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King Kong, and now Donkey Kong!! I hope there is a Mario Kart track.

Another thought: should they desire to expand beyond kid's rides, the theme still works incredibly well. Imagine a coaster using the Star Fox license. I just hope it begins with a launch so you can "use the boost to get through!" It had also better "do a barrel roll" at some point. Or possibly "try a somersault". And preferably at the end of the coaster, it will "use the brakes!" I think a ride that combines all of those elements would really be pushing the Outer Limits of what a modern coaster is capable of. Oh, also, F-Zero themed Strata coaster with each car painted to look like a different one of the F-Zero machines from the games. I'm sure the line for the Blue Falcon will be always be ridiculous, but I'll stick with the Fire Stingray because Samurai Goroh > CRAPtain Falcon. Other possible attraction ideas include a Donkey Kong mine train coaster, a Loftwing-themed Wing coaster, Mario Kart go-kart track... And GYK, I expand on your Mario & Luigi dark ride idea and submit for your approval the idea of a Luigi's Mansion dark ride instead (with no Mario). They could even have a Metroid-themed attraction (an indoor, dark Top Spin, perhaps?). The themeing writes itself. Absolutely perfect license for a theme park. I have waited a very, very long time for this, and if it comes to fruition, a trip (or heck, even a MOVE) to Orlando may very well be in my future. Nintendo literally influenced my life in a profound way. I would not be in the career I am in if not for them, my circle of friends would be entirely different, and I probably wouldn't even like roller coasters and therefore wouldn't be posting on this site right now (I grew up playing the SNES version of SimCity, which caused me to want to play RollerCoaster Tycoon, which is a big part of why I love the things so much today). With all that in mind, visiting a Nintendo theme park, even if it's just a small section inside of a bigger park, is literally one of my wildest dreams come true. I would hope for an attraction based on the Mother series, but I'm far too jaded to expect Nintendo of America to give fans of that series even the tiniest hat tip. I have little doubt that if Nintendo of America could have completely removed Ness from the new Smash Bros. game, they would have in an instant... Honestly, as far as multigenerational appeal goes, Nintendo is the best idea I can think of besides Looney Tunes, and even then, Looney Tunes aren't on TV as often as the used to be. And what great timing. The first American kids to grow up with Nintendo are raising kids of their own now. Nintendo is smart. Very smart. People think they're struggling, but they aren't at all. Their business is much more multi-faceted than people realize. They just entered the incredibly lucrative smartphone gaming arena. They have IPs that are worth millions, if not billions of dollars. Now they are licensing out their characters for theme park attractions. Heck, their North American subsidiary even owns a Major League Baseball team (remember Ken Griffey, Jr. Baseball on the N64?). And that's only scratching the surface. Oh, and unlike the other manufacturers of gaming hardware, they don't have to initially sell their consoles at a loss to keep the prices reasonable...

Whoa! Disney did NOT release concept art of Avatar. They made the same exact announcement that Universal did today: that they'd secured the rights to build attractions based on Avatar / Nintendo, and that they would begin developing attractions. Disney did specifically announce that the first of those attractions would be a land at Animal Kingdom (whereas Universal hasn't announced which park specifically will be the first to get Nintendo). But no art. No ride announcements. No timelines. It was two years and a few weeks later that Disney finally released concept art of Pandora. Deal signed September 17, 2011. Announced three days later. Concept art released October 12, 2013. Two years later. And the project will open in 2017, six years after it was announced. At each progressive revelation, it was met with a sigh of disinterest from fans and GP. Compare that to this announcement, which is going viral online. Nintendo is a HUGE coup for Universal. Not quite Potter sized yet, but a HUGE acquisition. Enormous. And incredibly relevant... Especially compared to Avatar. Mario Kart ride? Kirby? Mario? Pokemon? Zelda? Donkey Kong? Metroid? Just because you've aged out of it doesn't mean everyone has. The "Tumblr" crowd and early twenty-somethings will be very impressed by any E-tickets that come of this. And think about the "Peanuts" effect. Twenty-something couples or early thirties couples with young kids... Guess who they grew up on? And guess who pays for the tickets? Those folks would show up in force for a Zelda ride.

I have never been so excited for an install in my entire life. Shut up and take my money.

^Not to mention that these Nintendo characters and IPs have stood the test of time and continue to remain relevant 20-30 years later. Can we say the same thing about Avatar? Not yet.

http://orlandoinformer.com/page/articles.html/_/blog/universal-orlando/nintendo-is-coming-to-universal-orlando Thoughts?

Be right back, searching for jobs in Orlando...

Maybe it knew the weather forecast today.

I've said it time and time again, Nintendo Land would be an awesome land for a theme park. Way back on one of these threads, I had even mentioned an idea I had to convert Boo Blasters into a Mario Castle dark ride. Even though I knew KI didn't have near the funds to license a brand like Nintendo, I still thought it would be a great idea to implement these themes and characters into some kind of theme park. Looks like Universal had the same idea. This should make an awesome new addition!

From what I can recall over the past 149 pages, there have been no posts that have been inflammatory or scandalous regarding Kentucky Kingdom. Nothing more than a concerned group over the viability of said Kingdom of the Commonwealth. Concerns have been raised and the Kingdom has sent under cover "PR" people to ridicule and scoff at the opinions and insight offered in this thread. Honestly they should be thankful the park has received this kind of attention and used it to benefit attendance. Instead since it isn't controlled by Hart it is not a viable resource to market the park. This thread is no different than any of the other park threads that raised concerns about floundering parks. See the threads on Hard Rock Park and Freestyle Music Park. Hope with a steady dose of realism.

False equivalency. The "news" about theme parks' ride stoppages are typically more equivalent to "an accident was avoided because both drivers were alert and their brakes worked properly," and "a man walked up to a closed store and tried to open the door, finding it locked he moved on." Reporting non-dangerous non-events isn't typical of news coverage of accidents or robberies, only of things that happen at amusement parks. Probably because amusement parks are of interest to the public, but actual incidents are exceedingly rare.

Dang it, BoddaH, now I feel all weepy. It was a good reminder for why I never rode them as a child though. I was particularly afraid of things that seemed out-of-control and chaotic, especially when humans were "behind the wheel" as it were. I would love to ride them now! Last time I rode the new ones, the ride op was rating which number flyers got the highest, so that added a little bit of fun and competition even though I haven't made them snap.

In related news, Travel Channel named Carowinds one of its top 10 amusement/water parks this year: http://www.thestate.com/news/local/article20326470.html (The State is "South Carolina's most honored newspaper" in case anyone's wondering) Apparently the media hype over rides stopping at the park wasn't enough to keep the park from being recognized.

Like Kings Island, it would depend a lot on weather and what time of year it is. A weekend in May or Early June would probably not be so bad, but late June-Early August would likely be pretty packed. Though Holiday World, by virtue of being a smaller park in the middle of nowhere, would still likely not be as crowded as Kings Island or Cedar Point. Also on hot days, most of the crowds will hit the waterpark instead as it's a HUGE draw for the park. On my visit in Memorial Day Weekend 2010 (first ever trip), many waterslides were 45+ minute waits. New-for-2010 Water Coaster Wildebeest was 2+ hours. None of the wooden roller coasters were more than 20 when I rode them. Though Thunderbird will likely make it noticeably more crowded in 2015- large coasters are known to cause spikes in attendance when they debut at smaller parks like this. In 1997, when Kentucky Kingdom added Chang, they got over 500,000 more guests that year then they did in 1996. If Thunderbird can get those kind of results for Holiday World, expect a crowd surge in 2015 and increased wait times as a result. You may also want to do a weekday if you can- May and Early June have traditionally been not that crowded on those days, even for the major waterpark attractions, and even the added Thunderbird crowds probably won't hurt too much. Holiday World does seem to have the Six Flags-like policy of "not crowded, run one train on the coasters" though so you may still have to wait for Voyage on a day like this (6400+ feet of track and one train do not mix well for wait times).

Well, looks like Thunderbird was not the only coaster CoasterForce filmed at 60FPS... Front Seat POV @ 60FPS Rear Seat POV @ 60FPS A 3D version is also available. See CoasterForce's Youtube page for it. Also: I really hope they also do Raven & Legend, I really like these 60FPS POV's- they seem to show off the speed of a coaster better than 30FPS to me. And more videos from other parks like Kings Island at 60FPS too would be awesome.

A Luigi's Mansion dark ride would be awesome

I do not think the park has announced the new Coaster yet. Their page is in Chinese which I cannot read but I see nothing showing a Wing Rider. As for your friend, you can talk to them about anything you feel, including these parts. Sharing them with us is most likely not an option from said discussions though. I'm sure they would tell you that as well.

^ Nintendo's IPs are VERY recognizable to today's youngins. And - perhaps even more importantly - to those in their mid to late 20s, conveniently the demographic most likely to bring small children to an amusement park.

Toon Lagoon is a contender, but it would need to be wiped and built from scratch. Its two rides (Popeye and Dudley Do-Right) are huge, though, and wouldn't be easily re-adapted for new characters. I think they'd seriously need to close the land and re-build it from the ground up, which seems a little silly. The park needs those two water rides and there's no sincere impetus to get rid of them, necessarily. Even though Nintendo would make a worthy replacement, I don't think it's where they'll go. Lost Continent will eventually disappear, which makes me a little sad. But I'd watch for Potter to creep into the Sinbad's Bazaar area of it first (maybe the Forbidden Forest could take over there?), and maybe eventually the Lost City area. But thematically it still fulfills an important position in the park's creative roster. To eliminate it turns 5/7 of the park's island's to cartoons, which is a little heavy. Lost Continent helped balance that and provide something "different" so I don't think it would be the first place for Nintendo. My big bet? The kids area in the studios. It's currently got Fievel and Curious George play areas, an animal show theater, a Barney theater, and an ET dark ride. Especially as the Studio park pushes to both update and build themed lands, I think this property is PERFECT for expansion. Barney Theater becomes Pokemon Battle Gym with a live Pokemon battle show. The associated playground, gardens, etc. become a little village from the show / game with a Pokecenter gift shop, etc. with a classic spinner of flying Pokemon. ET dark ride building becomes Mario & Luigi's Adventure dark ride. The two playgrounds (Fievel and Curious George) become a Hyrule Adventure play area leading to a new Legend of Zelda dark ride. For a long time, I assumed that kids area would get the Dreamworks overlay, but that apparently can't happen (because if it could, I think it already would've). So Nintendo would be marvelous there. What a perfect theme for a kids area. And three little distinct sub-sections within: Pokemon, Mario, and Zelda.

Lord High Ruler and He Who Must Be Obeyed And/Or Savior of Kentucky Kingdom.

Our last stay in Mason, was at the Microtel. We had stayed there before, and, it was a "serviceable" experience. Our last however, left MrsNC, with a few bites around her ankles. We have never even considered the Super 8. Red Roof? Not in this life time. Our real mainstay had become the KII&CC, it really was nice, if you asked for the rooms in the A, B, or C buildings. Sadly, no longer an option. After reading this thread, we have cancelled our room, at a different location, and booked at The Shaker Inn. We booked a small suite, which consists of 2 rooms. One with a king size bed and TV, the other a full size sofa-bed and TV. A built in microwave and refrigerator are included with the room. Final cost, with tax, $170.60 for 2 nights. And this is for Coasterstock weekend. Not sure how many rooms they have left, but MrsNC did mention to them that this site had brought us there. I am actually looking forward to this stay after reading many reviews. I'll post a review here after our stay. Few things would make me happier, than for a small road side hotel to become our "go to" option.

Last year it was only the rides listed, but it really was a great time.

PlannIng on riding T3 Memorial Day Weekend? Better check the Park's website. It now says T3 opens May 30.

As long as it's not your hard drive that's scrambled.

^ They're trying to sell a product. Most families don't book trips 13+ months out, so it's not yet relevant. They also don't want this year's potential customers to wait a year (or to go elsewhere and save Universal Orlando for another trip after the ride opens.)

Hmm...this will be a TBD for me. It might not be a bad thing to rest at the hotel with the nephew and come in time for fireworks and grab ice cream before heading back to the hotel. It's a rare treat for me at the park so I try to take advantage when it's a $1. Magenta Lizard - as I'm clearly oblivious, holler at me if you see me and I don't say hi first.

There is a HUGE difference between Bring A Friend for About $15 and Bring A Friend FREE days....

I said something about this a while back and how video game charter based kids area/rides would be cool (for any amusement park, but I think it was aimed at KI...)! I'll see if I can find my post and update this... update: Can't find the post...

...and those of us a little older than that were just the right age when the NES first came on the scene and introduced many of those classic characters. I love this idea and am happy to see Nintendo getting creative with the use of it's IP.

I'd say it's against the terms of their employment to discuss anything that hasn't been announced. Would you be comfortable risking that person's employment? Would you report whatever you discuss? Would they trust you with any secret information if they knew the answer to that question?

Here's the link: http://www.thebeachwaterpark.com/public/rides_and_attractions/real_thrill/index.cfm The "HOT" label is applied to any thread that contains more than a certain fixed number of posts (30, I think). It is not based on the frequency of posts or how long of a period of time those posts are spread out over, only on the total number of posts.

What was so bad about the crowd last year? I was there and didn't experience anything bad. It was very crowded, but was still a good day!

Maybe the point is just shy, so it doesn't talk a lot. Who are you to judge?

Just got this email:

Proper English? You mean moot--which means hypothetical, not mute, which means silent. Oh, the irony that post have have!

In the second video, isn't that what blue number 1 car is doing? It looks like he gets a few good snaps in. Just from watching these new ones and the new ones Cedar Point got last year, I like ours better, they def slow down a lot faster then Cedar Points flyers.

That's Ed Hart's minions' story, too. And yet I still was not allowed in but rather assisted out...

^ It was a nice time last year. The only thing drawback about the ride night last year is that the Banshee ride line was actually longer during the event than it was during the public operating hours. Everyone still there was concentrated in that section of the park. We ended up with two rides during that night - one with just shy of a half hour wait and the next about 20 minutes wait, when the wait before that had been no longer than 10-15 minutes. I'm not saying it will be like that this year but just be aware that situation is a possibility.

I was there. Was I THAT bad? Terp, who tried to behave. I never met you at the park while I was working there Terpy, or any other time for that matter, so you must be on decently good behavior while at the park. Haha!

I was there. Was I THAT bad? Terp, who tried to behave.

That's the day I plan to go for trip #3 of 2015.

Now I'm in the mood for scrambled eggs.

Be a good day to stay home on the couch.

Also, expect that crowd to be....uh....different than the ones you normally encounter at the park. Participated in this last year with some friends. NEVER again.

And this is one of two reasons why I'm not in the field of my degree. I do believe that there is still good journalism out there. It is just harder to find in the world where station/network owners are focused on the profit and not the message.

YEEEEESSSSSSSS!!!! CAN'T WAIT!

So much for "Nights in white satin, never reaching the end"...

Here's my two cents... The Beast and The Racer: the middle row of each car is the smoothest as you are not in a wheel seat. I prefer front row on night rides. Diamondback: Row 2, either seat Banshee: 8-4 is my go-to seat on Banshee, honorable mention for 1-4. Vortex: 5-1 is a good ride. The first drop in 7-1 still takes me by surprise each time I ride it. The Bat: 7-1 is my go-to seat. Flight of Fear: Front row, every time Backlot Stunt Coaster, Invertigo, Firehawk: The red Ford Focus in the parking lot.

For me, the best seat in the park is the very back seat(s) on Diamondback. Being pulled over the top by the rest of the train on that first hill is amazing! Then push your hands back on the splash-down to get cooled down.

In my opinion the backseats on any coaster provide the most thrill, therefor are the best seats on a coaster.