Minion Land at Universal Orlando Resort. (Photo Credit: Brooke McDonald)
Minion Land, a colorful addition to Universal Orlando Resort, officially opened today at Universal Studios Florida. A collaboration between Illumination and Universal’s creative team, the land introduces a whimsical lineup of new family-friendly experiences and dining options to the park.
Here’s a closer look at all the Minion mischief happening along Illumination Avenue.
Calling All Criminals: Villain-Con Minion Blast
Minion Land’s new Villain-Con Minion Blast joins pre-existing simulator ride Despicable Me Minion Mayhem to give the land two solid kid-friendly attractions for Minions fans.
“The biggest gathering of criminals anywhere,” Villain-Con, an annual supervillain convention, is the setting for the new attraction where guests become aspiring villains and try their hand at joining the Vicious 6 supervillain crew introduced in “Minions: The Rise of Gru."
Convention-going adults will get an extra kick out of the queue. Con banners with the tagline “So much fun it’s a crime” and posters advertising exhibitor booths like Bank of Evil (“Ready for Evil Deeds? Villainous Loans: Sign up in blood today…”) line the exterior queue. Inside, the convention show floor is filled with cleverly named exhibitor booths advertising everything a baddie might need in their evil arsenal — from pets (“Corrupt Companions”), to vehicles (“Malicious Motors”), to weapons (“Unlawful Outfitters”), to vacations (“Devious Destinations”), to fashions (“Diabolique Boutique”).
The attraction itself is more game than ride. Guests pick up a large two-triggered blaster and step onto a designated circle on a moving walkway that takes them through a series of screens with countless moving targets, plus plenty of villains and Minions — no blasting our little yellow friends though.
Villain-Con Minion Blast. (Photo Credit: Brooke McDonald)
Calling Villain-Con Minion Blast “the most customizable attraction we’ve ever built,” Universal Creative Director of Immersive Experiences Victor Lugo walked media through the attraction’s extensive gameplay-enhancing features housed within the Universal Orlando Resort app. Here, guests can customize their blaster ahead of time (a great activity to make the queue wait fly by) by selecting custom projectiles, perks, and more within the app, then syncing it to their blaster with a tap.
The app will track and save scores and repeat players can continue to unlock extra perks, special missions, more powerful blasts, and seasonal content. Lugo said upcoming seasonal content would include pumpkin projectiles in October and flaming turkey legs around Thanksgiving.
On the way out, the Evil Stuff gift shop is packed with Villain Con-themed merch and playfully sinister but cute gear for big baddies with bigger hearts.
Minion Land Introduces Whimsical New Dining and Snack Destinations
Four new dining spots line Illumination Avenue and serve meals, snacks and treats that impressively blend creative presentation and whimsy with elevated, innovative ingredients and flavors, reminiscent of the creative culinary quick-service bar raised in recent years by offerings in Walt Disney World’s Pandora – The World of Avatar and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.
Minion Cafe. (Photo Credit: Brooke McDonald)
Illumination’s Minion Cafe is the main dining location and serves a robust menu of “Despica-Bowls,” sandwiches, stuffed pizza and picture-perfect desserts in spacious, colorful seating areas themed to the Kitchen, the Breakroom, and the Dining Room and packed with Minion Easter eggs. Early fan-favorite dishes include Otto’s Noodle Bowl with udon noodles served in an upside-down Minion-faced vessel, Minion Tots, and Otto’s Pet Rock, a delicate mousse-based dessert one really might take for granite (wink, wink). Minion-favorite bananas make their way into more than a few dishes, from savory, salty green banana chips and mini bananas as side dishes to The Antidote — essentially a banana cream pie in drink form.
Bananas continue to reign supreme along Illumination Avenue. Pop-A-Nana is a new popcorn stand serving banana-flavored popcorn. At Freeze Ray Pops, a to-go window serving popsicles in a range of flavors from Mango to Cheesecake, try the specialty Blue Banana-flavored Minion popsicle. And at Bake My Day, a pretty pink bake shop serving cupcakes, macarons, s’mores and candy apples, try the Chocolate Banana and Banana Cream Cake Pops.
A New Meet-and-Greet at Illumination Theater
At Illumination Theater, characters like Minions, Gru, Margo, Edith and Agnes, plus “Sing” characters Rosita, Gunter and Johnny, will all walk the red carpet, meeting-and-greeting adoring fans for photo ops throughout the day.
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