|
 The addition in Osaka bulks up
USJ's roster of franchises, which include
"Minions" and "Jurassic Park", in its rivalry
with Disney, with the moustachioed plumber also
coming to other Universal parks worldwide.
Entering through a giant warp pipe, visitors to
"Super Nintendo World", a real-world version of
games creator Shigeru Miyamoto's Mushroom
Kingdom, are met with chomping piranha plants,
punchable coin blocks and a flag-topped Mount
Beanpole.
At the attraction, whose opening was delayed
repeatedly from last summer due to the COVID-19
pandemic, visitors can buy a $30 "power-up band"
which syncs with the park's app to rank them as
they gather coins and defeat baddies.
"You can become Mario," Ayumu Yamamoto, vice
president in USJ's marketing department, told
reporters at a press preview. USJ is owned by
Comcast Corp.
The wristband draws on the interactive wands in
the Harry Potter attraction and Nintendo's
tradition of tactile gaming gadgets and aims to
capitalise on Mario's generation-spanning appeal
to drive repeat visits to the park.
[to top of second column]
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 New draws at "Super Nintendo
World" include "Mario Kart: Koopa's Challenge",
a ride employing augmented reality headsets, and
the more sedate "Yoshi's Adventure" for younger
visitors. The area's opening is
a reply to investors frustrated by Nintendo's
reluctance to more aggressively commercialize
its fan base. The Kyoto-based firm's Switch
games console has proved a pandemic winner while
a foray into mobile gaming has stalled.
Visitors formed a long queue to join Super
Nintendo World's technical rehearsal the day
before opening. USJ is currently operating at
reduced capacity and guests will need timed
tickets to enter the area.
($1 = 109.1200 yen)
(Reporting by Sam Nussey and Irene Wang; Editing
by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
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