高科技渗透主题公园，让游客兴趣大增

全球大型主题公园运营商并没有专注于突破娱乐设施建造的速度、高度和刺激程度，而是希望通过加大对科技的投资力度，源源不断地吸引宾客前来游玩。

在不久的将来，各大运营商将专注于沉浸式体验、面部识别和虚拟现实来实现这个数十亿美元行业的增长。同时，运营商们也不得不对自家公园进行创新和大刀阔斧的改造，以紧跟父母、青少年和孩子们不断变化的兴趣，并为那些不大愿意在公园待一整天的游客提供更加灵活的游玩方案。

以下是该行业主流运营商们正在计划或考虑的内容：

关键在于沉浸式体验

今年，华特迪士尼在推出《星战：银河之翼》主题公园之后，业绩似乎不怎么理想。但作为2018年最大的主题公园运营商（国际娱乐公园和名胜协会称，其运营利润达到了45亿美元），这家以米老鼠发家的企业将重点放在了公园内外的沉浸式、个性化体验方面。

Halcyon是一家以《星战》为主题的 “星际巡航舰”式酒店，它将通过两晚沉浸式的酒店体验，把宾客从奥兰多带到想象中的遥远异世界。

与搭乘邮轮一样，宾客将一起抵达和离开酒店，并有机会利用大部分的时间参与众多可看可玩的活动。迪士尼正在努力让游客在进入战舰的那一刻起便融入星战宇宙。在走进一个模拟的太空舱（装有众多屏幕的入口电梯）之后，宾客将被传送至其星际巡航舰。

登舰之后的活动有光剑格斗、飞行员培训、主题餐饮，以及与主要角色互动等等。而且每一个客舱都拥有不断变化的太空景观。

想要加入光明还是黑暗力量？这一点取决于游客。

华特迪士尼想象工程的执行制作人兼创意总监安·莫洛·约翰逊在8月的D23声明中说：“一定要记住你加入的是哪一方。你的选择将影响旅程的经历，并最终决定个人星战故事的发展方向。”

这一切都将在游客的入住期间上演，甚至会出现在巴图星球（也就是迪士尼好莱坞影城的银河之翼）一日游的旅程当中。

迪士尼还宣布在艾伯卡特中心的Mission: Space馆中设立太空主题餐厅，它将于今年冬天面世，名为Space 220。这个几乎已经脱离了这个世界的餐厅将把踌躇满志的宇航员送入距离地球表面220英里的太空站。

这个餐厅使用了与星际巡航舰太空舱入口和房间类似的科技，它将为宾客展现太空站的全景图，以及地球的白昼和夜晚景观，宾客仿佛置身于星空之中。

灵活的门票和面部识别

在城市的另一边，奥兰多环球影城正在努力打造其第三处景观：环球史诗宇宙，这是该地区20多年来的首个全新主题公园（迪士尼的动物王国于1998年开业）。

该主题公园占地750英亩，预计将在2023年营业，并使环球的印记扩大近两倍。该公园也将专注于采用沉浸式体验。

在美银美林银行于今年9月召开的会议上，环球公园与度假村的董事长兼首席执行官汤姆·威廉姆斯表示，新公园将成为“公司有史以来打造的最具沉浸性和最为创新的主题公园。”

尽管环球在最初做出这一宣布之后便没有透露更多的消息，但在其发布的效果图中，我们明显可以看到这个巨大的公园有着四个独立的园区。

Instead of rides that push the limits of speed, heights, and thrills, the world’s largest theme park operators are hoping a big investment in technology will keep luring guests through their gates.

Immersive experiences, facial recognition, and virtual reality are being leaned on heavily in the near future to grow the multibillion-dollar industry, with operators forced to innovate and reinvent themselves to keep up with the ever-evolving interests of parents, teens, and tykes—and offer more flexible options for those who don’t necessarily want to spend an entire day at a park.

Here’s what the big players in the space have planned or are considering:

It’s all about immersion

Walt Disney might have seen some woes with the launch of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge this year. But as the No. 1 theme park operator in 2018 (with $4.5 billion in operational profits, per the International Association of Amusement Parks & Attractions), the Mouse House is emphasizing immersive, personalized adventures both inside and outside its parks.

The Star Wars–themed Galactic Starcruiser hotel, named the Halcyon, will transport guests from Orlando to an immersive two-night hotel experience that feels far, far away.

Much like being on a cruise ship, guests will arrive together and depart together and have the option to have much of their time programmed with a multitude of things to see and do. Disney is working to make guests feel like part of the Star Wars universe from the moment they arrive. Stepping into a simulated space pod (a heavily screened entrance elevator), guests will be whisked away to their Starcruiser.

Upon arrival, activities “onboard” will include lightsaber battles, pilot training, themed dinners, major character interactions, and more. Each guest cabin will feature ever-evolving “views” into space.

Light or Dark side of the Force? That will be up to visitors.

“Be wary of who you make allegiances with,” Ann Morrow Johnson, executive producer and creative director of Walt Disney Imagineering, said at its D23 announcement in August. “The choices you make affect the course of your journey and ultimately determines how your Star Wars story unfolds.”

This will play out during visitors’ stays and even in day-trip excursions to the planet of Batuu, a.k.a. Disney’s Hollywood Studios’ Galaxy’s Edge.

Disney has also announced a space-themed restaurant inside Epcot’s Mission: Space pavilion coming this winter called Space 220. This almost literally out-of-this-world eatery will launch aspiring astronauts to a space station 220 miles above Earth.

Using technology similar to the Starcruiser’s space pod entrance and rooms, this restaurant will provide panoramic views of the space station along with day and night views of Earth for patrons to feel as though they’re amongst the stars.

Flexible tickets and facial recognition

Across town, Universal Studios Orlando is hard at work on its third gate, Universal’s Epic Universe—the first brand-new theme park in the area in over 20 years (Disney’s Animal Kingdom launched in 1998).

Expected to open in 2023, this 750-acre development will nearly double Universal’s presence and will also focus on the immersive approach.

At a Bank of America Merrill Lynch conference in September, Tom Williams, chairman and CEO for Universal Parks & Resorts, said the new area will be “the most immersive and innovative theme park we have ever created.”

While Universal itself has been fairly quiet since its initial announcement, a giant park with four distinct lands is evident in its released renderings.

该公园还将设有一个主入口区域，类似于环球影城的城市步行街。该区域将拥有餐饮、购物和一家新酒店（这是首家与环球影城主题公园“相连”的酒店）。该地区将扮演枢纽站的角色，从而将宾客分别输送至四个新的园区。

尽管销售包含四个区域的通票似乎已成定局，但公园专家建议环球还应该单独销售每个园区的“子门票”。这样便可以为游客提供一种定制感，同时也能够为只希望在某个园区短暂游玩，并体验餐饮和其他娱乐设施的当地人提供更多的机会。此举可以让宾客像用餐和看电影那样游玩主题公园，而不是必须在里面待一整天的时间。

与此同时，环球在中国的30亿美元项目——北京环球影城——将于2021年开业。公司在10月下旬宣布：该影城将采用面部识别技术。该技术的所有者是电商巨头阿里巴巴，它将通过扫描客户的面部来确认客户是否已经支付入园门票。中国已经在地铁和机场安装了面部识别设备。

尽管美国机场在很久之前已经开始使用类似的技术来协助安全检查，但当Ticketmaster和Live Nation试图在音乐会中使用类似技术时，音乐迷们对此颇有微词。

我们并不清楚这项技术是否会在全美主题公园推广。环球拒绝对这一愿景置评，而只是简单地回答道：“我们将及时发布有关环球史诗宇宙的更多信息。”

尽管Super Nintendo World（以任天堂游戏为背景的园区——译者注）进驻奥兰多的史诗宇宙似乎已成定局，但日本环球影城的任天堂主题园区将在2020年抢先运营（在最为重要的夏季奥运会开幕之前），并将提供主题公园较为少见的竞技元素。

主题园区第一期将建造桃子公主城堡和两个游乐设施：超级马里奥赛车和耀西的冒险。

威廉姆斯在9月的会议上解释道：“整个园区都是互动的。游客将获得一个手带，上面印有大大的红色马里奥标志，是全磁的，即便拿手拍都不会掉。宾客可以不断成长，保留得分，并参加各类游戏，而参加游戏的时候也可以启动积分保留功能，如果你在娱乐实施中做出这个选择，那么它实际上会与你的游戏主机进行互动。”

此举能够让热衷于游戏的宾客不断地回园游玩，并有可能通过其任天堂 Switch设备或任天堂未来发布的主机积累分数和成就。

虚拟现实已死

2016年，日本环球影城和英格兰Alton Towers启动了虚拟现实狂热过山车项目，并期待其将成为公园今后一大热门娱乐设施。

Six Flags、Sea World以及全球十几家主题公园运营商在2017年和2018年纷纷效仿，并将其作为一种改造老旧过山车的低成本方式，从而给人一种耳目一新的感觉。

但效果并不理想。

这类过山车要求乘客必须佩戴VR眼镜，因此也引发了一系列问题，例如更长的等待时间、技术市场的不断变化、耗时的消毒流程，以及游客会产生重复感。

2019年，仅有少数主题公园还在使用这一技术，最著名的便是乐高乐园的Great Lego Race 虚拟现实过山车和日本环球影城的“梦幻太空之旅”这一季节性的室内过山车体验，其中的内容包括鲁邦三世和最终幻想。

有鉴于此，VR的未来到底在何方？

迪士尼已经决定将虚拟现实技术放在主题公园之外的迪士尼综合区和迪士尼之泉购物区。

借助与混合现实公司The Void合作，宾客可戴上VR头戴设备，手持爆破枪，进入《Wreck-It》、《星战》，以及刚刚宣布的漫威《复仇者》主题体验的虚拟世界。

借助The Void的设置，让宾客可通过探访不同的房间与环境互动，并加入团队挑战，从而真正融入故事。乐高乐园将把静止版的Great Lego Race虚拟现实过山车搬到商场中，从而让宾客感受一下主题公园能够给他们带来的体验。

在这两家看来，VR这种手段不仅能够提升其现有公园的乐趣，而且还可以通过不同的新方式来吸引粉丝群。

尽管虚拟现实可能会迅速淡出主题公园的世界，但专家们预计增强现实，例如《星战：银河之翼》不断改进的DataPad应用程序所提供的内容，将很快成为整个体验的重要组成部分，而且它也为全球各大主题公园的提升提供了一个简便、低成本的方式。（财富中文网）

译者：冯丰

审校：夏林

The park will also feature one main entrance area—similar to Universal’s City Walk—showcasing dining, shopping, and a new hotel (the first hotel to be “attached” to a park for Universal Studios). This area will act as a hub that will funnel guests to the four new areas separately.

While a master ticket for the four lands seems inevitable, park experts have proposed Universal will offer a “micro ticket” to each of the separate lands. This could give a customized feel for visitors while also enabling locals more of a chance to spend just a few hours inside the park accompanied by dining or other entertainment. It could allow guests to treat the themed lands similar to dinner and a movie, as opposed to an all-day adventure.

Meanwhile, China’s $3-billion-plus development—Universal Studios Beijing—set to open in 2021, announced at the end of October: Universal’s foray into facial-recognition technology. The technology is owned by Chinese online giant Alibaba and will scan guests’ faces to determine if they’ve paid for entry or not. China already has facial-recognition devices in place for its subways and airports.

Though U.S. airports have been using similar technology for a while now to help with security, when Ticketmaster and Live Nation tried to implement something similar for concerts it did not go over well with music fans.

It’s not clear if the technology will come to theme parks stateside just yet. Universal declined to comment about the prospect, stating simply, “We will have more to announce on Universal’s Epic Universe in due time.”

While it seems inevitable Super Nintendo World will anchor Orlando’s Epic Universe, Universal Studios Japan will get the debut first in 2020 (prior to the all-important Summer Olympics) with some elements of gaming relatively new to parks.

The first phase will have Princess Peach’s Castle and two rides: Super Mario Kart and Yoshi’s Adventures.

“The whole land [will be] interactive. You are going to have a wristband that’s got the big red Mario symbol on it. It’s all magnetic. You slap it at your wrist, and it won’t come off,” Williams elaborated during September’s conference. “You will be able to go up and keep score and play with various games. That also translates to score-keeping capability, if you choose to do so within the rides, and it actually interfaces back with your game console.”

This will allow gamer-minded guests to come back again and again, building on their scores and achievements presumably via their Nintendo Switch or future consoles from Nintendo.

VR is dead

In 2016, Universal Studios Japan and England’s Alton Towers kicked off the virtual reality roller coaster craze to what was expected to be the next hot ticket for theme parks.

Six Flags, Sea World, and dozens of other park operators across the world followed suit in 2017 and 2018 mainly as a low-cost way to reinvent older coasters and make it feel new.

It didn’t take off.

Mandatory VR headsets for these roller coasters often came with a set of issues like much longer wait times paired with an ever-evolving tech market, time consuming sanitation woes, and feelings of repetition for guests.

In 2019 only a handful remain, most notably Legoland’s the Great Lego Race VR Coaster and Universal Japan’s seasonal offerings of its Space Fantasy indoor coaster featuring properties likes Lupin the 3rd and Final Fantasy.

So, where does this leave the future of VR?

Disney has decided to leave VR right outside the parks in its Downtown Disney and Disney Springs locations.

Partnering with mixed-reality company The Void, guests can don VR headsets and grab blasters to enter the virtual worlds of Wreck-It Ralph, Star Wars, and the just-announced Marvel’s Avengers–themed experiences.

The Void setup allows guests to truly be part of the story by allowing them to walk around and explore different rooms, interact with environments, and take on team challenges. Legoland is taking a stationary version of its Great Lego Race VR coaster to malls for guests to get a taste of what they can experience at their parks.

Both seem to see VR as a way to drum up excitement for their already existing properties and engage their fan bases in new ways.

And while virtual reality might be quickly fading from the theme parks scene, experts expect augmented reality, like what Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge’s ever-evolving DataPad app has introduced, to soon become a bigger part of the overall experience as an easy, low cost, (and optional) enhancement for parks around the globe.