Avatar Flight of Passage reviews, comments and questions

[freediverdude]

I went back for the evening last night, and also waited 2 1/2 hours to ride FoP again. And saw the nighttime lighting. I still stand by my assessment of the ride, although both rides I was near the end, seats 14 and 16 for my two rides, so what another poster said about end seats not having as clear a picture could be true, I won't know until I go back and happen to get a middle seat.

The nighttime lighting was interesting, some unique touches. I saw one globe that looked like it had something moving in it, that was good. I think they could add to it to make it a little better in places, and also put some things on the mountains and floating rocks to make them more part of the nighttime. The signs also need to be luminescent or lit up, hard to read the directional signs and know where you are in there at night.

I looked at the fake waterfalls again, and boy those are convincing unless you zoom in with a camera. There's one small place where you can get a closer glimpse of the highest one in the queue, but you have to be really looking for it, the other one is hidden from the queue. It's the two highest waterfalls.

 

[freediverdude]

I know what I'm doing this afternoon. Yesterday Pandora, tonight HARRY POTTER WORLD!

You know what, maybe I should do Potter again today too, just to reinforce my comparison after seeing FoP twice yesterday. I guess I shouldn't go in there wearing my banshee on my shoulder though. Sorry Fiery Charlie, you can't come with me! *banshee screech*

 

[RustySpork]

You know what, maybe I should do Potter again today too, just to reinforce my comparison after seeing FoP twice yesterday. I guess I shouldn't go in there wearing my banshee on my shoulder though. Sorry Fiery Charlie, you can't come with me! *banshee screech*

I'd go to WWHP wearing my Banshee, but they'll definitely make me crate him before I get on the ride. He's kinda ornery.

 

[Kman101]

Yes you do. You're obviously a fanboy. That's OK, I'll take that into consideration with your posts.

Lol. Wow

 

[Kman101]

The game scene is one that has been made much clearer with the latest update.

No it wasn't. Wow. I was on it LAST month. Why the heck would I make that up? You sound like the fanboy to me. Noted you'd rather argue and dismiss me. Gotcha.

Instead of dismissing me take a look at my post history. Nothing like judging another person

 

[djdan888]

I personally don't like the 3D glasses. They like to slip a little and the glasses always seem to be smudged. I wish it was not a 3D ride. I know Cameron is big into 3D and all, but that is the one complaint I have. Not relating to the ride, I really wish they could figure out how to have the Navi people out and about in the land. I don't understand how they can't make a costume work for it. They have a huge Groot costume in DL. Why can't they put out some Navi meet and greets?

 

[flyerjab]

I've been to both Potter Lands and now Pandora. The level of engineering expertise, coupled with the wonderful design aesthetics, places DA and Pandora in a class all of their own in the domestic park scene. I place Hogsmeade just below due to Dragon Challenge and the large exposed show building.

At this point, as far as I am concerned, both lands are soooo good that personal preference to source material can heavily impact your final impressions of which is better, as well as Disney or UNI park fanboism. I LOVE the world that JKR created for Harry Potter, as well as the characters (but aside from the Snape storyline, I didn't think that her storytelling was that great). The concept of hidden wizard worlds tucked into the corners of our mundane muggle world is a genius and wonderful idea. That is why when I stepped into DA the first time, I was dumbstruck with how amazing of a job UNI Creative did. And for the record, I actually like EFG (Escape from Gringotts) better than FJ. EFG was a very enjoyable and unique ride experience that we couldn't wait to go back on after we exited...which we did.

Having said all of that, I think that Pandora is superior - and I am not an Avatar or James Cameron fanboy. I appreciate the effort put into creating an alien rainforest landscape that is not a carbon copy of what was on screen. They took the visuals and hand-crafted a valley on Pandora that wasn't front-and-center in the movie itself. And the results are visually stunning, from every angle and direction that you can gaze, as well as from the largest to the smallest of details. And the rockwork of the floating mountains and the facade of the showbuilding, as well as the forced perspective, are simply phenomenal. And for me, it is an added bonus that the land itself transforms into something else after the sun sets.

IMHO, FoP trumps either ride experience on FJ and EFG. And I am not a mechanical engineer, so I am not as impressed by a kuka arm, or a state of the art simulator ride, or what company made which attraction, etc. I just want a great ride experience; whether it is something as simple as the enchanting ride vehicles on Peter Pan's Flight, the track layout of BTMM, or the incredible AA display of the American Adventure. It doesn't matter to me as long as the impact and overall experience of a ride or attraction impresses me. In this case, although I love EFG, I find FoP a superior ride experience. EFG is like riding a ride along side a motion picture, and in the end it produced a great and enjoyable experience for me. FoP was an entirely different experience. On these forums I constantly use the term exhilarating, and the phrase 'swept up', to describe how I felt on that ride. And there is an emotional note that FoP hits for me that I simply didn't experience on the Potter rides. We have a brief visit to WDW in July again before heading up to the beach at Hilton Head, and I am already counting down the days to when we step into Pandora and ride FoP again.

In the end, I think that it is fair to say which land and/or rides are superior. But truth be told, Pandora and Potter are both excellent, top notch theme park experiences. We are really splitting hairs at this point stating which is better. Why not enjoy both?

 

[Kman101]

I've been to both Potter Lands and now Pandora. The level of engineering expertise, coupled with the wonderful design aesthetics, places DA and Pandora in a class all of their own in the domestic park scene. I place Hogsmeade just below due to Dragon Challenge and the large exposed show building.

At this point, as far as I am concerned, both lands are soooo good that personal preference to source material can heavily impact your final impressions of which is better, as well as Disney or UNI park fanboism. I LOVE the world that JKR created for Harry Potter, as well as the characters (but aside from the Snape storyline, I didn't think that her storytelling was that great). The concept of hidden wizard worlds tucked into the corners of our mundane muggle world is a genius and wonderful idea. That is why when I stepped into DA the first time, I was dumbstruck with how amazing of a job UNI Creative did. And for the record, I actually like EFG (Escape from Gringotts) better than FJ. EFG was a very enjoyable and unique ride experience that we couldn't wait to go back on after we exited...which we did.

Having said all of that, I think that Pandora is superior - and I am not an Avatar or James Cameron fanboy. I appreciate the effort put into creating an alien rainforest landscape that is not a carbon copy of what was on screen. They took the visuals and hand-crafted a valley on Pandora that wasn't front-and-center in the movie itself. And the results are visually stunning, from every angle and direction that you can gaze, as well as from the largest to the smallest of details. And the rockwork of the floating mountains and the facade of the showbuilding, as well as the forced perspective, are simply phenomenal. And for me, it is an added bonus that the land itself transforms into something else after the sun sets.

IMHO, FoP trumps either ride experience on FJ and EFG. And I am not a mechanical engineer, so I am not as impressed by a kuka arm, or a state of the art simulator ride, or what company made which attraction, etc. I just want a great ride experience; whether it is something as simple as the enchanting ride vehicles on Peter Pan's Flight, the track layout of BTMM, or the incredible AA display of the American Adventure. It doesn't matter to me as long as the impact and overall experience of a ride or attraction impresses me. In this case, although I love EFG, I find FoP a superior ride experience. EFG is like riding a ride along side a motion picture, and in the end it produced a great and enjoyable experience for me. FoP was an entirely different experience. On these forums I constantly use the term exhilarating, and the phrase 'swept up', to describe how I felt on that ride. And there is an emotional note that FoP hits for me that I simply didn't experience on the Potter rides. We have a brief visit to WDW in July again before heading up to the beach at Hilton Head, and I am already counting down the days to when we step into Pandora and ride FoP again.

In the end, I think that it is fair to say which land and/or rides are superior. But truth be told, Pandora and Potter are both excellent, top notch theme park experiences. We are really splitting hairs at this point stating which is better. Why not enjoy both?

Exactly. I love the Potter lands and Pandora. One isn't better than the other to me.

I really did find the game arena scene in FJ blurry. I'm not one to make something up.

 

[Atomicmickey]

Question: Does anyone have the tech specs on the projection system used?

Most reviews praise the smoothness and clarity. I am thinking it's gotta be "umpteen K" resolution
and maybe 120FPS?

That, plus a really, really bright bulb with HDR, are probably the main things making this ride so seemingly transcendent as far
as screen based attractions go.

So excited to see this in person, but not until October for me!

 

[DisneyJayL]

These acronyms kill me. Kill me I say!!!

 

[MisterPenguin]

Question: Does anyone have the tech specs on the projection system used?

Most reviews praise the smoothness and clarity. I am thinking it's gotta be "umpteen K" resolution
and maybe 120FPS?

That, plus a really, really bright bulb with HDR, are probably the main things making this ride so seemingly transcendent as far
as screen based attractions go.

So excited to see this in person, but not until October for me!

See here:

It's definitely highend Christie Laser projection. Likely at least 120 FPS because of 3D (60FPS each eye). Frame rates higher than that are possible but at a certain point detract from the experience rather than add. Brightness largely depends on the specific projector, video standard, and amount of projectors which I can't speak directly to other than that the people that do Disney projects know what they're doing and are willing to pay far more for better quality projection and sound equipment than Universal is. Knowing that James Cameron is involved it seems likely they will use the best tech they can get - which would be Dolby-vision or some other HDR color tech which can get extremely bright compared to standard color space and projection. There are experimental technologies that allow for even more brightness but I don't think any of them are ready for prime time.

 

[Exomonia]

The game scene is one that has been made much clearer with the latest update.

When was this update done? I found FJ to be a bit blurry too in January when I last visited, has it been updated since then?
If so, that's great to hear!

 

[Cesar R M]

Huh? No. It was blurry. Sorry but it's true. I don't say BS.

I still dont see how it was sarcasm. I seen it by myself and it was VERY blurry.
Its amazing how in a year it was spot on and then.. yikes.. even dirt spots were visible in the projections (which means the lens of the projector was dirty as hell)

The game scene is one that has been made much clearer with the latest update.

Did they finally made repairs?

 

[Cesar R M]

I personally don't like the 3D glasses. They like to slip a little and the glasses always seem to be smudged. I wish it was not a 3D ride. I know Cameron is big into 3D and all, but that is the one complaint I have. Not relating to the ride, I really wish they could figure out how to have the Navi people out and about in the land. I don't understand how they can't make a costume work for it. They have a huge Groot costume in DL. Why can't they put out some Navi meet and greets?

groot is bulky.. the navi are very slender and thin.
If they weren't blue and cat like with a tail, they would look like the tall grey aliens.

 

[Cesar R M]

Exactly. I love the Potter lands and Pandora. One isn't better than the other to me.

I really did find the game arena scene in FJ blurry. I'm not one to make something up.

We will have to see how FoP as time goes on. If they keep the screens clean and the projectors working in top order.. I dont think we will see the issues as we seen in FJ.

See here:

Universal needs to pest Ambling Entertainment ( Steven Spielberg) to cough up similar technology for their parks.

 

[TabulaRasa]

Random question, but I can't seem to find the answer. If you Fastpass Flight of Passage, what exactly (if any) of the queue is missed? If you FP, do you still see the major animatronic?

 

[Kman101]

I still dont see how it was sarcasm. I seen it by myself and it was VERY blurry.
Its amazing how in a year it was spot on and then.. yikes.. even dirt spots were visible in the projections (which means the lens of the projector was dirty as hell)



Did they finally made repairs?

Thank you. If they repaired it was within the last few weeks lol

 

[CSJORDAN]

Random question, but I can't seem to find the answer. If you Fastpass Flight of Passage, what exactly (if any) of the queue is missed? If you FP, do you still see the major animatronic?

You miss most of it actually. You skip through the caves, the air lock area, and, arguably the most impressive area, the laboratory areas. When you get a Fastpass, you basically skip all of it, and pass through a small cave, and down a long hallway to the merge point. IMO, try to see the standby queue at least once.

 

[Cosmic Commando]

I personally don't like the 3D glasses. They like to slip a little and the glasses always seem to be smudged. I wish it was not a 3D ride. I know Cameron is big into 3D and all, but that is the one complaint I have. Not relating to the ride, I really wish they could figure out how to have the Navi people out and about in the land. I don't understand how they can't make a costume work for it. They have a huge Groot costume in DL. Why can't they put out some Navi meet and greets?

Teenage Na'vi. They're about the same size as a tall human on 6-inch stilts.

 

[Todd H]

Rode it this morning. Probably the best pure screen ride I've ever been on. Still rate it slightly lower than HPFJ and Spiderman due to the integration of physical sets on those rides. Still, one of the best rides on property.