The horse jumped over the moon, the story of Namco, part 13

The previous blog featured the mythology of the Namco theme park called Wonder Eggs. I talked about Elds the Goddess of Play, and how she liberated the village of Laperot from the clutches of the Devil Godot. I mentioned that she had four dragons that helped dispatch of the monsters he summoned. In fact they were more powerful than dragons. The story of Elds stated that “The four subordinate gods, the Pyrallis, descended on the village of Laperot. A variety of games are born from the ‘play eggs’ they create.” It was easy for the four to dispatch the villains because they were gods themselves. More important the wonder eggs that Elds left behind were actually from the dragons, or to be correct the Pyrallis.

The pyrausta or pyrallis (also called pyrigonos “πυραλλίς” in Greek ) were mythological insects. According to history texts “They lived within the furnaces in copper-smelting factories in the island of Cyprus. The four-legged insects with filmy wings could only be seen within the fires themselves. They would die instantly if they were taken out of them.” The philosopher, and historian Pliny the Elder believed that the creatures were born from the flames, which would make them elementals similar to the salamanders of European mythology. As with many mythological creatures there was also some truth to their existence. Frans Janssens identified the species as the melanophila acuminata aka the black fire beetle aka the fire bug. The Pyrallis did appear in the “true” form, as massive creatures in a few places within Wonder Eggs. The majority of their appearances however were smaller cartoonish figures.

The designers at Namco were keenly aware that the theme park needed mascots. The company could have turned the stars of their hit games into costumed walk around characters. Pac-Man, Mappy, Gil, or DigDug could have easily been featured characters in the park. Instead the studio wanted to reinforce the theme of Laperot village. This was a magical place that was founded by the goddess of play. This was a park from another time, and another place. It wouldn’t make sense to characters born in the 1980’s be seen hanging around Laperot. As such the mascots of the village had to represent play, but how do you show that? What does “play” look like? It turned out that philosophy was the answer.

I talked about Johan Huizinga, and the concept of the Magic Circle previously in this series. Namco quoted him in the science fiction play space called Milaiya. Mr. Huizinga was a Dutch historian, and cultural theorist that emphasized the importance of play in his book Homo Ludens (Man the Player), which was published in 1938. Prior to that many authors believed that play was not significant to the development of culture. Huizinga believed the opposite, he emphasized that culture was derived from play. This understanding informed the decisions from Namco founder Masaya Nakamura. Mr. Nakamura made play central to the role of Namco. He didn’t wait around to follow the trends. He blazed a trail instead through the use of play. Understanding play helped him grow in an industry faster than any of his peers in both Japan, or the USA. This meant that his staff was expected to understand what the word meant as well. Huizinga identified five characteristics that play must have: 

1. Play is free, is in fact freedom. 

2. Play is not "ordinary" or "real" life. 

3. Play is distinct from "ordinary" life both as to locality and duration. 

4. Play creates order, is order. Play demands order absolute and supreme. 

5. Play is connected with no material interest, and no profit can be gained from it.

Huizinga was critical to the evolution of Namco as a business, and in the way they approached their attractions, and arcade hits. When it came to Wonder Eggs there was somebody more important to the company. French philosopher Roger Caillois would study, and expand upon the philosophy of play. His book Man, Play and Games was first published in 1961. Mr. Caillois would identify six major components of play. 

1. It is free, or not obligatory. 

2. It is separate from the routine of life, occupying its own time and space. 

3. It is uncertain, so that the results of play cannot be pre-determined and the player's initiative is involved. 

4. It is unproductive in that it creates no wealth, and ends as it begins economically speaking. 

5. It is governed by rules that suspend ordinary laws and behaviors and that must be followed by players. 

6. It involves imagined realities that may be set against 'real life'.

In order to help readers understand the distinct types of play Caillois' created four terms to help describe them; these were agon, alea, ilinx, and mimicry. Some of these ideas were opposites, and some were complimentary. That is to say that play could incorporate more than one of these forms simultaneously. The people at Namco turned the four types of play into colorful mascot characters, and tied them into the mythical pyrallis. Agon represented competition. The Wonder Eggs preview in NG Magazine described him as “A green Pyrallis with a bow and arrow shaped tail. He has a stubborn sense of justice.” According to Wikipedia: Agon was a Greek term for a conflict, struggle or contest. This could be a contest in athletics, in chariot or horse racing, or in music or literature at a public festival in ancient Greece. People that engaged in play and did so because they craved the contest were filled with agon.

Alea represented chance. The Wonder Eggs preview in NG Magazine described him as “A violet Pyrallis with a three pointed harpoon shaped tail. A free-spirited carefree person with a harpoon tail.” Mr. Caillois probably selected this name for chance because alea was also the Latin name for a game of dice. People that enjoyed games of chance, and gambling were filled with alea.

Ilinx represented dizziness. NG Magazine described him as “A dark pink Pyrallis with a propeller shaped tail. A cheerful and funny person.” According to Roger Caillois “Ilinx is the Greek term for whirlpool, from which is also derived the Greek word for vertigo (ilingos).” These were people that enjoyed play for the physical sensation, whether it was riding on a roller coaster, or spinning around until you got dizzy then you were filled with ilinx.

Mimicry represented simulation. NG Magazine described him as “A blue Pyralliss with a harp shaped tail. Shy, and gentle.” These were for people that enjoyed games where you could inhabit the role of a character, play make believe or even something as simple as wearing the jersey of your favorite team. I could certainly identify the most with this character. My favorite arcade video games felt like simulators. When I sat inside of a deluxe arcade cabinet like Starblade for example then it was easy to get lost in the world created by the developer.

At Wonder Eggs the pyrallis were treated like mascots. Not unlike how Mickey Mouse, or Tinkerbell would be received at Disneyland. They were mainly presented as cute cartoon characters. There weren’t however any walk around costumed pyrallis. They appeared only on plush figures, soft goods, tickets, stickers, and the like. In a few places we did see their “true” form as giant winged creatures. It was a nice duality that reminded us about the mythology of the park. The people at Namco made them friendly characters, while at the same time highlighting the power of play. There was strength, and purpose in play. As both Huizinga, and Caillois featured in their books play was both crucial and necessary for society to function. Whether physically, spiritually, or emotionally humans craved peace of mind. Play was one of the things we could do individually, as well as collectively that allowed us to reach it. In short it was one of the things that made life worth living.

Mr. Nakamura understood how important play was. He could see it in the kiddie rides he created in the ‘50s, the electromechanical games he published in the ‘60s, and their video game successors through the ‘70s, and ’80s. Understanding play allowed him to capture a market that his rivals, and even the banks never saw as important. It was why Namco grew into an entertainment juggernaut in less than four decades. It turned out that there was a science behind play. It was something that his team could exploit while creating games, and attractions for Wonder Eggs. It helped explain why it was such a beloved park in the few years it existed. We will talk about that in the next entry. Were there any defunct parks that you visited? Please tell me about it in the comments section. As always if you would like to sponsor me please visit my Patreon page and consider donating each month, even as little as $1 would help make better blogs and even podcasts!

Wonder Eggs, and Egg Empire research collected from: Wonder Eggs Guide Map, Namco Graffiti magazine, the book “All About Namco II", NOURS magazine, The Namco Museum, Namco Wiki, Ge-Yume Area 51 Shigeki Toyama Collection, mcSister magazine, first person attraction details from Yoshiki. Event details from Hole in the Socks

The horse jumped over the moon, the story of Namco, part 12

The previous blog talked about the origins of Wonder Eggs. The urban theme park from Namco opened February 29, 1992. It had been influenced by the world’s expos, pleasure fairs, and amusement parks. These were the things that had also inspired Walt Disney to create Disneyland. The theme of Wonder Egg was “Wonder Imagination.” Every element that went into the park were planned out by some of the most brilliant minds in game design. For example visitors to the park were referred to as “Dreamers.” These Dreamers were the central players of a town called Laperot Village. Elds was the Goddess of Play, she was the patron Goddess of the village. She had liberated the citizens from the clutches of a great evil named the Devil Godot. There were music cues, and full themes written by legendary composer Hiroyuki Kawada that could be heard in the different areas of the park. Dreamers didn’t know the context of the music until the park had been open a year. An official story, and the full history of Laperot Village was only then revealed. I got my hands on the soundtrack, and translated the notes from Mr. Kawada.

This album consists of two parts. “Music from ELDS STORY” is a story that was originally written in order to unify the image of the people involved in Wonder Eggs, and has been completely translated into the colors of sound, light, and shadow. Like the park, the production of this song was carried out in a way that embodies the “world” that exists within the story, which has ethnic, cultural, and historical characteristics. The six-act musical piece was created by first compiling the story from different moments of time into a scenario, then breaking it down into motifs before converting it into sound, and then recomposing it according to the story. Furthermore, the motif was created as a result of a complex and organic collaboration in which the six members brought their ideas together, another person compiled them into music for each act, and then another person edited them again as a story. It is also true. “Music from Wonder Eggs” is a newly edited version of the music actually used in the park. Here, music acts as a guide through the park. Even if you haven't been yet, you can enjoy the experience of walking around the park while listening to the music. - Hiroyuki Kawada

Play was created by the Goddess Elds’ Eggs, which the utopia of Wonder celebrates its second anniversary this year, has been the theme of Wonder Eggs since its conception. “Elds” is a goddess who enriches people's hearts through play and fosters interaction and friendship between people. Innocent “Elds” uses the hands of the clock as scissors, turns conflicts into games, and turns things in “Laperot Village” into fun things one after another. The warm, playful, and mysterious world of Wonder Eggs is brought to you by Elds. This album is also a kind of game. The rules of this play are that each listener relives the story while reconstructing their memories. Everyone has memories of events and scenery that lie dormant in their hearts. I would like you to reweave time with color and rhythm, centered around a single story. Create endless memories of your own. - Hiroyuki Kawada

In the story of Elds we were introduced to an archeologist named Leptoro. He was digging deep within the caverns of some ancient ruins, very similar to the Tower of Druaga. He was obsessed with recovering the “Baal Stone Tablet.” He didn’t realize that he was being summoned by the Devil Godot who was trapped within the tablet itself. When Leptoro touched the slate Godot traded places with him. The devil unleashed a wave of monsters on the nearby Laperot village. A young man visiting Laperot described how welcoming, and happy the tiny village was during the daytime, but how fearful they were of the monsters that lurked in the outskirts at night. He narrated what happened when Godot attacked. We assumed he perished in the conflict. Godot rounded up the survivors, and turned the residents into mindless tin slaves. He made them construct a great airship so he could spread his evil throughout the world. When the tin slaves collapsed from exhaustion he would dump them in a pile outside of the village. Godot poisoned the air, and waters, covering the “Ruler's Forest,” and the “Eternal River” with a heavy gray cloud that seemed to rain metal. When all hope seemed lost a young lady showed up, it was the goddess in disguise.

The young man we were introduced to earlier was now covered in metal. He was stuck on a pile of tin villagers. He was awoken by Elds. He began following her, and played hide and seek with the lovely goddess. As they played the tin fell off, and he became human again. It felt like ages to him but the Goddess Elds had finally returned. She was bringing joy back into the world. The other villagers soon began playing as well, and becoming human once more. Godot sensed that something was wrong, and summoned his army of monsters. The girl jumped on the back of a dragon that was hidden in the ruins of Laperot. She summoned three more dragons, they were actually subservient gods that tore through the clouds. Their breath was fire to monsters, but life for the forest. The four dragons easily dispatched the monsters, turning them into flowers, and meadows with every swipe of their claws. Godot tried to get away in his great airship. Before he got far the goddess made an enormous tree erupt from the ground, and trap the ship within its gigantic branches. She tricked Godot by sneaking up on him and covering his eyes. Throughout the story she would suddenly appear behind a person and play “guess who?” The shocked Godot dropped, and shattered the stone tablet, the source of his power. Elds crafted a new prison for him. She made Leptoro swear to remain his guard forever. She then sealed the duo away in the recesses of the Tower of Babel. One of the giant dragons rested on top for added safety.

Elds, and her four dragons helped rebuild the village. The broken remains of the Tablet of Baal were engraved with a new mythology for Laperot. They could actually be seen at the entrance of the park. The sky became clear, and the river flowed with fresh water once more. The factory for Godot’s war machines was torn down. The gates which used to close at night now remained open. They invited travelers to celebrate with them. Laperot became filled with joy, music, and most important play. Before Elds disappeared she left behind eggs which hatched into new games, and adventures for the villagers. She would check in on them from time to time, often covering their eyes and saying “guess who?” before joining them once more in play. The story of Laperot was simply fantastic. It was not only embraced by the public but was embraced by the game developers at Namco. They were able to immortalize Elds Square into a stage in the Tekken 3 fighting game.

The team at Namco went above and beyond in crafting a unique story for the park. It was not only a memorable fantasy, but it also incorporated elements from western mythology. For example the name Baal, which was the stone tablet that Godot was trapped in had a meaning. Baal was the ancient Syrian god of war, storms, fertility, and the seasons. He was also considered the rival to the Hebrew god, or the first “devil” in early history. The Tower of Babel was one of the oldest locations, and parables from civilization. Namco had been incorporating these ancient mythologies into many of their games. For example the use of angels, devils, Babylonian, Egyptian, and Assyrian myths were explored in the Druaga, Tekken, and Ridge Racer titles. Namco knew how to sprinkle in these various historical callouts when they were creating a new legend for Wonder Eggs. Its story was literally carved in stone near the entrance of the park. Guests didn’t necessarily know that the runes used throughout the park were an actual language that could be translated.

The alphabet featured in Laperot was called “Elds’ Character.” The Elds alphabet was written horizontally, and not vertically like many Japanese signs. It was also written in pairs (with one vowel) like the Roman alphabet. However special proper nouns and abbreviations were not subject to this rule. It was similar to Japanese, which was a mixture of kana, and alphabet, only that it was read from left to right like English. Elds’ Character was presented on the architecture of the park, but also on the tickets, maps, and even Carnival Coins. Eagle-eyed visitors could spot many of the details from the Story of Elds engraved on the tokens used to play carnival games. Over the past few years I managed to get my hands on Wonder Eggs ephemera. With the help of my kid who was studying Japanese here were the best translations that we could come up with,

The Carnival Coin translation. 

1. This, distant future (goes) 

2. It is easier to do something than worry about it: Possibly based on the proverb "fear overruns the danger; it is easier to bear (a child) than to worry about it" 

3. To cut; to cut through; to perform (surgery); sever connections 

4. Something of great value; something golden (e.g. silence) 

5. Elds’ burden / responsibility; accomplishment; lessons (in an art, skill, etc.); practice

On the back of the Wonder Eggs Guide Map (which happens to fold like a letter) we have a longer message: 

Laperot 

This is a village of long lasting happiness 

The goddess of play Elds makes sure that it normally is 

Inside it is our custom to play with all our heart 

Bring back the love 

This village of long lasting happiness you know 

The goddess of play Elds the way it normally is 

Inside / we customarily play heart/mind/spirit 

Take back / restore

Elds may have been the patron Goddess of Wonder Eggs, she was not however seen in the park itself. There were no costumed characters dressed like Elds playing with dreamers. Instead her four dragon protectors became mascots for the park itself. The genius behind play would shine through the four whimsical characters. We will look at them in the next entry. Were there any defunct parks that you visited? Please tell me about it in the comments section. As always if you would like to sponsor me please visit my Patreon page and consider donating each month, even as little as $1 would help make better blogs and even podcasts!

Wonder Eggs, and Egg Empire research collected from: Wonder Eggs Guide Map, Namco Graffiti magazine, the book “All About Namco II", NOURS magazine, The Namco Museum, Namco Wiki, Ge-Yume Area 51 Shigeki Toyama Collection, mcSister magazine, first person attraction details from Yoshiki. Event details from Hole in the Socks

The horse jumped over the moon, the story of Namco, part 11

I was originally going to write about the classic Namco games aesthetic last year. As I started researching the designers, artists, and musicians that created the early arcade hits like Galaga, Galaxian, Pac-Man, and Mappy I came across a theme park called Wonder Eggs. The more I researched the more I realized that I needed to share the history of the defunct park with you. It was a major part of Namco, and deserved to be shared with my English-speaking audience. In order to capture the park in the proper context I needed to give you a history of the company. I compared Masaya Nakamura to Walt Disney. Both men saw tremendous potential in building new forms of entertainment. Animation, film, and amusement parks had existed before Mr. Disney. Yet he was able to elevate those forms of entertainment by recruiting creative geniuses.

Walt guided his team through the design of Disneyland, a couple of World’s Expo attractions, and much more. Similarly carnival rides, and arcade games existed before Mr. Nakamura. He also recruited artistic minds, and through them built new rides, robotics, electromechanical, and video games that would turn Namco into an entertainment juggernaut. Wonder Eggs was critically important to the evolution of the video games, and theme parks. Mr. Nakamura made play the central theme for his business. The concept of play informed every decision from his company. Disney, and Universal were the modern theme park giants. For generations it was assumed that nobody could teach them how to make better rides. Several of their attractions had play elements which could be traced back more than 30 years ago to the opening of Wonder Eggs.

I could have written a short summary for this blog, and just mentioned that Namco built a theme park in the early ‘90s. In fact they built two parks side-by-side, the second gate was called Tamago Teikoku aka the Egg Empire. For those curious about the names of the attractions when each location opened they are listed below. 

Wonder Egg original attractions 

1. Galaxian³ 

2. Carousel of Pyrallis 

3. The Laperopter 

4. Pyrallis Fortune Telling 

5. Carnival Arcade 

6. Future Colosseum

7. Möbius Creek 

8. Magical Illusion 

9. Sim Road 

10. Phantomers 

11. Cyber Station 

12. Tower of Druaga 

13. Hotel Ghost 

14. Diamura 

15. Pyrallis Pockets 

16. Seventh Grocery

Egg Empire original attractions

1. Fighter Camp 

2. Miracle Tours 

3. Q-Zar Arena 

4. Drift King 

5. Circus Plaza 

6. Cyber Station II 

7. Empire Kitchen

A list of names wouldn’t mean anything without descriptions. In doing research I found out that a lot of the attraction details were never translated into English. For the sake of preserving history I decided to put together a chronology for theme park aficionados. For non theme park fans I also wanted to explain the roots of the industry, and the inspiration behind the Wonder Eggs attractions. The best way to do this would be by going back in time to the origins of what we now call a theme park. My wife was a theme park historian, she taught a college-level class on the subject. She retired years ago, and after much coaxing from her former students she finally agreed to turn her notes into a podcast. That was the focus of the Pink Monorail Podcast series titled “Manufacturing the Magic.” I helped her produce the episodes.

She taught me that the origins of the theme park extended thousands of years, back into the earliest civilizations. I’m talking about ancient China, Greece, and Egypt. It was the early caravans, and the latter Silk Road that lead to the exchanges of goods, services, food, and entertainment that would establish the first types of fairs. These fairs would grow over time and be collectively known as trade fairs. The fairs would evolve into pleasure fairs, and religious fairs that hit their stride in medieval Europe. Suddenly cultural influences from the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Europe started intermingling. These fairs would explode during the renaissance. With industrialization the pleasure fairs also evolved. Their biggest impact could be felt with the rise of World’s Expositions. The exchanges of culture became critically important in the biggest European cities. It reinforced alliances with fellow countries, and helped elevate the status of each country as a major player on the world stage.

The United States of America had barely turned 100 years old when it was invited to host an Expo as well. This act cemented the reputation of the USA as a young superpower. Official, and unofficial World’s Expositions started crossing the Atlantic, and Pacific in the late 1800’s. Attractions, rides, and prototypical roller coasters started showing up in pleasure gardens, beer gardens, carnivals, piers, and expos all around the world. Elias Disney, Walt’s father, was a carpenter that helped build the World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893, better known as the White City. Elias inspired a young Walt with stories of the expo, and the many groundbreaking attractions. Walt would eventually pull the best elements from the various parks, expos, and attractions into a themed environment he called Disneyland. Disneyland opened in 1955, the same year that Namco went into operations. The creators at Namco were influenced greatly by Disneyland, and Tokyo Disneyland. In the early ‘60s president Nakamura even secured the Disney license to create kiddie rides in Japan. Yet he saw a better way to grow his business. He saw potential in creating hybrid attractions that pulled together elements from the game industry, motion pictures, and amusement rides. He argued that they should not be treated as separate industries, but instead part of an interconnected form of entertainment.

Play was the element that Mr. Nakamura believed tied everything together. Wonder Eggs was proof that his idea had merit. Wonder Eggs was not Namco’s answer to Disneyland. Instead it was a call back to the roots behind the theme park itself. It was a place that took fantasy, the past, the future, and presented it to the world. The team at Namco also dug into ancient history, trade caravans, pleasure fairs, expos, and amusement parks that were centuries old. It took in elements from the near, and far off future. They were creating a park using the same elements that inspired Walt almost forty years prior. These details were not necessarily caught by visitors to either park. They were some of the thousands of little details that went into the creation of Wonder Eggs. For example the World’s Expos of the late 1800’s, and early 1900’s happened during the The Belle Époque “The Beautiful Era” prior to World War I. This was a period of time that gave birth to the Art Nouveau movement, and the iconic Alphonse Mucha. Mr. Mucha created several brilliant posters advertising the World’s Expos in Paris, and the US as well. His art conjured up images of flowing grace, and beauty. The team at Namco wanted to capture that spirit, literally. They created a “Goddess of Play” who was named Elds. The goddess was modeled after the painting “Zodiac” by Mr. Mucha.

Visitors to Wonder Eggs did not know about the mythology of the park right away. When they stepped through the gates they entered a village that had been liberated from invading monsters by the Goddess Elds herself. It was up to Dreamers to find the clues, and put together the story of Laperot Village. This was the actual name of the small town that Wonder Eggs was based on.The clues to this were sprinkled throughout the park. This history was a sort of puzzle for visitors to figure out. Guests were called Dreamers, they were welcomed by the residents to enjoy a variety of games which were gifted to them by Elds. She left eggs behind that each opened up to reveal a new form of play, or an attraction. The eggs also represented the currency of the park. Attractions ranged from 30 eggs to 100 eggs depending on the length, and complexity. Guests could purchase cards worth different egg values to use at the various attractions.

There was much more detail to the park yet to be revealed. I would continue discussing it in the next entry. Were there any defunct parks that you visited? Please tell me about it in the comments section. As always if you would like to sponsor me please visit my Patreon page and consider donating each month, even as little as $1 would help make better blogs and even podcasts!

Wonder Eggs, and Egg Empire research collected from: Wonder Eggs Guide Map, Namco Graffiti magazine, the book “All About Namco II", NOURS magazine, The Namco Museum, Namco Wiki, Ge-Yume Area 51 Shigeki Toyama Collection, mcSister magazine, first person attraction details from Yoshiki. Event details from Hole in the Socks

The horse jumped over the moon, the story of Namco, part 10

In 1992 Namco had created an urban theme park in Futakotamagawa, Setagaya-ku; one of the Tokyo wards. Wonder Eggs was an experiment in play. For all intents and purposes it was also the world’s first video game theme park. The idea of an attraction based on a video game was not new. In fact there was a ride based on a pinball from the short lived World of Sid & Marty Krofft indoor amusement park. That concept extended back to November 1976, but it was riders inside a giant pinball machine, not quite the same thing as a video game, however it did reflect the changing themes in entertainment.

The next stab at a video game attraction came in February 1983. Jim Reilly was with a company called Meeting Planners. He wanted to launch the Electronic Circus, and the World’s Largest Arcade. The Electronic Circus was a traveling show that would visit big, and small towns across the country. He wanted to have the greatest players of certain games compete against local legends. It sounded like a fun spectacle but turned out to be a miserable idea. It lasted just five days. This was covered in the documentary Chasing Ghosts as well as in The Golden Age Arcade Historian Blog.

Many long-time video game fans might think that Sega was responsible for the first video game theme park. In fact I assumed it to be true for decades before researching this series. Joypolis was a chain of indoor amusement parks created by Sega and run by CA Sega Joypolis. It opened on July 20, 1994 with the original location in Yokohama, Japan. Joypolis opened in several cities in Japan and later China. The parks feature arcade games and amusement rides based on Sega's intellectual properties, original themes, and licensed franchises. Alongside the predecessor Galbo venues and the overseas spin-offs SegaWorld London and Sega World Sydney. Sega coined the term "Amusement Theme Park" or "ATP"  in the '90s. Eleven Joypolis theme parks opened, but as of 2021, five parks remain operational; two in Japan (Tokyo and a Sports Center in Sendai) and three in China (Qingdao, Shanghai and Guangzhou); the failure of many of the parks has largely been attributed to poor visitor numbers, managerial problems, and cost-cutting measures. The majority of the closures happened during Sega's global losses during the early 2000s.

I had mentioned some of the most fantastic Sega, and Namco game-meets-theme park rides previously on the blog. Including the Ghost Hunter games featured in Joypolis. There certainly were some amazing attractions that should be studied by amusement fans, but I want to focus on the actual first video game theme park. Wonder Eggs had a lot more riding on it than any other project Namco had undertaken. At the same time they did not plan on putting all their chips on theme park operations. The goal was to make an urban park that lasted just four years, 50 months to be precise. It was about the amount of time between a World Cup, Olympics, or World’s Expo. This span of time also covered the technology leap that would occur in arcades, and even home consoles. If the largest attractions were going to have video game elements then Namco did not want their park to look or feel dated (Toy Story Midway Mania, I am looking right at you!).

This perception of an aging game park could have tarnished their reputation with the growing middle class. Namco was a large company, but they certainly didn’t have a Disney budget. They did not have access to Imagineers with a portfolio of rides, and themed lands ready to go. Nor could they keep buying more land, and expand their footprint. Disney, and the Oriental Land Company (OLC) had that luxury. They were not only able to build Tokyo Disneyland, but they owned almost all the hotels surrounding the property. They were able to host their guests, and cater to their every need so that they never even had to leave the area. The OLC was so successful that they eventually built a second gate with Tokyo Disney Sea. Namco had a smaller, and more modest park by comparison. It was easily accessible by rail line, but did not warrant a hotel for visitors. It did not mean that the park wouldn’t be special.

Wonder Eggs turned out to be a hit with attendees. Namco referred to their customers as “Dreamers” which was important to the story of the park. In fact the entire park had an overall concept, and a series of smaller themed areas within. Making it a true theme park, and not simply an amusement park. Wonder Eggs lasted much longer than anticipated, and would get a refresh every few years. These evolutions were known as Wonder Eggs 2, and Wonder Eggs 3. Here was a summary of Wonder Eggs written by Namco, with additional notes by me.

Namco Wonder Egg brief chronology (8-year trajectory) This is an imaginary park filled with Namco’s original “play.” A number of participatory story attractions where you can experience dreams, adventure, and the future. 

1992 - February 29, A limited-time urban theme park “Namco Wonder Egg” opens. 

1993 - Dreamers (customers) exceed 1 million.

1994 - July, The alchemy nation of play Tamago Teikoku aka the “Egg Empire” opens (from this time it becomes a twin park).

1995 - Dreamers exceed 3 million people.

1996 - July 20, Reopened as "Namco Wonder Egg 2", a media park of love and success.

1997 - Dreamers exceed 5 million people.

1997 - Tomomi Nishimura and Takumi Nishio host the wedding party contest.

1999 - The year of the finals of “Wedding Party” and “Super Big Audition”.

1999 - April 3, The countdown park of dreams and romance has been reopened as "Namco Wonder Egg 3." A "bridge of time and space" has been built that connects Wonder Egg and the Egg Empire. 

1999 - Dreamers exceeds 6 million people.

2000 - December 31, “Namco Wonder Egg 3” is finally counting down to the 20th century.

There was a tremendous amount of work that went into each version of Wonder Eggs. I will highlight each iteration in detail over the next few blogs. I’ll be sharing content that had not previously been translated into English from Namco history books, Namco Graffiti magazine, and various Japanese blogs. I hope to see you back for that! Were there any rare theme parks, or amusement parks that you visited? Were they any fun? Please tell me about it in the comments section. As always if you would like to sponsor me please visit my Patreon page and consider donating each month, even as little as $1 would help make better blogs and even podcasts!

Wonder Eggs, and Egg Empire research collected from: Wonder Eggs Guide Map, Namco Graffiti magazine, the book “All About Namco II", NOURS magazine, The Namco Museum, Namco Wiki, Ge-Yume Area 51 Shigeki Toyama Collection, mcSister magazine, first person attraction details from Yoshiki. Event details from Hole in the Socks

The horse jumped over the moon, the story of Namco, part 9

Over the course of this series I talked about the importance that play had with the early success of Namco. President, and founder Masaya Nakamura saw opportunities in the changing economy decades before most of his peers. The company extended this philosophy of “creating play” to their arcades. Unlike other Japanese arcades which were referred to as “Game Centers” Namco called their sites “Play Centers” like Milaiya, Plabo, and Carrot. Each had their own look, their own theme, and branding. These were places where casual, or hardcore gamers could escape the pressures of the world by engaging in play in the truest sense of the word. They could enjoy any number of sports, fantasy, science fiction, or other unique experiences that Namco had created. The way Namco approached each arcade title was akin to the way The Walt Disney Company approached each attraction. All of these wonderful experience were contained within a larger themed environment.

Namco purchased, and operated play centers all around the world. They learned about what different countries enjoyed in gaming, and catered to them. In the United States they worked with the Universal group to put classic style arcades in their Florida park. Their arcades had a vintage feel but featured the latest games. The company had become a major player in the amusement industry in both Japan, and the US. They learned the importance of creating, and maintaining a themed environment. Any mall, any park could have rides, and attractions, but the ability for the park to create a storytelling narrative through the use of detailed themed locations elevated the experience. Walt Disney wanted to create a special place for families to enjoy. He took the best elements of amusement parks, boardwalks, World’s Expos, and pleasure gardens. His imagineers cleaned them up, made them family friendly, and created a superior experience with Disneyland in 1955. It set a standard that was copied the world over. The question was if Namco could follow in Disney’s footsteps? Moreover, could they create what would possibly be the first urban theme park? After all there was a big difference between setting up a few play centers in a themed building, and creating an entire theme park around gaming in the heart of a big city. How would the studio accomplish this?

Before Disneyland opened Walt Disney had already established a series of cartoon, and comic book hits. These characters were destined to become mascots in the young park. Walt’s name was synonymous with pop culture going back to the 1920’s. By the time Disneyland opened 32 years after the founding of the Disney Bros. Studio there was an entire generation that had been raised on his IP. They had Mickey Mouse toys in their crib, wore clothes, and sneakers featuring the iconic mouse, followed along with his antics in movie theaters, comic books, and radio serials. When they were adults, and had children of their own they were eager to share the magic of the Disney brand with a new type of park. Masaya Nakamura, and Namco walked a similar path. The company had launched in 1955, and by 1994 they were ready to open their own theme park as well. There was a generation that had been raised on their rides, and games. There was a generation that celebrated Pac-Man, and Mappy with the same amount of love that the previous generation had for Mickey, and Minnie. These fans were getting older, their tastes were becoming more sophisticated, they were eager to experience the next evolution in play.

Namco had a deep library from which to pull new experiences from. The studio had teased the idea of creating a park with multiple themed areas, such as a labyrinth area inspired by Pac-Man, a race car track inspired by Pole Position, a fantasy area inspired by the Babylonian castle series, a horror themed area inspired by Golly Ghost!, and a science fiction area inspired by the UGSF universe. Drawing concept pieces in their self published NG magazine was one thing, but building an actual park was going to take considerably more time, and money. The good news for them that they had already built two theme park attractions for the World Expo ’90. They had disassembled them, but didn’t destroy them. They would be able to relocate, and build around them. Of course they needed to figure out where they would move the Tower of Druaga, and Galaxian³ “Hyper Entertainment” attractions. Real estate was at a premium in Japan, especially in the most populated cities. It would be less expensive to build any sort of business, or center if there was prepared land available for lease or purchase. 

Namco didn’t want to build too far from a major city, or train station. Parks that were difficult to reach didn’t last very long in the amusement industry. There was a reason why Tokyo Disneyland, and Tokyo DisneySea were built on reclaimed land from Tokyo Bay, it was far less expensive to purchase, and develop than anywhere near central Tokyo. At the same time both parks, and the surrounding hotels were easily accessible by light rail for tourists, and families. In the early ‘90s Namco discovered a perfect place to build their own park, Futakotamagawa Garden in the southern Tokyo ward of Setagaya-ku. It was colloquially referred to as “Futako” or “Nikotama,” the latter coming from an alternate reading of the first three kanji characters in the name. I think this location was selected thanks to Shigeki Toyama. It was the park that he used to work at when he was younger, and that featured a roller coaster designed by his grandfather Tokio. Namco would build in roughly in the same place of the amusement park, which was in operation from 1922 to 1985. The coaster, and various attractions had long since been torn down by the time Namco got their hands on the property.

The company had a name for their massive undertaking. They called their urban theme park Wonder Eggs. It was proposed to be unlike any other theme park before, and would challenge the other arcade titans to step up. I would argue that the work Namco put into Wonder Eggs would make Sega pursue their own Joypolis amusement centers. Wonder Eggs was designed to be a temporary urban theme park. Namco would build, run, and disassemble the park within a few years. I do not know whether this was an arrangement with the lease, or a business decision from the top. In either case it was meant to be a unique experience for visitors. The Disney parks domestically, and overseas were in a constant struggle to keep themselves fresh for visitors. Walt would say he was “plussing” the park by reinvesting in the individual attractions, and themed areas of Disneyland. These sometimes minor additions in the queues, restaurants, rides, and staff left visitors with a favorable impression. They could see, and feel that the park was not becoming stale or outdated. It was the gold standard that all other parks would be measured against. Namco did not have ambitions to challenge Disney, or Universal in the theme park arena. The company did however want to show that they could create something equally memorable in a short span of time. They would be willing to redo two of their standout attractions, and turn the temporary structures from the expo into more permanent buildings.

Namco challenged their staff to go far beyond the work that they had put into the World’s Expo. They saw first hand how quickly the entertainment industry evolved between Expo ’85, and Expo ’90. The technology used with their own video games jumped exponentially in that time. They had moved from 2D sprite art into 3D polygons within their arcade hits. The company knew that unless their attractions kept pace with these changes then they would become stagnant within a few years. Setting an end date for Wonder Eggs would prevent them from hemorrhaging money on upkeep, “plussing” or developing new rides. The initial goal was for Wonder Eggs to run for about four years. Similar to an Olympics, or World Cup. What happened instead was the park ran for eight years, and brought in almost 15 million visitors. To be fair Tokyo Disneyland had about 16 million visitors a year in the early ‘90s, however that park was massive by comparison, and had been in operation since 1983. I would argue that Namco managed to do much more with less, and in a shorter amount of time. In fact Wonder Eggs was so successful that it ended up having a sister park built right next door within two years. To put it in context Disney California Adventure opened in 2001 across from Disneyland. This was 46 years after Disneyland began operations. Tokyo Disney Sea also debuted in 2001, some 18 years after Tokyo Disneyland opened their gates.

Namco certainly had a hit on their hands, but it was much more than being in the right place, at the right time. The philosophy of play that Masaya Nakamura cultivated had a lot to do with it. It was embraced by his company, and allowed his staff to reach into the psyche of visitors, and give them experiences they never knew were possible. In fact some of the attractions were never equalled, and others are barely being matched by the titans of theme parks some 30 years later. We will look at the phases of the urban theme park in the next blog. Were there any unique theme parks, or amusement parks that you visited as a kid? Are there any around these days that you still visit? Please tell me about it in the comments section. As always if you would like to sponsor me please visit my Patreon page and consider donating each month, even as little as $1 would help make better blogs and even podcasts!

Wonder Eggs, and Egg Empire research collected from: Wonder Eggs Guide Map, Namco Graffiti magazine, the book “All About Namco II", NOURS magazine, The Namco Museum, Namco Wiki, Ge-Yume Area 51 Shigeki Toyama Collection, mcSister magazine, first person attraction details from Yoshiki. Event details from Hole in the Socks