Nintendo and Universal Remind Us They’re Still Working on a Nintendo Theme Park

Woodbury also indicates that Nintendo will wind up in at least three of Universal’s four resorts, specifically mentioning Orlando, Hollywood and Osaka. Beyond that, this video mostly just serves to, again, remind us that this is happening, and also to reiterate that Nintendo is collaborating on Universal with whatever is being cooked up. It does give us a glimpse at some nice-looking physical props from the world of Super Mario; whether these Mushroom Kingdom recreations are mock-ups for a themed environment, potential props for a Mario ride, or just stuff Nintendo has laying around from decades of trade show booths is unclear. It does reinforce the obvious, that Mario will be a heavy presence in whatever the two create; news reports out of Japan earlier this year indicated that the Nintendo area in Universal Studios Japan would be entirely based on Mario, with no Zelda, Metroid or Pokémon, which would be surprising, but at least ensure thematic unity throughout the area. Those same Japanese news reports said that the Osaka expansion would open in 2020, which, if that holds out, would basically guarantee that Nintendo’s first theme park experience will open in Japan before America—which is as it should be. As any videogame fan knows, localization takes time.