RUMOR: Is Universal Orlando developing a “Harry Potter”-themed interactive ride?

First there was Hogwarts, then Gringotts – so what’s next for the Wizarding World of Harry Potter parks?

According to the Orlando Business Journal, patents filed by Universal may give us a clue. Hold on to your wands, because they may be the key to this new ride!

The patent seems to suggest a ride where visitors use wands in an interactive video game-like experiences where

riders use different wands associated with characters and use those wands at specific moments to score points, competing with opposing teams or to accomplish a joint goal. ‘In certain embodiments, the score input may include input from external sensors that capture player motion, such as wand motion, and provide the motion characteristics as input to a score determination algorithm. If the wand motion is associated with a particular spell that is an effective spell for the game, the player’s score may be updated to indicate a successful “[F]reezing [S]ell” or other spell has been cast,’ said the patent.

Could we soon be soaring around Hogwarts, the Ministry of Magic, Gringotts, or another location casting spells in a new story-based ride? This will certainly be a step above the current interactive wand locations at the parks!

Of course, the filing of a patent doesn’t guarantee that this ride is intended to be Harry Potter based, or even that it will come to be. But we can hope, and wait for an announcement from Universal!

What do you hope this ride could turn out to be? Let us know in the comments!