Universal Studios’ highly anticipated Super Nintendo World partially opened this month – but one ride has been accused of exluding plus size visitors to the theme park.
As part of the attraction’s soft launch, gamers, influencers and some tourists have been invited to try out rides, including the Mario Kart ride.
The augmented reality experience places riders in Bowser’s castle and features coloured carts.
But one element of the immersive ride has fans of the gaming franchise less than excited: the waist circumference limit of 40 inches for visitors.
“Nothing but wonderful things to say about Super Nintendo World except this: the body size limitations on the Mario Kart ride are absolutely ridiculous,” influencer Rocco Botte tweeted of the experience.
“I’ve never had any issue fitting into any ride in my entire life, and I can BARELY fit into this one. Completely absurd.”
TikToker David Vaughn warned his followers: “Unfortunately, the new Mario Kart Bowser’s Challenge attraction comes with a warning that guests whose waistline is at least 40 inches or greater may not be accommodated on the ride.”
Another Twitter user posted: “Can we discuss how at my biggest I would not have been able to fit on Mario Kart? A 40 inch waist line is about a size 20. Are you freaking kidding me @UniStudios? It’s a DARK RIDE.”
Meanwhile, postcast host Matt Mazany claimed this was part of a wider trend of rides excluding bigger theme park visitors.
“Trust me when I say ‘lose a little weight’ is not a novel suggestion,” he wrote in a Facebook post.
“Universal has a history now of releasing new rides (Harry Potter, Life of Pets, and now Mario Kart) where they don’t accommodate big people yet they WILL take full admission price from us. Seems unethical.”
A “test seat” is available at the entrance to the ride so that prospective users can check they will fit.
“This ride employs safety restraints which may restrict certain guests from riding due to body shape and size,” Universal Studios’ guidelines read.
“Guests whose waist line is at least 40 inches or greater may not be accommodated on the ride and are strongly encouraged to try the test seat provided at the entrance of the attraction to ensure their ability to ride.”
“It’s frustrating that theme parks are still creating family-friendly attractions that aren’t accessible to many of their guests,” added David Vaughn in his post.
The average male waist size in the US exceeds the ride’s limit at 40.5 inches; the averge female waist size is 38.7 inches.
Super Nintendo World’s official grand opening is set for 17 February.
The Independent has approached Universal Studios for comment.
