AVATAR land - the specifics

MisterPenguin

President of Animal Kingdom
Premium Member
Isn't most adventure movies "something goes wrong"?

Movies have the luxury of dressing that scenario up in several ways. When you're on an "adventure ride" of an IP (as opposed to a "book report") there's little time to set up how you got involved in an adventure with simulated dangers. So, I don't begrudge that plot device. Otherwise, you're just watching someone else's adventure, like you're sitting and watching a movie being completely passive.
 

Incomudro

Well-Known Member
That's an odd choice for the first three rides...

The "something goes wrong thing" is a result of a change in the philosophy behind theme park rides that has been underway for decades now. As "immersion" and, particularly, "immersion within a copyright-able fictional universe" becomes the goal of theme parks, the guests role in the story must be explained. You are doing something relatively normal and "Something goes wrong" is an easy explanation for why passengers are part of a thrill ride narrative. Disney does it with most of their modern rides and virtually all of their IP rides, including Star Tours (both versions), Mystic Manor, E:E, Dinosaur, Stitch, the original Kilimanjaro Safari, Kali River Rapids, Indiana Jones, ToT, the Hong Kong Iron Man attraction, HIStA, Philharmagic, etc.

There are variations within the roles assigned within these Disney attractions, of course, just as their are at Uni - in Transformers you're a NEST Agent, in Spidey a reporter at the Bugle, at Despicable Me a new minion - which get set up in the pre-show. If you look only at the ride plot in the broadest terms, however, they tend to be identical.

"You are doing a thing and everything goes exactly as expected" doesn't really work for attractions that are meant to offer any sort of thrill - it's one of the big problems with M:S.

The old model, of course, was simply not to offer a narrative for guest involvement. Why are you on board a runaway mine train? Because you are, Why are you in a cart moving past scenes from old animated movies? No particular reason. When Disney tries this model today, they tend to get criticized for book report rides - witness Little Mermaid (even Mermaid attempts to situate the rider within the narrative via Scuttle "telling" us the story).
Those first three rides were more or less right there as we entered the park.
 

Incomudro

Well-Known Member
I have to agree. My 12 and 8 year old sons were both done with it by the time we hit Transformers (we had done Spiderman, Simpsons and Minions already). Uniquely, very fun rides but variety is sorely missing.
On the other hand, Jurassic Park and the Mummy are my 12 year old's favourites now, surpassing Everest.


I think the actual ride type plays a big part in the whole 'Again?' with Universal.
Jurassic Park was good, but not as good as I had hoped.
I've been wanting to go on JP for years.
The whole family liked Mummy and Rip Ride Rocket best - though not surpassing Everest.
 

Incomudro

Well-Known Member
Isn't most adventure movies "something goes wrong"?

Movies have the luxury of dressing that scenario up in several ways. When you're on an "adventure ride" of an IP (as opposed to a "book report") there's little time to set up how you got involved in an adventure with simulated dangers. So, I don't begrudge that plot device. Otherwise, you're just watching someone else's adventure, like you're sitting and watching a movie being completely passive.
Yeah, but it's very formulaic at Uni.
And it carries over into the Potter rides as well.
My son's were saying "This again?"
 

Rutt

Well-Known Member
Two different parks
Transformers and Minions are both right as you enter UO, but yes, Spiderman is in IOA. Doesn't really change the point that they are all very much similar experiences and all very much screens with simulators and many do very much get the 'this again' feeling by the end of the day. Even Kong, by the end of the ride my oldest was asking if it was sad that the queue was his favourite part of the ride.

Where as Disney does use a similar 'something's gone wrong' storyline to some of their rides, they do tend to mix up a little more variety.
While of course FOP and NRJ will include screens, it is my understanding that NRJ will also include some interesting physical elements as well.
The (Much maligned) SDMT uses screens (the wonderful faces) but they are not the entire ride.

Ughhh, I'm caught in the debate again.
 

Casper Gutman

Well-Known Member
Transformers and Minions are both right as you enter UO, but yes, Spiderman is in IOA. Doesn't really change the point that they are all very much similar experiences and all very much screens with simulators and many do very much get the 'this again' feeling by the end of the day. Even Kong, by the end of the ride my oldest was asking if it was sad that the queue was his favourite part of the ride.

Where as Disney does use a similar 'something's gone wrong' storyline to some of their rides, they do tend to mix up a little more variety.
While of course FOP and NRJ will include screens, it is my understanding that NRJ will also include some interesting physical elements as well.
The (Much maligned) SDMT uses screens (the wonderful faces) but they are not the entire ride.

Ughhh, I'm caught in the debate again.

No real debate - I agree with a lot of what you say. Uni has too many screens and really needs variety. I vastly prefer dark rides to simulators myself - its one of the reasons I'm not particularly excited by FoP.

I do think that Spidey (in particular), Gringotts, and HE are substantially different from the Uni simulator rides and among the 10 best rides in Orlando (I also really like Transformers, but it is the same ride as Spidey with a worse IP). I'd argue those three rides are better than anything WDW has opened since AK (although I love Mermaid, but that's my dark ride bias). People who are prone to give Disney the benefit of the doubt over Uni like to use the "screenz" argument as a way to dismiss these attractions.

But being incendiary can be fun, so I'll also say the most boring screen attraction in Orlando (after Shrek, to be fair) is TSMM.

(I don't think the faces in SDMT really count as screens in relation to this discussion, actually - they're great.)
 

No Name

Well-Known Member
TSMM... boring?! I've heard a lot of negative words used to describe TSMM around these parts, but I have to say, I've never heard someone describe it as boring. It's the most fun ride I've ever been on. My family and I are very competitive, and it's always a close battle. Pulling the rope rapidly to shoot those final plates? I've never had so much adrenaline elsewhere in a theme park.

You may think it's cheap, too screen-heavy, etc., and while I don't agree with any of that, I can at least understand. But I can't fathom how one could consider it boring.

On Avatar Land...


I find it super, super strange that they are basically showing the floor plan as part of the attraction. Super strange! It makes me interested to see how it will be incorporated into the story. I always assumed that the reason they hid the building behind a mountain range was to hide the fact that the ride is in a showbuilding, as Disney normally does. But it seems like the story here is "hey, you just walked through the mountain range and into a showbuilding!"

I hesitate to call it "lazy" until we've seen the full picture, but, I do wonder...
 

Kman101

Well-Known Member
No real debate - I agree with a lot of what you say. Uni has too many screens and really needs variety. I vastly prefer dark rides to simulators myself - its one of the reasons I'm not particularly excited by FoP.

I do think that Spidey (in particular), Gringotts, and HE are substantially different from the Uni simulator rides and among the 10 best rides in Orlando (I also really like Transformers, but it is the same ride as Spidey with a worse IP). I'd argue those three rides are better than anything WDW has opened since AK (although I love Mermaid, but that's my dark ride bias). People who are prone to give Disney the benefit of the doubt over Uni like to use the "screenz" argument as a way to dismiss these attractions.

But being incendiary can be fun, so I'll also say the most boring screen attraction in Orlando (after Shrek, to be fair) is TSMM.

(I don't think the faces in SDMT really count as screens in relation to this discussion, actually - they're great.)

I know we're already off topic but I loved Gringotts too. I don't understand the hate it seems to get? For me it was a totally unique experience, even with screens. I haven't ridden something like that. Why are people so meh about it?
 

danlb_2000

Premium Member
TSMM... boring?! I've heard a lot of negative words used to describe TSMM around these parts, but I have to say, I've never heard someone describe it as boring. It's the most fun ride I've ever been on. My family and I are very competitive, and it's always a close battle. Pulling the rope rapidly to shoot those final plates? I've never had so much adrenaline elsewhere in a theme park.

You may think it's cheap, too screen-heavy, etc., and while I don't agree with any of that, I can at least understand. But I can't fathom how one could consider it boring.

On Avatar Land...



I find it super, super strange that they are basically showing the floor plan as part of the attraction. Super strange! It makes me interested to see how it will be incorporated into the story. I always assumed that the reason they hid the building behind a mountain range was to hide the fact that the ride is in a showbuilding, as Disney normally does. But it seems like the story here is "hey, you just walked through the mountain range and into a showbuilding!"

I hesitate to call it "lazy" until we've seen the full picture, but, I do wonder...

I might not use the word "boring" but personally I don't find it all the compelling. I went on it once and have never gone back on it again. I much prefer Space Range Spin.
 

sculljoey

Member
Have we seen the entrance to FoP? The line seems to be through a cave, but the ride vehicles themselves are located in an Earthman-built Avatar facility - it's a bit confusing.

Not sure what you mean by the entrance? Where the line starts? Where the line enters the ride building? Where the line dumps to the actual ride?
 

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