Disney Quest Going....going....gone!

T

Thelazer

Well-Known Member
Yes it's still around... and yes even today there has been more talk about it.

Ticket sales will be suspened at the end of either June, July or Jan31st. That's all I overheard.
 
ImaYoyo

ImaYoyo

Active Member
Thelazer said:
Yes it's still around... and yes even today there has been more talk about it.

Ticket sales will be suspened at the end of either June, July or Jan31st. That's all I overheard.
Click to expand...
That's also what was said last year. And the year before. And in 04. And in 03. And while we're at it, 02, 01, 2000, 1999, 1998 and 1997. The fact of the matter is this rumor will never die. DQ is not going anywhere in the immediate future.
 
M

md0u80a2

Member
Hi

I visited DQ 3 times in the last 2 years and love it.

You can tell they are not pushing it anymore and it is not good.

As a free extra with a multi pass or for $30, it is worth it just for the free arcade machines alone! I have dropped more in an hour in an arcade over the years. There are enough fun attractions, it is loud, but fun.

There are some amazing attractions - come on, pirates is fun, jungle cruise fun, buzz fun, etc!!

Now is it up to standards of other disney things - well not theme park attractions, but beats pants off innoventions.

All they need to do is remarket, do some early evening pajama party days for kids, or offer free entry for first 100 guests before 11am, you know - bums on seats - then sell food, drink, souvenirs, etc.

What is the problem - seeing it go would hurst downtown in my opinion. These ESPN zones are everywhere and always the same. And I always found that having DQ then a film on offer was a fun end to an evening.

thoughts?

Moz
 
Mansion Butler

Mansion Butler

Active Member
md0u80a2 said:
Hi


What is the problem - seeing it go would hurst downtown in my opinion. These ESPN zones are everywhere and always the same. And I always found that having DQ then a film on offer was a fun end to an evening.

thoughts?

Moz
Click to expand...

Eight cities on the face of the planet is everywhere?
 
speck76

speck76

Well-Known Member
BRER STITCH said:
This was emailed to me by a friend....no idea where it came from.
If it's old news, feel free to remove! Thanks!

What was once supposed to have been the flagship of an entire chain of 30 indoor theme parks, one that would have eventually encircled the globe, DisneyQuest will be closing in 18 months. Then this 5-story tall, 100,000 square foot structure -- which towers over the West Side section of Downtown Disney -- will be gutted & turned into a brand-new ESPN Zone.
According to one WDW insider who was privvy to this decision:

"I'll be sorry to see DisneyQuest go. But this is really the right choice for Downtown Disney. A ESPN Zone will freshen up the mix on the West Side. This new sports dining and entertainment venue will have strong appeal to both WDW guests as well as Orlando locals. And given that we'll regularly be doing broadcasts from an on-site studio, this ESPN Zone will also help up Downtown Disney's profile. So it's really a win-win for Walt Disney World."

As you might imagine, the cast members who currently work at WDW's DisneyQuest and/or the ESPN Club over at Disney's Boardwalk Inn resort (Which will be closing once WDW's new ESPN Zone opens) have a very different take on the company's decision to shutter its indoor theme park. Said one DisneyQuest staffer:

"This just stinks. Sure, attendance has been flat at DisneyQuest for the past few years. But that's because we haven't had a new attraction since "Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for Buccaneer Gold" replaces "Hercules in the Underworld" back in 2000. Plus Disney doesn't really promote us anymore to people staying on property. So how is DisneyQuest supposed to attract WDW guests with no shows and zero promotion?

If the company had just gotten behind us, I'm sure that we could have been a success ..."

Ah, but that was the real problem, folks. Disney Company executives felt that they'd already poured enough money into the development & creation of DisneyQuest. Initial work on the indoor theme park project began back in 1994, with proof-of-concept field tests of various proposed DQ rides & attractions (Remember the "Imagineering Lab" at Epcot's Future World? Where two lucky guests from each tour group got the chance to try out the prototype version of "Aladdin's Flying Carpet Ride"?).

After four years of R & D, the Walt Disney Company was finally ready to go forward with the DQ project. Which (in theory) would have brought the Disney theme park experience into urban enviroments. Which would have then allowed the Disney corporation to tap into a potentially huge new customer base.

The only problem was the initial cash outlay for constructing a DisneyQuest was huge. Enormous. $80 - $100 million each. And then ... Well, it was going to take Mickey years (and dozens of other DQs having to be built in untapped markets all around the world) before Disney Regional Entertainment (I.E. The division of the Mouse House that actually ran herd on the DisneyQuests) finally began making any serious money off of this project.

Which is why -- almost from the get-go -- the Walt Disney Company began cutting corners on the DisneyQuests. Whereas the WDW version was 100,000 square feet, the Chicago version of DisneyQuest (Which opened in June of 2000) was only 90,000 square feet. And the DQ that was in the works for Philadelphia (Before that project was abruptly cancelled in 2000)? That DisneyQuest was only supposed to be 80,000 square feet.

Given that the WDW version of DisneyQuest (Which had been built to handle 1400 guests an hour) rarely if ever met its attendance projections, the corporation quickly lost all enthusiasm for this project. Cutting back on its original plan to swap out 15-20% of the rides, shows & attractions every two years as well as abandoning its plan to build the other 28 DQs in the chain. The Chicago operation closed in September of 2001, after only 27 months of operation.

And the WDW version of DisneyQuest? ... Well, that's pretty much limped along ever since. The staff & management team there knew that the end was eventually coming. They just didn't know when Mickey would eventually pull the plug.

But clearly there were signs. When the DisneyQuest Emporium got rid of virtually all of its merchandise featuring the DQ logo and began selling generic Disney trinkets ... Well, that was one indication that Mouse House managers were finally getting ready to make their move.

Then earlier this year, when Walt Disney Company officials announced their plans to begin "freshening up" Pleasure Island by shutting down various stores & restaurants there that were under-performing ... DisneyQuest workers, realizing that this West Side facility hadn't ever met any of its attendance or financial projections in years, knew that DQ would soon be on the chopping block.

So just a "heads up" here, folks. If you're a big "CyberSpace Mountain" fan, make sure that you drop by WDW's DisneyQuest in the coming months and get in a couple of rides. For -- come January of 2008 (Reportedly right after the Christmas crowds go home) -- DisneyQuest will close its doors forever. And then -- after several months of extensive construction -- this distinct structure will eventually re-emerge as Downtown Disney's new EZPN Zone.

Disney PR types are hoping that this new sports dining and entertainment experience will be ready to open by October 1, 2008 (Just in time for Disney World's annual press event). But those who are familiar with all the work that will need to be done in order to change the old DisneyQuest building into a state-of-the-art ESPN Zone say that the proposed construction schedule is overly optimistic. And that -- more than likely -- it won't be 'til the late winter or early spring of 2009 'til this revamped West Side facility is actually ready to serve its first customer.

But what do you folks think? Are you sad to learn that Downtown Disney will soon be losing the world's only remaining DisneyQuest? Or are you excited to hear the West Side will soon have its very own ESPN Zone?
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http://forums.wdwmagic.com/showpost.php?p=1360337&postcount=8
 
benji

benji

Member
I'm the biggest Disney fan and I love 99.9% of the attractions Disney puts out. I visited Disney Quest when it first opened way back when and I didin't like it. I never went back. It was a big waste of money. Why ride cyber Space Mountain when you can ride the real thing. Why ride cyber Pirates of the Caribbean when you can ride the real thing? I'll rather see the real deal at the Magic Kingdom. Sorry Disney but I think Disney Quest is a big mess. :brick:
 
sknydave

sknydave

Active Member
I went in the other day because I had just gotten out of a movie and was walking around.. I only played a few of the pinball machines and old 80's games (half of which didn't even work.) A lot of the games are in horrible condition.
 
Joepic

Joepic

New Member
md0u80a2 said:
These ESPN zones are everywhere and always the same. And I always found that having DQ then a film on offer was a fun end to an evening.

thoughts?

Moz
Click to expand...

I agree with you somewhat... Disney maybe needs to try a little more advertising for DQ. I barely see any. Promotions would definitely draw guests in. DQ is a lot of fun and besides, with all the money to be spent remodeling and constructing an ESPN Zone would be more than enough money to remodel DQ-add some more attractions, advertise more ect.
 
psifreek27

psifreek27

New Member
Truthfully, I would not mind Disney Quest closing at all.

i can go to dave and buster/gameworks if i want to play video games. plus west side is much more adult than the crowd disneyquest brings (if one can even say crowd/bring with DQ in the same sentence:rolleyes:)

But yea i have been to disney world more than 30 times and i can honestly say i have never stepped foot inside, because i am just not interested. I honestly dont know anyone who has ever been there. And chances are i will enjoy going to espn zone with the fellas.
 
N

naumoney

New Member
This is stupid and just worthlessly untrue. Go down to DTD any day that it's not raining. They are repainting the building, and they are repainting in that same blue/green, not black and red. DisneyQuest is not closing anytime in the next few years, this paintjob alone is a huge investment.
 
T

ThumperDude

New Member
I had to opportunity to go just once and I throughly enjoyed it. Designing then riding my own rollercoaster was great. The other '21st century' games were fun and unique to me as well: to fire cannons off the bow of my ship at the enemy, paddling my raft through the river rapids, swinging my sword at a ninja warrior while wearing my 3-D helmet, all a blast. And the dessert bar was a nice break from those games.
But to be honest, I didn't want to go at first. I didn't know exactly what it was. Then, as I was in the elevator, and the screen appeared, I knew I was in for a treat. (should have known, it's Disney)
I always thought Disney built DQ as 'testing grounds' for new rides or attractions. But whatever the reason, they should keep it. It's uniquely Disney. It's a fun, different type of experience they offer. I mean, if they're going to close something, close the movie theater, you can do that at home.
 
Scar Junior

Scar Junior

Active Member
All I know is DTD could use a bowling alley... and if they ever do change DQ to an ESPN Zone, I hope they include that one the blue prints.
 
Fun2BFree

Fun2BFree

Active Member
If DQ is going, I'd like to see some of the virtual rides make their way to the parks.
For example, gut the arcade machines in Tomorrowland Light and Power, and install Virtual Space Mountain there. When you exit SM, you can see the queue and some videos to entice you to ride it.
 
Scar Junior

Scar Junior

Active Member
Fun2BFree said:
If DQ is going, I'd like to see some of the virtual rides make their way to the parks.
For example, gut the arcade machines in Tomorrowland Light and Power, and install Virtual Space Mountain there. When you exit SM, you can see the queue and some videos to entice you to ride it.
Click to expand...

that's a great idea. i totally agree.
 
MJMcBride

MJMcBride

Member
Fun2BFree said:
If DQ is going, I'd like to see some of the virtual rides make their way to the parks.
For example, gut the arcade machines in Tomorrowland Light and Power, and install Virtual Space Mountain there. When you exit SM, you can see the queue and some videos to entice you to ride it.
Click to expand...

I always wondered why they haven't tried a few of the virtual rides in the parks as well. Or even on the Cruise boats
 

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