EDITOR’S NOTE: Multimedia journalist Rae Williams spoke with live streamer, Tricia Wang, about her excitement for Super Nintendo World. Click the arrow above to watch the video.
LOS ANGELES — Like the Super Mario Bros. video game, visitors will be warped into a new dimension once they walk through a green water pipe at Universal Studios Hollywood.
The highly anticipated Super Nintendo World opened Friday at Universal Studios Hollywood, bringing the Mushroom Kingdom of Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach and Bowser to real life.
Super Nintendo World arrives before Universal releases the new animated "The Super Mario Bros. Movie," starring Chris Pratt, Jack Black and Anya Taylor-Joy in April.
The new themed-land joins Universal Studios Hollywood's other IPs, including Springfield U.S.A., based on "The Simpsons," The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and Jurassic Park.
The Super Mario Bros.-themed land is the second of its kind in the world. Universal opened the first two years ago at its theme park in Japan.
And much like the one in Japan, the Super Nintendo World in Hollywood is like stepping inside the classic 1980s video game. It's truly an immersive experience.
The familiar game music sucks visitors inside as they walk into a green plumbing pipe. It's a nostalgia bomb.
Once visitors walk in, they are transported to the Mushroom Kingdom. There are interactive yellow question mark blocks where visitors can collect virtual coins through a power band. Yellow coins rotate on the lush green and brown landscape. Brown Goombas and Koopa turtles roam around, and piranha plants come out of green pipes.
For hardcore video game fans, they'll notice bullet bills and bombettes decorated in parts of the land. And, of course, the land offers meet-and-greets with star characters Mario, Luigi and Princess Peach.
"We wanted fans to be in the game," Abbye Finnan, show producer at Universal Studios Hollywood, told Spectrum News during the media preview Thursday. "We wanted our guests to feel like they are part of the game because here they are. They are the main characters of the game."
Visitors with power bands, costing $40, are tasked with saving the princess much like the video game. A series of challenges are littered throughout the land, where visitors can collect digital keys and must be done before moving on to another.
The power bands have six designs and, when synced with the Universal Studios Hollywood mobile application, enhance the interactive elements of the land. Visitors can "punch" certain yellow question mark blocks and collect digital coins. It keeps track of performance, especially for the land's main attraction, Mario Kart: Bowser's Challenge.
The attraction is based on Nintendo's popular Mario Kart video game franchise, which has sold more than 165 million units since debuting in 1992. The new ride incorporates augmented reality and projection mapping technology, making riders feel like they are racing throughout Bowser's castle. Visitors hop on four-seat vehicles and don AR goggles as they navigate Bowser's race course inside the castle.
"You are in the game," said Finnan. "Here, you want to be able to play, and some brilliant minds were able to gamify some of these attractions."
Finnan added different outcomes depend on the performance of the rider.
The land also features a fun-themed cafe. Fans can dine on Super Mushroom Soup, Piranha Plant Caprese, Mario Bacon Cheeseburgers or Princess Peach Cupcakes in a Super Mario Bros.-themed dining hall.
"Not only does the food and drink have to look great but taste great," said Julia Thrash, vice president, culinary and executive chef at Universal Studios.
For Finnan, the land is a great way to introduce a new generation of kids and fans to the Nintendo universe.
"It's surreal," she said of the land. Universal and Nintendo designed it.
She played Mario Kart as a kid and remembered playing Mario Party with her brother and cousins. She said Super Nintendo World is great family entertainment, much like the video game it's based on.
"The legacy of Nintendo allows adults, who grew up with it, to introduce it to their children if they haven't done so already," she said. "It's so popular and well known. It's a good family experience for all ages."