Skull Island: Reign of Kong from construction to opening

Disneyhead'71

Disneyhead'71

Well-Known Member
fosse76 said:
I disagree. I thought the ride was great and the queue disappointing. The only real complaint is how short it is. Why does everything Universal builds have to some type of game-changing experience? Wasn't this really meant to absorb additional capacity and not be the next Forbidden Journey?
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It's a big and loud and distinctly Universal E Ticket. It's got screens, cool AAs, state of the art ride vehicles, scareactors, fire, massive sets and Kong!

I like it. It is one that I'll ride most times that I'm in the parks. FJ, Spider-man, Hulk, and now Kong are on my must do list at IOA. Mummy, Transformers, Gringott's, and MiB over at the studio's.
 
squidward

squidward

Well-Known Member
caranate said:
I didn't want to high jack the thread, soI will be brief. Kong, the Potter rides, Mummy and MIB were quality rides. The rest were not my cup of tea. I just don't like to be beat to death watching a big screen
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Did you go on anything in Seuss Landing, Popeye, Jurassic Park, HRRR, ET.....Eh, nevermind.
 
squidward

squidward

Well-Known Member
ctxak98 said:
Alright so I just went to Universal yesterday and did get to ride Kong twice. I'm having major mixed feelings for this ride but I'm gonna leave a few notes that I had for the ride.

The queue is 10/10. The theme and story flow for the queue is quite good. I loved the middle section with the witch and chanting. It really heightened the intensity.(which is the kind of vibe I wish the rest of the ride had). The AA slug thing was awesome and the scare actor was fantastic (wish there were more though).

The attraction itself the first time I went through, I was in the first row. It was fun at first going up to the wall but I felt like I couldn't see anything going on. The front window blocks so much view that it's hard to focus on the screens (especially during the bug pit scene.) the ride to me didn't didn't have enough motion when you were falling. In other attractions like spiderman, Gringotts, and transformers I felt like I was falling. That wasn't really the case for this ride so idk I have mixed feelings for it.(also side note that this is the fourth ride nkw where we fall and something catches us.....come on let's think of something different!)

The end AA Kong was beautiful. Would I have liked a more full scale AA with his hands and arms moving?! Absolutely. But this AA is great and by far the most impressive one to come from Universal.

Overall my critiques for attraction are
1. Bad view angles depending on side and row (do not go front row!)

2. Skull island flow is weird and doesn't make much sense (like going from qui ditch match to the chamber of secrets in forbidden journey. Still fun but doesn't quite make sense since we know the world well)

3. Too much going on that the focus isn't clear and poor ending.

4. Great queue and AA figures and a unique experience based on the size and number of people per car.

Overall the queue is 10/10 whil the attraction for me falls short at 6/10. So I would give the overall attraction a 7/10 because I feel the ride should be more of the impressive part vs the queue. Just my opinion on the ride but I wanted to share my thoughts now that I've been on it.
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I agree 100% about the front row. We sat there and we had a very difficult time following the action.
 
Tom Morrow

Tom Morrow

Well-Known Member
Finally got to ride a second time, this time with motion, and knowing what to expect, I did enjoy it better. Still, most of my initial complaints remain. The flow and pacing is weird and "off", the narrative is basically non-existent, and there's a complete disconnect between you and the action in the first two screen scenes. Also, I know the entire point of the 360 segment is that the action is all around you, but its somewhat hard to follow. Visual cues to direct your attention would be helpful.

I think another factor that sets people up for disappointment is the scope of the facade and exterior queue combined with seeing the vehicles drive by. You feel like at the very least, this should feel a bit like a journey. Imagine if when the Jungle Cruise boats turned the corner out of sight from the loading area, they actually only moved and stopped through a few rooms.

A definite positive is that this has great capacity and a low height requirement.
 
HouseHacker97

HouseHacker97

Well-Known Member
wgransone said:
low key I wish they made kong into an indoor-coaster-type thrill ride like mummy
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Just got off the ride and I'm actually pretty surprised with how much I liked it. It was way better than I expected and how everyone described it. Still think it would have been better with a mummy-like vehicle and experience but I'm happy with the way it is. Also, the roof projections were working but they are far less fantastic than everyone is anticipating. They are really just a dark indistinguishable blob shadow. Way too dark to tell what they are, you can't make out what the shadow is supposed to be i.e. you couldn't tell they were bugs or anything, but still a cool feature. I sat on the left side in the back and up until the 360 room the ride is basically perfect (from a standpoint of sitting on the left). It doesn't really make sense that you can see the bottom of the screen but whatever, still fun with the air blasts in your face, kind of makes you forget about it. Overall much better ride than how people are describing it.
 
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HouseHacker97

HouseHacker97

Well-Known Member
Lol the driver had to tell the bus to sit back down like 5 or 6 times; thought it was funny that it wasn't the same recording every time and it didn't sound very robotic.
 
matt clark

matt clark

Active Member
I got to ride it again this past Saturday.
I noticed that the movement was absent during our BEST test run during soft openings in the final AA room.
I notched up my likes for this ride a little bit due to that.
It still isnt in my top 5 favorite rides though.
Still a great ride and superior to most Disney stuff.
 
HouseHacker97

HouseHacker97

Well-Known Member
I rode it again today. my only real criticisms that I think can still be fixed:
1) The truck really bounces around in the first few minutes and i slide around onto other people. I feel like there should a a lap bar or something to hold onto because the head rail in front of you is too far away in my opinion
2) I think the queue should give more information as to why we are there and who Kate is. like literally why would they take 70+ people on an expedition through an island that they know has these crazy monsters roaming around? all the drivers talk about kate as if we know her as much as they do.
3) I think the truck should wobble and shake more during the dino scenes and the racing scenes. Maybe it was just the 2 times i rode it, but the bus was just completely still with air blasts. It felt really weird and not at all realistic.
4) the left side really sucks. Both times i was on the very far left and had very tall people sitting between me and kong. Idk if this would be too hard to fix, but maybe there should just be a little more to see on the left walls than just a wall. Obviously they can't put another kong but i mean seriously lol I'm 5'4 and I can barely see the AA.

Sigh. Still a great ride and I'm happy they didn't have to tear anything down for it!
 
Mike S

Mike S

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
180º said:
When can we expect a detailed review? :D
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Maybe tomorrow.
wgransone said:
I rode it again today. my only real criticisms that I think can still be fixed:
1) The truck really bounces around in the first few minutes and i slide around onto other people. I feel like there should a a lap bar or something to hold onto because the head rail in front of you is too far away in my opinion
2) I think the queue should give more information as to why we are there and who Kate is. like literally why would they take 70+ people on an expedition through an island that they know has these crazy monsters roaming around? all the drivers talk about kate as if we know her as much as they do.
3) I think the truck should wobble and shake more during the dino scenes and the racing scenes. Maybe it was just the 2 times i rode it, but the bus was just completely still with air blasts. It felt really weird and not at all realistic.
4) the left side really sucks. Both times i was on the very far left and had very tall people sitting between me and kong. Idk if this would be too hard to fix, but maybe there should just be a little more to see on the left walls than just a wall. Obviously they can't put another kong but i mean seriously lol I'm 5'4 and I can barely see the AA.

Sigh. Still a great ride and I'm happy they didn't have to tear anything down for it!
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1) I like the bouncing :)

2) They could've dropped Kate entirely except for the radio broadcasts in the queue and make the ride just about us getting attacked by various creatures and it would've been just as good. If you pay attention to the radio it gives plenty of info for why we're there and going in the trucks. We're on an expedition of Skull Island, clearly.

3) There definitely should be motion. Looks like you had some bad luck.

4) My second ride was in the back all the way on the left. Not as good as my first ride towards the middle of row 6. I wasn't blocked though like you were. Love that AA. It's one of the top things I really wanted from this ride :inlove:
 
JoeCamel

JoeCamel

Well-Known Member
wgransone said:
I rode it again today. my only real criticisms that I think can still be fixed:
1) The truck really bounces around in the first few minutes and i slide around onto other people. I feel like there should a a lap bar or something to hold onto because the head rail in front of you is too far away in my opinion
2) I think the queue should give more information as to why we are there and who Kate is. like literally why would they take 70+ people on an expedition through an island that they know has these crazy monsters roaming around? all the drivers talk about kate as if we know her as much as they do.
3) I think the truck should wobble and shake more during the dino scenes and the racing scenes. Maybe it was just the 2 times i rode it, but the bus was just completely still with air blasts. It felt really weird and not at all realistic.
4) the left side really sucks. Both times i was on the very far left and had very tall people sitting between me and kong. Idk if this would be too hard to fix, but maybe there should just be a little more to see on the left walls than just a wall. Obviously they can't put another kong but i mean seriously lol I'm 5'4 and I can barely see the AA.

Sigh. Still a great ride and I'm happy they didn't have to tear anything down for it!
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For #2 I think they assumed everyone saw the preview teasers (Myth Explorers) and that is where Kate was introduced. I got it but for Family USA they just get on the truck and there she is.

For #3 it sound like you didn't get locked into the motion base so all you had was the 3D and effects. If you had the motion it would be a very different feeling.

For #4 I rode the left side first, I thought it was good then I rode the right side. It was good then I sat a couple of people in from the end - that was the best. Better to be a little inside if you can IMO.
 
Mike S

Mike S

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Review time :)

Let me just say that the whole thing is great from stepping under the Kong head arch to meeting Kong himself. The radio broadcasts in the exterior queue are a great touch and remind me of Jungle Cruise but seem much clearer and easier to hear than JC. I love watching the trucks pass by and the driver AAs are surprisingly pretty convincing.

The interior queue is perfectly dark and foreboding. The room with the witch is a huge highlight with the AA being one of Uni's best human figures though still not close to Disney's best in that field. After that comes the scary natives though none came out at me. Only the people before and after me :( After that we get to the second queue AA which is the worm. Very creepy.

The outside path after boarding your truck is a great setup. Some lines from the driver and then we hear native chanting as the gates open and the flames roar. The bat AAs are a nice touch to this first room with the skeleton but are pretty basic. I like how all the torches go out to more chanting in here too. After this we have our first screen and meetup with Kate. The smaller bats that fly out here seem to fly right through the truck through some great 3D. The insect pit is no different with one worm getting a little too close for comfort. The water effects here are pretty disturbing, lol. The 360 scene is amazing if you have the right seat. My best experience was in row 6 towards the middle-right. There's so much going on around you it's impossible to see it all in one ride which is a great way to encourage repeat rides. I've been on twice and still feel like I haven't seen it all. Now the pièce de résistance: the audio animatronic King Kong.

He is nothing short of spectacular. I've never seen an AA with such realistic facial movement though I wouldn't expect anything less from Creature Technology Company. Almost makes me wish that they made the bats at the beginning too. I love that you get to spend plenty of time with him and it's not just some quick encounter. Best AA in Orlando by FAR and it makes me excited to see what Avatar has to show next year since there's supposed to be some pretty advanced Na'vi.

Overall I love the ride but it does have a few faults like Kate not really being important to the story. Setting the ride up more like how Jaws was could've helped here. Another one is that on my second ride I was on the far left and could easily see the top edge of the 360 screen. I have the same pet peeve when I'm on Soarin'.

If I had to rank it among my favorites I'd put it like this:

Forbidden Journey
Spider-Man
The Mummy
Kong
Transformers
Gringotts

All subject to change of course :)
 
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PorterRedkey

PorterRedkey

Well-Known Member
Mike S said:
Review time :)

Let me just say that the whole thing is great from stepping under the Kong head arch to meeting Kong himself. The radio broadcasts in the exterior queue are a great touch and remind me of Jungle Cruise but seem much clearer and easier to hear than JC. I love watching the trucks pass by and the driver AAs are surprisingly pretty convincing.

The interior queue is perfectly dark and foreboding. The room with the witch is a huge highlight with the AA being one of Uni's best human figures though still not close to Disney's best in that field. After that comes the scary natives though none came out at me. Only the people before and after me :( After that we get to the second queue AA which is the worm. Very creepy.

The outside path after boarding your truck is a great setup. Some lines from the driver and then we hear native chanting as the gates open and the flames roar. The bat AAs are a nice touch to this first room with the skeleton but are pretty basic. I like how all the torches go out to more chanting in here too. After this we have our first screen and meetup with Kate. The smaller bats that fly out here seem to fly right through the truck through some great 3D. The insect pit is no different with one worm getting a little too close for comfort. The water effects here are pretty disturbing, lol. The 360 scene is amazing if you have the right seat. My best experience was in row 6 towards the middle-right. There's so much going on around you it's impossible to see it all in one ride which is a great way to encourage repeat rides. I've been on twice and still feel like I haven't seen it all. Now the pièce de résistance: the audio animatronic King Kong.

He is nothing short of spectacular. I've never seen an AA with such realistic facial movement though I wouldn't expect anything less from Creature Technology Company. Almost makes me wish that they made the bats at the beginning too. I love that you get to spend plenty of time with him and it's not just some quick encounter. Best AA in Orlando by FAR and it makes me excited to see what Avatar has to show next year since there's supposed to be some pretty advanced Na'vi.

Overall I love the ride but it does have a few faults like Kate not really being important to the story. Setting the ride up more like how Jaws was could've helped here. Another one is that on my second ride I was on the far left and could easily see the top edge of the 360 screen. I have the same pet peeve when I'm on Soarin'.

If I had to rank it among my favorites I'd put it like this:

Forbidden Journey
Spider-Man
The Mummy
Kong
Transformers
Gringotts

All subject to change of course :)
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Great review, Mike!

I look at your list and I haven't ridden any of those rides. I am so excited for the end September to come so I can get my chance to experience all the great experiences Universal has to offer!
 

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