The world’s first SpongeBob SquarePants-themed dark ride opened last week at Circus Circus Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
And that’s a problem.
I have no issue with the ride itself. Created by the same team that produced Treasure Hunt: The Ride on Monterey’s Cannery Row last summer, SpongeBob’s Crazy Carnival Ride is a delightful seven-minute interactive adventure. It’s just that the world’s first SpongeBob dark ride should not have debuted as a standalone attraction in a Las Vegas casino in 2024. It should have been the anchor attraction of an entire Bikini Bottom-themed land in some major theme park at least 15 years ago.
Debuting on Nickelodeon in 1999, SpongeBob SquarePants has become one of the most popular franchises in animation history. Nickelodeon owner Paramount deployed SpongeBob as a decorative theme for some kiddie rides in its theme parks over the next few years, but Paramount exited theme park ownership in 2006.
Since then, Paramount has licensed SpongeBob to a variety of different operators. You can find its characters at two Nickelodeon Universe indoor mall parks, owned and operated by Triple Five Group. SpongeBob appears in parades and character meets at Universal Studios Florida. But fans never got the immersive Bikini Bottom land or story-driven dark ride that they deserved.
I love what Sally Dark Rides has done with SpongeBob for Circus Circus. The set-up is that Mr. Krabs’ latest money-making scheme is to open a carnival ride where guests can play midway games. If that sounds like a certain Disney attraction, well, what could be more on brand for Mr. Krabs than recycling someone else’s business idea?
As they have done countless times in TV episodes, SpongeBob and his friend Patrick inadvertently foil Krabs’ plans. This time, it’s by bringing boxes of Krabby Patty ingredients to the ride, rather than game equipment. All those Krabby Patties draw the attention of series villain Plankton, who’s role on the show is to steal the Krabby Patty formula.
Sally Dark Rides employed the original voice talent from the show to create the ride, and its characterizations are spot on. The gameplay is relatively simple and mostly screen-based, but it all feels like an authentic episode of the TV show that you, as a rider, just happen to get to participate in. It’s perfect for a family audience.
It’s also good enough that — like all great attractions — it left me wanting more. Since this is a stand-alone attraction rather than part of an all-inclusive theme park, spending $20 a ride would deter me from taking too many repeat trips. But I gladly would have gone on to buy lunch in a real-life Krusty Krab or sampled anything else in a surrounding Bikini Bottom land … had Paramount stepped up to support one anywhere.
As the owner of the SpongeBob franchise, Paramount has every right to take the approach it has with this character. But as a fan, it’s frustrating to have been denied for so long the opportunity to spend more time — and money — with a franchise that we love.
