Europe’s number 1 visitor attraction operator Merlin Entertainments plc (‘Merlin’) announced today an exciting new creative partnership with Finland based Rovio Entertainment , creator of the Angry Birds franchise, to premiere the world’s first Angry Birds 4D experience at their Surrey theme park resort, THORPE PARK Resort.
Scheduled to open in May 2014, the Angry Birds 4D experience will form the unique centerpiece of a totally new 4000 sqm fully-themed land at THORPE PARK Resort. This will feature the much loved Angry Birds characters, coming home to roost on Detonator – the Resort’s 100ft drop tower ride – while Red Bird and the Bad Piggies go bump to bump on a brand new dodgems attraction.
The Merlin Magic Making creative team will work closely with Rovio to ensure that all the new attractions capture the fun, delightful humour of one of the world’s most iconic games.
The 4D Experience is being jointly developed by Rovio and top 4D animators 3DBA, including an all-new 10 minute 4D animated film. Simworx will develop the infrastructure of the new THORPE PARK Resort 4D theatre making sure the environment highlights the high impact special effects. The result will be a fantastic, totally immersive experience bringing to life the unique and delightful world of the birds and pigs!
Commenting, Mark Fisher, Chief Development Officer for Merlin Entertainments says: “We are very excited to be working with Rovio, and we see this as a long term strategic partnership with great benefits to both parties. THORPE PARK Resort is the UK’s Thrill Capital, and we believe the ideal environment for ‘Angry Birds’ 4D and theme park debut! Its young adult and family visitors are the core target audience of the Angry Birds franchise and no one is better placed than Merlin to capture the fun and humour of this fantastic IP – not least because most of my Magic Making colleagues are already great fans!”
Rovio’s Director of Location Based Entertainment Dan Mitchell says, “It’s great to be teaming up with Merlin Entertainments and THORPE PARK Resort, and we hope this will be just the first of many projects together. We are continuously looking to create amazing experiences for our fans by finding new ways to bring our characters from the digital world to the physical world. Having the game jump out of the screen and come alive around you is going to be incredible! We are confident that the partnership with Merlin, along with 3DBA, will bring this amazing experience to life.”