I just got back from a 10 day stay at WDW and wanted to give some quick thoughts FOP.
We rode FOP 6 times, 2 with Fast Pass and 4 times in standby. Honestly, the waits in standby weren't too bad as we took advantage of the 1am operating hours. Fast Pass works flawlessly and essentially brings you directly to the pre-show. Good luck getting one. I checked endlessly to get the ones I had, but it's possible if you're diligent.
The queue is easily the most interesting, detailed, and expansive queue at WDW. I would say the Everest Queue is a close second, but the floating avatar alone is worth the wait in the sometimes very long lines. It's simply beautiful on the outside and detailed on the inside, particularly in the lab areas. It was a little too warm in some parts of the inside queue.
Pre-show - I thought the pre-show was slightly odd and too long. You essentially have to walk through 2 staging areas where you are matched with an avatar explained by an awkward Dr. Stevens. After decontamination, you are sent to yet another area where you watch an explanation of why you're here video with Dr. Ogden, who pioneered this experience. The questionable "acting" by Doctor Stevens is just strange. Predictably, the process gets old with every ride after the first and you're anxious just to get to the flight itself.
The Attraction - Once I got to the ride vehicle, I was almost shaking with excitement. The first time actually takes your breath away. It's incredible, an E-Ticket Attraction, no doubt about it. The scene in the wave is one of the most amazing experiences I've had on a ride at any park. The screen is HUGE and beautiful (It has to be 4K HD?). Feeling the Banshee's lungs expand, smelling the environment, and getting hit with water mist are SUPER immersive elements that really pull you hard into the experience. The dives actually feel like you're nosediving into a canyon.
However, I found myself getting less and less impressed after each subsequent ride. Normal law of diminishing returns, sure, but I think it's a symptom of AR/VR experiences in general. Hear me out on this.
With no real "physical" experience other than short movements of the ride vehicle, your brain becomes conditioned to the sequence of events. This is less of an issue with truly physical experiences like Tower of Terror, Everest, or even Splash Mountain. By the 4th time, I was noticing the screen edges, other peoples' feet, and was actually quite bored maybe except for the wave scene. I question its re-rideability. Perhaps they can "update" the ride more easily in the future, but I can't help but wonder if this was the right move over an actual "ride" versus essentially a screen.
I find myself wondering, could they have incorporated the same concept with a more moveable ride system with additional screens....maybe more like the Harry Potter ride concept but with the better technology of today? I don't see HP as a direct comparison, but the reliance on the screen concerns me and leaves me a bit empty. This should be the best attraction at WDW, but it's still not. Tower of Terror and Everest are better E-Tickets and have better re-rideability.
Some notes and Summary:
We rode FOP 6 times, 2 with Fast Pass and 4 times in standby. Honestly, the waits in standby weren't too bad as we took advantage of the 1am operating hours. Fast Pass works flawlessly and essentially brings you directly to the pre-show. Good luck getting one. I checked endlessly to get the ones I had, but it's possible if you're diligent.
The queue is easily the most interesting, detailed, and expansive queue at WDW. I would say the Everest Queue is a close second, but the floating avatar alone is worth the wait in the sometimes very long lines. It's simply beautiful on the outside and detailed on the inside, particularly in the lab areas. It was a little too warm in some parts of the inside queue.
Pre-show - I thought the pre-show was slightly odd and too long. You essentially have to walk through 2 staging areas where you are matched with an avatar explained by an awkward Dr. Stevens. After decontamination, you are sent to yet another area where you watch an explanation of why you're here video with Dr. Ogden, who pioneered this experience. The questionable "acting" by Doctor Stevens is just strange. Predictably, the process gets old with every ride after the first and you're anxious just to get to the flight itself.
The Attraction - Once I got to the ride vehicle, I was almost shaking with excitement. The first time actually takes your breath away. It's incredible, an E-Ticket Attraction, no doubt about it. The scene in the wave is one of the most amazing experiences I've had on a ride at any park. The screen is HUGE and beautiful (It has to be 4K HD?). Feeling the Banshee's lungs expand, smelling the environment, and getting hit with water mist are SUPER immersive elements that really pull you hard into the experience. The dives actually feel like you're nosediving into a canyon.
However, I found myself getting less and less impressed after each subsequent ride. Normal law of diminishing returns, sure, but I think it's a symptom of AR/VR experiences in general. Hear me out on this.
With no real "physical" experience other than short movements of the ride vehicle, your brain becomes conditioned to the sequence of events. This is less of an issue with truly physical experiences like Tower of Terror, Everest, or even Splash Mountain. By the 4th time, I was noticing the screen edges, other peoples' feet, and was actually quite bored maybe except for the wave scene. I question its re-rideability. Perhaps they can "update" the ride more easily in the future, but I can't help but wonder if this was the right move over an actual "ride" versus essentially a screen.
I find myself wondering, could they have incorporated the same concept with a more moveable ride system with additional screens....maybe more like the Harry Potter ride concept but with the better technology of today? I don't see HP as a direct comparison, but the reliance on the screen concerns me and leaves me a bit empty. This should be the best attraction at WDW, but it's still not. Tower of Terror and Everest are better E-Tickets and have better re-rideability.
Some notes and Summary:
- It's not that hard to get yourself on the ride vehicle. It's essentially a bike you lean on the handlebars.
- The 3D glasses fall off your head easily. Terrible.
- Queue is incredible
- Pre-Show has some cool elements with camera tricks but overall is long and poor acting
- The ride is incredible your first time, but I'd bet you get conditioned to it quickly
- I had the opportunity to ride it again, but chose to do Everest 3 times instead. That kind of sums it up for me.
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