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'Super Mario' Theme Park Opens in Japan

The attraction is part of the existing Universal Studios Japan amusement park in the western city of Osaka. Reuters
The attraction is part of the existing Universal Studios Japan amusement park in the western city of Osaka. Reuters
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'Super Mario' Theme Park Opens in Japan

The attraction is part of the existing Universal Studios Japan amusement park in the western city of Osaka. Reuters
The attraction is part of the existing Universal Studios Japan amusement park in the western city of Osaka. Reuters

Here we go! After months of pandemic delays, Nintendo's first ever theme park, featuring a "Mario Kart" ride in a real-life Bowser's Castle, opened in Japan on Thursday to delighted fans.

The attraction, whose bright, block-like surroundings are straight out of the classic "Super Mario" games, is part of the existing Universal Studios Japan amusement park in the western city of Osaka.

"We perfectly recreated the world of the game.... You'll find life-sized piranha plants and Bowser, and you'll see what it is like to be Mario," said Ayumu Yamamoto, USJ's marketing communication manager.

"It took almost a year longer than we had expected to open this place, and we are really glad," he told reporters at a preview on Wednesday.

The new zone called "Super Nintendo World" had originally been expected to draw big crowds last year ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, which was also postponed by the coronavirus.

But its launch was pushed back to February, and then delayed again as Japan's government declared a state of emergency in early 2021 to curb spiking cases.

Music from the popular Mario games plays throughout the park and a smartphone-linked wristband allows visitors to collect virtual coins by punching blocks, just like the Italian plumber.

Augmented reality goggles attached to a plastic red visor are used in the "Mario Kart" ride, one of the park's main draws that promises to bring the racing game to life.

The ride follows a track around the foreboding castle of Mario's enemy Bowser, an evil turtle, but each seat has a steering wheel and players can collect and shoot items at opponents.

The zone also boasts a ride based on the cute green dinosaur Yoshi, a Peach's castle, Mario-themed restaurants and lifesize characters from the Mushroom Kingdom.

Fans told AFP they were thrilled about the much-anticipated opening of the park, which cost more than 60 billion yen ($550 million), according to USJ.

"I've been playing Mario since I was a boy. I didn't expect that I could enter the world of Mario, so I'm very excited," said Hiroki Kono, a 19-year-old university student in Osaka.

- 'Waited for this day' -

Office worker Rei Higashimoto, 25, was also delighted about the launch. "I have an annual pass, so I knew this Mario world was being created, and I have waited from one year ago for this day to come," she said.

Similar areas are planned at Universal Studios parks in Orlando and Hollywood.

The first "Super Mario Bros" game came out in 1985 for Nintendo's NES console.

The platform game, in which Mario runs and jumps past obstacles to collect coins and save Princess Peach from the evil Koopa turtles, was based on the "Mario Bros" arcade game released earlier.

Since then, Mario has appeared in myriad formats including games featuring racing, football and golf.

Shigeru Miyamoto, the creator of "Super Mario Bros", took a tour of the park in a promotional video released in December.

"At last, it's complete! It makes a big impression, seeing the park in real life," said Miyamoto, describing himself as Mario's "Dad" as he popped out of a giant green pipe.

"There are smaller activities like the coin block, as well as bigger ones... If you manage to get three keys from various activities, you can take on the final activity -- a battle with Bowser Jr."

"I'm very excited for all of you to experience the park on your own," he added.

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Entertainment

‘Wicked’ and ‘Gladiator’ Make Gravity-Defying Theater Debuts

People wait to watch a screening of the film "Wicked" at the TCL Chinese Theater in Los Angeles, California, US, November 23, 2024. (Reuters)
People wait to watch a screening of the film "Wicked" at the TCL Chinese Theater in Los Angeles, California, US, November 23, 2024. (Reuters)
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‘Wicked’ and ‘Gladiator’ Make Gravity-Defying Theater Debuts

People wait to watch a screening of the film "Wicked" at the TCL Chinese Theater in Los Angeles, California, US, November 23, 2024. (Reuters)
People wait to watch a screening of the film "Wicked" at the TCL Chinese Theater in Los Angeles, California, US, November 23, 2024. (Reuters)

With a combined $270 million in worldwide ticket sales, “Wicked” and “Gladiator II” breathed fresh life into a box office that has struggled lately, leading to one of the busiest moviegoing weekends of the year.

Jon M. Chu’s lavish big-budget musical “Wicked,” starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, debuted with $114 million domestically and $164.2 million globally for Universal Pictures, according to studio estimates Sunday. That made it the third-biggest opening weekend of the year, behind only “Deadpool & Wolverine” and “Inside Out 2.” It’s also a record for a Broadway musical adaptation.

Ridley Scott’s “Gladiator II,” a sequel to his 2000 best picture-winning original, launched with $55.5 million in ticket sales. With a price tag of around $250 million to produce it, “Gladiator II” was a big bet by Paramount Pictures to return to the Coliseum with a largely new cast, led by Denzel Washington and Paul Mescal. While it opened with a touch less than the $60 million predicted in domestic ticket sales, “Gladiator II” has performed well overseas. It added $50.5 million internationally.

Going into the weekend, box office was down about 11% from last year and some 25% from pre-pandemic times. That meant this week's two headline films led a much-needed resurgence for theaters. With “Moana 2” releasing Wednesday, Hollywood might be looking at historic sales over the Thanksgiving holiday.

“This weekend’s two strong openers are invigorating a box office that fell apart after a good summer,” said David A. Gross, a film consultant who publishes a newsletter for Franchise Entertainment.

The collision of the two movies led to some echoes of the “Barbenheimer” effect of last year, when “Barbie" and “Oppenheimer” launched simultaneously. The nickname this time, “Glicked,” wasn’t quite as catchy and the cultural imprint was also notably less. Few people sought out a double feature this time. The domestic grosses in 2023 – $162 million for “Barbie” and $82 million for “Oppenheimer” – were also higher.

But the counter-programming effect was still potent for “Wicked” and “Gladiator II,” which likewise split broadly along gender lines. And it was again the female-leaning release – “Wicked,” like “Barbie” before it – that easily won the weekend. About 72% of ticket buyers for “Wicked” were female, while 61% of those seeing “Gladiator II” were male.

And while “Barbenheimer” benefitted enormously from meme-spread word-of-mouth, both “Wicked” and “Gladiator II” leaned on all-out marketing blitzes.

Both movies pulled out all the stops in global advertising campaigns that spanned everything from “Wicked” Mattel dolls (some of which led to an awkward recall) to an Airbnb cross-promotion with the actual Colosseum in Rome. For “Gladiator II,” Paramount even took the unusual step of simultaneously running a one-minute trailer on more than 4,000 TV networks, radio station and digital platforms.

Though “Wicked” will face some direct competition from “Moana 2,” it would seem to be better set up for a long and lucrative run in theaters. Even at 2 hours and 40 minutes, the film has had mostly stellar reviews. Audiences gave it an “A” on CinemaScore. The reception for “Wicked” has been strong enough that Oscar prognosticators expect it to be a contender for best picture at the Academy Awards, among other categories.

Producers, perhaps sensing a hit, also took the step of splitting “Wicked” in two. Part two, already filmed, is due out next November. Each “Wicked” installation cost around $150 million to make.

“Gladiator II” has also enjoyed good reviews, particularly for Washington's charismatic performance. Audience scores, though, were weaker, with ticket buyers giving it a “B” on CinemaScore. “Gladiator II” will make up for some of that, however, with robust international sales. It launched in many overseas markets a week ago, earning $87 million before landing in North America.