New Harry Potter Coaster Confirmed for 2019 (Dragon's Challenge Closing Sept 4th)

[Tom Morrow]

I so much want to love this ride, so I don't mean to sound negative, but does anyone else have this sinking feeling that it's not quite going to live up to its concept?

The idea of flying around the Forbidden Forest in Hagrid's Motorbike spotting magical creatures feels like total wish-fulfillment, and a great concept for the ride, but realizing that with an outdoor coaster among real planted vegetation seems like a let-down compared to Potter's other signature rides.

Gringotts has some story issues, but it's pretty beautifully realized, and Forbidden Journey feels about as immersive as anything. I can't help but think between the exposed track and reliance on real plants that guests are never going to be able to feel like they're really flying or that they're really in the thick, dense, dark Forbidden Forest. I would think an Indoor Dark Ride would have been the obvious method for realizing such an adventure, where you can simulate the forest, control the lighting, mask-out the ride track, and fill it with creatures that need not stand up to the elements. Maybe a short outdoor section before heading into a large showbuilding if they want the "weenie" of the motorbikes flying over the treetops . . .

This seems to me like the kind of ride that should really come alive at night. I'm super excited to ride it and will likely make a special trip after opening just to give it a whirl, but the more I look at photos the more I find myself trying to manage my own expectations. The idea feels like a total home run, but the execution doesn't yet appear to be on that level.

My gut tells me that this is still going to be a very good or great ride, but perhaps not the knockout it's been hyped up as. I do have a few concerns - the aforementioned drop track building, the fact that at several points, the track comes right up to a backstage service road that will be very hard to hide, and that it may end up looking more like a well-landscaped coaster than the forbidden forest. But who knows, maybe I'll end up eating my words. I hope so. Also just so we're clear, if any other park other than Universal or Disney were building this I wouldn't be criticizing anything because it's obviously beyond the scope of what pretty much anyone else could do.

An indoor dark ride with this amount of track? Are we still talking about a roller coaster or another slow boat ride? Id much rather go whizzing through actual vegetation with real pine scents instead of moving past fiberglass and Disney smell-o-vision.

Because Na'Vi River Journey is definitely the most comparable indoor ride?

But yeah, I am glad this is outdoors. It allows the track to cover a much bigger area, provides different experiences depending on the weather and time of day, and it forced Universal to build large scale physical sets. I bet this will be amazing at night time.

 

[lazyboy97o]

Not trying to be annoying here, but I legitimately can't think of anywhere in MK where an unthemed show building is blatantly visible. Haunted Mansion's is.... IF you know where to peer through the trees at certain angles to see it.

The backside of northeast Main Street, where the Plaza Restaurant is located. Technically it kind of worked as appropriate but was very unsightly. It was half heartedly improved when the exit bypass was made permanent.

 

[phillip9698]

Because Na'Vi River Journey is definitely the most comparable indoor ride?

But yeah, I am glad this is outdoors. It allows the track to cover a much bigger area, provides different experiences depending on the weather and time of day, and it forced Universal to build large scale physical sets. I bet this will be amazing at night time.

I didnt name a ride, there are plenty of slow dark rides in a boat, take your pick. Point being you turn this ride into a dark ride and its either no longer a coaster or the layout is changed immensely and it either encompasses a much smaller footprint or Universal foots the bill for the most expensive ride in theme park history by leaps and bounds.

 

[yensidtlaw1969]

An indoor dark ride with this amount of track? Are we still talking about a roller coaster or another slow boat ride? Id much rather go whizzing through actual vegetation with real pine scents instead of moving past fiberglass and Disney smell-o-vision.

Yea, I think this is going to be a personal problem for you. Me? Gimme an outdoor coaster with real vegetation and water and all that.

I didnt name a ride, there are plenty of slow dark rides in a boat, take your pick. Point being you turn this ride into a dark ride and its either no longer a coaster or the layout is changed immensely and it either encompasses a much smaller footprint or Universal foots the bill for the most expensive ride in theme park history by leaps and bounds.

I'm sort of saying that a Roller Coaster doesn't seem like the ideal medium for this concept. The Forbidden Forest is such a rich and distinct location in the HP universe, and so far I haven't seen anything in the art or aerial images that capture it. Right now it just looks like a roller coaster through a forest, with some Potter creatures and call-outs sprinkled around.

The ride will be fun, no doubt, and like I said I do really look forward to riding it, but it seemed like Dueling Dragons was getting the boot because they saw it as a weak spot amongst the level of immersion held up by Potter's other offerings. Forbidden Journey does a really great job with its moments in the Forbidden Forest and with it's flying sensation, so when word got out that Universal was building a whole ride based around that location on an enchanted, flying motorbike I got the impression that they were aiming to build a new attraction that rises up to the level of execution seen in FJ and Gringotts.

So far it seems more like Hagrid's splits the difference between Dueling Dragons and the other attractions - it's still an exposed, outdoor roller coaster, but with better landscaping, nicer architecture, some outdoor creatures and 2 indoor show scenes . . . but as an immersive "Flying" attraction through the deep, dark forest, it doesn't yet seem to "go there". The other HP headliners do a great job of realizing the locations to the extent that it feels like the film sets completed in 3 dimensions, but the ride doesn't yet show evidence of echoing its filmic counterpart:

 

[lazyboy97o]

I didnt name a ride, there are plenty of slow dark rides in a boat, take your pick. Point being you turn this ride into a dark ride and its either no longer a coaster or the layout is changed immensely and it either encompasses a much smaller footprint or Universal foots the bill for the most expensive ride in theme park history by leaps and bounds.

A coaster system could be used for a dark ride.

 

[BubbaQuest]

I so much want to love this ride, so I don't mean to sound negative, but does anyone else have this sinking feeling that it's not quite going to live up to its concept?

The idea of flying around the Forbidden Forest in Hagrid's Motorbike spotting magical creatures feels like total wish-fulfillment, and a great concept for the ride, but realizing that with an outdoor coaster among real planted vegetation seems like a let-down compared to Potter's other signature rides.

Gringotts has some story issues, but it's pretty beautifully realized, and Forbidden Journey feels about as immersive as anything. I can't help but think between the exposed track and reliance on real plants that guests are never going to be able to feel like they're really flying or that they're really in the thick, dense, dark Forbidden Forest. I would think an Indoor Dark Ride would have been the obvious method for realizing such an adventure, where you can simulate the forest, control the lighting, mask-out the ride track, and fill it with creatures that need not stand up to the elements. Maybe a short outdoor section before heading into a large showbuilding if they want the "weenie" of the motorbikes flying over the treetops . . .

This seems to me like the kind of ride that should really come alive at night. I'm super excited to ride it and will likely make a special trip after opening just to give it a whirl, but the more I look at photos the more I find myself trying to manage my own expectations. The idea feels like a total home run, but the execution doesn't yet appear to be on that level.

My concerns are actually the opposite. I have no problem with the exposed track. I'm actually glad to see something large in scale that isn't screenz. I think sitting in a sidecar, it's going to be easy to ignore that you are on a coaster and just enjoy the scenery.

My concern is the start/stop/launch nature of the coaster. I'm concerned all the story telling might get in the way of an otherwise enjoyable coaster. Nothing worse than a bunch of block brakes that are clearly just holding a train while it waits for the next section to clear.

I'm just being nitpicking here. Of course we won't know until the thing opens. In any case, I'm interested enough to plan another trip. The big question will be if I should wait for the Jurassic coaster too.

 

[yensidtlaw1969]

My concerns are actually the opposite. I have no problem with the exposed track. I'm actually glad to see something large in scale that isn't screenz. I think sitting in a sidecar, it's going to be easy to ignore that you are on a coaster and just enjoy the scenery.

My concern is the start/stop/launch nature of the coaster. I'm concerned all the story telling might get in the way of an otherwise enjoyable coaster. Nothing worse than a bunch of block brakes that are clearly just holding a train while it waits for the next section to clear.

I'm just being nitpicking here. Of course we won't know until the thing opens. In any case, I'm interested enough to plan another trip. The big question will be if I should wait for the Jurassic coaster too.

I definitely agree that it's deeply refreshing to see something with a complete lack of "screenz".

That's part of why I want this thing to really wow people - I think practical elements and effects in a theme park setting can work magic like no other. My concern is that choosing to execute this ride as an outdoor roller coaster limits the design to what can survive outside and asks you to imagine that the coaster track isn't there, which was one of the conceptual weaknesses of Dragon's Challenge.

I had hopes for this attraction to be a masterstroke of immersion in practical environments, since I thought Universal was trying to prove they could do that. It seems it may be more like "here's another coaster with some practical elements that are kinda cool because of what they look like but not so cool they won't survive in the rain". I don't expect Fluffy will be an Animatronic, which seems like a missed opportunity.

 

[TwilightZone]

I don't expect Fluffy will be an Animatronic, which seems like a missed opportunity.

Considering Alicia has been pretty 100% correct with this coaster so far, Fluffy will for sure be an animatronic.
At this point, dismissing her is like dismissing Marni.

 

[yensidtlaw1969]

Considering Alicia has been pretty 100% correct with this coaster so far, Fluffy will for sure be an animatronic.
At this point, dismissing her is like dismissing Marni.

I didn't mean to dismiss anyone, I hadn't even seen the claim made. I'm not entirely caught up on this thread.

If that's the case then color me thrilled, I'd love to see Fluffy animated in this ride.

 

[TwilightZone]

I didn't mean to dismiss anyone, I hadn't even seen the claim made. I'm not entirely caught up on this thread.

If that's the case then color me thrilled, I'd love to see Fluffy animated in this ride.

It's alright.

 

[imperius]

This will be way better than a boring dark ride through the same elements. Give me a well themed coaster like this why physical elements, AAs, drop track over Voyage of the Little Mermaid.

 

[flynnibus]

There's a fake Antarctica in Orlando, and we're concerned with snow on roofs?

Antartica is snow covered year round... Hogsmeade is not. So that's extra conflict interjected not just with location, but that it doesn't fit the timeline/season either.

It's a nice touch, but creates lots of conflicts by having it.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

Antartica is snow covered year round... Hogsmeade is not. So that's extra conflict interjected not just with location, but that it doesn't fit the timeline/season either.

It's a nice touch, but creates lots of conflicts by having it.

From Pottermore:

The village of Hogsmeade is the first ‘field trip’ allowed away from Hogwarts, and only third-year and older students can go. Harry Potter and his fellow third-years visit it for the first time in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, although Harry has to use a secret tunnel to Honeydukes to get there.

Stuart Craig envisaged the village of Hogsmeade as being firmly rooted in the Scottish Highlands. ‘Hogsmeade is the country version of Diagon Alley. It’s just off the perimeter road around Hogwarts. For Hogsmeade, we did need to have a distinctive theme and feel, so we said that it’s above the snow line. That gave it a remote feeling. Every time we see Hogsmeade it is covered in snow.’ Craig’s artistic decision brought to cinematic life the description that author J.K. Rowling wrote in Prisoner of Azkaban: ‘Hogsmeade looked like a Christmas card.’

 

[yensidtlaw1969]

This will be way better than a boring dark ride through the same elements. Give me a well themed coaster like this why physical elements, AAs, drop track over Voyage of the Little Mermaid.

I don't know if this is in response to me, but I've been saying I first thought it would be a screen-less Dark Ride of the Forbidden Journey and Gringotts ilk and caliber, with dense theming and with higher speeds. Nothing like the slow, plodding, plastic Mermaid at all.

My concern is that photos have yet to reflect this area being "well themed" to the Forbidden Forest - it just looks like any old freshly-planted forest, punctuated with some Potter references. Will we have to wait 30 years for these trees to mature before it really feels like the movie? If so, outdoor coaster seems like not the way to go

 

[ToTBellHop]

From Pottermore:

Indeed. Thus, Harry returns to face Voldemort in June at age 17 and lands in a pile of snow in Hogsmeade. Hogwarts itself has no snow. Their proximity to each other makes that a bit confusing but I said to myself, “Magic.”

 

[ToTBellHop]

Height requirement is a surprisingly high 48”. I thought this was supposed to be more family friendly than the rest of the Wizarding World?

Redirect Notice

 

[GLaDOS]

I didn't mean to dismiss anyone, I hadn't even seen the claim made. I'm not entirely caught up on this thread.

If that's the case then color me thrilled, I'd love to see Fluffy animated in this ride.

I mean, the AA is already visible in aerial pictures.

My concern is that photos have yet to reflect this area being "well themed" to the Forbidden Forest - it just looks like any old freshly-planted forest, punctuated with some Potter references. Will we have to wait 30 years for these trees to mature before it really feels like the movie? If so, outdoor coaster seems like not the way to go

There's still a LOT more planting to be done. Yes, we'll have to wait for it to really fill in, but that's the nature of the beast.

 

[disney_NYC]

Any guesses on if, and when, there will be soft open/technical rehearsals?

 

[Bob Harlem]

 

[GLaDOS]

Any guesses on if, and when, there will be soft open/technical rehearsals?

Personally? After Memorial Day.