Tuesday, August 22, 2017

"How the Star Wars immersive hotel will work, and what it means"

Imagining a Rekall-like adventure at the planned Disney hotel:
Disney has a poor track record with immersive storytelling experiences, providing that you look only at most popular incarnation: videogames.

...

The immersive storytelling experience at the hotel is what guests will be paying for. It’s not an alternate reality game promoting a TV show. It’s not a free smartphone-powered Phineas and Ferb adventure at Epcot, or a $50 interactive Harry Potter magic wand at Universal Studios

...

Last week, you both received Coruscant Communicators in the mail — they’re larger than your MagicBands because they include a small display. The accompanying briefing card was short and to the point: “Your stay is a fully immersive experience. Don’t make any plans.”

Check in is easy. As soon you walk through the hotel doors (more of a high-tech glass-encased airlock), a ‘starship’ crewmember greets you by name, invites you to a reception with the commander that evening, and deposits your bag with a waiting drone. “BB-2 here is a little slow,” he says indulgently, “but I can highly recommend our bar while you wait for your quarters to be prepared.”

You don’t have long to appreciate the nebula through the multi-storey viewscreen before a scruffy-looking character comes by your table. He presses a bulky-looking scanner to your communicator. “I was expecting someone else. Never mind. Just keep this safe, and whatever you do, don’t give it to anyone — not even the rebels!” He rushes off before you can say anything else.