News Disney Confirms Muppets Take Over Rock 'n' Roller Coaster at Hollywood Studios

[osian]

Just listen to the ride dialogue. They literally narrate what’s happening. Not sure how much more they could dumb it down unless you want a pamphlet at boarding. If a person is incapable of focusing on the dialogue while on a roller coaster, that’s not really on the Imagineers.

My hearing is not great, on-ride narration is one of the things I struggle with, like not being able to understand someone talking directly in my ear in a roomful of other people talking. I'm nowhere near deaf though, it's certain frequencies and an inability to distinguish sounds in a noisy environment. Even on the phone when the earpiece is directly pressed against my ear, if there's interference or it sounds a bit muffled and not 100% clear, I can struggle. It's not a volume issue and It's a common condition. A lot of onride narration passes me by, e.g. Splash Mountain, Frozen etc. That's fine, I live with this, but a lot of attractions rely literally on someone reading a story to you in a noisy environment, rather than relying on the attraction itself to tell the story. This is indeed a design issue.

 

[ᗩLᘿᑕ ✨ ᗩζᗩᗰ]

Just listen to the ride dialogue. They literally narrate what’s happening. Not sure how much more they could dumb it down unless you want a pamphlet at boarding. If a person is incapable of focusing on the dialogue while on a roller coaster, that’s not really on the Imagineers.

They could always SHOW what's going on instead of telling us.

 

[ToTBellHop]

It’s absolutely on the Imagineers. A dark ride goes at a pace where you can take in a story, a coaster doesn’t. It took me three rides on Guardians before I understood what the story was supposed to be, and apparently I still didn’t get it if the explanation posted earlier is accurate. Guardians fails twice over in that nothing gets followed after the launch and so much time is spent setting up a story prior to that that is basically wasted. It’s a story that doesn’t climax for most people and it ends with you being dumped into blank empty hallways. The 1% of park guests who understand why probably all learned from social media.

So...don't build roller coasters?

Got it.

 

[ToTBellHop]

My hearing is not great, on-ride narration is one of the things I struggle with, like not being able to understand someone talking directly in my ear in a roomful of other people talking. I'm nowhere near deaf though, it's certain frequencies and an inability to distinguish sounds in a noisy environment. Even on the phone when the earpiece is directly pressed against my ear, if there's interference or it sounds a bit muffled and not 100% clear, I can struggle. It's not a volume issue and It's a common condition. A lot of onride narration passes me by, e.g. Splash Mountain, Frozen etc. That's fine, I live with this, but a lot of attractions rely literally on someone reading a story to you in a noisy environment, rather than relying on the attraction itself to tell the story. This is indeed a design issue.

They could always SHOW what's going on instead of telling us.

They do show you what's going on. Perhaps you are experiencing sensory overload? You can easily see the Guardians blast the Cosmic Generator out of the big dude's hands before the launch, travel through time to reverse what he did, and then the Xandarians show up and trap him with their yellow ships at the end.

I just don't think it's that unclear, and they show it visually while also verbally describing what's happening. It's a lot to take in because it's a spinning thrill ride. Obviously, it would be clearer if we just watched a movie but this was planned to be a roller coaster because people love roller coasters. It does a better job of telling its story at peak speeds than most coasters I've been on. Mummy is very good during the dark ride portion and then turns into painted flats of Imhotep.

Perhaps we'd prefer no story like WDI masterpieces like Space Mountain and Big Thunder?

 

[DreamfinderGuy]

So...don't build roller coasters?

Got it.

Yes, don’t build coasters that try to tell intricate stories. They don’t work. The best you can possibly strive for in a coaster that tells a story is something like Hagrid’s, and that only works because the sections with a story to tell have your car slow down or even fully stop so you can take it in.

WDI has built great coasters with stories before, but they all are either mindful of their pacing or have a paper thin story. Guardians is a great coaster, just an awful narrative attraction. If you’re going to build a launch coaster that tells a story it needs to be a paper thin one.

 

[mysto]

Yes, don’t build coasters that try to tell intricate stories. They don’t work.

A group that struggles to build any ride with a narrative will struggle to build a coaster that does.

There's nothing stopping creative people from building a coaster that breaks new ground in this way, except maybe the soul crushing dominance of the "money people" over the "creator people". It's hard to dream in a world like that.

In spite of it all others have done a good job (above) of listing a few bright spots.

 

[JackCH]

It’s absolutely on the Imagineers. A dark ride goes at a pace where you can take in a story, a coaster doesn’t. It took me three rides on Guardians before I understood what the story was supposed to be, and apparently I still didn’t get it if the explanation posted earlier is accurate. Guardians fails twice over in that nothing gets followed after the launch and so much time is spent setting up a story prior to that that is basically wasted. It’s a story that doesn’t climax for most people and it ends with you being dumped into blank empty hallways. The 1% of park guests who understand why probably all learned from social media.

There is a story behind Big Thunder that is cool to know, but 99% of people just enjoy the ride.

I think a “story coaster” doesn’t need to communicate the story to the same level as a dark ride to do what it needs to do. I got the gist on my first ride, but nowhere near the detail as the poster earlier. I don’t see that as a failing though. A story coaster has a basic story but not one you need to master and I don’t really see how that lessens the experience.

It is doing something different from a dark ride, and I think that is fine.

 

[Epcot82Guy]

I think there is also the factor of believability. For me, most of the successful coaster (and ride for that matter) stories make some level of sense in the time allotted. Taking a spin through space, riding a haunted train through the mountainside, getting cross-town LA in a VERY fast limo, riding Andy's coaster creation, going on an exploration into the mountain and something goes wrong. I'm not saying they are totally logical, but they are anchored in some level of "reality" of what and where they are.

Guardians tries to do too many things in WAY too short a ride time. Marvel fight scenes are epic. CR's is not. You can kind of forgive that for book report rides. But, when there is too much story in too little a time, it feels confusing or half-done. I think CR suffers from both. (vs. something like TRON where the story works - it just needs a little more time/track.)

I actually think this is an issue for many of the newer attractions. It feels a little Sam Eagle... "It's a glorious 3-hour tribute to a very popular IP..." "You've got a minute and a half."

 

[lazyboy97o]

There is a story behind Big Thunder that is cool to know, but 99% of people just enjoy the ride.

I think a “story coaster” doesn’t need to communicate the story to the same level as a dark ride to do what it needs to do. I got the gist on my first ride, but nowhere near the detail as the poster earlier. I don’t see that as a failing though. A story coaster has a basic story but not one you need to master and I don’t really see how that lessens the experience.

It is doing something different from a dark ride, and I think that is fine.

It’s a failure because of the goals they set for themselves and promoted. They didn’t aim for basic concept that has a largely irrelevant backstory. They claimed it was something new and different, that was pushing the medium forward. It’s not just a “themed” coaster it’s a “storytelling coaster” and even big nerds scratch their head at what was happening.

 

[ToTBellHop]

It’s a failure because of the goals they set for themselves and promoted. They didn’t aim for basic concept that has a largely irrelevant backstory. They claimed it was something new and different, that was pushing the medium forward. It’s not just a “themed” coaster it’s a “storytelling coaster” and even big nerds scratch their head at what was happening.

You lost me at "[Guardians is] a failure..."

That is simply laughable. It's one of the most popular rides at WDW right now.

 

[Vinnie Mac]

This is an admission that the narrative fails

It's really not. The narrative doesn't fail it's just that realistically that is not your main focus while riding.

Tower of Terror is wonderfully themed with a great story but I'm not actively thinking about that story while freefalling at 30+ MPH

Hagrids Moterbike Adventure is wonderfully themed with a great story but i'm not actively thinking about the story while going through the most thrilling parts

Rock N Rollercoaster has a unique and fun storyline to follow but nobody is ACTIVELY thinking about that while riding because you are being thrilled, your sense of direction is being all messed up and you're having fun.

It is no different with Cosmic Rewind

 

[JackCH]

It’s a failure because of the goals they set for themselves and promoted. They didn’t aim for basic concept that has a largely irrelevant backstory. They claimed it was something new and different, that was pushing the medium forward. It’s not just a “themed” coaster it’s a “storytelling coaster” and even big nerds scratch their head at what was happening.

I think it is new and different and I followed the story about as well as Hagrids, the closest attraction comparison I can think of.

It is wildly popular and I and my family walked off of it truly wowed. I personally think many people on here (not necessarily you) came into it predisposed to dislike it because of the feeling it doesn’t belong at Epcot.

 

[TeddyinMO]

When it comes to thrilling roller coasters, I think the key is does the coaster keep the feel of the story through the ride. It’s nearly impossible to follow the actual story when you’re being flung through loops and curves at 30-60 mph. If the story is set up in the pre and post shows and the “feeling” of that story exists throughout, then the ride has done its job.

Guardians, Hagrid’s, Velocicoaster, Big Thunder and RnR all do this well, and that’s what sets them apart from your standard Six Flags coaster. Those standard rides can still be fun and thrilling, but Disney and Universal have found a way to separate themselves in this category.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Anyone have any idea when this work will start/RnRC close?

It is my youngest's favorite ride and wondering if it will still be open when we are there and of July

 

[Disgruntled Walt]

You lost me at "[Guardians is] a failure..."

That is simply laughable. It's one of the most popular rides at WDW right now.

I'm very excited to finally be able to ride this in the summer so I can weigh in on this.

 

[Gremlin Gus]

Anyone have any idea when this work will start/RnRC close?

It is my youngest's favorite ride and wondering if it will still be open when we are there and of July

They said (iirc) that it would close somewhere in 2025, but seeing as we haven't gotten a closure date yet, I think you might be fine for the time being.

 

[Brer Panther]

So, which Muppets are we expecting to actually appear in this retheme? Judging from the poster, it seems we'll at least be getting Kermit, Piggy, and the Electric Mayhem... any chances of, say, Fozzie or Gonzo showing up?

 

[ᗩLᘿᑕ ✨ ᗩζᗩᗰ]

I'm very excited to finally be able to ride this in the summer so I can weigh in on this.

Interested to hear your take. I think it's a fun coaster but still a terribly-executed attraction. It balances itself out for me. Neither a failure or the pinnacle of Imagineering. And when factoring in the price tag, Woof. It should have been so much better.

 

[peter11435]

Interested to hear your take. I think it's a fun coaster but still a terribly-executed attraction. It balances itself out for me. Neither a failure or the pinnacle of Imagineering. And when factoring in the price tag, Woof. It should have been so much better.

Calling guardians a “terribly-executed attraction” is honestly laughable. It’s statements like this that often discredit the opinions of the online fan community.

 

[Jrb1979]

Calling guardians a “terribly-executed attraction” is honestly laughable. It’s statements like this that often discredit the opinions of the online fan community.

Guardians is one of WDWs best coasters but story wise Hagrids, Everest and the Mummy execute it much better