Television

'Stranger Things' Getting A Temporary Bonus Attraction In Universal Studios Florida

Universal Studios Stranger Things
By Ethan Anderton

There's plenty of Stranger Things action happening at Universal Studios Florida right now thanks to the themed maze that's running during the annual Halloween Horror Nights event. But it sounds like the theme park will be getting another bonus attraction tied to Hawkins, Indiana and all the supernatural occurrences that have happened in the Midwest. However, this new Universal Studios Stranger Things attraction sounds a little peculiar, and we're not entirely sure what to make of it.

Theme Park University noticed this post on Twitter from a Halloween Horror Nights attendee in Florida:

If you look at the photos, you'll see it's some kind of machinery made to look like it belongs in the lab of Hawkins National Laboratory, which is where the experiments regarding Eleven and a gateway to the Upside Down originated. Attached to the guard rail in front of this small setup is a walkie talkie, just like the ones used in Stranger Things by our main characters. So what the hell is going on here?

Well, this little diorama can be spotted at the former exit for the Terminator 2: 3D ride, which is where riders merely dropped off their 3D glasses. It will soon be the exit for the upcoming rumored Bourne Identity stunt show and was previously a Universal Horror gift shop. It's a small space, so the attraction will apparently be very small, and it seems as if Universal intends to use it to test out some technology they're working on with Microsoft for future use in the theme park.

The Stranger Things themed stuff only popped up in the past week or so, and it's the walkie talkie that teases what Universal has in store for theme park goers to try out. This new Stranger Things attraction will allow guests to talk to the cast of Stranger Things through the walkie talkie in real time. It will use artificial intelligence and the voices of the cast, not unlike Amazon's Alexa or Apple's Siri, to answer and questions and have conversations with people who want to try it out.

So what's the point of all this? Theme Park University says, "The idea is for Microsoft to develop technology that can interact with multiple people and have different people with varying personalities answers to you in real time." The hope is that it will be used in future attractions, perhaps on a larger scale, for a more interactive experience on certain attractions.

This doesn't sound like much of an attraction, but that's probably why it's going to be temporary, and it's a cool way for Universal to test some tech for the future while giving eagle-eyed Stranger Things fans a little extra experience to try out. If we hear anything more about this little attraction, we'll let you know.

Recommended