I’m not big on this whole 3D craze, as those who read the site might have been able to tell. It works for some movies — like James Cameron‘s Avatar, of course — but there is absolutely no need for every movie made to have so many dimensions.

But as 3D is taking over your movie theaters, do not think for one moment that it ends there. No, no — there is indeed a fourth dimension out there in the great beyond, and the technology is well on its way as we speak!

Reports out of Seoul, South Korea share that 4D is no new thing to Koreans. Last year, they set up a special theater in one of their largest chains that would allow them to offer the perfect movie/ride combination, and began with movies like Journey to the Center of the Earth. Since then, they’ve added a few more of these specialty screens, and have been been preparing for Avatar since last summer. While these movies play, over THIRTY special effects are set to add this new dimension to your experience, including light water spraying, lights and lasers, smells such as explosions/gunfire, gusts of wind, and even moving seats!

These theaters aren’t the first signs of 4D experiences like this. After that terrible fire destroyed much of the Universal Studios lot, massive renovations were applied to make the attraction bigger, better, and more technologically advanced than ever before. This included a complete overhaul of the famed King Kong ride, which we discovered would be updated and returned to us in an amazing 4D presentation (Read: Universal Studios To Unveil New ‘King Kong’ Attraction In 2010).

Obviously theme parks like Universal Studios and others have been doing stuff like this for a while and it’s no new revolution; I can even remember going on a ride at a Jordan’s Furniture here in New England about 14-15 years ago that had moving seats, blowing air, and water while roller coaster and other simulation videos player. But as the 3D technology was being perfected, this has also been evolving for a while now, so it was only a natural step in our precious movie-going experience.

In Korea, a ticket for this costs $15.86, which is a lot compared to their normal $6.90 prices. Considering IMAX shows here in the states are already about that much, we could expect these to run $20+ a show. Although I’m not big on 3D, I have to say: this sounds like a hell of a lot more fun. To the point where I would happily spend $20 or more to check one out.

There is no official word on when we might see some of this brilliant madness in theaters here in the States, but according to the trades, there is a company called WonderWorld Studio that is specializing in these 4D cinematic experiences. Sounds like it’s only a matter of time before one pops up in LA or NY and then we see how it catches on.

So, our good readers, what’s the consensus? Would you rather have the 4D movie ride experience than the 3D one, or does neither interest you?

[Source: Variety]