From the moment Disney acquired Marvel, one of the most whispered-about rumors has been when will Disney start incorporating Marvel into their theme parks. And while Marvel’s area at Islands of Adventure is still the only place to go to get your fix for rides based on the House of Idea’s creations, this weekend Disney unveiled an installation in its Innoventions area of Tomorrowland at Disneyland to promote Iron Man 3, whetting the appetite for how cool it would be to hop off the Disneyland Monorail and interact with Marvel’s biggest properties.
Tucked away in a small area at the top of Innoventions, “Iron Man Tech Presented by Stark Industries” invites you to become Iron Man with an interactive AR simulator, shows off the screen-used Iron Man suits, and immerses you in the armory. Every iteration of the Iron Man armor we’ve seen so far, from the Mark I to the brand new Mark 42, is on display for you to get your picture on. And Paul Bettany’s dulcet tones fill you in on what you’re seeing as he returns to voice Jarvis specifically for the attraction. Check out our gallery of shots we got while we perused the merchandise:
As for getting your chance to say, “I am Iron Man”: The augmented reality simulator is about as close as you’re going to get without breaking your 401k into a million shattered dreams. Using a Microsoft Kinect camera connected to computers running proprietary software, the game armors you up into the Mark 42 suit from Iron Man 3 and then lets you run some fun diagnostics. You’ll get a chance to fire your repulsors, fly, and maybe even breakdance a little like we did:
We talked with one of the men responsible for the exhibit, Disney Imagineer Jay Dreves, asking Jay what the team wanted to bring to guests at Disneyland. “With this particular space,” he responded, “we knew a lot of people would want to play the game, but we wanted to create a space where anyone who wanted to come see the suits would get plenty of eye candy. It’s typically something you wouldn’t get to see unless you went to something like Comic-Con or something like that. We’re always looking for our guests to experience unique things, so whenever we’re bringing something into the park that’s based on a film or based on another experience we always want it to be something different and not just see anywhere else.”
“Iron Man Tech Presented By Stark Industries” opens today at Disneyland’s Innoventions in Tomorrowland. If you go before April 19th, you’ll also get a limited edition Iron Man 3 poster. Iron Man 3 is in theaters May 3rd.
Very Cool!
CJ… that’s why nearly all comic books/cartoons are invented.
How bout you guys calm the f**k down? Sweet Jimminey Christmas…
This looks like a cheap as shit attempt by the Walt Disney Co to promote IRON MAN 3 and put something within the INNOVENTIONS building @ Tomorrowland (Disneyland) where they can schill Marvel merchandise onto kids ….
Until Imagineers can get the budget they want to rebuild – redesign – reimagine, Tomorrowland will remain the most unthemed zone (Space Mountain, Star Tours 2.0, Autotopia – you can do this area in under a fucking hour thanks to that ahole Eisner!) ….
Team Disney Anaheim should”ve brought elecTRONica over from DCA to bring some needed “oomph” @ night to Tomorrowland (Disneyland) until Honey I Made the Audience Sleep / Innoventions could be gutted for brand new Attractions / Rides ….
I went to this exhibit and was expecting a lot more. The Batmobile exhibit that was at LA Live last year had the cars, costumes, props, and artwork. I took time off work to go get a wrist band, went back to work, then back to Disneyland later that night to see it, and was told I didn’t even need the wrist band to get in because everyone went through so quickly. If you are a big Iron Man fan trust me you are not missing much. Unless you want the same pictures that were posted above with hundreds of people in the back.