From a television commercial that gives a humorous twist to a theme park's impending closure to hotels staffed by robots, tactics to capitalize on company outings, and ads featuring Japanese pop idols and actors — theme parks in Japan are squeezing their creative juices to attract more first-time visitors and repeaters through avant-garde ways.

Firms in the sector are hoping to ride the momentum of the expanding domestic theme park market, which marked another record in 2016 in terms of size, thanks partly to an increase in foreign visitors to Japan.

The Space World amusement park in Kitakyushu will close by the end of December. The self-deprecatory take on its demise, as seen in its commercial, has caught public interest.