself arguably suffers a bit from being over stimulating while at the same time suffering from an ironic dichotomy of being physically slow moving while portraying a speedy and thrilling race.

The queue is colorful and features an assortment of Super Mario Bros. references and visuals.

Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge is a lot of fun, to be sure, and most guests will love this further immersion into the Super Mario video games. But for those who are more critical and might be looking for something more significantly and profoundly groundbreaking, this Mario Kart ride may be slightly disappointing. Aside from the AR glasses technology, the ride system itself is less innovative than, say, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. It’s not trackless, for example, so its dynamicism is restricted to what’s projected onto riders’ AR lenses. But if it’s simple enjoyment and entertainment that one’s looking for, Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge definitely offers up a Super Star selection of adventure.

There was no photography allowed during media day, but our on-ride photos were taken from preview and technical rehearsal visits.

Ultimately, Super Nintendo World is a boon for Universal Studios. The fact that this land will be constructed in four out of the five Universal Studios parks around the world (Beijing being the only exception) demonstrates the company’s commitment to its Nintendo IP. At Universal Studios Hollywood, what’s provided is a nostalgic and joyful celebration of one of the most recognizable franchises in the world—one that has delighted millions of people internationally. To that end, one does wish that Super Nintendo World was a little larger at Universal Studios Hollywood.

Not only is there only one attraction here, due to space constraints, but the layout of the actual land is literally a courtyard that will inevitably become very packed and crowded and uncomfortable on the busiest days. Though there are plenty of emergency exits that allow Hollywood’s Super Nintendo World to avoid safety hazards (it would not have passed plan review without having proper egress, of course), the land itself is essentially a dead end, and it never feels spacious. While a Donkey Kong Country expansion has been announced in Universal Japan’s iteration, no such news has leaked yet for Hollywood. Then again, the real estate here just isn’t currently available, and we understand that Universal Creative would want to see how the land performs before committing to any growth anyway.

These critiques aside, Super Nintendo World is a welcome addition to Universal Studios Hollywood, bringing that childhood fun and wonder to a park whose identity has certainly evolved and shifted over the years. With the upcoming Fast and the Furious roller coaster taking over the Animal Actors and Universal Special Effects Show stages at the top of the Star Way connecting the Upper and Lower Lots, USH appears committed to moving more and more into an IP-dominated theme park as opposed to its original movie studio behind the scenes motivations. Mario, Luigi, Peach, and Bowser add an excellent feather in the cap of Universal’s character arsenal in its competitive drives against Disney. No doubt they’ll help draw even more guests to the original cinema-oriented theme park!