ImageWorks - The "What If" Labs

ImageWorks - The "What If" Labs: attraction at EPCOT, Walt Disney World — live wait times, operating status, and planning data on MouseHub.

Wait time history

Historical wait patterns for ImageWorks - The "What If" Labs accrete daily as MouseHub records waits every 15 minutes. Charts appear here once enough history exists.

Visitor sentiment

3.4· 63 Google ratings

The MouseHub take

ImageWorks sits at the exit of Journey Into Imagination with Figment, in EPCOT's World Celebration. It is a room of hands-on stations rather than a ride, and you can walk in without riding anything. You conduct an orchestra by waving your arms, jump on floor panels called Stepping Tones to build a sound, record yourself in super slow motion, and design a dragon at a kiosk that gets emailed to you. Figment meets guests in the same room on posted times, and a merchandise counter shares the space. There is no height requirement, so nobody in the party waits outside.

Two things bring most families in: the kids need somewhere to burn off energy, and the room is air conditioned. Both hold up. The rest is where visitors split. Image Works opened on October 1, 1982, closed in October 1998, and returned on October 1, 1999 as ImageWorks, the Kodak "What If?" Labs. People who remember the first version still describe the replacement as thinner, and the screens and interfaces have aged since. Treat it as an indoor break with a few things for kids to push and jump on and it does the job.

At a glance

Best for
Families with young kids who need somewhere cool to run around between EPCOT attractions.
Skip if
You are touring without kids and want the pavilion's ride, its gallery, or anything with a show to it.
Ride type
Walk-through play space at a ride exit, with interactive stations and a character greeting
Intensity
Gentle. No ride vehicle, no drops, no height requirement. The room gets loud when a crowd is in it.

The good

  • The air conditioning does most of the work
    Visitors keep describing this as the place they ducked into to get out of the heat. Adults sit down while the kids keep moving.
  • Kids can jump on the Stepping Tones
    The floor panels build a sound as you step on them, which is the one station that works for a toddler who cannot reach a screen.
  • Wave your arms and the orchestra follows
    One station lets you lead an orchestra by waving your arms in the air. It is the first thing most kids figure out in the room.
  • The dragon you design gets emailed to you
    A kiosk walks you through building your own dragon, then sends it to an address you type in. Have one ready if you want to keep it.
  • Figment meets guests in the same room
    Disney runs a Figment greeting inside ImageWorks on posted times, so the purple dragon is a short walk from the ride that stars him.
  • No height requirement, so nobody sits out
    Disney lists the space as Any Height, and there is no ride vehicle to board. Infants, toddlers, and grandparents all go in together.

The bad

  • The screens and software look their age
    Reviewers keep saying the graphics and the interfaces feel a generation behind what their kids use at home.
  • It gets loud fast
    Electronic sounds from the stations bounce around a hard-surfaced room with a lot of kids in it. Visitors sensitive to noise notice within a minute.
  • Longtime fans miss the original
    Image Works ran from October 1, 1982 until October 1998, and the version that reopened in October 1999 draws steady comparisons from people who remember the first one.
  • Ride unloads fill the room at once
    Guests arrive in batches as the attraction empties out, so the stations go from open to occupied in the space of a minute.

Veteran tips

  • Walk in without riding if you want
    Visitors regularly report going straight into the play space and the merchandise counter without getting on the attraction first. Useful when one adult is riding with the older kids.
  • Check the app for Figment's times
    The greeting runs on set times rather than all day. Look them up before you promise a small child a photo with the dragon.
  • Find the slow-motion camera before you leave
    One station records you in super slow motion, and it is the one people walk past without noticing.
  • Duck in when the afternoon storm hits
    The room is large, indoors, and needs no reservation, which makes it an easy place to wait out a Central Florida downpour with kids.
  • Give it a minute if it looks packed
    The crowd here comes in waves off the ride. Step out, do the ride or the shop, and come back once that batch has moved on.
  • Wheelchair and ECV users stay in their device
    Disney classifies the space as May Remain in Wheelchair/ECV, so there is no transfer to plan for and no reason to split the party at the door.
  • Look in first if loud rooms are a problem
    For a child who struggles with noise and echo, a look through the doorway settles it faster than getting halfway across the room.

MouseHub editorial, written from visitor reports and official Disney sources. Last reviewed .

Sources