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BIOHAZARD Nightmare logo

The event logo, as seen in the Osaka iteration.

The BIOHAZARD Nightmare Amusement Park (バイオハザードナイトメア baiohazādo naitomea?) was a haunted house attraction operated by a joint venture between Capcom and Toei. In its initial run it was marketed as the first two-story haunted house in Japan, and was based on the Spencer Mansion and the Arklay Laboratory with visitors expected to navigate around the interior. Originally hosted on lease in Osaka, the attraction was revived with a second, smaller, version in Saitama. It has since closed permanently.

Attraction[]

Capcom and Toei began discussing plants for park attractions around the time of Resident Evil 2's release and by June had settled on there being two haunted houses in operation simultaneously, with one in Osaka and another in Kanto.[1] While the two were able to reach an agreement with Expoland in Suita, Osaka, the location of the Kanto park was not yet settled when BIOHAZARD Nightmare was officially announced at a press event on 8 June 1998.[2] Following the closure of the Expoland version, Yoshiki Okamoto considered a new attraction rather than simply copying Expoland's, such as one themed on Resident Evil 2, or a dark ride.[3] Ultimately, the Kanto attraction was opened in 2001 to a limited run, being based on the Expoland attraction, with alterations.

Expoland[]

BioHazard_NIGHTMARE

BioHazard NIGHTMARE

VCD footage of the Expoland park, obtained from biohazardfrance.

Throughout the 1990s, Expoland held haunted house attractions in the Summer months, refurbishing each year to remain new each season. Unlike traditional haunted house attractions including dark rides, Expoland used live actors in costumes and prosthetics who would chase guests.[4] Capcom and Toei reached an agreement to refurbish their haunted house to be Resident Evil-themed and remain open under a 12 month license for an anticipated 700,000 visitors, with the event open from 18 July 1998 – 15 September 1999. Ahead of the public opening, Okamoto and Jun'ichi Nagai held a press tour. A VCD WAS sold as a collectible item in an issue of the Street Fighter III comic in Hong Kong.[5]

As an indoor event, Nightmare included a lobby for visitors to wait for their turn, as the small party sizes would mean waits as long as 40 minutes.[6] As entertainment, the colourised Director's Cut version of the Resident Evil opening would play on a screen.[3] As part of the attraction itself, visitors would be partnered up with a S.T.A.R.S. officer, possibly dressed as Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine, who would lead them around the Spencer Mansion and possibly to the Arklay Laboratory which houses the Tyrant.[note 1] Before the start, visitors would be advised to scream "S.T.A.R.S." if having a panic attack, as Zombie actors were trained to break character and let them leave in peace. Zombie actors were required not to actually touch visitors; only appear as though they might.[3][4]

On an ordinary business day, the attraction was open between 09:30 in the morning until 17:30 in the Afternoon, though people were notified to pay admission fees before 16:30 (giving up to an hour inside the attraction, however unlikely).[7] Adults and children aged from 13 years old paid a standard entry fee of ¥1,100, while children between 4 and 12 paid the fee of ¥600.[7][excerpt 1] Adults could pay for a cheaper, ¥800 ticket if they arrived after 16:00, though it was only valid on business days and not the weekends.[excerpt 2] The Night Games were an outside event related to the attraction, ready at 21:00 for the Summertime; weekends and public holidays. It was notified that they were dependent on the weather and any rain would lead to a cancellation of the day's event.

Tobu Zoo[]

After over a year of inactivity, Capcom and Toei were able to reach an agreement with Tobu Zoo to host Nightmare in a limited run from 28 April-31 October 2001; it was closed from 11 June-6 July for maintenance. Tobu's host building was different from Expoland's, and so the mansion and lab were changed to fit on a single floor within the 200 square metres (2,200 sq ft) building.[8] This version is known to have included focus on the prison and laboratory, as well as the main hall.[9]

Admission was at ¥1000 for all guests; at the time Tobu Zoo itself had a ¥1500 admission fee for adults and ¥700 for children under 5 years old.

Merchandising[]

The Expoland Nightmare attraction had a gift shop which sold various Resident Evil-themed merchandise. It is known to have sold postcards; keychains; fans, and replicates of the Spencer Mansion keys, the latter of which sold for ¥700 each and advertised by Famitsu.[10]

Gallery[]

Posters and marketing
Expoland
Tobu Zoo

Sources[]

notes
  1. As we are uncertain of the exact differences between Expoland and Tobu Zoo, archived comments by participants unclear of which they want to may cause confusion.
excerpts
  1. Adult (13 years or more) ¥ 1,100 / Children (4-12 years) ¥ 600 (おとな(13歳以上)1100円こども(4~12歳)600円 Otona (13-sai ijō) 1100-en kodomo (4 ~ 12-sai) 600-en?)
  2. 4時PM以降入園なら割安なトワイライトチケットもあります。ただしナイター営業日のみです(おとな800円こども忘れた) (4-Ji PM ikō nyūen'nara wariyasuna towairaitochiketto mo arimasu. Tadashi naitā eigyō-bi nomidesu (otona 800-en kodomo wasureta) 9: 30 AM ~ 5: 30 PM (nyūen wa heien jikan no 1-jikan mae made)?)
references
  1. 1998年7月15日号 (Japanese). ampress. Retrieved on 2023-04-24.
  2. 1998年9月1日号 (Japanese). ampress. Retrieved on 2023-04-24.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 岡本吉起さんと対策室の爆笑トーク (Japanese). game-j.com. Retrieved on 2023-04-24.
  4. 4.0 4.1 BIOHAZARD experience (Japanese). diana.dti.ne.jp. Archived from the original on 2001-08-17. Retrieved on 2023-04-24.
  5. Promo BIOHAZARD Nightmare Amusement Park Full Length VCD. Resident Evil Collectors. Retrieved on 2013-07-10.
  6. BIOHAZARD Nightmare (Japanese). biohazard.gr.jp. Retrieved on 2023-04-24.
  7. 7.0 7.1 バイオハザードナイトメア Expoland (Japanese). Capcom. Retrieved on 2013-07-10.
  8. 【夏休み特別企画第1弾】 ゲームイベントに参加しよう!! 東武動物公園のウォークスルー型ホラーアトラクション『BIOHAZARD Nightmare』で、恐怖を味わおう! (Japanese). Famitsu (11 August 2001). Retrieved on 2018-09-27.
  9. 自由研究100連発 (Japanese). dailyportalz.jp. Retrieved on 2023-04-24.
  10. Truth of the BIOHAZARD Mansion Keys. Resident Evil Collectors. Retrieved on 2013-12-11.

External links[]

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