Merkaba City

Welcome to Merkaba City, a dazzling art deco metropolis in a universe unlike our own. Guests embark on quests and explore the rich narrative as they join the city’s guardians to balance the equilibrium of Soul Light, and keep the city safe from evil threats that lurk in the shadows.

Hero Image

Merkaba City was born from the explosive remnants of a faraway supernova. Five gods, known as the Stellars, emerged from the elemental fragments of the supernova creating Merkaba City and guiding its diverse beings. However, the fifth god, Dagol, born from Gold, grew corrupt, seeking to hoard Soul Light for himself. His dark plot has thrown the city out of balance, draining its Soul Light and threatening its future. In a desperate plea, the Astral Protectors, Merkaba's chosen guardians, have reached out across dimensions to our universe, inviting new beings—Heroes from Earth—to help restore the balance.

To meet and fulfil Malltopia’s brief, we set out to design Merkaba City as a fresh and exciting LBE concept, to transform the 100,000 sq.ft space into a whole new realm of themed entertainment full of interactivity and amazement, which would eventually expand to many more locations across the US and beyond with its original and engaging IP.

The space itself presents endless opportunities to interact, quest, relax and spend, with a high level of versatility thanks to the various function rooms, quest spaces and constantly evolving narrative, which presents guests with new stories and challenges every time they visit. The attraction’s concept itself strongly encourages repeatability, with guests designing personalised characters with magical abilities that can be levelled up and enhanced, and a detailed quest allocation system and user database that keeps track of guests’ quests and achievements, as well as their progression through the overarching narrative.

Merkaba City is truly a sight to behold, with several awe-inspiring scenes across the space that entice guests to enter and explore. The Museum, Observatory and City Bank are clear standouts of the city square, while quaint domiciles, newspaper offices and stores line Soul Street, leading towards the astounding monument that is the Mayor’s Office, perfectly set between the glorious Amphitheater and the eerie Dark Alleys. In the heart of this central street is the Tailor Shop, our primary retail outlet where guests with a penchant for looking good and feeling powerful can purchase glamorous outfits and character power upgrades, to aid them in their quests and ensure they look good while doing so.

Alternatively, visitors may be drawn by scent or sound over to the Marketplace or the Speakeasy, our main food and beverage options within the city. The marketplace offers a plethora of tasty and zany treats across a sea of lively stalls, whereas the speakeasy offers a more relaxed and refined dining and drinking experience for guests that are familiar with Merkaba or for other mall-goers, who can enter through a designated portal in the adjacent parking lot. The speakeasy, aptly named the ‘Nova Lounge’, offers a more luxurious food and beverage opportunity, while still retaining a touch of Merkaban intrigue and excitement with its live entertainment and secret quest opportunities.

At its core, Merkaba City provides a chance for guests to become a hero in a magical and captivating realm accessible to all, offering a boundless narrative and endless activities that guests can engage with to their heart’s content.

Concept Gallery:

Merkaba City Bird's Eye View

The magically radiant Merkaba City from above, showcasing its many functional spaces.

Attraction Entrance

The attraction entrance is a stunning blimp station, located in a quaint corner of the Springfield Town Center Mall in Virginia.

Blimp Room POV

Inside the Blimp Simulator, guests are seated on a central bench, looking out to the breathtaking views surrounding them.

Observatory POV

The Observatory ignites guests’ curiosity as they begin to learn how to interact with Merkaba and its deep lore.

City Square POV from Guest Entrance

Guests emerge from the Observatory into the City Square, to see astonishing views of the city’s features as it pulses with magic.

City Square POV from Mayor’s Office

The central street of the city offers a wide range of opportunities for guests to interact, shop and explore.

Speakeasy POV from Guest Entrance

The Speakeasy, known as the ‘Nova Lounge’, is accessible to outsiders via a secondary entrance portal in the parking lot.

Musical Performers

Magical musicians keep the Speakeasy lively, enchanting and entertaining guests exploring, imbibing or dining at the Nova Lounge.

City Square Sky Illusion

The City Square’s sky is dynamic, changing from a vibrant aurora in the daytime, to a deep, starry night sky in the evening.

City Square Elevation

 Every aspect of the City Square is interactable, from shop windows and buildings, to benches, newspaper stands, and lampposts.

City Square Prop Designs

The various props in the City Square sustain the art deco aesthetic of the city, for a consistent visual identity.

Mayor’s Office Balcony and Observatory Stellar Statues

The animated Mayor’s Office stands tall at the end of Soul Street, and the Stellar statues tower above guests inside the Observatory.

Tutorial Quest Stations, Observatory

Alchemists, Oracles and Enchanters learn how to wield their power and harness Soul Light with these interactive stations.

Gargoyle Animated Figure Design, City Square

The city’s Bronze Gargoyles are animated figures atop buildings and gates, who watch over the city to keep its residents safe.

Newspaper Article Samples

The newspaper stands share articles that strengthen the narrative and deepen the lore, to keep guests engaged with the story.

Character Designs

Merkaba City has plenty of memorable and captivating characters, giving ample opportunity to expand further on the IP in the future.

Team Roster QR code

https://linktr.ee/merkabacity

For our schematic documentation, we chose to focus on the areas integral to the first-time guest journey; the Blimp Simulator Journey, the Observatory and the City Square. This decision reflected the team’s intent to fully establish and refine the key scenes in the attraction, and gave us ample opportunity to work on developing a variety of different technologies and creative aspects that bring these scenes to life.

These subsequent scenes follow the guests as they journey across from Virginia to Merkaba, enter a tutorial quest and learn how to interact with the space, and finally venture out into the open world of Merkaba City.

Schematic Gallery:

Axonometric View, Merkaba City

Line drawings of the first and second floor floorplans in 3D, stacked one on top of the other and spatially aligned.

Room Demarcation Plan, Second Floor

Plan view of the entire second floor to scale with each room colour coded and numbered, relating to a room list on the right.

Video Placement Diagram, Blimp Room

Blimp room floorplan at a 1:100 scale with the positions of video-related hardware marked out and identified by a legend.

Show Control Placement Diagram, Blimp Room

Blimp room floorplan at a 1:100 scale with show effects, show control and RFID related hardware positions marked out.

Retracted Walls Placement Diagram, Blimp Room

Blimp room floorplan at a 1:100 scale with moving wall and floor panels shown in extended and retracted positions.

Sections, Blimp Room

Longitudinal and latitudinal Blimp room sections at 1:100 scale. The latitudinal section is coloured to show the show set.

Ride System Motion, Blimp Room

Longitudinal and latitudinal elevations of the Blimp ride system, illustrating the 10 cm range of pure vertical motion.

Ride System Exploded Diagram, Blimp Room

D model of the Blimp ride system viewed from above, spacing out the floor mounting, carriage, and cabin sections.

Ride Hydraulic System Calculations 1/2, Blimp Room

ASTM standards, required parts and the beginning of structural load calculations for the Blimp ride hydraulic system.

Ride Hydraulic System Calculations 2/2, Blimp Room

Continued structural load calculations, cylinder force calculations and recommendations for the Blimp ride hydraulic system.

Guest Flow & Signage Plan, Observatory, First Floor

First floor Observatory floorplan at a 1:100 scale showing guest flow routes and directional and emergency signage locations.

Floor Finishes Plan, Observatory, First Floor

First floor Observatory floorplan at a 1:100 scale showing the floor finishes.

Lighting Placement Diagram, Observatory, First Floor

First floor Observatory floorplan at a 1:100 scale showing the placement and type of lighting fixtures.

Telescope Design Detail, Observatory

Side elevation of the Observatory telescope prop at 1:62 scale, showing design details with dimensions and material finishes.

Telescope Technical Detail, Observatory

Side elevation of the Observatory telescope prop at 1:62 scale, showing technical hardware and structural details.

Oracle Quest Technical Detail, Observatory

Multiple technical line drawings of the Oracle quest wheel, and one coloured technical drawing of the Oracle quest station.

Alchemist Quest Technical Detail, Observatory

Three technical drawings of the Alchemist quest station and a section through the cauldron with call-outs of chosen hardware.

Enchanter Quest Technical Detail, Observatory

Three technical drawings of the Enchanter quest station from the top, front and side with technology explained in call-outs.

Guest Flow & Directional Signage Plan, City Square

City Square floorplan at a 1:300 scale showing guest flow routes and directional and emergency signage locations.

Audio Placement Diagram, City Square

City Square floorplan at a 1:300 scale showing the placement and type of audio hardware.

Animated Figure & Prop Placement Diagram, City Square

City Square floorplan at a 1:300 scale with the positions and names of animated figures, animated props and special effects.

FF&E Plan, City Square

City Square floorplan at a 1:300 scale, labelling the positions of furniture, fixtures and equipment (FF&E).

Sections, City Square

Longitudinal and latitudinal City Square sections at a 1:250 scale, both as black line drawings on white paper.

Mayor’s Office Animation Technical Detail, City Square

Technical design of the animation of the Mayor’s Office, including a wing rotation mechanism and door opening mechanism.

Newspaper Stand Detail, City Square

Multiple line drawings of the Newspaper stand giving dimensions and hardware, and a coloured 3D model with material finishes.

Luma Band Design Detail

Coloured design drawings for LumaBand wearable types, including on a limb, around a walking aide, and by carabiner.

Luma Band & RFID Reader Technical Detail

Exploded diagram of the LumaBand and RFID reader plate, showing the accessible hardware including a speaker and haptic motor.

Accessibility & Sustainability Statements

Written accessibility and sustainability statements detailing the strategies which make the attraction inclusive for all.

Team Roster QR code

https://linktr.ee/merkabacity

Team Members:

Gijs Hermans 🇳🇱 - Art Director - https://www.linkedin.com/in/gihermans/

Camélia Korchi 🇧🇪🇲🇦 - Project Manager - https://www.linkedin.com/in/camelia-korchi/

Lizzie Pendleton 🇬🇧 - Technical Director - https://www.linkedin.com/in/e-pendleton/

Brittany Russo-Zirkel 🇺🇸 - Creative Director - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brittanykrussozirkel/

Sameeksha Bhatia 🇮🇳🇦🇪 - Project Coordinator & Show Designer - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sameekshabhatia/

Omar Bishop 🇺🇸 - Creative Technologist - https://www.linkedin.com/in/omar-bishop-vcu/

Thomas Bowen 🇬🇧 - Creative Show Writer - https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomasdbowen/

Manouk Kennis 🇳🇱 - 2D&3D Visual Artist - https://www.linkedin.com/in/manouk-kennis-053073223/

Rayane Nekka 🇸🇦🇫🇷 - Architect Engineer - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rayane-nekka-059b05224/

Josh Wall 🇬🇧 - Technical Show Designer - https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-wall-9991778b/

Special Thanks to our Mentors:

Lisa Cuisenier 🇫🇷 - Walt Disney Imagineering - https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-cuisenier/

Robert van den Boom 🇳🇱 - Theming Engineers - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rvdboom/