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RingMaster

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Everything posted by RingMaster

  1. I beg to differ; either one of those two attractions would be ripe for a Donkey Kong re-theme, using the infamous DK barrels as ride vehicles. Of course, the issue would be having a second Kong-themed attraction literally a stone's throw away from the just-announced Skull Island attraction, but then they could pull off a fairly subtle transition area between Jungle Japes and Skull Island/Jurassic Park. The thing about using Kidzone, though, is space. I see the idea of having multiple game-themed areas better suited to a much larger piece of land like Toon Lagoon, as it already has four somewhat separately themed zones (Ripsaw Falls, Popeye's, Comic Strip, and the Theater...thing...place). Having a Luigi's Mansion dark ride and a Mario Kart racetrack would be the perfect answer to Disney's Haunted Mansion and Tomorrowland Speedway.
  2. That's because "the old Psycho Path trail" is now home to more than 65 animatronic dinosaurs. As for the former Curse of the Crypt spot, I'm surprised they actually didn't go back to using that spot instead of using the Skeeball building for Kill Mart. They could have even utilized the main Arcade interior as well as the storage area.
  3. I can understand their insistence on keeping some of the Haunt mazes up year-round to a point; it cuts down on setup time when you have fewer attractions to completely rebuild from the ground up. But having the signage and outdoor decor up is indeed ridiculous. I thought it was bad enough having Club Blood's front graffiti'd up and no real effort to have it completely hidden during the regular season (flipping the graffiti'd fence over notwithstanding). The issue here is that there aren't a lot of already-standing spaces that are sizable enough to install a maze. Kings Island doesn't have extra special event buildings or easily available/accessible backstage areas on hand like Knott's Berry Farm, or even massive extended queue lines that won't be filled up come Haunt season like Universal Studios. We just lost one space to a petting zoo (Peanuts Playhouse), and there's an increasingly good chance another will be lost to a new dark ride in the coming years. Although whether or not it will be the former Action Theater, former Crypt, or even the entire building Boo Boo's Blasters resides in remains to be seen.
  4. They got fish farms out west don't they? I heard one was being built in Buena Park, but I'm knott 100% certain.
  5. I'm actually surprised we haven't had a medieval-themed Haunt/FearFest attraction considering almost everyone else in the chain had one in their lineup at some point. Knott's even had a maze based loosely off the Inquisition (aptly titled The Inquisition) alongside a scare zone called The Gauntlet. Just another one of many themes Neither-Royal-Nor-Water-Logged Park's haunted event has yet to look into, just like a Toy/Doll-themed maze, a School-themed maze, a Casino-themed maze, etc....
  6. Except that the only reason B&M has Cedar Fair in their "grasp" (beside the fact that most of the recent installations reside in the former Paramount Parks) is because the last coaster manufacturer to have said chain in its "grasp" had a history of mechanical issues and post-installation changes that spanned the majority of the last decade. And if we're only looking at the poster child for the entire Fair, there is a 17-year gap between B&M installations.
  7. Yeah, about that Voyage to the Iron Reef trademark:http://www.trbimg.com/img-5464b39f/turbine/la-trb-knotts-berry-farm-voyage-iron-reef-2014-001/400/400x225 And story link: http://www.latimes.com/travel/themeparks/la-trb-knotts-berry-farm-voyage-iron-reef-20141113-story.html?nrfd#page=1
  8. Along with that placement, I'd also expect the number of adults in Planet Snoopy to increase! Seriously. Woodstock Gliders are going to become the My Little Pony of the amusement park industry; a ride designed for families and younger audiences, but with a much-publicized cult following of adult enthusiasts.
  9. Ten bucks says that was the unofficial "theme" for Urgent Scare this season, much like Swine Flu/H1N1 was the "theme" in 2009... All honesty, though, I can understand peoples' concerns with decorations and displays at haunt events...that are inside an amusement park. Most, if not a vast majority, of the controversies surround venues designed and built for family-friendly experiences. You can add all manner of displays and side attractions to fit whatever event/holiday is blank, but some people are still going to treat it as a family-friendly experience. I really can't bring up the argument involving separate admissions for these events, as even Busch Gardens and Halloween Horror Nights are getting flak from this.
  10. So, wait, instead of using the Skeleton Key rooms as a basis to further flesh out the story line the haunt has to offer in ground-breaking and unique ways, they just simply resort to using cheap parlor/gross-out tricks parents used for trick-or-treaters in the 90's? Well, it actually makes sense they would do that for Delta Delta Die and Madame Fatale's given the themes...but seriously, we had a great lead-up when Urgent Scare first debuted thematically that's all been eradicated (no pun intended) and we could've even tied that maze in with Kill Mart...
  11. As someone who has previously been a roamer at the Island and currently does the same thing at another haunted house, I can say with absolute confidence that it is notoriously difficult being a monster running around such a large space. I find it worse for Haunt because the guest-to-monster ratio is completely out-of-whack with it almost being one monster to 1,000 guests. So props to the Roamers and Creepers for sticking it out every night and doing as much as they can. That said, Wolf's review for Tombstone only adds to my anger towards the event for keeping that attraction for what is essentially now ten years (eight since we're not counting FearFest). I understand up to a point the need for filler attractions to disperse crowds and make wait times more lenient, but when a maze that has been panned by all manner of parkgoers (enthusiasts, haunted house lovers, Joe Guest) remains unchanged and has no glaring issues fixed, I take it as a sign that they maybe don't listen to those that want to see an event evolve and become something amazing.
  12. I wonder if they were at a certain Mansion while posting that, a Theater maybe? Surprised those happy haunts who materialize have yet to begin to vocalize their disapproval of the botched wordplay.
  13. While this is only a single attraction being installed in one location, I can understand people's fervor towards Disney films overstepping boundaries by installing rides in abnormal locations (IE: outside Fantasyland), as we've essentially "finished" a decade-long Pixarmageddon across almost every Disney park on the planet. Not to mention several big-time attractions being given a Disney mascot makeover and diminishing the experience quite a bit, such as Tarzan's Treehouse, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and Stitch's Great Escape (formerly Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse, Country Bear Jamboree and Alien Encounter). I'm just wondering how the next decade is going to be with Star Wars potentially being waged among the parks...
  14. This is usually always the best time for parks to announce their plans for the upcoming Halloween season between the last week of August and first week of September. However, most of the big park haunts are now staggering their house announcements throughout the regular season; Universal Orlando has been doing this for well over a decade but only recently just downgraded to simply releasing the names of their attractions as opposed to a lengthy tease or tie-in to the current year's story-line. Maybe in the coming years, Kings Island will switch to this method of marketing, and perhaps this sponsorship with Safe Auto will aid more dollars to pump into future Haunts with better houses.
  15. You mean Dent's side attraction, Queen City Slaughter Yard? Perhaps. I doubt they'll try some of the things Dent did last year (multiple chainsaws, nipple pasties made to look like gaping wounds, etc.), but hopefully it'll be enough of a change-up from previous incarnations for it to feel fresh (maybe going the route of Kings Dominion's Slaughterhouse redo).
  16. Even the cold can deter normally massive Saturday Haunt crowds. I went on a Saturday in '11 when it was in the low low 40s and was crazy enough to ride Diamondback in said weather (still not as painful as riding SOB during a rain shower), and managed to get through all but two houses (Cut-Throat Cove and CornStalkers) by the time we left at midnight. Best Friday night to go is the second Friday of the event. Usually the second weekend is where most of the kinks are worked out and the monsters/actors know what to do and what not to do when it comes to proper scaring. In terms of what Haunts to hit first, aim for the Action Zone houses first (Slaughterhouse, Club Blood, Wolf Pack). These three have usually had the longest lines during the event as they are the most popular, but now with Banshee open, the area will be even MORE crowded. Also a haunt with an abnormally long line is Tombstone Terrortory; this haunt is really two attractions in one, combining the train with a walk through White Water Canyon's exit. Either hit this as early as possible or wait til the end of the night when crowds begin to die down. Take note that Rivertown this year will receive a third Haunt attraction in-betwixt Beast and The (former) Crypt, meaning the Rivertown strip will be clogged with overflow lines for Tombstone, Cavern of Terror, and TBA Haunt. Their extremely close proximity will be a Guest Flow nightmare. When it comes to rides, Banshee will have the longest lines in the park due to its now infamous night ride experience. Diamondback and Beast are the other two attractions that will have longer lines during the run of the Haunt. Another ride to watch for is Flight of Fear. Due to a Haunt situated immediately opposite the ride (Board 2 Death), and its already-ripe-for-Haunt theme, it remains a classic coaster to ride in the post-season. Expect long lines. Use the shows to your advantage. While not everyone and their grandma will immediately flee the line to partake in a showing of Hot Blooded, lines tend to decrease a little bit during a show, and then increase once the show is over. CarnEvil and CornStalkers are prime examples considering their relatively close proximity to the Showplace Stage.
  17. Oh, so they DID add the mermaids from On Stranger Tides into the ride. They must not have installed the "There Be Mermaids In These Waters, Best Not Stick Ye Fingers In The Waters" sign yet...
  18. Technically speaking, the only Haunt attraction that clutters up/takes up space for it to be a legitimate issue for guests is Urgent Scare as half of its layout takes up most of Action Theater's exit area. Everything else is backstage and well far out of the way from park guests. But who knows, this may just be part of a multi-year plan to phase out the Crypt Haunt location in order to give the prior building the Guardian treatment. Here's to hoping Guest Flow won't be that big of an issue come September with now three houses next to each other on the same brick road...
  19. (post previous from continues) --- All you Game of Thrones/How to Train Your Dragons fans should prepare for disappointment. --- --- Nope, no dragons in here. --- --- Not a dragon. This is just like watching the first season of GoT. --- --- Still no dragons, but now I know what a child's nightmare of How to Train Your Dragon looks like in person. --- --- This is everyone's face whenever something shocking happens in GoT (which is now almost every ten minutes). --- --- *le sigh* No dragons anywhere. This is Beastly Kingdom at Animal Kingdom all over again! --- --- All the other signs have a great display and have their own little niche. This one, not so much. They just plopped it right in the middle of the walkway. --- --- Stick bug, on top of a stick bug, on top of a stick. INCEPTION. --- --- Also under construction: Blacklight Mini Golf! At least this explains why Monster Mini Golf is no more... --- --- Humans aren't the only species to encounter zombie apocalypses. Here, the ants are fabricating dead piles so they can burn them later. Hopefully their apocalypse went better than season Two of The Walking Dead. --- --- I just thought this design was cool/amazing. --- --- The aptly-named Taxicab Beetle. Named because they resemble New York cab traffic at any given time. --- --- Political correctness be darned, they should at least tell the truth about what gorillas ACTUALLY throw at people. --- --- You guys ready to see some Cats On A Canyon? --- --- TA-DA! Cats On A Canyon! Seriously, another hilariously amazing moment. Two stray kittens sitting atop a rock outcropping outside a cat enclosure. Adorable, yet ironically fitting. --- --- Good to know the cast of Cougar Town will still have work once the show's over. --- --- Unamused Tiger is unamused because the stray kittens are getting more attention than he is. --- --- More random beautiful scenery to bask in. --- --- Last on our list is the Reptile House. --- --- The oldest building on the property, and also the oldest zoo building in the nation (the zoo itself is the second oldest, with the Central Park Zoo in NYC being the oldest). --- --- "WE STILL AWAIT OUR HUMAN YOUNGLINGS AS NOURISHMENT." --- And that does it for the Zany Zoo Trip to the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Gardens!
  20. --- Mine? --- --- MINE! --- --- Alright, that's enough Finding Nemo jokes. Back to looking at monkeys again. --- --- THIS. This is seriously the single greatest thing I have ever seen in the history of zoo triping. He literally shakes out the burlap sheet, lays it on the ground, and lounges on it with his back against the wall. Just like a normal human being at the beach. You don't get anymore laid-back than that. --- --- Now we get to see a black rhinoceros. --- --- ....uhm. I think the zoo keepers might be colorblind. --- --- The building that houses the second indoor section of Jungle Trails. Good thing this isn't a Disney park or the fanboys would be raging, "GAH IMMERSION RUINED THERE'S NOT ENOUGH FOLIAGE OR BERMS TO COMPLETELY MASK THE UTILITARIAN WAREHOUSES FROM THE LUSH AFRICAN BACKDROPS AND I NEED TO WRITE AN ANGRY LETTER TO THE COMPANY SAYING WALT IS TURNING IN HIS GRAVE FOR THE 136TH TIME THIS DECADE" Oh, Disney fanboys. --- --- Must...refrain...from...jokes about...lions...lyin' around... --- --- "Yeah, you better not." --- --- Those of you who have never been to Cincy Zoo (and shame on you for not having yet been), this is how close the zoo is to the residential areas. That's Forest Ave. in the background. So it goes: Animal Enclosure > Fence > Employee Parking Lot > Fence > Street > Houses Cincy Zoo is completely surrounded by residential housing (and a few stepping stones away from the hospital and UC campus). Surprised there aren't signs posted saying, "WARNING: HITCHHIKERS MAY BE ESCAPED ANIMALS." --- --- As a special treat, Cincy Zoo managed to book Honey Boo Boo for an exclusive concert tour! Let's go! --- --- First we have to get past their security personnel. --- --- "I REQUIRE NEWBORN INFANT HUMANS FOR NOURISHMENT." --- --- Go touch the butt. I dare you. (Conflabit, I said I wasn't gonna do more Nemo jokes.) --- --- So Honey Boo Boo's mom gets on stage as a warm-up act. --- --- Jillian Michaels would have a heart attack trying to get the manatees to lose weight. --- --- Moo. --- --- Artsy-fartsy shot. Although no HDR was involved, so not so much artsy. --- (next post continues in)
  21. (continues from post previous) --- Onto Wings of the World. This is one of two areas in the exhibit where there is no glass or netting that separates you from the fowl, so they're just free to rain White Death from above and YOU CAN'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT. (Un)Fortunately, these were closed to allow new arrivals to acclimate to their new surroundings. --- --- One of my favorite things about Cincy Zoo is the scenic detail and theming they put into the indoor exhibits to rival that of the outdoor ones. --- --- Little guy wouldn't stop moving for us to get a decent shot. --- --- The crowd favorite is, of course, the penguin. Because what's cooler than looking like you wear a luxury suit to a swimming pool? NOTHING, that's what. --- --- While not as large or impressive as the penguin exhibit at Newport Aquarium (let alone the one at Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies), it gets the job done of showing off our dapper friends to great appeal. --- --- Seriously, penguins are the awesome. --- --- Here's the "luxury suit to a swimming pool" bit we mentioned earlier in practice. --- --- Onto what is my absolute favorite exhibit of the entire zoo. --- --- This is basically what the old Tomb Raider: The Ride would look like if Paramount had received a massive budget just to theme the ride. --- --- Oh, yeah, there's also animals in this exhibit, too, if you're into that kinda stuff... --- --- Editor's Note: That's a real dragonfly. --- --- Inside the first of two indoor sections of Jungle Trails. You walk on a bridge that makes you feel like you are supposed to be 80-some-odd feet off the ground. --- --- This enclosure helps sell that illusion. --- --- More awesome indoor theming. --- --- The haunted house enthusiast in me (thanks, Dent Schoolhouse, in particular) has me enamored with scenic detail in everything. Like this section. It's a freaking ruined Malaysian temple, inside a building! --- --- My favorite non-animal shot. Incidentally, that statue's about as happy as I was walking around in here. --- --- More super cool theming, and this time with ANIMALS in the picture! --- --- Last shot of the Malaysian temple enclosure. --- (continued in post next)
  22. --- Mildly Annoyed Rhinoceros is mildly annoyed. Maybe it's from the lack of edible foliage in his immediate vicinity. --- --- We decided to take a trip to a place that doesn't have any roller coasters or 300 foot tall wind breakers (yet still has plenty of Banshee-like screaming)... --- --- ERMERGERD. THE ZERR. --- --- False Advertising: No animals were encountered when we opened up the map. --- --- Unlike amusement parks that entice children with artificial screaming metal death traps, zoos instead entice children with organic flesh-and-bone death traps. Unless you're Busch Gardens. Then you end up killing two birds with one stone. Or children. Either or. --- --- No junk in this trunk (that we know of). --- --- When kids are told Santa doesn't exist, they go to next logical conclusion for how Christmas presents end up under the tree... --- --- Yeah, I don't think they got the Toys'R'us joke, either. Well, at least they aren't asking for David Schwimmer impressions. --- --- Empty African Savannah due to construction of new habitats. Still very pretty, though. --- --- Croquet with the Red Queen, anyone? --- --- Look, they even have an exhibit for fossilized species! --- --- I think I hear banjo music, RUN!!! --- --- For the minutiae Disney detail enthusiasts. --- (continued in next post)
  23. I bet if Apollo had been able to buy the chain, we'd have a giga by now. At the cost of maybe closing down or selling off a handful of parks they might deem not profitable enough alongside the big moneymakers like a Point or an Island or even a Wonderland, or to offset the cost of acquiring the Six Flags brand as well and further liquidating assets to a more manageable status.
  24. Tell that to the people who own and operate the only dark ride outside of a Disney/Universal theme park that rivals a dark ride from a Disney/Universal theme park. I'll give you a hint, they live near Williamsburg. And I would still urge people to look north to see the possible future of dark rides and immersive experiences at Cedar Fair parks, should the Guardian of Wonder Mountain be a hit.
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