Yume Kōjō '87 was a large-scale festival run by Fuji Television in the Summer of 1987 to advertise then-upcoming technology and media, and featured several special events such as live concerts, performances and celebrity appearances. It was held in two of the most important cities of the country: Osaka and Tokyo, and lasted for 44 days starting from July 18th.
It was one of the largest activities that took place in Japan during that year, but due to how limited media coverage across countries was back then (and because media themselves outside Japan were filled with other newsworthy priorities), very little about it was known in the West for the longest time. Many people outside Japan didn't even know it existed, and it only became faintly known among several years after it happened when people learned more about the development history of Nintendo-produced Super Mario Bros. 2 (specifically its overstated origin as a Dolled-Up Installment of Doki Doki Panic). It took even longer for people to finally learn about what Yume Kōjō '87 was really about and how it came to be. Even then, it remains barely documented on Internet, as not much of it was recorded originally.
This article aims to cover the essential facts about this event. If you're interested on learning more about it, feel free to check the following videos by YouTube channel GTV Japan (formerly Gaijillionaire): "Not the Story of Super Mario Bros. 2" or "What Was Yume Kojo?"
(the original documentary video released in 2016) and Dream Machine: The Complete Story of Yume Kojo (an updated, more complete version of the original video released in 2022, coinciding with the 35th anniversary of the festival). The former video was the first piece of media that went great lengths to cover information about the subject.
Concept and origins:
The original idea of Yume Kōjō '87 began in early 1984 by the chairman of Fuji TV's group (Fuji Sankei Communications Group, we'll refer to it as FSC Group from here on), Haruno Shikanai, who envisioned the intent of showing to the public what technologies were in development and how they would shape the 21st century. People's approach to technology was an important subject around the world during The '80s, and Japan was not alone in this trend. Also, festivals and important events in Japan were hardly a new thing, as the country previously hosted them in prior decades (including the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo). The next technology-themed festival back then took place in 1985, but its focus on computer science, hardware developments and robotics neglected the impact and usage of traditional media (such as music and television) to them, leading to the exclusion of media companies like Fuji TV during its run. Disappointed by this (and motivated by a Start My Own mentality), Shikanai wanted to make a grand-scale festival that would combine both worlds. And because the FSC Group already excelled with their software and properties, it would serve as an excellent platform to show the masses what they were capable of.
Also, Shikanai was a recurring traveler. One of his destinations was Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and he and his camera crew was awed by the 1984 edition of the traditional Carnival and the many fun events taking place within. What if Yume Kōjō '87 not only showed future technology, but also entertained its visitors while they were at it?
During two years, Shikanai and several employees of Fuji TV meticulously prepared the logistics of the festival. Some of them were sent to museums and amusement parks around the world to study how they entice their audiences, their specific logistics, production costs and management. Next up, they discussed the aesthetics and imagery; they felt that the festival had to encourage creativity and imagination, especially among children, as well as the goal of making dreams come true. That's how the festival's name would receive its name: Yume Kōjō, which means "Dream Machine" in Japanese. A not very known fact is that the name would have a subtitle: Communication Carnival, inspired by the aforementioned carnivals of Rio de Janeiro. They set the opening date to July 18, 1987, so the team had exactly two years to get the job done. And to make it accessible for people as well as enhance the coverage, they decided to host it in two cities: Osaka and Tokyo. As mentioned before, Shikanai wanted people to have fun during the festival's run, so having playgrounds, restaurants, souvenir shops and stage performances was decided as well.
Due to the scale and scope of the festival, the preparations proved to be very challenging, especially because it was still unknown to the public and they needed to keep it a secret until an official reveal was made. Back then, not many companies were as resourceful as FSC Group for a task of this kind, but the company knew what they were doing.
Development and promotion:
Starting in the middle of 1986, FSC Group made use of its dedicated media, namely radio branch Nippon Hoso, press branch Sankei Shimbun, and TV network Fuji TV, to spread the word-of-mouth about the festival. It was also during this time when mascots were conceived to serve as the public image of the event as well drive the advertising and merchandising. Enter the Arabian family of the Imajin. The name was a transliteration of the English word imagine, to keep up with the main goal of enticing imagination and creativity. The members of the femily were Imajin (the eldest son), Piki and Poki (his younger brothers), Papa and Mama (his parents), and Rusa (the pet monkey); joining them was also Lina, Imajin's girlfriend. They would not only appear in all sorts of merchandising, but also star their own video game to promote the event. This is already starting to sound familiar to you, right?
Also, thanks to the influence of Brazilian carnivals, the festival would use masks as a recurring motif, though their designs were inspired by those of early-modern Italy. This wasn't a case of Cowboy BeBop at His Computer, however. Shikanai and his team wanted the festival to represent cultural diversity, so the mixture of Middle Eastern, South American and European motifs was actually intentional. On July 18th, 1986, Shikanai and several employees entered Fuji TV Studios while wearing those masks to officially announce the festival, which would take place exactly one year later. Several performances by a music group known as Yume Kōjō were aired on TV to further spread the awareness of what would come to the masses, and some of the songs would even be put into anime programs.
Merchandise products based on Yume Kōjō '87 were available for sale across all of Japan starting from the summer of 1986, and an arena was redesigned into a nightclub themed around the festival as well. Even a themed clothing line was made. As time passed, Fuji TV itself was rebranding some of its programming spaces, including their news program, to go along with Yume Kōjō.
FSC Group contacted several companies to join the project. As mentioned at the start of this section, they wanted the Imajin family to star their own video game, so they contacted Nintendo to propose an idea to them: To develop a video game where the characters would have their own adventure. Nintendo accepted, and entrusted the development to Shigeru Miyamoto and his team. The game was directed by Kensuke Tanabe, who back then was a new recruit for the company and previously worked on a Mario-style prototype for a game oriented towards vertical level exploration. The prototype was then used as a base for the game, though it did add horizontal levels to keep the gameplay fresh. Hideki Konno and Yasuhisa Yamamura helped in the levels' design, and the music was composed by Koji Kondo. While the stars of the game were the licensed Imajin characters, the development team came up with several original enemies and characters (such as Shy Guys, Ninjis, Pokeys, Bob-ombs, and Birdo), and some elements and ideas from the Super Mario Bros. franchise (like the Starman, POW Blocks, Warp Zones, and Coinsnote ) were added. The resulting game was Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic ("Dream Machine: Heart-Pounding Panic''), and it was released on July 10th, 1987 for the Family Computer Disk System, only eight days before the start of the grand festival.
The opening and run of the festival:
On July 18th, 1987, Yume Kōjō '87 opened its doors at 10 am and had a massive opening, including a parade staffed by 3000 people. Across the festival's settings were several pavillions hosting unique attractions and showings, many of which resorted to futuristic music and special effects that used holograms, wind and smoke. There were also booths showing the newest video games, whether recently released on soon to come (and some of them had playable demos), thus serving as a precursor of gaming conventions like Nintendo's Space World (1989-2001), ESA's Electronic Entertainment Expo (1995-2021), or CESA's Tokyo Game Show (1996-current). Next to the booths was a circuit for a racing car game that became very popular among the festival's visitors. This was also the event Sega used to show the Light Phaser and 3D glasses accessories to the public for the first time.
Other attractions included play areas themed around Tokyo Pig, a matchmaking program where you could find a potential suitor, a speech recognition program that changed participants' voices into those of anime characters, a simulated waterfall, a fun house that used pressure sensors for people to trigger lights and sounds upon contact, an exhibit themed around the setting of GeGeGe no Kitarō, a pavillion using 336 television sets to display a very impressive showing of a music number (all while using air conditioners to keep a cool temperature), a water park, idol singer performances, circus acts, and a concert simulator where people could use special 3D glasses to watch a live TV broadcast of a concert and experience the thrill of attending and enjoying one (and obviously, among the recorded performers were the Yume Kōjō band). Many of these attractions and events took advantage of gadgets and technology, and it made sense because this was the vision Shikanai had since the beginning for the festival: To not only show the latest technology but also entertain people and stimulate their imagination and show them a promising vision of the future. There was also a dance club that was exclusive to the Osaka setting of the festival.
As mentioned before, restaurants were also at the order of the day, and there were over 100 of them across both settings. And to go along with the culturally diverse motif of the festival, the foods served hailed from several parts of the world, such as Italy, Morocco, China, and the United States; of course, Japanese cuisine was available as well. And just like in the preceding months, souvenirs themed around Yume Kōjō '87 were available for sale, and included various items like masks, T-shirts, keychains and pillows. Many stars and talents from Fuji TV had their presence, greeting their fans and signing autographs. Last, but not least, while the festival took place in two settings, these weren't independent from each other, as there would be a daily tug-of-war competition between people from both cities; and a satellite was used to calculate the force applied by each competing side!
On the 44th and final day of the festival (August 30th), a grand closing event took place in both Osaka and Tokyo, featuring a spectacular firework showing and various dances. The festival took three years in the making, and despite the challenges to make it true it made up for a highly successful event. It was attended by over 5,7 million people, and marked a decent boost in the national economy of Japan for the remainder of 1987.
Aftermath and legacy:
Following the end of Yume Kōjō '87, things at Fuji TV slowly returned to the daily routine, and Japan as a whole followed suit. A smaller-scale derivative of the festival took place in 1988 in Yubari, Hokkaido in order to improve its local economy following the inactivity of its once-thriving coal mines. It was called Yume Kōjō '88, and despite its smaller scale it actually lasted for much longer than the original event (it began in April 29th and ended in October 31st); though it didn't match the overwhelming success of its predecessor, it did manage to help the city's popularity to turn it into a popular touristic destination. From 1990 onwards, Yubari would start hosting a film festival every year in February, which has lasted to this very day but no longer having the Yume Kōjō brand. Yokohama would have have its own festival in 1989, the Yokohama Exotic Showcase (YES for short), focused on transportation and vehicles. And Sega continued with their gaming showcases, including two new editions (1990 and 1991) of the car racing game that was so popular in the 1987 festival; they would since then attend electronic conventions to showcase their upcoming video games. Following up the poor support of the Consumer Electronic Show towards gaming showings that affected Sega and other companies (especially in 1994), the Electronic Entertainment Expo would become the get-go for gaming conventions from 1995 onward (lasting until 2021, with the event's definitive end confirmed in late 2023).
Much of the massive equipment used to run Yume Kōjō '87 in its two hosting cities has been dismantled, and almost none of the pavillions exist. One still does, the Dream Emporium, which can be seen alongside other assets from the festival in the artificial island of Odaiba to this day. A statue of Imajin remains erected on the island of Niijima. Many of the promised technologies, though not immediately, did become an everyday element in society over the course of time. And of course, the advergame used to promote the event, Doki Doki Panic, became a suitable replacement for the infamously difficult Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels when Nintendo of America looked for a more accessible sequel to the original Super Mario Bros. 1, and the gamble paid off as the game became the fourth best-selling software on the NES. Many of its elements would be adopted into the Mario franchise, and the game would later be canonized in Japan as Super Mario USA with its Recursive Import in 1992, as well as its numerous ports and rereleases on Nintendo systems.
So... if Yume Kōjō '87 was so publicized and became so popular, then why was almost none of this known outside Japan for so long and why it remains barely documented even on the know-it-all Internet of today? As mentioned before, it's because there was little word-of-mouth about it overseas, and Internet didn't exist back then so it was difficult for foreigners to discover these things. Add to that the perennial priorities of media in Western countries even during those years, such as political developments (the USSR and its eventual dissolution was still on many people's minds, as was the 1989 martial law of China and the difficult political developments of the United States) , as well as the prominence of Western fiction and popular culture, and you get why there was little, if any, international coverage or recording of an event as positive and optimistic as the one that took place in Japan (and admittedly, the fact that Fuji TV had no seeds outside its native country and thus had no way to extend the festival overseas didn't help either). And one can only imagine if people's awareness would even have occured at all if Super Mario Bros. 2 was never converted from Doki Doki Panic and instead we had The Lost Levels as the originally-intended sequel, since this was what piqued overseas people's interest in Yume Kōjō '87 in the first place!
But hey, at least TV Tropes now has an article on it.