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I would take a mega Siren's Curse in the Vortex spot. It can be a normal lift hill the tilt track is not required. With the onboard audio, light package, and the smooth elements of the SC, it would be a great replacement in that spot.

Courtesy of the Kings Island instagram page, love that they are talking about the Maestro like an old lost friend. Also they stated that more updates will be coming soon in the comments

If a Screamin' Swing goes anywhere, as already previously discussed, I think the best placement would be in the former Xtreme Skyflyer plot. That seems like the best use of that space if such a ride were to make its way to KI. I highly doubt KI will get a Screamin' Swing though. I don't feel like there is a wide installation of those. If Invertigo ends up Invertigone ( sorry not sorry for the puns ), they better put something worthy in it's place. I will repeat, even if the ride isn't as popular as it once may have been, no one can deny the intensity factor. It is one of the very few truly intense rides left in the park that doesn't apologize for being so. If something much tamer took its place I would be really disappointed.

If I happen to get another pass, Im going to play with them a bit just for my personal entertainment. Ive still got my old hard card, and Im going to make an exact, two-sided copy of it and place the new number over the old one before laminating it. Old-school metallic dark gray pass with the new numbers

I rode the new one at Hershey this year. Being up on that hill is so fun to ride. I would love to get a screamin' swing at KI.

As silly as it sounds, I absolutely spaced the idea of printing the screen image of the barcode and laminating it for wallet keeping! Im definitely utilizing that if I get a new pass!

Agree with the sentiments already made. Having to use your phone for literally everything is just ridiculous. I get that in some ways it makes sense to have everything linked to one place and since 99.9% of the population has a smart phone, just make it all in one spot. But if we could just go back to have physical cards/maps/etc this would help cut down maybe even a small fraction of people having to use their cell phones for EVERYTHING and thus maybe some people will keep their phone locked up or with a non-rider or in their vehicle instead of it flying out on a ride. I know there will always be stupid people who think that THEIR on-ride video or pictures or whatnot will be better than any professional/made with permission content....so long as there are cell phones and no real policing of devices in the parks across the board, but having the option to have physical items again would be helpful. Not to mention for those of us who just like to collect things of this nature to have as small keepsakes or scrapbooking material. And yes....them not having physical passes is just nonsense. I still use my old Platinum Pass from years ago because the barcode is still valid so long as I keep it renewed. But the idea that I can't get a new pass card is annoying. I like having the card because it makes going through the parking tolls easier as the scanner reads the card's barcode much better than on a phone. Using your phone to scan in is slow and not always accurate and hold's up the line if you do a self-scan in. And it's also nice to be able to hang onto it in SC because it's waterproof and any time myself or my lady get thirsty I can keep it with me to obtain drinks without having to go back and forth to our locker to retrieve a phone for this matter. Now I know there are people doing work-arounds with this by printing off their barcodes and laminating them to effectively be able to accomplish the same thing one would with a physical card. But this just proves that there is still a need for them!

Remember the renderings of Camp Snoopy from the announcement versus what we actually got? Pepperidge Farm remembers.

I know park merch has always been a bit pricey as is to be expected in any of these sorts of places, but man do I miss the days when stuff still felt somewhat more reasonable for what you were buying vs today when most hoodies are $70+. That's not to say there still aren't some closer to $50+, but most of the ones I like are in the higher priced categories. Overall, I miss when merch was a little more reasonable vs being absolutely insane now. I get it though....cheap passes etc etc. I got to see some of this stuff while at the park for PN and saw some cool pieces. Just can't justify the cost for it.

A collage I made of all the dark rides Kings Island has had in the former Boo Blasters building, I'm getting excited Phantom Theater Opening Nightmare!

I think most of the stuff is contractually secure at this point. From photos, seems like the design is already in motion, and there's a good chance this project started awhile back, potentially even pre-merger. Also Sally Dark rides is domestic, so it shouldn't run into some of the delays and other issues the overseas manufacturers have had. So I think PT: ON should be safe from what I can assume...

When the ride opens in 2026... I hope to see more different merch, such as hats, posters, maybe even plush? I know I want a hat for sure!

Yes, I miss them a lot. 1. Downloading an app for a new park is inconvenient and still is not as good of a map as a paper map. A guest should have the option of going phone free for the day if they want and yes that includes physical season passes. 2. I collected the paper maps and for 15 years and built up a very nice collection. They were my "record" of what parks I went to and when. I'd very much like to see them back. Seeing the new ride for the year on the map was always nice.

If Herschend Family Entertainment or United Parks & Resorts (or another chain) were to purchase or somehow otherwise acquire Kings Island, what do you think could change? This is a purchase people have been suggesting online since they've seen Six Flags as a degrading force to the parks, so I thought I'd ask. Outside of the obvious things such as the removal of Peanuts and Six Flags trademarks in addition to changing/removing the meal plan and things like that, I think we would see the following: A return of the original logo, or just a new logo altogether to better fit with the HFE or UPR branding. A more "independent" operation for the park. It seems that, to an extent, some of the larger HFE parks operate more like their own individual companies under a larger parent corporation. Less "highly intimidating" roller coaster or ride names (with HFE) like Copperhead Strike or Dominator. Kings Island doesn't have many names I could see changing since KI generally uses "creature" names for big coasters. See the renaming of Storm Chaser and Thunder Run at Kentucky Kingdom for why I'd be worried about that. I could be completely wrong with my wording for this, but it feels like rides at some HFE parks have "tamer" names. Wind Chaser and Wilderness Run could just be casualties of the area being rethemed. Maybe we could see an attempt to make Kings Island into more of a regional destination theme park, like Busch Gardens or Dollywood. Extending the park's reach further into more markets could be a goal of a non-Six Flags company. A shift in focus: Even more focus on families with HFE. Innovative rides and attractions could still be installed (like Dollywood is getting), but I don't expect more record-breakers. A higher focus on thrill-seekers with UPR. Maybe some record-breakers and thrilling coasters (like Pantheon) could be installed. Maybe a change in how high the park sits on its operator's tier list. If enough parks in another chain sit higher, it's possible that KI could see more or less (or better/poorer) investment than it currently sees. My personal wish would be for a new Kings Entertainment Company to form and take on some of the parks, but I can understand how hard it might be to do that. I imagine it could be a good combination between HFE/United/Cedar Fair if done right. Another upside would be the addition of another big-ish operator to offset from the Cedar Fair/Six Flags merger. Go wild with this theoretical thought experiment. I'm curious to see what everyone thinks could change!

I think it could be a winner as long as it's very thrilling, inverts, and performs some classic loops. It'd be better to have it in The Vortex plot so the park gets more inversions in the back of the park either way. Not to say they can't install another inversion machine in Action Zone, but the back of the park needs it more. Maybe a launched Premier coaster (like AlpenFury) and/or a new-gen Vekoma could be on their way to Kings Island. I'll also be happy for the day when something existing at Cedar Point stops being an excuse to not install one at KI.

That song he's listening to looks awesome. It might just be the MVP

I don't think KI's "Family friendly" approach to Haunt was by design. I think they put a lot less resources into it and it got less intense and they retroactively said that they were trying to make it family-friendly. This is much like how they'll cheap out on new attractions and send the shills out to cover for them saying that they're a "family park." If they the Phantom Theater Opening Nightmare ends up being a disappointment they'll send them out to make this excuse for them (although millions rode the OG PT and no one saw it as not family-friendly). Of course, being able to park in VIP parking doesn't just magically appear for the shills. They gotta earn it.

Fiesta Texas released their daytime Fall events map, and I thought I'd share it here to give a glimpse into what our Tricks and Treats map may look like. They have a lot of similar things to Tricks and Treats at Kings Island ranging from the specialty food to the shows and crafts.

Fiesta Texas also released their Fright Fest map, alongside their Tricks and Treats/Oktoberfest map. I didn't realize their event started this past weekend either. This makes FT the second Legacy Six Flags park to adopt the new Cedar Fair map style. I'm a little upset by the pixel quality (it may just be the fact that Facebook drops the quality by a lot), but it's interesting that they have put the entrance at the top of the map instead of rotating the whole thing 180 degrees. It's also very clear that these are screenshots from the PDF pages, not even exported photos.

I'm hopeful since it is a joint project between Sally Dark Rides and Kings Island/Six Flags. If it doesn't turn out well or gets delayed, I'd immediately assume that KI/SF ordered the attraction and ran out of money halfway through production. This would also mean worse things for the company as a whole since they've already delayed a number of additions and cut the promised 2026 spending. The fact that the one Cleveland[dot]com article has been shared so much doesn't help much at all. Camp Snoopy seemed to fail due to the small scale of the project, the area's delayed opening, and the removal of some key theming elements that would have made the area feel more campy. It was lackluster compared to the higher quality additions we saw from 2017-2022.

Maybe I’ve just been reading too much of the news lately but this Six Flags money issues just have me worried about the future of Kings Island and our new Phantom Theater, I’m a worrier, can’t help it

The big souvenir maps would pay for themselves easily as long as there are enough guests willing to purchase them. They'd have to be different from the current map style to be worth it (to me), but making them would be no different from the process for the Made to Thrill posters. It would be a nice opportunity to create a new souvenir. Dollywood and Disney have their paper maps, so maybe its a spelling thing. Would we be able to get paper maps back if the park was renamed to "Dings Island"?

Does anyone worry that Six Flags recent financial struggles will cheapen the ride or possibly even delay its opening?

I'm excited to see this ride come back. I was just a baby when this ride was around the first time. I'm hoping they keep the guns working all the time so I have a chance to compete with my friends.

Just about everyone is in agreement on this. There should be a restroom either there or next to the Area 72 entrance (where it could also serve the center part of Coneymall) Are we only counting restrooms within the park? That small one outside the entrance usually seems decent. In my 40+ years of going to the park, I don't know that I've ever been in the Festhaus restrooms.

I believe when the ride (re)opened, our Boocifer animatronic had some kind of smoke effect too.

I also used to collect them—I have a portfolio of them from multiple parks over multiple years. I think Disney may be the only parks still producing paper maps? The maps were one of those things stopped during covid then never restarted because the parks found it to be a cost savings. Same thing with airline magazines—and I miss them too!

Can we just get the Skyline back on International street?

The new character sculpts look fantastic, excited to see more!

I love Elvira, so I have to get that shirt before the season is over! Fun aside: her memoir is a must read. Cassandra Peterson led a fascinating and eventful life even before she became the "Mistress of the Dark." Elvis makes an appearance and there's a story about a house she once lived in and its pool, which embellished or not, is creepier than any of movies she showed on her program. Assuming Cinema Slasher was indeed an unused maze concept, I wonder if it would've went in the KI Theater? The concept is right up my alley, so what a bummer we don't have a maze like that. I mean, who wouldn't want to be chased by a murderous bucket of popcorn welding a knife?

Taken from the KI Facebook page, the facade’s been constructed for the Boo Blasters tribute haunted house (Nah JK it’s order of the dragon, which I’m also really upset is about a vampire and not the mythical creature)

I have lots of Made to Thrill posters and love them! They are a little different than the ones you have though...I have Mystic, Diamondback, Orion, Fury 325, TT2, Steel Vengeance, and Maverick for Made to Thrill posters.

He's definitely listening to the MVP Sale. I think it'll be good if they keep this kind of post to a minimum. It's good to advertise pass sales, but using PT:ON exclusively for pass sale posts rather than adding a pass sale blurb to a PT:ON post feels like it could artificially cheapen the product.