STATION stands for Scientific Training and Tactical Intelligence Operative Network.
We were granted access to one of the Avengers’ high-tech headquarters in south-east Asia, right here in Singapore. Okay, that may be overdoing a bit. Marvel’s Avengers’ STATION is an immersive experience into one of the Marvel cinematic universe’s most recognisable heroes, (you guessed it) the Avengers.
What is STATION exactly? If you want the full experience then you had better get yourself hyped up, otherwise you will probably just think of it as a glorified Marvel exhibit. You come into the STATION as a recruit for the final battle with Ultron. You need to download the STATION app by the way for either iOS or Android to complete your training (and exit the facility). It is mostly a question and answer type of app and all the answers will be inside the STATION itself so you really shouldn’t fail at being a recruit.
So, you get ushered in to STATION by a SHIELD agent and is greeted by Maria in the briefing room who will explain what STATION is all about as well as hand out your mission to help save the planet from hostile threats. Inside, you get the chance to get an in-depth look at the history, technology, genetics and personal profiles of the Avengers. Well, those files that are not classified at least.
The overall experience is quite good. in fact, it was a great experience overall. They made a pretty good impression that you are in a high-tech, top-secret facility hidden somewhere from the public view (in reality, it is at the Annex of the Singapore Science Centre). The wall-to-wall digital screens are there working in conjunction with touch screen panels and motion sensors making you feel like you were a SHIELD operative. Captain America’s shield was there of course and the motorbike that he used as well. An anatomy of the Hulk’s enormous hands were there as well as Black Widow’s batons and Hawkeye’s curve bow. Various information were available on the panels lining up the gear so you know what they were. Other points of interest are Vision’s creation casket and Falcon’s Wings. Thor’s Mjolnir was there for you to try and see if you are worthy of wielding its power (I already kind of guessed that I wasn’t worthy). And the coup de grace, Iron Man’s Hall of Armor. Which, was kind of a disappointment for me. With the numerous movies that Iron Man was in, you would have expected that at least one Armor was actually there. But nope. All that was there were statues of Iron Man’s armors. And they aren’t even the best of the best (the one’s displayed at hobby shops are better in my opinion). At least they are there, including the humongous Hulk Buster Armor. Let’s not overlook the bad guys either where samples of these nasties are lying around in cryo containment chambers along with some of their weapons.
In terms of being interactive, you can’t get any less interactive by swiping your hands and tapping over the touch screen panels to get all the nifty information on the Avengers. You can get a digitized Hulk to perform action moves on a similar touch screen control pad and you can test your grip strength against Captain America. Over at Thor’s Observatory, you can explore the galaxy and perhaps find a school bus floating in space. You can chase ants around while trying to understand Ant Man’s suit and tech too. Around the Iron Man wing of the exhibition was a testing facility where you can experience the Hulk Buster armor in action by remotely controlling it with a motion sensor. They probably use a proprietary application to run the simulation, but the sensor was definitely Xbox One grade. It has been used by other exhibits before so its no surprise that it works rather well.
A movie is also included in the entrance price and you cannot opt out of it. Being a superhero fan, we have already watched these films (some more than once to be honest). So it was a bit of a waste going in without watching the movie. The schedule of the movies can be checked from the Science Center’s website just for reference. After getting our fill of techno mumbo jumbo (which was presented in one of the coolest ways possible), it was time to leave the premises.
This was where it got tricky as we couldn’t find the exit. It turns out that you have to participate in the final battle with Ultron before being certified as a STATION recruit and getting around to the exit. So after playing a short game where you fight as one of the Avnegers, you get to defeat Ultron and save the day. And that was the STATION. If you really get into it, the experience will be worthwhile. It does have some quirky downsides if you’re picky, but like I said, the overall experience is beyond good. Have a go at it while it’s still at the Science Center until January 2017.
Hey, Dad, Dad, Dad! 