Super Nintendo World was once a theme park experience limited only to Japan. If you wanted to race on a Mario Kart interactive theme park ride or eat at Toad’s restaurant, you had to travel to Osaka for that experience. But that experience is coming to the United States soon, with Universal Studios Hollywood having its own Super Nintendo World wrapping up construction.
The theme park will be open to the public on February 17, but a press event during construction gave some outlets a look behind the curtain at what visitors can expect from the experience. Attractions Magazine put up a video detailing their experience and some of the sights its reporters saw in the park.
Judging from the video, and from what we know of the existing Osaka park, there is a lot of attention to detail in Super Nintendo World, and Attractions Magazine walked through some of the ride experiences. Some of these rides are meant to be done more than once, just like the Mario video games themselves. You will think of new ideas, test new ways to clear the game, and earn more points in each “run-through.”
According to Universal Creative vice president Jon Corfino, the ride experience will be almost identical to the one in the Osaka Super Nintendo World. There have been some changes in the Hollywood Super Nintendo World, such as configuring the queue lines differently, but the park experience will be almost like stepping into its Japanese counterpart.
Related: Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Japan is expanding with Donkey Kong
There will be some differences in attractions due to land space, such as the lack of a Yoshi ride in Hollywood. Super Nintendo World in Japan has more land to work with, while Universal Studios Hollywood has more limited space. But that doesn’t mean the experience you will have at the park is any less authentic than it will be in Japan. From the sights, sounds, and characters, all the details are as accurate as they can be.
Super Nintendo World will be open to the public at Universal Studios Hollywood on February 17. If you are a Universal Studios Annual Pass Holder, you can get earlier access on January 29. The park will have finished construction by then, and the experience will be fully available no matter when you step into the park.
