2. A full experience

As extraordinarily detailed and immersive as Universal Orlando Resort’s Wizarding World of Harry Potter is, both Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley still suffer from Universal’s characteristic idiosyncrasy:  a narrow focus on E-ticket attractions, with most other types of experiences left largely forgotten.  (Yes, Diagon Alley’s Tales of Beedle the Bard and Celestina Warbeck shows are a step in the right direction, but they nonetheless remain only a step.)

Disney, meanwhile, was at the theme park game several decades before Universal entered the fray, and it has all the fixings across the board down pat.  In addition to whatever original attractions are to be installed at Star Wars Land, also expect to see character meet-‘n-greets, parades, special events, holiday decorations, and several other layers of so-called streetmosphere all strategically arranged throughout the area.

Granted, Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling is to blame for a hefty number of these types of experiences being omitted from the Universal parks, but this is where Disney’s direct ownership of the Star Wars brand is yet another advantage for the company – there are far fewer hoops to jump through and different personalities to appease (though this strength can certainly – and quickly – be transformed into a weakness).

1. Showcase of new technologies

Disney’s decision to focus on and invest in its technology – such as its much-touted NextGen initiative, which has resulted in the all-in-one MagicBands and FastPass+ mobile reservations – over the past decade has won it more than its fair share of criticism, but the company just may end up with the last laugh.

Since Star Wars Land is the first American development to be tackled after the rollout of MagicBands, Imagineers have the opportunity for the very first time to fully take advantage of the sheer level of personalization that is made possible by the RFID-equipped bracelets.  Attractions can track your number of rides and “unlock” alternate scenes or scenarios; bartenders can quip about how much Blue Milk you’ve been downing; and when combined with the recently introduced interactive character meet-‘n-greets (such as the one currently featuring Mickey Mouse at Magic Kingdom’s Town Square Theater), characters can address you by name and engage you in full-on Star Wars conversation.

More than that, however, is the next-next-generation technologies that Disney has already patented and is currently looking to implement for one of the very first times, including walkways that light up and animate when traversing them (which is rumored to first be tested out in Pandora) and unmanned drones that can hoist movie screens in the air or animate large-scale puppets, among several other possible usages.

The highlight of them all, however, is Ishin-Den-Shin, a technology which records a speaker’s voice and transmits it exclusively through touch – the most perfect way to replicate what using the Force must be like for Jedi.

Indeed, when considering what the Disney Company will be bringing online towards the end of this decade, it’s hard not to get downright giddy about Star Wars Land’s nearly infinite potentiality.

May the Force be with you.