Best Disney Innovations in 2023
As usual, Imagineers remained on the cutting edge of technology this past year.
However, this year’s stories go beyond the parks as well. Here are Disney’s best innovations in 2023.
The Tiny Hugging Robot
As the old saying goes, a picture is worth 1,000 words. But that phrase pre-dates video.
Sometimes, live footage can tell a story better than I ever could. For example, there was this scene at SXSW:
Yes, Disney Parks Chairman Josh D’Amaro stood on stage and joined two Imagineers as they performed a presentation.
During this event, an audio-animatronic (AA) came out and started acting like a human child.
Disney thought of everything for this exhibition. It gave the AA roller skates and a helmet to manipulate our emotions a bit.
Everyone has watched with curiosity and no small amount of fear as an awkward child learns to roller skate.
So, the gear chosen for the AA creates the illusion that we’re watching a robot child in danger when nothing could be further from the truth.
Disney has invented a new kind of tumbling AA that’s capable of unprecedented independent movement.
Earlier this year, I had the pleasure to speak with a couple of former Imagineers, and I laughed as they quickly deduced all the tricks under the hood.
This conversation had the vibe of two master magicians revealing all the tricks of their trade.
Now, when I look at the AA modeled after Zootopia’s Judy Hopps, I cannot help but notice the battery pack.
Then, when she asks daddy (one of the Imagineers) for upsies, I look for the charger on their neck.
As near as I can tell, there isn’t one here, but that’s beside the point.
Imagineers are always searching for ways to solve practical problems in charming ways that will delight children (of all ages).
We can expect this robotic Judy Hopps to appear at the parks soon, just as Space Hulk did last year after a prior Imagineering demonstration.
Become a User
Tron Lightcycle / Run opened in April 2023.
As has become the norm for new E-ticket attractions, Disney offered unique personalization with one kind of merchandise.
When Pandora – The World of Avatar opened, the gear was a banshee. At Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, guests could build lightsabers and droids.
With Tron, Imagineers drew inspiration from the film franchise and created the Identity Program.
During a visit to the gift shop beside Tron, guests can put themselves into the world of Tron.
Guests enter an adjoining room, allow the automated system to do some image captures, and then choose a body type for their program.
The best way I can describe the whole process is that it’s like Test Track’s car creation system, only you’re the car. You basically create yourself…in Tron.
When you’re done, you’ll exit the area and stand near what I presume is a hidden 3D printer.
After a brief time, a piece of unique merchandise will appear on a shelf. It’s the Identity Program of you…and it’s also a toy you can take home as a permanent memento.
My favorite part is that Disney designed the container box to look like the old Tron arcade game. But it’s all so well designed.
Disney Genie+ Adds PhotoPass
Sometimes, the most impactful innovations are the modest ones.
During the first half of 2023, Disney listened to its customers who had complained about problems with Disney Genie+.
The one-size-fits-all approach forced guests at Disney’s Animal Kingdom to pay the same price as those at Magic Kingdom.
That’s like saying that a concert at the county fair should cost the same as Springsteen tickets. It’s laughably absurd.
Thankfully, Disney took the hint in 2023 by adding a new wrinkle to the Disney Genie+ program.
Park officials added park-specific pricing, allowing guests at EPCOT and Animal Kingdom to pay less to use the digital queue.
Anyone who intends to Park Hop can buy Park Hopper version of Disney Genie+ instead. It entitles the guest to the service at all four parks.
However, Disney didn’t stop there. As part of the new offering, park officials included PhotoPass ride photos.
That’s an underrated part of the Disney Genie+ price now. PhotoPass costs $185 plus tax during a visit or $75 for a one-day use.
Guests can sidestep that expense by purchasing Disney Genie+. I’ll add the caveat that it’s not the full version of PhotoPass, just the ride photos.
Still, that’s a tremendous value add on top of the Disney Genie+ park-dependent cost innovation.
Disneyland Paris Adds a Marvel Drone Show
Here’s another example of something you must see to believe.
You don’t need to speak French to know that’s some non-stop pretty happening against the backdrop of the Hollywood Tower Hotel
These automated flying robots can work in unison to create dazzling displays, the kind that leave audiences ooh-in and aww-ing.
During the 2020s, drone shows like this have surged in popularity, and the technology is just getting started.
This version is particularly impressive since it combines the digital projection mapping we already know and love for the Hollywood Tower Hotel.
Then, Disney adds fireworks and some action shots of Disney characters. It’s a magical presentation, but it merely scratches the surface of what’s to come.
Disneyband+
The other significant innovation this year was more evolutionary than revolutionary, but it definitely improved cruises for Disney fans.
While Walt Disney World has offered MagicBands for nearly a decade now, Disneyland didn’t get them until 2022.
Meanwhile, Disney Cruise Line guests have been left wanting. They’d wanted a similar wearable for many years now.
In 2023, these vacationers finally got their wish as Disneyband+ debuted.
These waterproof bracelets make everything from the boarding process to opening your room easier.
Frankly, Disney has never gotten enough credit for the subtle genius of these devices, and it’s a huge win for Disney Cruise Line to offer them to guests.
Overall, Disney enjoyed a lot of positives in the innovations department this year. I even cut a handful of stories that were nearly as deserving.
However, the overall picture wasn’t entirely sunny. Disney did lay off its entire Metaverse division.
The company will apparently trust the Apple Vision Pro to determine the viability of the metaverse instead.
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