A photo of a disturbingly drab Tennessee McDonald’s Play Place is going viral online as customers reflect on how the chain restaurant—and society—have changed.
In previous decades, parents set their children loose on McDonald’s playgrounds, where they could swing, ride a hamburger merry-go-round, or bounce inside a spring-loaded Grimace. The latest Play Place iteration has social media users grimacing in a whole new way.
The photo, posted on X by Nancy French, reveals a rectangular room. The box’s interior is beige and brown interior, other than the far wall, which is painted red with a curved white stripe. A window allows light to stream in around a McValue sign, adding to the illumination provided by can lights scattered sparsely across ceiling panels. In the corner sit two child-sized chairs, inches away from two screens—slightly larger than iPads—attached to the wall.
“Dang. It is just a window away from being a sensory deprivation room,” an X user noted.
“Looks like a jailhouse video call booth,” one account said. “It should be called Fast Food Re-Education Corner,” joked another, with someone adding, “lol this is called a ‘liminal play place.'”
“Hey McDonalds, why are your ‘play places’ dystopian and depressing punishment corners?” another asks.
As the tweet circulated, questions poured in from cautiously optimistic viewers, asking if the Play Place was perhaps unfinished. French returned to the location to film, offering a more complete look at the room she described as “heart breaking” in her original tweet. While the follow-up reveals some sort of electronic tower game and a wooden bench, it does little to console the commenters grieving about the McDonald’s play experiences of their childhoods.
I went back in to make sure I didn’t miss something. There was this column thing that might be for getting kids to exercise. But I don’t think this is temporary. I think this is it. pic.twitter.com/NkpTvACJ2J
— Nancy French (@NancyAFrench) March 5, 2025
“The shift in McDonald’s vibe from 90’s to today captures everything wrong with society,” another comment read, highlighting the shift from colorful outdoor play structures that encouraged movement and imagination, to the sterilized and contained contemporary offering.
The evolution of McDonald’s Play Places in response to stricter safety regulations has been lamented by patrons over the years. The Covid pandemic was especially detrimental to McDonald’s Play Places, adding another setback to the plate of the fast food chain that was recently dethroned as the world’s largest fast food chain.
It’s unclear if this particular location’s Play Place is an anomaly, or an intentional franchise-wide shift.
Meanwhile, some are choosing to look on the bright side. “At least they can run and throw fries at each other.”
Originally published on Latin Times
