During today’s announcement of Disneyland Abu Dhabi, Disney Parks Chairman Josh D’Amaro revealed new insights into how the company is integrating gaming and interactivity into the future of theme park design—starting from the ground up in the UAE.
In an interview with CNN, D’Amaro tied the development of the Abu Dhabi park directly to Disney’s broader digital strategy, including its
$1.5 billion investment in Epic Games. He noted that younger audiences—particularly Gen Alpha—are spending more time in virtual spaces, making gaming not just a form of entertainment, but a social and creative platform where Disney needs to be present.
“We made an investment in Epic Games about a year ago or so now, a billion and a half, and what we’re seeing is Gen Alpha, particularly, is gathering in these spaces to play games, to socialize, to watch,” D’Amaro said. “So these communities are forming, and we wanted to be part of that.”
D’Amaro described a vision in which experiences inside games like Fortnite—developed by Epic Games—could have tangible connections to real-world parks.
“Think about a Disneyland theme park inside of a virtual environment—and by the way, back and forth,” he explained. “Something that you experience in Fortnite, for example, which is part of Epic Games, that experience you have there you might be able to carry back to a theme park.”
This integration of digital and physical experiences will be a defining element of Disneyland Abu Dhabi, according to D’Amaro. Unlike existing parks retrofitted with new technology, the Abu Dhabi project presents a unique opportunity to design these connections from the beginning.
“We’re really pushing hard into the space,” D’Amaro said. “And with the new park that we’re building here in Abu Dhabi, we’ve got an opportunity from ground up to think about how games and interactivity cannot be just something you do at home or on your phone but how it interplays with the actual park.”
Disneyland Abu Dhabi will be the first Disney park in the Middle East and the first new castle park to break ground since Shanghai Disneyland. No opening date has been announced yet, but the project is expected to become a flagship example of how Disney blends digital entertainment, storytelling, and theme park design in a new era of global expansion.
Watch the full interview with CNN below.
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