As of 22 January 2024, The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man at Universal Studios Japan (Osaka, Japan) is no more. The popular dark ride has to ”make way for further evolution of the park experience”, as a press release from last year puts it. The closing date was specially chosen to coincide with the 20th anniversary, as The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man was opened on 23 January 2004.
A multitude of fans showed up on the final day of operation to step in the role of reporter for the Daily Bugle, while getting to see Spidey fight crime up close, one last time. Leading up to the event, the park introduced a limited edition merchandise line and gave away commemorative stickers. On social media, Universal Studios Japan expressed gratitude towards fans of the ride with a video showcasing the crew waving goodbye.
The alleged underlying reason for the closure is that Universal Studios Japan only had a license to use the Spider-Man characters for a period of 20 years. Regardless of the reason, it is clear that the park is looking towards the future and has big plans for the area the ride occupied, as neighbouring attractions like Terminator 2 3D have recently been closed as well. Rumours suggest that the park is looking into opening a Pokémon zone, continuing in the theme of the highly popular Nintendo Land, as a replacement.
Fans of the Marvel superhero will still be able to visit the original Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man at Universal’s Islands of Adventure (Universal Orlando Resort, USA), which opened in 1999. Both installations’ ride systems were supplied by Oceaneering. The 3D multimedia was created by Threshold Animation Studios and was upgraded to 4K resolution later down the line.
