bkroz

I thought this was worth sharing since so many of us are park map collectors and fans and have opinions galore about Kings Island's map styles through the ages. Walt Disney World has updated their paper park and resort maps for the first time in about fifteen years. The new maps appear to be part of its ongoing efforts to re-route guests to its all-in-one app, which synchronizes with MyMagic+ wristbands to hold Fastpasses, dinner reservations, room keys, maps, touch-free purchasing, etc. In that app, you are presented with a giant map of the entire resort and can zoom in and out to parks and rides within one giant image. The new paper park maps are simply screenshots from that app and as such are hyper-accurate and realistic (since on the app, you can GPS track your location) with absolutely no embellishments or "animated, whimsical" style. Most oddly, because they're based on the giant app, all of the maps are oriented north, even for the parks that aren't. This means Epcot is displayed "upside down" from its "traditional" orientation, and Disney's Hollywood Studios is... Well... Almost unnavigable. BEFORE AFTER (Click for much larger image) To me, I believe it's counterintuitive. People don't orient themselves by cardinal directions, they do so by landmarks. The new map style actually downplays landmarks like the water tower, Chinese Theater, and Studio Arch for the sake of accuracy. The harshly-overhead angle actually looks like a satellite image from Google Maps... The old maps were handy AND attractive, fun to keep as souvenirs. Who would want this map hanging on his or her wall, or show it to their friends and family as they recount their visit? I can't imagine why they wouldn't have at least oriented the parks in the "traditional" way... What are your thoughts? Is this new map style beneficial?

Why don't you start us off with an example so we know what you're talking about? AKA, the title doesn't say it all for everyone. EDIT: I see you've gone ahead and added "allusions" to your original post. Noted. EDIT 2: As well as some triple-emphasized text! Helpful. EDIT 3: And now a definition. "...something in a place, or a piece that references to something else."

Loved it! Thank you, thank you, thank you! Nice to see Pharos Lighthouse as the introductory photo, too.

My view as a local to Geauga Lake: Problem one - Combining Six Flags Ohio and SeaWorld Ohio created - as Six Flags proudly trumpeted - three parks in one: a thrill park, an animal park, and a water park. That is not only huge in terms of theoretical scope, but in terms of size. Two stand-alone theme parks were literally connected together. Two massive parking lots with guests finding out that they'd ended their day near the wrong one. Every year, the park moved and toyed with floating boardwalks, pathways, and ferries to move people between the two separate sides that hadn't been constructed with idea that they'd ever merge. A Google search says that Six Flags Ohio was 520 acres, and SeaWorld was 230. Their merger created a park more than twice as large, land-wise, as Kings Island. It was simply too big. Problem two - Six Flags infused massive amounts of money into the park as Six Flags Ohio during the early years as a clear attempt to compete with Cedar Point. The problems with that theory are plentiful, least of which being that the park didn't have the notoriety or fame that Cedar Point has. Cedar Point arose into pop culture gradually and with record-after-record of quality roller coasters. "Plopping" roller coasters into what had been a local park couldn't have the same effect. Also remember that Six Flags had to bring in their own arsenal of animals to repopulate the "animal park" - everything from orcas to dolphins to fish to sharks to penguins to turtles that SeaWorld had, of course, taken with them when they left. Then, after a notoriously short season, they had to transport those animals elsewhere or take care of them for the six months a year that no guests even saw them. Problem three - The original Geauga Lake and SeaWorld, separately, were local family parks. By making a 700-acre mega-park, Six Flags alienated the clientele that had appreciated both Geauga Lake and SeaWorld for their simplicity. It shouldn't be a surprise that SeaWorld Ohio operated differently from SeaWorld Orlando. No one was under the impression that SeaWorld Ohio was a destination park. It was a local attraction with a few tendrils out into the region. The attempt to market the park as a national destination and a flagship of Six Flags' arsenal hurt long-time visitors. Problem four - The people who DID come to Six Flags Worlds of Adventure for that thrilling, mile-a-minute mega-park experience were greeted by the Six Flags norm of the time (unhelpful and inattentive employees, little interest in cleanliness, questionable operations, "parking lot coasters," rampant greed in food pricing but non-existant ticket-pricing integrity) AND the perils of a family-park turned mega-park (not enough food service, small bathrooms that couldn't keep up with demand, odd layout from organic growth, two parking lots and no simple way to cross the 700 acre facility). Problem five - Despite marketing tying the parks to Cleveland, the park was located about 45 minutes southeast of Cleveland, with much of that drive through rural areas and small towns whose infrastructure would not allow for the massive crowds Six Flags sought. The park's rural location also meant that there were virtually no hotels anywhere near it - because, why would someone need a hotel room to visit little Geauga Lake, given that its primary visitors were locals? Still today the area has hastily-constructed roads where two-lane paths suddenly have three left-turn lanes with a rusted sign pointing to "Geauga Lake" in Cedar Fair font. I don't think anyone would argue that Cedar Point handled the closing of Geauga Lake particularly well and you can, of course, see why locals were ENRAGED by that, but angry even earlier as they saw conditions deteriorate and rides disappear one by one. I don't think Cedar Fair purchased Geauga Lake with the intention of closing it. It's clear, though, that Cedar Point's intention was to downsize the park, perhaps to the size of Michigan's Adventure or Valleyfair, where it would once against settle into the family niche - basically, to remove the four huge coasters Six Flags had added, and replace the animal park with a water park. Not 100% necessarily to "erase Cedar Point competition," but also because that's where the park belonged, and what its infrastructure allowed for. Somewhere along the line, that failed and the result is what we have today - a water park. To my understanding, water parks have a surprisingly high profit margin, and whether we as park-fans like it or not, WildWater Kingdom DOES cater to a family market, with a lot of locals getting season passes for their whole family. It's a shame, and a shock, and a tragic loss for the area, but if you've seen the state of the "rides" side of the park, you recognize that it won't be back. And WildWater Kingdom's "phase II" never happened, so either 1) the park is doing just fine as is, or 2) its fate is undecided, too. EDIT: And Google Map "WildWater Kingdom," then move over to the south side of the lake - everything is gone. Everything. Food stands, gates, fountains, bathrooms, etc. are all square piles of rubble.

We encounter this or something similar probably once or twice a year. A teenage ride operator finally works up the courage to deliver the bad news that a person's preexisting condition goes against the park's safety rules and maybe even the manufacturer's requirements, so the person raises a fuss and insists that they've ridden it before and that they're perfectly capable and they feel violated and hurt by any assumption to the contrary. My thing is, if I had even a slight condition that seemed more or less harmless in terms of theme park safety (maybe, a prosthetic foot or a recent oral surgery) my very first stop at the beginning of the day would be Guest Services, where I'd ask to speak with someone knowledgable about such things to know what I can and cannot ride. Granted, it's worse in the cases where people missing entire legs claim they're treated unfairly after they wait in line for Millennium Force for three hours without bothering to ask anyone or even read the informational signs at the entrance. But still, what could it hurt to start your day at Guest Services and ask what limits they impose in terms of ride requirements? Parks have to protect themselves from liability and as this man clearly demonstrates, we live in a sue-happy society. He'd sue if he got on and couldn't brace himself and something happened, and he's suing since she couldn't get on.

Luckily, the monorail, subs, and train station are all sequestered in the same corner of Tomorrowland, which could theoretically remain open (so long as a complete renovation didn't close and tear-out the subs, as is rumored from time-to-time). Construction wall pathways are no stranger to Disneyland Resort guests, but my sincere hope would be that during a multi-month remodel of the whole land, Space Mountain and Star Tours might get some "plussing" that would require at least some closure. Couldn't hurt. Sorry we've hijacked the thread everyone.

I think I've heard that, too - that the bulky Da Vinci apparatus was too heavy for it. Not sure if it can be believed, though, since its placement mirrors the nearly identical ride in Discoveryland, at ground level and surrounded by rocks. But that's the root of the Tomorrowland '98 problem, really. Same thing can be said of Rocket Rods and banked track. It's like they didn't look into it to begin with, and when problems arose, they were baffled and unwilling to accomodate. It was all paint and new 3D movie by the end of it. Woof. I have to mention that the newest report from Al Lutz (the Disney fan community's much-maligned, but often-accurate scoop writer) makes note in his update this month that plans for a New New Tomorrowland in California are again the focus of Imagineering, and the plan is to completely seal off the land and re-open it altogether in a grand spectacle (a la Cars Land) as opposed to the piecemeal reveal of Magic Kingdom's New Fantasyland, which is a beautiful addition to that park except for the acres of construction walls, cranes, steel, and rebar that's entirely visible in half of the land...

I doubt that Interpreter meant to give the impression that a multi-million dollar roller coaster was being needlessly picked up piece-by-piece and re-assembled somewhere else in the park for the sake of thematic integrity that a vast minority of park visitors notice or care about. But maybe he did. Who can ever say?

Be careful with the claim that it was the only looping wooden roller coaster ever, or that it was the first. That was not the record Paramount claimed, and for good reason! Thanks, Terp.

True! And if we're being honest, I was a big fan of the way the entrance to the land looked - aesthetically speaking - when it was in all golds. A radical shift in the land's content could have made that New Tomorrowland a real success, but as it was, it really was just putting gold paint over existing buildings. In other words, they imported France's fantastical, intelligent, fantasy-future on the surface, but those Discoveryland facades were placed over Star Tours, Buzz Lightyear, Honey I Shrunk the Audience, Innoventions, and Space Mountain... Not exactly the future Jules Verne might've predicted! And shoehorned into Disneyland's minuscule footprint, the extra rocks, fountains, grassy hillsides, and waterfalls would cause very cramped quarters. Look at the park's Astro Orbitor, removed from its pedestal above Tomorrowland re-planted at the land's entrance, causing infamous backups and bottlenecks as people navigate around it and around the tracks of the now-vacant Peoplemover. A sore sight! Now, what were we saying about Six Flags and Apollo? (Sorry, guys!)

^^ And if it wasn't for Ouimet, California's Space Mountain might still be the color of oxidizing, rusty copper. The man knows how to preserve what should be preserved! But as for Disney being interested in SeaWorld, I just don't think it would happen.

That is absolutely the last thing I'd want you to take from this thread! Is DINOSAUR a worthwhile romp? Sure! But to think of what it could be...! Or better yet, what it is on the other side of the country. Talk about choosing what themeing to put around a given ride path...

The Crypt during its final years basically was Tomb Raider: The Ride minus the story, effects, and synchronized music. Over the top twice, then a flip. Reverse direction, over the top twice, then a flip. "Welcome back riders. How was your ride?" "That's it?!" But to each his own!

Paramount marketing would disagree! They referred to the attraction as a "45 minute experience!" It seems like the Giant Top Spin was devised as a clever moving theater that placed riders in thrilling positions more than a pulse-pounding mile-a-minute thrill ride. Didn't it flip one time initially, only having more "thrills" added later? Sure there were harrowing moments, but the cycle itself wasn't that much more acrobatic that what The Crypt ended up with. As Tomb Raider, though, that "simple" cycle was less predictable and more interesting due to the theming.

A locked backflip over the top (after the goddess wakes up), a forward flip (down from the icicles - you can see how you fall toward the triangle), a locked flip out from the lava pits that released halfway up, then a final locked flip back around to the start position, from my recollection.

Same! Its absence is a real shame.

Posted on Screamscape, this early POV of Tomb Raider: The Ride appears to be include most of the original effects and the spectacular lighting and even the sparker! For those here who never got a chance to ride it and always wondered what the Crypt "used to be," check it out.

I joined July 2005 apparently! The days feel like years... in the best way! I would've been 14 then. I'm mortified to imagine what my posts might've been like.

And if you asked B&M to identify their own hypercoaster at Kings Island, they may only be able to do so by process of elimination.

An easy way to spice up an existing attraction in lieu of adding a new one. But a lot of people enjoy things like this. Racer did it so effectively that many people came to imagine that that's how it was supposed to operate. According to Screamscape, Six Flags Great America toyed with turning the original Batman - The Ride backwards for employee testing last year. I can't imagine the result of that being anything except WAY too intense for the general public, but we shall see if it progresses...

So, what would Cedar Fair HQ be without Q? Appeasing shareholders can be a pain, but it can also keep a company from wandering too far off track! It was already an oligarchy under Kinzel. Without a few "pesky" shareholders' rapid accumulation of stock for the purpose of redirecting the company, who knows what might've happened?

It's really a fascinating story. I'm by no means a great firsthand source to telling it, but the basics: The two Busch Gardens parks (in Florida and Virginia) often build similar roller coasters together. One gets Griffon, the other gets SheiKra. Montu and Alpengeist. Even Cheetaka and Verbolten. 1993's addition to the Floridian park was the B&M multi-looper Kumba (identified by its unique loop that wraps around the lift hill). B&M (still a fairly young company at the time) was contracted for Florida's parks but had to withdraw from Kumba's "compliment" set to debut in Virginia due to a full schedule (EDIT: This was right 'round the premiere of Paramount Parks' Vortices and Six Flags' game-changing Batman: The Ride). Somehow, Arrow came along, inherited the job and the plans, and decided to create the ride themselves. The result was an Arrow roller coaster (think Vortex, Adventure Express, etc. with their admittedly awkward track transitions and pre-computer-planned layouts) that tried to duplicate B&M fixtures (cobra rolls, wing-over corkscrews, etc). According to "legend," Arrow couldn't figure out how to duplicate Kumba's loop-the-lift and ended up creating a unique element of a corkscrew halfway through the first drop instead (so again, imagine one of Vortex's corkscrews, but right in the middle of the first drop... see this photo). And still to this day, Drachen Fire is the only Arrow coaster that ever had a "cobra roll" element. Even the supports were built to resemble the style of B&M's - the only Arrow coaster to have that look about it from start to finish, I believe. It really does look exactly like Kumba's lift hill, compared to the lattice structures Arrow sitting coasters almost exclusively have on their main lift hills. One inversion was removed at one point with roundabout intention to make the ride less violent, but it didn't help enough. Its station is still standing completely in tact and is used for a haunted house. (That last paragraph... is there an echo around here?)

It's entirely different. The old one was a testing facility with cut-out trees, environmental tests, orange traffic cones, and an on-board narrator who set up each individual test, discussing anti-lock brakes, power steering, etc. as you "played the role of a crash test dummy." The new version of the ride is not about being put through the paces on individual automotive tests, but about designing your "own" car and seeing how it handles in broad concepts like "energy," "speed," "maneuverability," etc. in a virtual environment The look is VERY "Tron" now and there's no indication that you're in a giant testing facility. Instead, you may as well be inside a computer, racing down day-glo highways past cities of the future (and people are calling it Tron Track). In other words, the only comparison between old Test Track and new Test Track by Chevrolet is the track layout. And like so many nearly-pitch-black dark rides (which Test Track now is), it's impossible to sense the scale, detail, or environment It's just too dark, and the effects on the new version of the ride can't be captured easily on film. I'll say that the one part I miss was the final test - on , it was the "barrier test," where you pass a car whose front end is completely smashed it as if it just accelerated directly into a wall like on all of the commercials. You see a video of a car running head-on into a barrier and the test dummies inside slam forward as the front of the car implodes. Then, you turned the corner and saw the wall in front of you. Just as blinding halogen lamps turned on, you accelerated at the wall, only to have it open at the last second as you blast outside. Now, on , it's simply a "power boost" with no impending doom or anxiety from having seen / recognized the barrier test. Watching those two videos, by the way, shows the exact same length of track and just how different they are between the two rides. Wow. It may as well be an entirely new ride!

Meanwhile sources are saying that huge names from the Oriental Land Company (who own and operate Disney's Japanese parks) made an extended trip to Disney California Adventure and are in the process of green-lighting Cars Land for their own park... No cutbacks, no delays, no micromanagement while Orlando still sputters about how to reduce costs.

A big stagnant lagoon being replaced with a new dark ride, walk-through, two restaurants, and a roller coaster sounds like an expansion to me! Seriously, the reviews coming out of this place are tremendous, saying that it's the hyper-detailed work seen in the Wizarding World and Cars Land, just on a bit of a smaller scale. I'll be there in January (and it takes a bit to lure me away from Universal). The only complaint I'm hearing is a little huffing and puffing about the land adding only one truly "new" attraction (while simultaneously removing an old one, Snow White's Scary Adventures). Still, I've been on California's version of the Little Mermaid dark ride, and it is fantastically done. The one in Florida is nearly an exact copy, but placed in the really impressive seaside castle of Prince Eric with carved out tunnels at the castle's base as the queue. It looks like a real winner. Maybe not the "Harry Potter killer" that people assumed they were going for, but a step in the right direction for the park and resort!