Lee
Adventurer
Wow, a lot of strong feelings about this rumor. My 2 cents:
I have been going to Epcot since it opened, and the one thing I have always complained about is the lack of updating for the attractions. Living Seas is now so lifeless that it has become a ghost town, Wonders of Life is a total yawn, even it's "thrill" ride Body Wars, the Land boat ride is fun the first few times, but gets old pretty quick, and by now Spaceship Earth is in serious need of an overhaul. Let's face it, the attraction is showing it's age. The track rattles, quite often the sound goes out, the fiber optics are often not working, and the modern communications that are shown are nowhere near as good as the others, like Greece and the Cavemen. The attraction is crying out for updating and a little TLC.
Now, is a coaster the answer? I don't know. As a coaster enthusiast I would love to ride a cosaster in that sphere. I think seening coaster trains launched into the sphere from one of the Innoventions buildings would be breathtaking, and would be the talk of the theme park world. Mind you, I don't think for a moment that they would do it without some extremely heavy themeing, and "educational" moments.
If we are being completely honest, do we really think that the average park goer visits Epcot to learn? I don't think so. They want fun attractions, the most entertainment for their dollar, and if some learning happens, so be it. Why do you think MK does so much more business than Epcot? People want to ride attractions that make them smile, laugh, and yes even scream. Very few people spend much time at all lingering in the Epcot pavilions that stress learning over entertaining like Living Seas or Wonders of Life. Compare the lines there with the ones at Test Track or when Mission:Space opens. Those old pavilions will be relatively empty, and this is what tells Disney what the guests want. They look at where the lines are, and listen to guests who talk about the most memorable attraction from their visit. How many guests get home and gush to their frinnds abour Spaceship Earth? Compare that to the word of mouth about ToT.
Wow, I've gone too long already, but I must finish by saying that if it were up to me, I would make Spaceship Earth some sort of hybrid attraction between dark ride and coaster, in the spirit of Indy (but not that system). Tell some sort of communication story while giving the people a great ride. If that means that little kids can't ride it, so be it. Most kids don't get SE anyway, and many sleep through it.
I have been going to Epcot since it opened, and the one thing I have always complained about is the lack of updating for the attractions. Living Seas is now so lifeless that it has become a ghost town, Wonders of Life is a total yawn, even it's "thrill" ride Body Wars, the Land boat ride is fun the first few times, but gets old pretty quick, and by now Spaceship Earth is in serious need of an overhaul. Let's face it, the attraction is showing it's age. The track rattles, quite often the sound goes out, the fiber optics are often not working, and the modern communications that are shown are nowhere near as good as the others, like Greece and the Cavemen. The attraction is crying out for updating and a little TLC.
Now, is a coaster the answer? I don't know. As a coaster enthusiast I would love to ride a cosaster in that sphere. I think seening coaster trains launched into the sphere from one of the Innoventions buildings would be breathtaking, and would be the talk of the theme park world. Mind you, I don't think for a moment that they would do it without some extremely heavy themeing, and "educational" moments.
If we are being completely honest, do we really think that the average park goer visits Epcot to learn? I don't think so. They want fun attractions, the most entertainment for their dollar, and if some learning happens, so be it. Why do you think MK does so much more business than Epcot? People want to ride attractions that make them smile, laugh, and yes even scream. Very few people spend much time at all lingering in the Epcot pavilions that stress learning over entertaining like Living Seas or Wonders of Life. Compare the lines there with the ones at Test Track or when Mission:Space opens. Those old pavilions will be relatively empty, and this is what tells Disney what the guests want. They look at where the lines are, and listen to guests who talk about the most memorable attraction from their visit. How many guests get home and gush to their frinnds abour Spaceship Earth? Compare that to the word of mouth about ToT.
Wow, I've gone too long already, but I must finish by saying that if it were up to me, I would make Spaceship Earth some sort of hybrid attraction between dark ride and coaster, in the spirit of Indy (but not that system). Tell some sort of communication story while giving the people a great ride. If that means that little kids can't ride it, so be it. Most kids don't get SE anyway, and many sleep through it.
