This is also posted in the Nintendo thread, but I don't want it to be buried in the discussion over there. This weekend, I brainstormed what a Mario dark ride could be, and this is what I came up with. If it's liked enough, I'll make a 3D model of it with a virtual ride-through. Disclaimer: I'm not a great artist. I just wanted to illustrate my ideas so they would be easier to understand.
It’s called
Super Mario Adventure, and it’s a dark ride that takes riders through many recognizable environments from the Super Mario games. The entire collection of Mario games involves many themes, but the central theme is heroism: how a modest, stubby, everyday plumber can save the day. This is precisely the theme that should exude from a Super Mario E-ticket attraction.
It would use a new ride vehicle I’m calling “Scoop Lite”. Essentially it’s the Cat in the Hat ride vehicle, but slightly larger (still two rows of three) and it has a motion base. This should provide a thrilling experience but still accommodate most of the family (~36” height requirement).
Here’s the story of the attraction [When explaining anything technical, I will use these brackets. Scenes are designated as symbols on the image below and correspond to symbols in the description.]
Princess Peach is having a party at her castle, and everyone in Mushroom Kingdom is invited. The castle stands bright and proud surveying the rest of Mushroom Kingdom, and the central bridge leads straight to the castle doors.
Guests are beckoned to
(A) the neighboring courtyard [The entrance to the attraction is offset like Escape from Gringotts to make photo ops easier] where trees, garden creatures, and a mushroom fountain offer a warm reception. After meandering the winding courtyard path, guests enter the castle into a small room with columns standing high and mushroom banners all around.
The next room is
(B) a towering rotunda with a brilliant sun-shaped stained glass ceiling that shines its colors onto the guests below [Depending on its need, there is
(C) an overflow queue that leads outside where there are more stone columns and banners]. The rotunda leads into
(D) Toadstool Hall, Princess Peach’s main court. Here, columns lead to mezzanines on either side of the court, and royal banners adorn the walls. At the far end of the hall,
Toad [animatronic] greets guests and ushers them into a small passage, presumably to the banquet hall.
The winding passage leads to
(E) a library, where we see
Mario [animatronic], but something is wrong. Just beyond Mario is a window, through which we see
Bowser in an airship, and he has stolen the princess [The window is actually transparent. Behind the window is a screen showing Bowser, Peach, and the airship]! Guests follow another passage into
(F) a portrait hall showing paintings of recognizable environments: grassy, water, snowy, haunted, and lava. At the end of the hall is (G) the gallery, where riders board carriages to help Mario rescue Princess Peach.
The carriage sets off into the gallery and rotates to face
(1) three portraits of Princess Peach in different styles, but as the carriage passes the paintings, they morph to show Bowser. As the carriage passes the last painting, riders hear the distant, echoing cackle of Bowser. The carriage faces forward again, but there is a dead end. However, in the pathway of the carriage, sits a single
Bob-omb with a sparked fuse. The Bob-omb suddenly bursts and the carriage is blasted into the blue sky, through the smiling clouds and careens into a familiar grassy environment [The dead end and Bob-omb are real, but the small set moves out of sight at the blast. Strobes and smoke hide the set’s movement and its replacement with a screen. Animation shows flying through clouds and then falling. When the vehicle “hits the ground”, it physically spins, and the screen quickly slides away to reveal the set].
[Fun music starts playing] The carriage continues forward through
(2) the hills of Mushroom Kingdom. Covering the hills are several
Goombas and
Koopa Troopas. Some of the creatures try bumping the carriage, and the carriage lurches back. As the carriage turns a corner, riders can see Mario atop a set of
? Blocks, fighting some Goombas with
fireballs [Mario animatronic doing the fireball motion, Musion effect with fireball and Goombas. This set of ? blocks is anchored to a wall painted to look like a cartoon sky. A separate set of ? blocks would be halved and anchored onto a large mirror, creating the illusion of floating and making the scene appear larger. The vehicle transitions to a screen].
The carriage turns to face a
Chain Chomp, which in turn faces the carriage. The Chain Chomp chomps its teeth twice before lurching towards the carriage and knocking it straight into the path of a
Bullet Bill. This sends the carriage splashing into a nearby lake. The carriage swims past a school of
Cheep Cheeps and riders see Mario narrowly missing a
Blooper before resurfacing [Vehicle leaves screen]. The carriage drives onto a snowy shore into
(3) an ice cave. Riders see Mario on an iceberg carrying a baby penguin. Above, a flying
Shy Guy is attacking. On a nearby icy shore is the
Mama Penguin, crying out to her baby. The carriage passes glowing ice crystals before slipping on the icy floor [Vehicle starts spinning. Transitions to screen].
The carriage dashes down an icy slide. Mario bounces into view just ahead of the carriage. The carriage slips and spins and spirals down the slide, Mario shouting all the while, until a long drop leads to a ramp off the end into near darkness. The carriage begins falling and crashes through the roof of
(4) a mansion [Vehicle leaves screen].
The carriage turns to face a mirror hanging on the wall. Riders see themselves for a brief moment before the laugh of a
Boo can be heard, and riders can see the Boo fade into view behind the carriage. The carriage spins to face the Boo, and it fades away [Boo is a simple animatronic illuminated from the inside. Interior illumination dims when the vehicle spins. This will also help to conceal the mechanics allowing Boo to float]. The carriage passes a staircase where Mario is standing, shivering, with a flashlight. The carriage travels into another room with several familiar-looking pipes. The carriage rounds a corner, and a
Piranha Plant begins striking the carriage [Piranha Plant would likely be a KUKA animatronic. Vehicle passes to screen].
The carriage enters a dark room, but lightning striking in a nearby window shows a dilapidated wooden floor. The carriage cautiously presses forward. The floor creaks with every move. Suddenly, riders hear a loud sound of snapping wood and the carriage falls through the floor, into a giant hole in the earth into
(5) an underground lava world [Vehicle leaves screen].
The carriage turns to face a large volcano with a lava moat surrounding it. The carriage dips down to face the moat. A few
Lava Bubbles float above the moat. One of the Bubbles approaches the carriage and riders feel the heat of the Bubble near them. The carriage spins around, and riders see Mario hanging off of the edge of a platform, just feet above lava and a
Dry Bones looking down on him [Foreboding music starts to play]. The carriage quickly zips around a corner [Vehicle passes to screen] to
(6) a large platform suspended over lava.
Mario flips into view in front of the carriage (“Mamma Mia!”). High above the platform, riders see Bowser’s airship and Peach, begging for help. Bowser jumps down from the airship with a great crash holding a turtle shell in each hand. Bowser throws one straight at Mario, and the other at the carriage. Mario jumps and flips to avoid them as they ricochet off the platform edges while the carriage zips around to avoid them as well. The carriage narrowly misses a shell and stops in brief relief just as the other shell smashes into it, sending it spinning [Vehicle passes to next screen].
The carriage recovers from the hit and riders see Mario and Bowser locked in combat. Mario scores an effective hit on Bowser, knocking him down next to the carriage. Bowser notices, and breathes a steady stream of fire sweeping towards them. The carriage slides to the side as the fire inches closer. Frustrated that he missed, Bowser knocks Mario away and then picks up the carriage and throws it towards the lava [Vehicle passes to next screen].
Luckily, the carriage lands on one of a set of small platforms just above the lava. Bowser jumps down just a few platforms away, but he starts leaping from platform to platform, ready to finish the job. He gets one platform away when the airship comes into view, with Mario at the wheel. Peach tosses the carriage a lifesaver while Mario tosses Bowser a Bob-omb. The airship races into the air, carriage in tow, just as the Bob-omb bursts. The airship soars over a sea of lava to a rocky shore and dives into a single pipe [Vehicle leaves screen].
The carriage arrives at
(7) Peach’s party, and there are several recognizable characters in attendance. At the front of the hall, riders see Peach giving Mario a medal. All of the party guests clap in celebration. The carriage passes back into the gallery.