Walt Disney World has introduced the ‘Play Pavilion’ will change Wonders of Life at EPCOT. This submit shares primary information, idea artwork, building progress (or lack thereof), and commentary about this information associated to the overhaul of the previous Future World. (Up to date March 11, 2024.)
This new pavilion will change the defunct Wonders of Life, and can provide first-of-their-kind experiences dedicated to playful enjoyable. For the final a number of years, Wonders of Life has served because the Meals & Wine ‘Competition Middle’ and most lately has been the topic of rumors a few yr in the past, starting from a Marvel addition to Inside Out). Now we now have a solution to what’s taking place with it.
The house will likely be remodeled into an modern, interactive metropolis with video games, hands-on actions, and Disney character meet & greets in an brisk metropolis. This ‘Play Pavilion’ (which is what we’re calling it and isn’t the pavilion’s last identify) will debut throughout Walt Disney World’s fiftieth Anniversary.
March 11, 2024 Replace: One other yr, one other (principally) non-update on the Play Pavilion. The massive non-development of the final yr is that Walt Disney World is treating the entrance of the park as completed with the opening of CommuniCore Corridor and Plaza in Summer time 2024. That follows the debut of the World Celebration Gardens late final yr and debut of Luminous, which basically marked the tip of the EPCOT transformation. Not that it’s a brand new improvement, however the entire press releases discussing the historic transformation have been silent as to the Play Pavilion.
The massive materials improvement of 2024 is the Walt Disney Firm’s funding in Epic Video games and deliberate partnership for Fortnite Universe for Disney IP. Notably, the idea artwork (see under) for this Epic Video games x Disney partnership seems greater than just a little like the unique idea artwork for the Play Pavilion at EPCOT, which was to be vaguely impressed by Ralph Breaks the Web and have its personal portals, of types, into the varied worlds of Disney.
Reviving the Play Pavilion plans with a Fortnite-style pores and skin might actually make sense–and provides that addition immediate enchantment with youthful avid gamers. It may very well be a full circle integrations with the park that will be far more in style than no matter was deliberate for the Play Pavilion. It may be funded with sponsorship cash, with Epic Video games footing a portion of the invoice and aiding with belongings to maintain the pavilion contemporary.
The underside line is that there’s numerous untapped potential for crossover between the digital worlds of video video games and the largely bodily worlds of theme parks. That is already evident in Tremendous Nintendo World at Common (and different previous experiments finished by Nintendo), and Walt Disney World might benefit from this in its personal methods.
In any case, the Play Pavilion because it was introduced again in 2019 is sort of actually useless. It’s now been 5 years since then, which is a really very long time for a tech-heavy exhibit that will’ve included popular culture and stylish characters and IP.
Final yr, Walt Disney World lastly offered an replace that it was “re-evaluating the unique idea that was deliberate” for the Play Pavilion at EPCOT. This was unsurprising. The Play Pavilion has been paused because the parks closed, and Disney has not shared a substantive replace since then.
The Play Pavilion has been scrubbed from the ‘coming quickly’ part of park maps and most references to it on Disney’s official web sites have been eliminated, together with all however 2 press releases. Given all of this, there’s no cause to consider the unique idea for the Play Pavilion will ever come to fruition.
There’s additionally the fact that this was to be an interactive expertise that leaned closely into know-how and taste of the month mental property, with the entire pavilion loosely impressed by Ralph Breaks the Web, the 2018 film that had far more of a up to date high quality than most of Disney’s different animated movies.
A lot of the Play Pavilion was truly developed round that point, and important work was finished on the reveals previous to the closure. It truly wasn’t that removed from being finished and will have opened in 2020 had issues not gone sideways. When the parks did reopen, there was comprehensible trepidation about all issues “interactive” (it took one other full yr earlier than playgrounds began reopening).
At this level, it’s unclear what’s going to occur with the Play Pavilion. Numerous the work that has occurred was to the bodily infrastructure of the constructing itself, repairing the roof and updating the inside. Then there’s the R&D for the interactive components, a few of which presumably may very well be recycled with completely different IP or in other places (it’s totally doable a few of what’s within the Disney Want children golf equipment is just like components of what was deliberate for the Play Pavilion).
With Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind reinvigorating this space of EPCOT, it’s unlikely plans for the Play Pavilion will stay paused ceaselessly. The actual property is simply too beneficial and high-traffic, and important cash has already been spent to modernize the power itself. It’s extra seemingly that Imagineering will revisit the precise plans, and switch the pavilion into one thing centered round a selected IP or model. The aforementioned Fortnite partnership is one risk; extra Marvel is one other.
Disney has continued to mess around with the pavilion even after the idea was reportedly shelved. Walt Disney Imagineering filed a allow with Orange County for a “Normal Contractor package deal” (that’s the verbatim enchancment description), which is probably going an umbrella allow for the overall contractor to renew work in reworking the previous Wonders of Life into the Play Pavilion.
Balfour Beatty is listed as the overall contractor, and so they have intensive expertise with main tasks within the Orlando space. Simply off the highest of my head, they had been answerable for the work inside Pandora – World of Avatar, Gran Destino Tower, Reflections Lakeside Lodge, plus Cabana Bay & Loews Sapphire Falls Resorts at Common Orlando and the Dr. Phillips Middle for the Performing Arts.
Most notably, the allow lists an expiration date of December 31, 2024. Sometimes, this isn’t indicative of a completion or opening date for a undertaking or attraction, but it surely does point out the most recent date when all building is predicted to be completed. As a result of closure, we’ve seen some permits must be re-filed because of prematurely expiring, however that’s not the norm.
Sometimes, there’s a buffer between the expiration date of a allow and the supposed opening date. That means that Walt Disney World may intend to open one thing within the house that was supposed to be the Play Pavilion earlier than late 2024. I wouldn’t financial institution on that, although. It’s additionally doable that work is being finished to guard and protect the constructing itself, in order that it may be put to make use of sooner or later with out having to redo the roof or different infrastructure once more.
It’s additionally value noting that after Tiana’s Bayou Journey changing Splash Mountain, there will not be main tasks on the horizon for Walt Disney World within the second half of 2024 via 2025. Because of this smaller-scale choices, just like the Play Pavilion, will likely be vital as marketable new additions. (We’ll proceed calling it the Play Pavilion right here, although no matter occurs on this house nearly actually will find yourself having a unique identify.)
The one different potential additions on the horizon are “potential growth” alternatives and “early idea exploration” for Dinoland USA at Animal Kingdom. Whereas Walt Disney World has confirmed {that a} Tropical Americas space will change Dino-Rama, the specifics about what that may embody haven’t been solidified. It’s our understanding that DINOSAUR received’t shut till late this yr or early 2025, during which case, its reopening as Indiana Jones Journey (the almost certainly state of affairs) received’t happen till 2026. And that’s simply the primary part of Tropical Americas!
This leaves a spot in 2024/2025 (relying upon the yr that Tiana’s Bayou Journey truly opens). No matter finally ends up being constructed within the Play Pavilion’s place might nearly actually have a faster turnaround time.
Our expectation at this level is that the Play Pavilion is not going to open till Spring 2025 on the absolute earliest. The opening will seemingly be dictated by the diploma to which Imagineering goes again to the drafting board with the Play Pavilion. We actually haven’t any clue whether or not Play Pavilion is 90% finished or 10% finished–the share seemingly relies upon upon what will be recycled for a brand new idea.
As for what Play Pavilion was/goes to supply, it’s anticipated that it’ll be the brand new residence to an Animation Academy-like expertise the place visitors will learn to draw Disney characters. Nick and Judy Hopps from Zootopia will host an interactive recreation known as Lodge Heist. In a current ebook, the corporate additionally revealed that there will likely be a monorail recreation. Interactive, contact-less arcade type video games are additionally prone to seem within the Play Pavilion.
The Play Pavilion can be anticipated to be the first residence to character meet & greets in Epcot. These for Wreck-It Ralph and Vanellope, Pleasure and Disappointment, Baymax and different characters will all be completely relocated from their present areas to the Play Pavilion. Different points of interest that known as the Wonders of Life residence–like Physique Wars and Skull Command–is not going to return when the Play Pavilion opens.
None of those tasks or the Central Backbone are something new, but it surely’s good to listen to an replace on them. With a lot of the Epcot re-imagining in flux, there’s at all times the potential of previously-announced tasks getting lower. Anyway, on with the commentary from the unique announcement of the Play Pavilion…
Our Commentary
The idea of the Play Pavilion will not be a slam dunk, however I’m cautiously optimistic about this. For starters, it’s the much less apparent idea however one that might have the bigger total impression for Epcot.
Wonders of Life changing into the Play Pavilion implies that it received’t as an alternative change into something associated to Marvel, as beforehand rumored. As somebody who doesn’t need to see Future World was ‘Tremendous Hero Land (However Solely the Handful of Properties We Can Use And Don’t You Dare Say the “M” Phrase)‘ that is nice information to me.
It’s additionally excellent news from the angle that there’s the potential for the Wonders of Life pavilion consolidating what’s at present a decentralized IP presence round Future World into one constructing, which is at present unused. This hopefully would be the park’s predominant meet & greet location, with different pavilions remaining (or in some circumstances, changing into) character-free.
Whereas we don’t but know what this re-imagined pavilion will entail, we do know that it’ll open in time for Walt Disney World’s fiftieth Anniversary, which is a very fast turnaround time for one thing simply introduced. On condition that and the chance that Innoventions goes away, I’d count on it to be one thing alongside the strains of reveals featured there. If the idea artwork is to be believed, this pavilion will likely be extra formidable and imbued with a ‘Progress Metropolis’ sensibility, which is certainly befitting of EPCOT Middle.
Hypothesis past that appears untimely. Given rumors from final summer time about testing in Skull Command, I ponder if that theater attraction will likely be revived in some kind (albeit, apparently, with out the Buzzy Audio Animatronics determine). It’s far much less seemingly that the Physique Wars simulators might return, however that house may very well be repurposed and home an attraction. These aren’t even predictions, extra simply pondering aloud in regards to the potentialities for this ‘Play Pavilion.’
For egocentric causes, I’m completely tremendous with Walt Disney World going character heavy on this pavilion, and I actually hope that idea artwork is correct, and this options Inside Out characters. Heck, give Wreck-It Ralph a presence in there, too. My foundation for that is it might satiate administration’s need for mental property in Future World, and pave the best way for a subsequent Journey into Creativeness redo that doesn’t contain IPs. After all, that is simply wishful pondering on my half.
It seems that Walt Disney World needs to toe the road between placating longtime followers and interesting to the expectations of first-time guests anticipating a Disney expertise. That wouldn’t be my private first alternative for the course of Epcot’s future, but when that’s the method, it’s higher than I anticipated. I’ve expressed numerous enthusiasm on this commentary part, however that shouldn’t be confused for unbridled pleasure for Epcot’s future, usually.
I’ve no delusions that the ‘previous’ EPCOT Middle is ever returning. It’s been gone for two-plus a long time, and there was by no means any probability of that park returning. Nevertheless, it seems that there will likely be quite a bit on this ‘new’ park to appease followers like me, even with numerous compromises being made. This information makes me really feel much more assured in that hope/perception, and I’m excited for the Epcot of tomorrow.
Planning a Walt Disney World journey? Find out about inns on our Walt Disney World Accommodations Opinions web page. For the place to eat, learn our Walt Disney World Restaurant Opinions. To save cash on tickets or decide which sort to purchase, learn our Ideas for Saving Cash on Walt Disney World Tickets submit. Our What to Pack for Disney Journeys submit takes a singular have a look at intelligent objects to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Journey Guides will assist. For complete recommendation, the perfect place to start out is our Walt Disney World Journey Planning Information for the whole lot it’s essential know!
Your Ideas
What do you consider these Epcot bulletins? Cautiously optimistic in regards to the Play Pavilion? Do you agree or disagree with my commentary? Any questions we will help you reply? Listening to your suggestions–even if you disagree with us–is each attention-grabbing to us and useful to different readers, so please share your ideas under within the feedback!
