Tha Realest
Well-Known Member
My mid-40’s wife spent countless hours of her life playing the original Mario game for the NES, and has seen about an hour or two of the HP films
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News Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser Permanently Closed Fall 2023
- Thread starter DCBaker
- Start date
flynnibus
Premium Member
Congrats - do you believe your wife is prototypical of the vast majority of the population in this regard?
flynnibus
Premium Member
That's fine - that's a difference in being convinced or not. But that's different from thinking it's 'weird' to point out that the appeal of a property on different family members is a significant topic.
James Alucobond
Well-Known Member
What I think is weird is the singling out of women when Mario is fairly genre-agnostic (appears in platformers, party games, role-playing games, racers, sports simulators, puzzle games, etc.). Sure, women may not be as drawn to mainline Mario games, but they are much more drawn to Nintendo as a brand than to most other game publishers, and they have some series where the audience is in fact majority female. Most of the women I know in their 30s and 40s are very familiar with Mario, Pokemon, Animal Crossing, Zelda, and other Nintendo-owned franchises even if they don't actively play them.
SamusAranX
Well-Known Member
Man oh man. I know it’s niche but a Metroid attraction would have me mortgaging my home to get into the USO/IOA/EU park.
In fact, they could easily refurb MiB:AA to a Metroid shooter. Easily gets Nintendo into USO.
If you’ll excuse me I need to type some emails up
In fact, they could easily refurb MiB:AA to a Metroid shooter. Easily gets Nintendo into USO.
If you’ll excuse me I need to type some emails up
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Wendy Pleakley
Well-Known Member
I'm confused by where this thread is at. Would the StarCruiser had done better with Dumbledore or Toad as the captain? What is going on?
flynnibus
Premium Member
Again... context is RELATIVE TO HARRY POTER - not just general awareness or popularity of Nintendo vs Activision or any other game company.
And the truth is it was a male dominated space for decades - sad but true. Yes, since the era of the Wii and DS the brand inclusion has been far wider... and retro is cool now. But it doesn't change how broad, both male and female, and up and down the age scale that HP was, and so uniquely so. We're comparing to a juggernaut here, not "how popular is Nintendo in general?".
Just walk into any universal store these days and compare the size of the two sections dedicated in the store. And why Uni is building even MORE HP space after they already have two unique HP lands.
UNI has two Nintendo lands already... have they shifted the entire Theme Park world like HP did?
John park hopper
Well-Known Member
My daughter in law is a big Star Wars fan and had planned on staying at the hotel BUT the cost They will be going to Universal instead -she's a big Harry Potter fan as well. I can see why the hotel is closing --Big miscalculation Disney.
LSLS
Well-Known Member
I think I agree with you. The only reason I say think, is I just don't know what the appeal levels are. If HP appeals to all people in 75 families, and Nintendo appeals some or most people in 100 families, does that make one bigger than the other (and that's assuming Nintendo is a bigger overall audience, which I'm not sure if it's the case).
But, I will say I do agree with some others that point out I think you are putting more stock in what one parent prefers over the kids. I had 0 desire to see Barbie, while there were other movies I'd like to see. Guess which one I saw? Same with vacations. I'd love a ski trip as I love skiing/snowboarding. I haven't been in a decade cause the idea scares my kid and wife.
The other interesting thing will be how families combine for it. It's not visiting Nintendo, it's visiting that PLUS HP. For someone like us who want to see HP, but haven't been able to justify the expense/trip for just that, Epic completely changes the game. Now there are multiple things we as a family are super excited to see.
Most people 50 and under have positive feelings about Nintendo, they may not be into playing every game but they're not going to be like "I heard Princess Peach was racist" or "Mario ruined my childhood." It's something cute that everybody knows about, like the Star Wars OT characters.
flynnibus
Premium Member
Sure you make the trip still or saw the movie. Let's say you bought your kid a piece of barbie merch. You're not going to buy barbie merch for you, who isn't into it. But if you were BOTH into the subject... don't you see how your patterns will change?
Don't you see how if you were BOTH into it, it's easier for someone to commit to picking that trip? Or how you might be more easily convinced to stay longer if it's something more in your group are interested in?
Parents always buy for their kids, do stuff for their kids, etc. But if you have a market that serves both parents AND kids... you have something special. It's why you may take your kid Legoland, but a family trip to Disney is a different ball of wax entirely. (and trust me... I'm a lego fan of a scale most rarely see).
And HP's broad appeal across ages and demographics along with the fantasy element of wishing you too could be in it... is a combination that makes HP such a strong property. And why UNI has invested so heavily in it and why it's merch sales are a monster.
I mean we don't really have to speculate much. These things have already been out in the market. HP was a seismic shift in the theme park world. UNI's nintendo lands have not been. Zelda, etc are going to be less mass market than Mario is. UNI's Mariolands have proven a bit too youth focused. What they do in EU should be interesting to see.
UNCgolf
Well-Known Member
This is part of why HP was so special. It grew fondness not just for those who were children at the time - but all ages.
Trust me, I'm one of the biggest gamer and Nintendo nerds you will find. I have so much gaming history and $$$ within arms reach of me right now. But know what? My wife doesn't care.... my parent's don't care... only about half my kids care. And this goes on and on and on across so many families.
Mario is HUGE - but Mario as a passion is still tied to certain demographics. HP is broader.
Heck, I'm wearing a National Video Game Museum shirt right now for crying out loud
For some reason people are unable to grasp that video games generally don't have the reach (especially in terms of individual engagement) of other forms of media. Gaming as a whole is a massive industry, but individual video game IPs, even the biggest ones, just don't reach nearly as many people as, e.g., a blockbuster film. The Super Mario Bros. movie was definitely a massive help regarding that specific IP, though, along with the general fact that it's been around for 40 years with dozens of dozens of games.
And I say that as someone who has played video games my entire life; I had an NES when I was like 5 and I've had a console from every generation since -- plus I play PC games too. It's not a knock on video games; it's just a statistical reality.
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Rich Brownn
Well-Known Member
Don't forget a multi-year series is coming to Max
James Alucobond
Well-Known Member
I mean, how are you defining "reach", and what are you basing that on? Mario Kart 8 sold around the same number of copies as Deathly Hallows, and for many people, "Nintendo" is synonymous with video games, comparable to "Kleenex" with facial tissue. The Mario movie has sold somewhere in the realm of 168 million tickets, whereas Sorcerer's Stone, the film with the highest ticket sales in the franchise, sold around 164 million. I don't disagree that the demographics are probably skewed in very different ways, but it feels like it has somewhat comparable reach if you're pulling in similar numbers.
All-time revenue as of 2021:
That Harry Potter happens to be particularly well-suited to a theme park experience does not mean that it necessarily has broader reach. The Mushroom Kingdom is simply not as compelling a place to visit, and related merchandise is not as diverse or intricate (and can mostly be picked up at your local Target to boot). HP has been insane for parks because Hogwarts, Hogsmeade, and Diagon Alley are places people want to go and experience. I may like Mario as a character, but I don't really care about what's over the next hemispherical hill.
...But I suppose this has gotten off topic. I'll leave it at that.
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Incomudro
Well-Known Member
My two cents: I'll be 60 in September.
I can't stand the look of Mario things.
Now... When my son's (now 21) were little, they went through a period of time when they liked it a lot.
If a Mario land existed when they were that age, there would have been a good chance my wife and I would have taken them just to watch them enjoy it.
But as for me, and as for now - no.
I can't stand the look of Mario things.
Now... When my son's (now 21) were little, they went through a period of time when they liked it a lot.
If a Mario land existed when they were that age, there would have been a good chance my wife and I would have taken them just to watch them enjoy it.
But as for me, and as for now - no.
Robbiem
Well-Known Member
Does anyone think that placing the starcruiser at WDW was a mistake. I get it was to use galaxies edge but did the location mean most people expected something different?
Would the idea have worked better in a standalone location like New York or Las Vegas and/or as a day experience rather than a hotel?
Would the idea have worked better in a standalone location like New York or Las Vegas and/or as a day experience rather than a hotel?
MagicHappens1971
Well-Known Member
I think without the Galaxy’s Edge excursion the product would be even less appealing to the masses and also would’ve required a much larger space with more “activity spaces”.
(Ive mentioned this a million times, but former crew member) If you have all that time just to walk around the “ship”, you realize How small it is.
