Leaderboard

They’re perfect. The music. The voices. The posters. The dialog. Thank you Kings Island. This is better than I expected.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/172ixz2eAY/?mibextid=wwXIfr Close up of the flashlight/blaster

So IAAPA is officially over. I have scoured literally every social media platform possible to find more/better footage of the BTS videos and concept art shown in the presentation, but if anyone took any they haven’t shown it yet (If anyone on this forum took it please share) but here’s all the new info/my predictions I have after the event. -Rather than being an abandoned theater that the guests just happen to stumble into, I interpret the vibe now as more as a theater for phantoms and wandering spirits (think the original retirement home idea for the haunted mansion at Disneyland) -The original soundtrack is rescored and will be present in this version. I interpret this as being Maestro’s new composition he discusses “Terror Toccata in D Minor” (unless of course he’s taking credit for bach’s work) -The animatronics on display went through 3 different spiels, and I believe this is the setup we’ll see in the queue. However, I think the particular Maestro animatronic they used will be located at the finale to the ride as opposed to the queue, as this figure has full legs and a “bowing” movement. The Larry animatronic could be in the queue to show off how to use the flashlight, or at the very beginning if they changed from the concept art for the opening scene they showed off. At this point, I think Maestro on the organ is a scene they’ll save for the physical ride (I think in the first room where the graveyard is now), but I really love the dynamic between Larry, Maestro, and the guests they showed off, so I’m fine with that. But I think there will be more that they say in the actual queue, I’d say more of a 15-40 minute loop. - We saw new bts videos showing off the Boiler Men, Arpeggio, the vulture from The Beastie, and Willard being wrapped up (by the ghost notes I assume) into the mummy. -They showed off the flashlight technology, which I’m very curious to see how it works. I wonder if the scoring system will be off of points or how many ghost notes you capture. -The park promises more updates throughout the Winter, which at this point I sorta hope they don’t show off too much more of the ride. Overall very impressed with the event, we got more than I expected. Thank you sally dark ride and Kings Island.

IAAPA's Funworld has released this video with new information from Sally Dark Rides: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIPiFcuFBxs This video also has the full press conference: It was a great day. I was very moved being there for this.

I'm a couple days behind on posting this, but for anyone curious, here is the video that they were playing on the side panels. And the posters that were displayed on the monitor as well. There was more concept art displayed on the monitor during the press announcement, but I wasn't able to get good pictures of it from where I was standing. Sorry! IMG_6602.mov

Glad to see more retracking on The Beast!

These are some very quick sketches I made, but this is sorta how I’m predicting the entrance will look like. At this point, I’m not expecting them to massively demolish the whole facade and more so do a paint job and overlay to make it look different enough to recognize it’s a different attraction, but not anything major since I think a majority of the budget is going into the animatronics and theming. I didn’t want to draw it, but especially since they’re canonically ghosts at this point, I think a small detail to add that would go a long way is putting tombstones in the grassy section of land to the right on the entrance.

As much as I really want the castle to go in favor of a brand new exterior design, I would totally not be shocked if they just make some minor modifications to the castle structure and just dress it up to make it more like a gothic/medieval theater. I mean Music Hall in downtown Cincinnati sorta looks like a castle on the outside.

Caught a few additional images from the Sally display at IAPPA from an interview with Tony Clark on Facebook: Hopefully that video is released at some point, I’d love to see it. Love that BTS stuff.

^That's more than retracking!

Maestro looks perfect! A blend of cool, creepy ish, and cute! I love this so much! The presentation, the IAAPA exclusive lines from Maestro and No Legs Larry, the way they revealed them with the curtain and the people dressed as ushers.. Just absolutelu splendid!

Me also in 8th grade drawing a 395 foot giga idea for KI named Savage 395 and telling every classmate and teacher about it. Ha!

I think with a bit of remodeling, some new paint, and a new marquee(see below), it would look great. Something inspired by the original, but in line with the new art direction.

Alright I have to say this, I love the new Maestro animatronic and it looks a lot more lively and more detailed than the original and I'm loving the realistic movements of the new Maestro animatronic, as much as I love the original Phantom Theater which I grew up riding... I think this is going to be a much better improvement!

I think another user confirmed that Richard Doyle is back for Maestro at least.

Also just saying tonight I’ll share anymore thoughts because there’s additional footage of the other characters that I only caught a glimpse of, but they did mention giving out exclusive posters to attendees of the unveiling… so likeeee if any of them happen to see this and wanted to discard of it I’m taking donations.

Clip from Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DRNcdTEgWVt/?igsh=MWw2NWs2bWIyeWo3dw== Absolutely loving it.

Me in high school drawing and redrawing the leaked Diamondback layout on every notebook I had. Ha!

I can’t wait to totally focus on work and being an adult today, and not obsessively checking for IAPPA updates.

Using some Illustrator features I just realized could be used like this, I made the following. Here's some improvements that I think would help to improve the often-forgotten back area of I-Street (and a little bit of Rivertown). You can read my thoughts, but some highlights are: New Restaurant Moonlite Gardens new indoor/outdoor seating restaurant maybe close to being like the Grand Pavilion Floral Clock area improvement new fences more shrubs and vertical props International Showplace Theatre steps replace ramps no more stunt show stage (so we can finally return to musical shows) New Trees!!! a new stand of trees in that giant hill area where it wouldn't make sense to put a ride or building bonus: more natural areas in the park

Currently on the live cams, what I assume is some sort of ventilation or electrical work is going on. (Also for my last post I used ibispaint)

I have never understood the timing of these USA Today polls.

It would make more sense to run these polls while events are happening.

There are some clearer shots here on the Tower Topics FB group: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/17T5g6WqKC/?

I already know I’m not going to last a day once the park actually releases merch, because I need phantom theater drink… I need $75 eBay reselling of the IAAPA poster which I’m not even sure is real because they’re selling like twenty of them… I need more footage because I’ve spent literal hours trying to find the footage they play on the side of the animatronics because I don’t know anyone going to IAAPA who can film it for me nor know if they even allow people to film that.

I just ask that there would eventually be a re-route of the exit ramp/Fast Lane path (or widen the path).

Who’s got a few extra of these? Asking for a friend…

2 more group events have been added to the 2026 calendar, bringing the total 2026 event count to 4 so far. Music in the Park — April 24, May 1, May 8, & May 15, 2026 Physics, Science, and Math Days — April 24 & May 1, 8, 14, 15, & 22, 2026 Performance in the Park — Any Public Operating Day During the 2026 Season STEM Days — May 8 & 15, 2026 Unless something changes — which there is a chance that it might — we now know that the season will start by Friday, April 24th, 2026. I'm still holding out for the official release of the 2026 operating calendar and the Festival Events schedule, but as I said before, this is more than we knew about by this time last year.

Here's my concept for a Rivertown expansion. It isn't as pretty as any of my other maps, but it gets the point across well enough. There is: a new indoor VIP Lounge like at Kings Dominion a new lake much smaller than Swan Lake, but more water in Rivertown nonetheless hopefully the new trees and foliage could grow in nice and tall any new trees would also be placed far enough away from Diamondback's helix the water finally returned under The Beast's pre-lift section this would presumably come alongside a Gravity Group rebuild of the pre-lift the ride exit and Fast Lane lines would be relocated/reworked to be separated a new Refresh Station, bar, or gift shop in the former Beast Canyon Cold Drinks area housed in an addition/new construction to the right of the queue entrance this is where the exit would empty into, with the Fast Lane line entering nearby a new outdoor amphitheater spiritual successor to the Rivertown Reel and the Back Porch Stage perfect for smaller shows a new family-friendly flat ride I have no opinions on what it could be, but the ride pad is a similar size to Shake, Rattle & Roll All of this would replace the Tomb Raider building and provide new things to do in this recreation of early Cincinnati that celebrates its roots as a river town. I think the outdoor amphitheater could instead be an indoor venue like the Red Garter Saloon — though I hesitate to use the word "saloon" because of its Frontier/Western theme area connotations. The last new building on this expansion map could be anything, although I wouldn't be opposed to having it be a new quick-service restaurant. The service road that is behind TR:TR's building would be relocated further behind the new construction. The removal of the Tomb Raider building would likely mean that we also lose the foliage growing on top of it, but I think it might be worth it for this kind of expansion. The size of the new lake is another pain point for this idea. I would love to see something closer to the size and feel of the original Swan Lake return, but I think this is more realistic in the short term. One thing I'd like to see that isn't in this map is some theming or foliage near the railroad tracks. The area as it stands is very barren and lifeless. This might even offer up a new opportunity to reuse some of the old nature trail path for a new Trail Haunt.

Double posting to share this video Orlando Experience took at IAAPA. You can see the screen on the left side as well as a less crowded view of the display at the end of the video.

At least they also get to show off that pretty orange tree in the background! I'm excited to see how this part of the retracking turns out after a year of not being able to ride some of my favorites.

I am really intrigued with this footage and I'm scouring every IAAPA video to find it lol. Arpeggio looks really good, I'm kind of surprised that they weren't included in the display as well so I'm not greedy. I don't have the screenshots, but I saw that they're showing off the character posters during it as well, and a vulture and mummy animatronic were in it too. I wonder if the top character they're working on in the third image is Houdelini or another character.

As hesitant as I was for the new style of the ride, it's growing on me. I think the new style will definitely make it more palatable for younger audiences while doing a good job of retaining their images. The largest difference (to me) is the fact that they look less gaunt and more hauntingly lively. (Also, it's almost opening night for the new theater, of course Maestro is going to make sure his hair is done and his face looks good!) Those photos being over 20 years old and using full flash definitely doesn't help the case for them. I think the weirdest part of this reveal is the fact that they decided to use the red Kings Island logo with the blue flag on both the top sign and the screen. You'd think they could have used the white logo with the red flag instead. The last time we really saw the red logo used was earlier on in the Cedar Fair era. On the flip side, I really enjoyed that they used a red curtain-like drape with gold tie backs for the cover and that they chose to put the two "curtain pullers" in full costume instead of just having them wear slacks and a polo. I also noticed that they did the same for the reveal of the Tormenta car. If this is the length that the company is willing to go then I think this might be a sign as to how much theming we might continue to see in the future. The flashlights look like they might be a little weird to use. I'm wondering if that is the same model found on other rides that use the flashlight system and how it has worked out for those attractions. It might have a learning curve for Kings Island guests who are so used to using the Ghost Blaster guns. This version of Maestro definitely sounds a lot like Richard Doyle. If it somehow isn't his voice then major props to whoever it is. No Legs Larry kind of sounds like one of the actors who portrayed him in Phantom Theater Encore. I was watching through the 50th Anniversary Archives POV earlier and noticed some parts of the original ride that each felt like they were missing something. The hallway of doors definitely felt empty from when you saw Houdelini, Garbonzo, and Bosco until the electric panel scene. I think the interactive elements would help to fill those "empty" spots in the ride that might've harmed the pacing in the original. We also have a new name I think we should call the Phantom Theater soundtrack: "Terror Toccata".

They also included this cool concept piece that I believe we saw in a previous YouTube video/interview:

Yes I agree with what everyone has said! Looks very cool and am super excited to see all this come together in the spring! Here's the video on YouTube if you care to watch it there:

I’m really loving how active the socials have been about this new dark ride. It appears that the park and the marketing teams realize how special this is and they are really pushing it which makes me happy. You can tell there are lots of passionate people bringing this project to life and they want to show us all the work and time going into this addition!

Me in 8th grade checking Lightning Rod/Valravn updates on the chromebooks when I was supposed to be working on school work/group projects (got yelled at by the teacher for that one lol)

I think this means that we will at least have parts of the original soundtrack in the new ride. It will likely be some of the original with the "newer" scenes getting new musical motifs. I'm hoping they will have some music backing the characters in the display. If the apparent screen proves to be such I could see some more promotional material being shown on it. The worst they can do (in my opinion) would be to say that there are "signature music themes" from the original only to put in recordings of Toccata and Fugue and other pieces like that. Someone posted a calendar screenshot that said the big presentation was specifically Sally Dark Rides and Six Flags. I've found the page and posted a screenshot below. It runs from about 2:10-2:30 and looks like it might just be them showing off the display. I can't tell if the booth number (#2267) is simply included for convenience and this will be an on-stage conference, or if this will simply be a 20 minute segment where they pull the sheet away from the display. I'm super excited to see what they do!

https://content.yudu.com/web/69r/0Aiy7l/ParkworldOct25/html/index.html?page=52&origin=reader So one last little find that might get immediately disproven/proven during IAPPA starting tomorrow (which I’m so excited for I can’t sleep). I found another magazine regarding PTON, which mostly goes over the same details that’ve been released elsewhere, but one line stood out to me that I’m alternating over the meaning of. It says fans will recognize “the signature music themes” and I’m split between interpreting it as “the original soundtrack from the ride is returning” or “the ride still has the themes of music like the original did with organ and musician rooms” But hopefully a lot of details are announced tomorrow and I’m sorta hoping they play whatever music there, but at the very least we’re seeing some animatronics so I’m very happy.

Why would I vote for an event that no one has been to yet?

I wonder if any melodies from Phantom Theater Encore will make it into the ride's soundtrack, even just as a musical Easter egg.

NightFlight Expedition has its own thread now.

Ghost Blasters and Ghost Blasters II are the base models of the Boo Blasters on Boo Hill property from Sally Dark Rides. The ride that Canada's Wonderland, Carowinds, Kings Dominion, and Kings Island received is specifically the Ghost Blasters II model, which was also installed at Elitch Gardens in 2008. The new animatronics, new screens, and new flashlights will definitely help to differentiate it from SDatHC and BBoBH. I don't know if Phantom Theater: Opening Nightmare is an exclusive partnership between Kings Island/Six Flags and SDR or if other parks will eventually have the option to purchase it, but I think the most we'll see in the short term would be to replace the CW, CAR, and KD versions of Boo Blasters.

Channel 12 has a story about some of the animatronics. As a side note, I cannot see the Opening 2026 sign and not think "Spongebob Squarepants" https://local12.com/news/entertainment/kings-island-unveils-new-animatronic-characters-upcoming-interactive-dark-ride-collab-collaboration-phantom-theater-opening-nightmare-iaapa-expo-orlando-mason-ohio-cincinnati-family-fun-entertainment-tech-rollercoaster Also Sally Darkrides also has a "Ghost Blasters" which is just BooBlasters but interestingly KI isn't listed as a park location. Please don't make PTON the same dang ride.

This was truly amazing! Honestly I would have to say the animatronics look a lot better now then before, this is getting me even more excited than before!

Awesomeeee. I'm curious how the flashlights will work. I hear the OG soundtrack in the background at a slower pace!!!

I'm predicting an animatronic sneak peek tomorrow either Maestro or No Legs Larry or possibly some new props nonetheless I'm excited!

Still the best ride in the park, including night ride. Absolutely nothing like hitting that in the fog on a dark Haunt night. Just out of control insanity.

I hope if they ever fix the floral clock it can be returned to look like this. The simple but beautiful hedge work and original logo look much better than what is there now. The trees behind it are nice in that they cover the Stunt Coaster, but they are a little overbearing — especially compared to this view and how it looked on the 2011 Street View capture. Anything the park can do to make that whole pathway less barren and dead would be good. As for going back to the front gate: renovating the main building and the side buildings would do so much to help guest perception as they enter the park. Kings Island is often lauded as one of the best parks in the country, but does the current entrance portray the fact that greatness awaits guests who pass through it? Heck no! Even the experience of getting through the parking lot up to the security area does not live up to the rest of the Kings Island experience. I personally believe that — even if the project didn't include repaving — adding trees/shrubbery, raised concrete pathways, and line re-striping would help improve the experience. Of course trams would help as well, but I don't see KI getting any without them coming from another park. (Maybe one of the tram companies will be at IAAPA to convince some Six Flags officials .) After the next major thrill coaster is when I think the park should embark on some of these renovations. With PT:ON projected to cost at least $1 million (possibly more with the design costs) and a new thrill coaster having the possibility to cost anywhere from $20-$30+ million, I think a good amount of guests might accept a multi-million dollar park improvement project instead of a new ride like in 2018. There might need to be some other improvements within the park, but the precedent is there.