Disney Parks' Most Impressive Modern Theme Park Tech

The future is now at Disneyland, Walt Disney World, Disneyland Paris, and Tokyo Disney, thanks to these exciting advancements.

PublishedThursday 8:30PM

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Droids in training imagineering — Image: Disney Imagineering

Walt Disney Imagineering’s theme-park innovations go back to the audio animatronics and mystical floating heads that blew minds when Disneyland first opened, and have continued with expansions at Walt Disney World and internationally. These days, we can venture into a galaxy far, far away or see superheroes realistically take to the sky, but what we’re always looking forward to are the future advancements in entertainment.

Some of those advancements currently include free roaming robot characters with personality, and “Holotile” spaces that expand on stages and virtual reality. Disney Parks are continually aiming to step up the realm of participatory entertainment. Here’s a slideshow of some of the best modern tech we’ve seen coming out of the parks, as well as tech that’s being play-tested and will hopefully be incorporated soon.

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Droids in training

Droids in Training: Imagineers Conduct Playtest at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge

While not actually in the parks yet, these adorable droids with personality were recently play-tested by Disney Imagineers at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

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The Holotile

The Holotile, designed by legendary Imagineer Lanny Smoot (who also designed the retractable lightsaber), is about to level up VR experiences by providing a kinetic motion omnidirectional floor that will sync with any environment you’re viewing in the digital world, or on stages in the real world for immersive performances. Holodeck here we come!

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They’re just a small little robot guy

Maybe it’s an internalized fear of dolls coming to life speaking here, but seeing little robots emulate animals and talk on their own is scarier than cute little droids or stationary animatronics. It’s especially a little concerning when they’re free-roaming with arms and legs—but we get this is the next step in cool character walk-around tech (with another iteration looking a lot like Zootopia’s Judy Hopps), so let’s just hope Disney remembers its own Meet the Robinsons and makes sure they don’t attain sentience. At least the other robots we’ve seen so far also look like kid Groot, who I wouldn’t mind going into battle with.

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Disneyland Paris drone light shows

These haven’t made it stateside yet, which feels like a crime. The incredible work at Disneyland Paris with drone light shows, like the Disney Electrical Sky Parade, are just on another level. Using over 500 drones, they create iconic imagery in the skies over Sleeping Beauty Castle with familiar characters, places, and even a flying pirate ship to Neverland.

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Moana: Journey of Water

The interactive walk-through at Walt Disney World’s Epcot utilizes incredible motion tech to show visitors the planet and society’s relationship with water, so they can have their own “I am Moana” moment.

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Lightsaber training

Lightsaber training was a big highlight of the now-defunct, RPG-inspired Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser. It was unlike any other activity offered, as guests learned to hit targets guided by a Force-sensitive Saja mentor. This is something we hope becomes available as part of a future Star Wars experience in the parks.

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The Beast’s transformation at Tokyo Disney’s Beauty and the Beast ride

Sometimes the best Disney tech is the one most like real sorcery. We don’t know how they do it and honestly I don’t want to know, because it’s just so darn magical.

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

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