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Universal Epic Universe (South Expansion Complex) - Now Open!

ToTBellHop

ToTBellHop

Well-Known Member
Tom Morrow said:
To be fair, reliance on IP has always been Universal's thing. It began as a place where you can "ride the movies". (I know that before that it began as a movie studio tour).

Disney, on the other hand, used to be an even mix of IP experiences and original ones.
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Yes, but at least when Islands opened, it had attractions not overtly based upon a specific film showcasing specific actors. Unfortunately, that’s been diluted over time. I personally think Lost Continent was more timeless than Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter (and I love Harry Potter).
 
Tom Morrow

Tom Morrow

Well-Known Member
ToTBellHop said:
Yes, but at least when Islands opened, it had attractions not overtly based upon a specific film showcasing specific actors. Unfortunately, that’s been diluted over time. I personally think Lost Continent was more timeless than Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter (and I love Harry Potter).
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I agree. And the kicker is that Universal has proven that they CAN do original stuff very well, most notably in the form of half or more of the HHN houses each year, and I would argue Darkmoor and Monsters Unchained are more an original creation than a true IP offering.
 
flynnibus

flynnibus

Premium Member
My impressions…

You know it, but it still feels crazy how compact the park is.
Celestial is nicer than it looks online.. it works as a nice area you pass through and the structures are nice looking. I mean you don’t want to go there just for the park… but for atmosphere it’s nice
Berk is by far the most impressive land imo as a theme park land. Harry Potter is realism like mad… but the fantasy stuff in berk is so much fun imo.

The untrainable dragon show just makes you laugh at what Disney tries to put out as stage shows right now.

So many rides had a recurring theme… you get off and say ‘that’s it??’. If I was waiting hour+ I’d be so much more put off

Monsters unchained is insane… but also felt like a demo reel. Like let’s show you everything possible in a quick reel. The figures like Igor are so impressive… everything is dialed to 11… but I still didn’t get like an emotional hook at all with the ride. I loved the castle exterior

Dk mine cart has rough spots but they are confusing like they are shimmy spot that just didn’t need to be there. Almost like construction defects… tho I am sure they are not… but just taking those out would improve it so much. The track effect looked fun.

I was supurised by how much different some was compared to the layout in Hollywood…

MoM is so impressive in how they manage the depth and projection elements… the death eaters look incredible but the human faces still seem lacking. MoM felt like Spider-Man evolved. I don’t think I could justify 3hr waits tho.

I am blessed I hit the park on what is probably the least possible crowd day. I walked on mom, monsters, and most rides. But I don’t think i could tell people with a straight face that visiting and having 90min plus waits everywhere would still be worth it.

If you are 25-35… this park probably screams yes yes yes to you. As an old guy who can’t handle the jerkiness as much anymore my time in these parks is probably closing. And that point will still probably pigeonhole universal… it won’t crack into the multi generational family trip Disney mastered. Epic helps on the low end of the range… but uni is still gonna excel at the young adult demographic and suffer at the edges.

Most shocking thing I wasn’t expecting… how empty all that space around the park is. It’s like in this wasteland of nothing with stuff planted to try to fill it.
 
rd805

rd805

Well-Known Member
With a fast tracked attraction, additional dining, and plant life continuing to grow; I think the beta version of this park will feel a lot better. With that said, it then STILL needs 2 more attractions (expansion plot land) after the pending Potter.

I still absolutely adored the park (helps that I had a plan, 2 days, stayed at Helios, did express 2nd day lol), but I am a huge fan of Nintendo & Potter, classic monsters is a gem IP, roller coasters: so it's made for "me." I get why people would have bad days at EPIC; with extensive planning (and probably a higher budget ready than most may be willing), I had a success.


Much like I'm impressed at the future of what WDW is working on right now (arguably 4 big expansions / updates at once); the next phase of Universal overall seems promising:
-Replace a lackluster coaster, build brand new coaster with popular IP
-Ditch popular IP crap attraction, and replace with something more popular
-Lost Continent: please get to work on this Uni! lol -> whatever is next, lezgo.

This will breathe life back into the other 2 parks, helping crowding a bit at Epic too? The overall portfolio of Uni will feel a lot better with each passing year.
 
Poseidon Quest

Poseidon Quest

Well-Known Member
flynnibus said:
So many rides had a recurring theme… you get off and say ‘that’s it??’. If I was waiting hour+ I’d be so much more put off
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I always feel that way about a lot of Universal attractions, but I end up warming up to them over time. Once past that initial overwhelming first handful of ride-throughs, and I begin to process what's occurring among the chaos, I start to look forward to certain lines of dialogue or the punchy sound design. I see why people would be angry waiting for 3+ hours for something like Ministry, but I've come to know the beats of the ride and think that it gets better with repeat ride-throughs.
 
BrianLo

BrianLo

Well-Known Member
I’m still not sure there is any coherence of a plan to fix USF though. The piecemeal approach is unlikely to work. Particularly when the batting average there is a one dud for every success.

IOA just needs some shows. Epic needs some mass market rides. Those both seem straightforward objectives.
 
flynnibus

flynnibus

Premium Member
Poseidon Quest said:
IOnce past that initial overwhelming first handful of ride-throughs, and I begin to process what's occurring among the chaos, I start to look forward to certain lines of dialogue or the punchy sound design.
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I hear you… but rides like dragon racers where you make like 3 loops and then it’s over?

Or the wolf coaster which is a tragedy as the ride system is kinda neat… but the whole story and progression of the ride is a wt… kind of moment.

Yoshi and DK at least feel like 50-75% of what they should be… but still really come up short.

And what idiot named the glider ride dragon RACER and the rollercoaster dragon GLIDER when they are basically next to each other and can’t tell which entrance leads to what?
 
Tom Morrow

Tom Morrow

Well-Known Member
flynnibus said:
Monsters unchained is insane… but also felt like a demo reel. Like let’s show you everything possible in a quick reel. The figures like Igor are so impressive… everything is dialed to 11… but I still didn’t get like an emotional hook at all with the ride. I loved the castle exterior
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I felt the exact same after my first ride. This is an issue with almost all modern Universal rides, where they can't help themselves but make it a sensory overload whiplash. It's too much to process in the first run. However, like many Universal attractions, I appreciated Monsters more after subsequent rides, reading up on the story a bit, and taking in the queue details more. Monsters has an interesting backstory that ties into the whole land and is, I think, the first attraction where there is no "hero". You can decide to side with Victoria or Dracula, but both of them are bad.

Monsters also has the most interesting queue in the park, incredible sound design, two of the best pre-shows, and lots of great lines of dialogue.

But also, yeah, if Universal were true masters of ride design, they could make a ride that not only wows people but also resonates emotionally on the first ride. For the most part, IMO, they have never really been able to do this.

flynnibus said:
Most shocking thing I wasn’t expecting… how empty all that space around the park is. It’s like in this wasteland of nothing with stuff planted to try to fill it.
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It is weird, but that's also how USF started out. WDW has the benefit of having been able to build their parks into forested land, so even when brand new they feel more complete by not having open fields around them.
 
flynnibus

flynnibus

Premium Member
We did sr on monsters which only walks by the coffin. So we lost a bit with that… at least on MoM the SR does not miss the major elements like the atrium.

The blending of SR traffic just through the wide open exit traffic was awkward tho. I can imagine that being a lot more problematic during busy periods
 
Tom Morrow

Tom Morrow

Well-Known Member
Oh, yeah. Single Rider on Monsters misses basically everything and the ride will make no sense. Though the single rider queue is its own slightly creepy corridor of doors.
 
brb1006

brb1006

Well-Known Member
Has anybody checked out the three-part documentary "Epic Ride: The Story of Universal Theme Parks" that arrived on Peacock last Monday? It covers the construction and months leading up to Epic Universe's grand opening. Any thoughts for those that seen it? Currently finished Episode 1: The Build.
 

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