As Kotaku reported last year, Nintendo is coming to Universal Studios Japan. Today, the first details—namely, how large the Nintendo area will be, how much will be spent, and when it should be completed—have been made public.
According to Sankei News, forty billion yen (US$351 million) is being invested in this project with the deal getting finalized on Friday. The paper notes that this is similar to the large-scale investment Universal Studios made in the Harry Potter franchise with The Wizarding World of Harry Potter area.
Likewise, the Mario and co. themed area will be a healthy part of the park. Via Sankei News, the upcoming Nintendo-themed area is marked in red on the map below. The current Universal Studios Japan attractions areas are in green.
Currently, the future Nintendo area is used as an event space. It’s located on the left side of the main entrance gate. But, what can we expect?
“The immersive experiences will include major attractions at Universal’s theme parks and will feature Nintendo’s most famous characters and games,” an official release stated last year. It added that Universal theme parks will create “spectacular, dedicated experiences based on Nintendo’s wildly popular games, characters and worlds.”
The goal is to have the Nintendo section completed by 2020, when the Olympics will be held in Tokyo with the hope that visitors will also want to visit Universal Studios Japan in Osaka. No doubt they will.
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