How would you have done Dinosaurs Alive differenty?

[SonofBaconator]

I always felt like the Dinosaurs Alive concept wasn’t bad, but as a chain wide attraction, it could’ve been done a lot better.

I understand there was a contract with the animatronic company but if they were to have done it differently, I think they should’ve done the following:

 

1. Create a test park. I think they should’ve picked one park to be the guinea pig and learned from that. They could’ve learned how to enhance the product before adding one to another park.
    
2. Not have it inside the park if they wanted to charge. This could or could not have worked depending on what park we’re talking about. In a perfect world, I would’ve preferred the DA attractions to be their own property so people could go enjoy it as it’s own thing instead of having to pay an up charge on an existing park ticket. Of course Gold Pass members could get in to both properties. Like I said “in a perfect world.”
3. Have it be more than just a walkthrough attraction. At this point I’m treating it like its own park. I don’t necessarily think that they could’ve added large coasters or anything like that, but a small kiddie coaster and some small flat rides could’ve complimented the experience, along with a restaurant and maybe a zip line course.
4. Paint the Dinosaurs. I understand accuracy is crucial for education but all the Dinos in DA were brown or grey which, if you have young ones, can make the experience visually unappealing. Im not saying paint them wacky colors, but maybe freshen them up a tad.

[Cedar Fair Fanboy]

3. But that will be costly.

[TombRaiderFTW]

I think the Columbus Zoo has the right idea with it. They have a slow-moving boat ride that flows through their (fantastically themed) Australia & The Islands area and the animal exhibits within. Their animatronic dinosaurs are positioned alongside the boat trough, in scenes where various things are happening. I want to say one of their dinosaurs also lightly spritzes riders?

In doing that, there is a little more of an experience to be had. Obviously Kings Island wasn't/isn't going to install animal exhibits for the sake of a temporary animatronic dinosaur upcharge, but turning it into an experience using some kind of ride vehicle (doesn't need to be elaborate) and simple theming would have made it more worthwhile to me. The simplicity of just having concrete paths, information plaques, and the dinosaur animatronics just off the path (even with the motion activation) felt to me like a bit of a cash grab. The boat ride at the Columbus Zoo isn't a must-do, but as someone who has never been a zoo member but who WAS a passholder every year Dinosaurs Alive existed, I've definitely paid more to ride the Dinosaur Island Boat Ride at the zoo since it opened than I ever paid for DA over the course of its existence.

But I'm also not a kid (the target audience of DA) and I don't have any kids, so perhaps I'm not the best judge.

[MDMC01]

For me, Dinosaurs Alive was a nice place to walk around away from it all (and in its later years, to play Pokemon Go!). If there was another walking trail like this at the park (dinos or not, but preferably without), that would be great.

But more on topic, what would I have done to make Dinosaurs Alive better? First, I'd update it periodically (not just talking about the dinos, but the plaques and related things) to have KI's location (or whatever park) fit in with the rest of them. When I went to Dorney Park in 2015, I went through their Dinosaurs Alive and noticed that they had some different plaques/jokes that differentiated it from Kings Island's version. While that was cool, it would have been nice if some of those different things came to our Dinos when it was around.

[SonofBaconator]

I think the biggest problem was one that one they couldn’t really fix: it was in a lower trafficked corner of the park built at an awkward time….

I’m sure they thought that the addition of WindSeeker the same season would’ve been enough to deliver a 1 2 punch of new attractionsto the area (1 2 3) if you include the new 4D experience. WindSeeker’s delayed opening, however, might have indirectly hurt DA. WindSeeker’s 301ft tall and is impossible to miss on the skyline. When it wasn’t operating, I don’t think people really flocked back to that corner of the park. Sure people still rode Vortex but you got to remember that DA debuted when Diamondback was still new as a 2 year old ride, and Firehawk hadn’t even been at the park for 5 years yet and was another popular ride…

Then you also have to look at what proceeded DA. Soak City debuted on the opposite side of the property which would redirect crowds away from the DA area. Then the following year in 2013 it was announced that Banshee would replace Son of Beast, again on another part of the property that would redirect more foot traffic away from that area. 
 

By the time DA became free to Gold and Platinum Pass members, it was too little too late as there were simply more entertaining attractions, I don’t even think an operating WindSeeker was enough to keep people interested. Not soon after DA left, so did Vortex and that back area of the park has since became somewhat of a haphazard area with 3 attractions operating: the new Antique Autos, Shake Rattle n Roll, and WindSeeker (4 if you rope Backlot into that area). I think this area is ripe for an Adventure Port style rebrand but I’m getting off topic.

I simply think Dinosaurs Alive was simply built in the wrong place at the wrong time. Maybe if they made it a traveling attraction where they scattered the Dinosaurs around the park for one or two seasons, the overall concept would’ve gained more exposure.

[SonofBaconator]

I think the biggest problem was one that one they couldn’t really fix: it was in a lower trafficked corner of the park built at an awkward time….

I’m sure they thought that the addition of WindSeeker the same season would’ve been enough to deliver a 1 2 punch of new attractionsto the area (1 2 3) if you include the new 4D experience. WindSeeker’s delayed opening, however, might have indirectly hurt DA. WindSeeker’s 301ft tall and is impossible to miss on the skyline. When it wasn’t operating, I don’t think people really flocked back to that corner of the park. Sure people still rode Vortex but you got to remember that DA debuted when Diamondback was still new as a 2 year old ride, and Firehawk hadn’t even been at the park for 5 years yet and was another popular ride…

Then you also have to look at what proceeded DA. Soak City debuted on the opposite side of the property which would redirect crowds away from the DA area. Then the following year in 2013 it was announced that Banshee would replace Son of Beast, again on another part of the property that would redirect more foot traffic away from that area. 

By the time DA became free to Gold and Platinum Pass members, it was too little too late as there were simply more entertaining attractions, I don’t even think an operating WindSeeker was enough to keep people interested. Not soon after DA left, so did Vortex and that back area of the park has since became somewhat of a haphazard area with 3 attractions operating: the new Antique Autos, Shake Rattle n Roll, and WindSeeker (4 if you rope Backlot into that area). I think this area is ripe for an Adventure Port style rebrand but I’m getting off topic.

I simply think Dinosaurs Alive was simply built in the wrong place at the wrong time. Maybe if they made it a traveling attraction where they scattered the Dinosaurs around the park for one or two seasons, the overall concept would’ve gained more exposure and could have possibly warranted a more permanent set up like what initially debuted in 2011.

[BoddaH1994]

It cost money to go through the first year or so. I think that kind of soured people. $5 wasn’t a big ask, but it felt like a pay-per-ride that was dropped on us. Then it became free. Maybe that was the plan all along. 
 

With that being said, I think it would still be gone no matter what. I think the company got what they wanted out of it and then ditched it - all according to plan. Why else would they all be removed so close together? Clearly there were some that were closer to others.

Oh well, at least this will be a thing that you can tell your kids and grandkids about, since it was so out of left field.

If they were to do it today, I’d say use those as the animatronics for an indoor dark ride. Tons can be done - tons has been done - with these theme, so they’d know it’s safe.