Mario Kart: Bowser's Challenge - General Discussion

[Freak]

Drove down to LA today to try out SNW. Land is so cool, teared up a little bit when I walked in. Its borderline overwhelming.

As for the Mario Kart Ride, it was...completely fine to me. I rode it about 2 times. Queue is even better irl, pre-show is butttt, ride is fun. The physical setpieces are amazing, best part of the ride. The AR didn't feel as different as I thought it'd feel irl, but its still really impressive tech. Sometimes I did feel that reality blur...but at the same time, I cared more about the dark ride part than the game part. I found the AR a bit overwhelming at times, even on the second ride. Its absolute chaos, but its definitely a different kind of chaos from the games. The Mario Kart games are organized chaos, while this just felt like pure chaos. My partner liked it a little more than me, but she too felt it was very overwhelming. I'm not ADD, but it was a little too much going on for me.


Is this how I would had made a Mario Kart ride? Certainly not.

Is it fun? Yeah, its cool. The tech on display is stunning and the dark ride is great. But I'm definitely not in love.


Edit: I greatly appreciate and am highly impressed with the tech of the ride, but idk if I love the ride itself. Maybe I need more rides.

I can totally see this and kinda felt this way my first time tbh. I wanted to focus more on the dark ride aspect but there was a LOT going on with the AR. While I wanted to take everything in around me I was smacked with “TURN LEFT NOW! RIGHT! LEFT! YOU GOT TURTLE SHELLS NOW!! SHOOT THEM! NO NOT AT TOAD!!” It was very overwhelming for me as well but after a second ride it kinda grew in me and was able to enjoy it for what it was.

 

[Pacific]

I can totally see this and kinda felt this way my first time tbh. I wanted to focus more on the dark ride aspect but there was a LOT going on with the AR. While I wanted to take everything in around me I was smacked with “TURN LEFT NOW! RIGHT! LEFT! YOU GOT TURTLE SHELLS NOW!! SHOOT THEM! NO NOT AT TOAD!!” It was very overwhelming for me as well but after a second ride it kinda grew in me and was able to enjoy it for what it was.

I definitely kind of enjoyed it, just didnt fall in love. This is going to sound absolutely insane, but I think I sort of prefer Toy Story Mania. I like how I can completey focus on the competitive game aspect (along with the surprising forces from the movement and spinning of the ride vehicles. Seriously, that ride has some crazy whip to it that I absolutely love haha).

Something to consider: alot of people coming to this land are only going to get to ride this attraction once. It seems that for a good amount of people, this is an attraction that kind of has to grow on you. For alot, that wont happen as they simply won't have enough time in the day.

I think the DK coaster is going to be more of a slam dunk.

 

[Jerroddragon]

I went it on today with AR and without

I love dark rides so I like without AR more, only place its not as magically is rainbow road and maybe Luigi's mansion but having the glasses off lets yoo see wayyyyyy more details I didn't see the green hills around you in the first area and also never saw the Red signs (with yellow outline) until now. I think when playing the games your eyes are doing too many things to see most the ride, so for fun try it without and see which you prefer.

 

[Rideguy70]

So for those talking about the loading times... I can see a world down the line where this attraction gets a major update to make loading faster as with so many people investing in it now, the technology is advancing rapidly. But what you guys are using on that ride is still the future.

Here's the design of Apple's AR Glasses that are going to be coming this year for example. Slim and easy to put on by consumer standards, but bulky compared to the MK AR glasses.

The just shown off at CES 2023 HTC Vive XR Elite glasses are also small by consumer standards, take on a bit of a sunglasses approach and sort of Ready Player One-ish, but still, extremely bulky compared to the MK ones.

The point is, the loading times may be slower than you'd want, but this ride is giving guests a chance to experience AR in a way they won't be able to at home for years and years to come with how slim it looks and themed to Mario's hat on top of it. This ride is well ahead of it's time.

I suspect the Apple AR glasses wouldn't be so comfortable for those of us who already have to wear prescription glasses.

 

[Jerroddragon]

As long as they comfortably can fit with glasses then I'm all in

But if they dont, I'll just ride it without AR. Without my glasses it would mostly be colorful blurs but rather see the details of the ride

Also you can pick up a no AR ticket at the same area as others are picking up an AR headset and give the ticket to the people at the end of the ride collecting the AR tech as you exit

 

[Nick]

I suspect the Apple AR glasses wouldn't be so comfortable for those of us who already have to wear prescription glasses.

We’ll, no consumer headsets are comfortable using glasses currently. I only use AR/VR if I’m wearing contacts, although there are prescription lenses that can usually be purchased so neither contacts or physical glasses need to be worn.

 

[ParkExplorer9513]

I think we need to address a serious elephant in the room here: the size of the seats on this ride.

Spoiler

The seats are about 40" wide, from what I've heard. That is smaller than the standard waist size of over 66% of Americans. This is not very accommodating at all, and it feels really exclusionary to the Wario-sized. I understand this isn't as big an issue in Japan, since people tend to be smaller and slimmer overall over there, but it's a much bigger problem here. I guess I got lucky, since I wear size 38 pants and shorts, but the seat still felt kinda small on me. I seriously hope this is addressed when it heads to Orlando for Epic Universe.

I have a friend who used to be a team member over in Florida, and he tells me that the weight-size problem was addressed at every team member town hall every time. According to him, there were 15,000 complaints about weight accommodations and ride seat sizes last year, and it seems Universal hasn't listened at all. It honestly feels like they don't wanna spend the extra money to accomodate the Warios among us in size; heck, them not caring since weight by itself isn't a body condition protected by the AWDA makes them look fatphobic, and that is NOT a good look in this country. I will definitely address this to Guest Services in a complaint next time I go.

Okay, rant over.

 

[Jerroddragon]

I do wish the rides could fit bigger guests, because size should have nothing to do with this ride.

I've brought dates to USH or sea world (yeah Manta isn't size friendly) and some rides you just can't get on but at least for them they never blamed the ride because they knew at their weight there would be some restrictions but in terms of Pets and Mario Kart....there is zero reasons to exclude people compared to Manta which is a coaster and has safely issues.

Also speaking as someone who lost a lot of weight, if this in any way motivates you to walk more, eat less snack and exercise then I hope anyone who can't fit on the ride now can have a goal for the next year. I can tell you I've never felt better then after getting into exercise, I don't need as much sleep, I am full of energy all the time. So that my hope as well is people who can't ride now make a goal to get on the ride in the future

 

[joerodriguez]

Mondo from Five Fires is a pretty big dude, but he was still able to get on the ride easily. Perhaps Universal adjusted the size of the seats here stateside to accomadate the larger guests.

 

[salismetho]

Looking at the app, 40” seems to be the size they list for every single ride that requires a test seat even though I’m sure these seats are more accommodating than SLoP. Agreed though, this continues to be the weak point of most Universal attractions which is a real shame

 

[Alicia]

I was under the assumption that they were similar to MiB, which can feel a little cramped if you're seated with other larger folks in the same row as you, but otherwise still doable. The restraints are different I understand, but the seat width seems similar to MiB, no?

Looking at the app, 40” seems to be the size they list for every single ride that requires a test seat even though I’m sure these seats are more accommodating than SLoP. Agreed though, this continues to be the weak point of most Universal attractions which is a real shame

Yea it could be a catch-all term maybe

 

[OrlandoGuy]

Yea it could be a catch-all term maybe

It is…the waist isn’t usually the thing that doesn’t fit in a Universal ride, but when evaluating the chest sizes, leg lengths, etc. that have a tough time, 40” waist is a nice median. Plus more people know that than their other measurements.

 

[Stryker]

The back row has more leg room so if you're a taller/bigger person or carrying a large backpack, request the back row.

 

[Alicia]

It is…the waist isn’t usually the thing that doesn’t fit in a Universal ride, but when evaluating the chest sizes, leg lengths, etc. that have a tough time, 40” waist is a nice median. Plus more people know that than their other measurements.

My waist is definitely not my problem. When I first rode Hagrid's I almost didnt get the green light on the sidecard because of my thighs. I am happy to report I have lost a little bit of weight since then and had no trouble getting green yesterday though, but on opening day after waiting 6 hours for the ride to open it would have been a bummer to be turned away, so I get it.

The back row has more leg room so if you're a taller/bigger person or carrying a large backpack, request the back row.

I always request any row but first on Gringotts for this reason. My legs do not fit well in the first rows of the cars. The stadium seating on rides like this mean taller people fit better in the back for sure!

 

[PerceptiveCoot]

I can't speak to the size issue, but how is the ride on the aching knees of a very tall guy?

 

[salismetho]

I can't speak to the size issue, but how is the ride on the aching knees of a very tall guy?

I'm not particularly tall, but the legroom, especially in the back, is really pretty good. Not at all like SLoP

 

[Evan]

From what I’ve heard online from bigger guests who have ridden, it is more accommodating then restrictive rides, and more accommodating then SLOP. 40” does appear to be a catch all; and likely a cautious number.

 

[Jerroddragon]

I can't speak to the size issue, but how is the ride on the aching knees of a very tall guy?

6 foot and an my friend is 6,2 and no issues

 

[SailwiththeTide]

Lots of bigger people can tide Mario Kart where they can’t ride pets. So it is an issue that universal continues to ignore but not as big of an issue as SLOP. I did personally see a person get off the ride because they didn’t fit.

I think we need to address a serious elephant in the room here: the size of the seats on this ride.

Spoiler

The seats are about 40" wide, from what I've heard. That is smaller than the standard waist size of over 66% of Americans. This is not very accommodating at all, and it feels really exclusionary to the Wario-sized. I understand this isn't as big an issue in Japan, since people tend to be smaller and slimmer overall over there, but it's a much bigger problem here. I guess I got lucky, since I wear size 38 pants and shorts, but the seat still felt kinda small on me. I seriously hope this is addressed when it heads to Orlando for Epic Universe.

I have a friend who used to be a team member over in Florida, and he tells me that the weight-size problem was addressed at every team member town hall every time. According to him, there were 15,000 complaints about weight accommodations and ride seat sizes last year, and it seems Universal hasn't listened at all. It honestly feels like they don't wanna spend the extra money to accomodate the Warios among us in size; heck, them not caring since weight by itself isn't a body condition protected by the AWDA makes them look fatphobic, and that is NOT a good look in this country. I will definitely address this to Guest Services in a complaint next time I go.

Okay, rant over.

 

[Steptwice]

Sorry but People who are a bit bigger cannot expect companies to accommodate them when they design these rides to accommodate probably around 85% plus of the average guest. I mean if they had to keep accommadating bigger guest, where do they draw the line?! It is what it is and it should be motivation for anyone who cannot ride, to try to do what they can to eventually fit. Sorry not sorry