The Best Universal Studios Highlights of 2021

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Universal Studios just experienced an insane year. While the pandemic slowed, its impact rippled throughout 2021.

Despite this constant irritation, plenty went right at the parks. Here are the best Universal Studios highlights from 2021.

Photo: Universal Orlando

Super Nintendo World Opens

Photo:Nintendo/Universal Studios

Two moments tower above all the others in terms of significance. One happened in Asia, while the other occurred in Los Angeles. We shouldn’t be America-centric on this topic, though. The reality is that the story coming out of Osaka will impact the park’s future oh so much more.

In March of 2021, Super Nintendo World finally opened at Universal Studios Japan after a prolonged delay. Both technical hurdles and pandemic-related struggles pushed the target opening date back multiple times.

Photo: geekvsfan.com

Universal had initially intended this themed land to debut at roughly the same time as the 2020 Summer Olympics.

In an odd bit of trivia, Super Nintendo World actually came first because Japan delayed the Olympics by a year. So, it could have been worse. When Super Nintendo Land finally did open to the public, it was a grand slam.

Photo: Universal Studios Japan

The two rides, Yoshi’s Adventure and Mario Kart: Koompa’s Challenge, showed off the wonders of the themed land. On Yoshi’s Adventure, riders could view Princess Peach’s Castle and all the wonders of the Mushroom Kingdom.

Then, with Mario Kart, people could purchase Power Up Bands that helped them perform better in the gaming elements of the ride.

Photo: Universal Japan

Super Nintendo World also offered a wealth of new merchandise available only at Universal Studios Japan.

This gear sold so well that Universal Studios Hollywood is already offering its own Super Nintendo World merch. And their themed land isn’t even open yet!

Photo: Newsweek

For all that went wrong at Universal due to Coronavirus, Super Nintendo World went very right…escape for a couple of high profile mishaps with Yoshi’s Adventure.

Meanwhile, Japanese park officials loved the themed land’s performance so much that they already confirmed a Donkey Kong-focused expansion!

Universal Studios Hollywood Opens

Universal Orlando Resort garnered headlines in May of 2020 when it became the first major theme park to reopen during the pandemic. At the time, we naively expected that Universal Studios Hollywood would follow suit soon afterward. Ha! We were idiots!

California and Florida have adopted vastly different approaches to the pandemic. Florida’s healthcare officials have taken the herd immunity approach.

Photo: The Apopka Voice

So, theme parks get to decide what’s in the public’s best interest rather than government officials. In California, the government has aggressively sought to reduce the risk of outbreaks.

The ideological differences make sense because California’s major metropolitan areas are much more populous than Florida’s. As a result, infections spread more quickly there. For this reason, California interceded when Universal Studios Hollywood and Disneyland discussed reopening in 2020.

Photo: Fine Art America

Healthcare officials simply wouldn’t allow it. So, we all had to wait until the infection rates in Southern California dropped significantly.

That finally happened in the early spring of 2021. So on April 16^th, 2021, Universal Studios Hollywood finally reopened after more than a year of inactivity. Thankfully, everything went off without a hitch, which was a pleasant surprise because…

The Secret Life of Pets: Off the Leash! Opens

Photo: Los Angeles Daily News

Universal Studios tried something that Disney didn’t have the confidence/courage to attempt.

At Disneyland, Avengers Campus and its new attraction, WEB SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure, could have opened when the park returned. Park officials hedged their bets to ensure that the parks were running smoothly before introducing a new thing.

Photo: Slash Film

Universal Studios Hollywood adopted a different approach. On April 16^th, The Secret Life of Pets: Off the Leash! opened for the first time. This new dark ride embraces many storytelling elements from the movie, showing characters like Max, Gidget, Snowball, and Duke in many exciting adventures.

The premise here is what the title suggests. These house pets get off their leashes and explore the streets of New York City for a while. Don’t worry! They return home in the end! And the ride experience is tremendous.

Photo: Illumination Entertainment

In fact, the Secret Life of Pets ride earned the prestigious THEA Award for Outstanding Achievements in the attractions category. It’s a hit!

That’s not the only success story for Universal this year, though.

VelociCoaster Debuts

Universal officials spent the body of the past two years trolling their diehard fans. Nobody would comment on the record about the roller coaster coming to Universal’s Islands of Adventure.

These employees pretended ignorance even though the coaster tracks were visible in broad daylight for all to see. Yes, Universal constructed a Jurassic World-themed roller coaster out in the open without ever admitting it to fans.

Photo: Universal Orlando

Some leakers eventually received specifics about the ride, but it wasn’t a shocking reveal anyway.The location of the coaster tracks identified that it was based on those dinosaurs from the film franchise.

When the VelociCoaster opened, it somehow managed to satisfy Universal fans, Jurassic World enthusiasts, and roller coaster obsessives. The line queue for the VelociCoaster delivers a hysterical experience, with Mr. DNA teaching guests about cloning.

Photo:attractions magazine

The stray velociraptor also appears at intermittent intervals, just enough to keep everybody on their toes. As for the roller coaster, it goes 70 miles per hour with an 80-degree drop. Adrenaline junkies are in love with it…and understandably so.

Universal Studios somehow opened two new attractions during the pandemic, and they’re both masterpieces!

Universal Buys Land and Files Permits for Epic Universe

Okay, I’ll readily admit that it’s strange to celebrate bureaucracy like this. Generally, land purchases and filed permits don’t excite anybody.

This situation’s different, though. Just before COVID-19 became a thing, Universal executives had made grand proclamations about Epic Universe. They’d promised a state-of-the-art theme park that would redefine expectations for attractions and experiences.

Photo: NBCUniversal

Once the pandemic struck, everybody suddenly went into radio silence. You could hear a pin drop at Universal. Over the course of an excruciating 18 months, NBCUniversal executives acknowledged that Comcast, its owner, had shut down all capital expenditures. For a time, nobody involved with Epic Universe was confident it would happen.

On several occasions, I wrote words of encouragement because the tea leaves hinted at a greenlit project, one that wasn’t likely to die completely. Still, Epic Universe went into stasis for a long time. Then, in 2021, Universal purchased nearly 13 acres of land from Lockheed Martin.

Photo: NBCUniversal

This acreage covered essential portions of the planned spots for Epic Universe and its roads.Some enterprising executives also uncovered paperwork that suggested Universal had filed permits.

Theme park operators don’t do that until they’re ready to move forward. So, one of the best Universal Studios highlights of 2021 is bureaucratic in nature.

We love what this move represents, though. We’re confident that Universal will start building Epic Universe in 2022! Crisis averted!

Photo: Universal Orlando

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