It’s a small word (filled with crazy miniatures) after all.
Tokyo is set to get a new theme park just in time for the surge in foreign visitors that the 2020 Tokyo Olympic & Paralympic Games are sure to bring. However, this theme park as its creators are calling it won’t feature giant thrill rides. Rather it will be an indoor experience dedicated entirely to miniatures.
Set to occupy an 8,000 square meter (26,247 ft.) space in the Ariake area of Tokyo, Small Worlds Tokyo will become the world’s largest indoor attraction dedicated to miniatures when it opens its doors in the spring of 2020.
Small Worlds Tokyo will be divided into seven distinct areas. These areas include:
A replica of the Kansai International Airport complete with airplanes
An area based on a NASA space center
An area dedicated to completely original locations inspired by fantasy worlds and the steampunk aesthetic
An area dedicated to the popular anime Sailor Moon (this one will feature recreations of Azabujuban, Mamoru Chiba’s residence, and Crystal Tokyo)
Not one, but two areas featuring 1/80th scale models of locations from the anime Neon Genesis Evangelion (one is based on Tokyo-3 and the other on the Eva-unit launch location)
And finally, an area modeled after the actual city of Tokyo (details are still forthcoming on this last area, may be subject to change).
These scale recreations aren’t your run-of-the-mill miniatures, though. In fact, both top creative talent and impressive technology have been used to make them as immersive as possible.
One of the ways Small Worlds Tokyo hopes to suck people into their tiny worlds is through the use of realistic movement and sound. For example, in the space center area you can actually watch a space shuttle blast off (this launch was handled by Shoji Kawamori, who is known for his extensive work on the Macross series). In one of the Neon Genesis Evangelion areas you can actually watch an Eva-unit as it gets launched into battle. And in the Kansai International Airport area, you’ll be able to observe planes coming and going in a repeating 30-minute cycle that attempts to recreate an average day at the airport.
Small Worlds Tokyo will also allow visitors to enter the facility’s tiny recreations in miniature figure form. By utilizing 3D-scanning technology visitors will be able to produce scale figure of themselves.
Although few details have been released on how much producing a figure of yourself will cost, it is currently known that you can buy a ticket bundle that comes with “Residency Rights” for your figure. This will allow you to have your figure “live” (presumably stay for an extended period of time) in a designated area within Small Worlds Tokyo. Small Worlds Tokyo began selling this special package on Friday August 9. This first round will be for people wishing to have their miniature self live in Neon Genesis Evangelion‘s Tokyo-3. Unfortunately, the right for your figure to live in one of these “small worlds” is not cheap. For this first round it costs 19,800 yen ($187 USD) for adults and 17,600 yen ($166 USD) for those under 18.
Details like ticket prices and exactly when Small Worlds Tokyo will open have unfortunately yet to be released.
Small Worlds is also planning to open a location in Okinawa in 2022 and working on plans to open locations overseas.
Check out the video below to see many of the miniatures mentioned above in action.
Small Worlds Tokyo (スモールワールズ TOKYO) Location Information
Address
1-3-3 3 Ariake Butsuryu Center, Kōtō Ward, Tokyo
東京都江東区有明１−３−３３有明物流センター内
Price of Admission
Full details are not yet available but different packages, including some that include a miniature figure of yourself, will be available.
Website & Social Media
Official English-Language Website
Official Japanese-Language Website
Facebook
Instagram
Source: ANN News, Fashion Press, Natalie, PR Times
Image: PR Times
