Pumbas Nakasak
Heading for the great escape.
What a pile of excreta
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Harry Potter....and it looks amazing
- Thread starter OldKeyWest
- Start date
In two to three years Uni will be once again be looking at why is the park attendance down. But uni has so much space to build on, no wait sorry that land now has condo's on it. The issue will be HP will get old boring and will be over with in two years. HP is not like Star Wars that has an adult and kid fan base. Sorry but uni will never rival Disney and has nothing to offer like WDW i.E. resorts, resteraunts, golf tennis, Hotels for every budget, shopping and so on. Go ahead keep adding those coasters to uni so you can take what is good about the parks and turn them into a high class Six Flags.
Pumbas Nakasak
Heading for the great escape.
Disney has indeed lots to offer, if your 10 or a menopausal woman.
SleepingMonk
Well-Known Member
Wow, people really are just a bit delusional.
It's ok to love something while being honest about it's faults. Yes Disney has a lifetime of influence on some of us, and that creates a very strong sense of nostalgia. But there comes a time when you have to be honest and admit the glory days have slipped away.
Disney has banked on that historic connection for too long and now they've bled the account dry. It's obvious to anyone who has been on a regular basis that WDW is doing just the bare minimum needed to scrape by. Don't bother with being creative or really pushing the envelope, just add more tv screens, a layer of paint and change the color of the lightbulbs. That's the best you can hope for from anything new at Disney these days.
I love Disney, always have and always will. But sometimes ya gotta call 'em like ya see 'em.
It's ok to love something while being honest about it's faults. Yes Disney has a lifetime of influence on some of us, and that creates a very strong sense of nostalgia. But there comes a time when you have to be honest and admit the glory days have slipped away.
Disney has banked on that historic connection for too long and now they've bled the account dry. It's obvious to anyone who has been on a regular basis that WDW is doing just the bare minimum needed to scrape by. Don't bother with being creative or really pushing the envelope, just add more tv screens, a layer of paint and change the color of the lightbulbs. That's the best you can hope for from anything new at Disney these days.
I love Disney, always have and always will. But sometimes ya gotta call 'em like ya see 'em.
71jason
Well-Known Member
Sorry to interrupt a good, ol' fashioned Internet flamewar, but...
Following Twitter worked, made it in for the first Potter soft open this morning, if only for 45 minutes Didn’t ride FJ—was waiting on a friend who never made it in—but got the feel of the land, visited every shop but Olivanders (line around the building all morning). Thoughts:
Overall theming is incredible. Window displays, owl clock, even “pram” (not “stroller”) parking. I already felt Seuss Landing and Lost Continent put even Disney to shame—this place almost makes those two lands look like Dino-Rama.
Amazing selection of merchandise. All kinds of shirts, toys, etc.; Zonkos is almost the equivalent of a 365 Halloween shop, definitely need to return in October. That said, the stores are even more claustrophobic than I anticipated. I think the EPCOT shops in UK have more space to maneuver. Aisles are are tight—think Spencers Gifts in any mall. Zonkos is the worst for this, Honeydukes not much better. Not going to be fun with real crowds.
Uni nailed it with Hippogriff. The line, the cars themselves, Buckbeak…everything just works. Still only a C-ticket ride, but a perfect C-ticket ride.<O
></O>
Hogs Head is basically in the same location as the old “tree bar,” similar set-up. Hogs Head Beer is quite good—almost like a Bass Ale but with a noticeable undercurrent of sweetness. Not as big a fan of Butter Beer. Tasted to me like an Italian soda of butterscotch syrup and soda water, not the overall richness/complexity of, say, a Coke. Everyone seems to think the frozen version is better, will try that next time.<O
BTW, the restaurant may be authentic, but right outside a stand sells churros (!), pretzels and bottled Bud products Would be real easy to slip bottles of Coke and Sprite there as well.
Meet-and-greet opportunities with the French and Bulgarian wizards (from book 4), the train conductor, and the frog choir (each member of the choir represents a different Hogwarts house).
I know it’s common here and on other boards to rag on TMs as opposed to Disney CMs. But every TM I met this morning was friendly, courteous and clearly excited to finally be open. Their excitement was contagious. Just needed to throw that in there.
Following Twitter worked, made it in for the first Potter soft open this morning, if only for 45 minutes Didn’t ride FJ—was waiting on a friend who never made it in—but got the feel of the land, visited every shop but Olivanders (line around the building all morning). Thoughts:
Overall theming is incredible. Window displays, owl clock, even “pram” (not “stroller”) parking. I already felt Seuss Landing and Lost Continent put even Disney to shame—this place almost makes those two lands look like Dino-Rama.
Amazing selection of merchandise. All kinds of shirts, toys, etc.; Zonkos is almost the equivalent of a 365 Halloween shop, definitely need to return in October. That said, the stores are even more claustrophobic than I anticipated. I think the EPCOT shops in UK have more space to maneuver. Aisles are are tight—think Spencers Gifts in any mall. Zonkos is the worst for this, Honeydukes not much better. Not going to be fun with real crowds.
Uni nailed it with Hippogriff. The line, the cars themselves, Buckbeak…everything just works. Still only a C-ticket ride, but a perfect C-ticket ride.<O
></O>Hogs Head is basically in the same location as the old “tree bar,” similar set-up. Hogs Head Beer is quite good—almost like a Bass Ale but with a noticeable undercurrent of sweetness. Not as big a fan of Butter Beer. Tasted to me like an Italian soda of butterscotch syrup and soda water, not the overall richness/complexity of, say, a Coke. Everyone seems to think the frozen version is better, will try that next time.<O
BTW, the restaurant may be authentic, but right outside a stand sells churros (!), pretzels and bottled Bud products Would be real easy to slip bottles of Coke and Sprite there as well.
Meet-and-greet opportunities with the French and Bulgarian wizards (from book 4), the train conductor, and the frog choir (each member of the choir represents a different Hogwarts house).
I know it’s common here and on other boards to rag on TMs as opposed to Disney CMs. But every TM I met this morning was friendly, courteous and clearly excited to finally be open. Their excitement was contagious. Just needed to throw that in there.
MKCP 1985
Well-Known Member
My hope for HP is that the new ride will work reliably and the Universal leadership will keep up the effort to make this area seem legitimate. I am skeptical over the long term because Universal likes to needle Disney in its Simpsons and Shrek attractions for example, about doing just that very thing. Disney magic is all about getting the feeling of really being in another place. Universal hasn't always bought into that effort.
Anyway, no reason to be negative right now. Let's go sample the offerings with an open mind and see how it all turned out. Personally, I'm shooting for December or January. That should give things enough time to sort out the bugs in the system. Hopefully, that won't mean missing intended effects that don't continue to work after they've been open long enough to fall into disrepair ( i.e. Everest effects. )
Anyway, no reason to be negative right now. Let's go sample the offerings with an open mind and see how it all turned out. Personally, I'm shooting for December or January. That should give things enough time to sort out the bugs in the system. Hopefully, that won't mean missing intended effects that don't continue to work after they've been open long enough to fall into disrepair ( i.e. Everest effects.
)
nibblesandbits
Well-Known Member
I'm sorry, but this thought sickens me. (Well, there are multiple things in here that sickens me).
First is the fact of how much more we could have gotten in the FL expansion that would have been great additions AND wouldn't have felt SO princessy.
Second, and most important is Disney's theory on what the MK is now. This disheartens me the most. The MK is not a "kiddy" park. The MK is for everyone...and everyone includes adults. I don't know why they are thinking this is true. What "genius" in the company thought, let's take this park and turn it into a place of "Disney Branded Fun?" (Which to me, btw, screams characters...something that I understand going into the MK, but seriously, if you look at some of the most popular attractions at the park...they have not 1 character involved in them.)
It's things like that that only help to enhance the idea and stigma (especially to those who aren't Disney fans to begin with) that WDW is for kids...and you wonder why we all keep getting crap from people who ask us all..."You're going to Disney again? Isn't that a kiddy place?" For a long time, I could easily say no...but if this philosophy continues, saying no, I believe, may get harder and harder as time continues.
I'm just sickened by this thought process....it makes me sad.
Horizons1
Well-Known Member
I'm going to be frank here, that's a load of crap. Disneyland is smaller, yes, but that doesn't mean things are going to look better. Things look better because they actually spend more money than WDW. If WDW put the same amount of money into an attraction that DL does, well it would look fantastic.
dxwwf3
Well-Known Member
Very true. I can remember a time when the MK was my favorite park, now it's squarely at the bottom. Originality seems to be dead in theme parks, but its absence hurts the MK the most, IMO. I'm not asking for New Tomorrowland 94 to be done again, but throwing adults a bone occasionally wouldn't hurt. At least we got an updated Hall of Presidents and didn't get a meet and greet replacement.
High School is gonna be HARD! I was bullied by seniors the whole year! Luckily, I safely survived the 9th grade! I sure wish I could go back to middle school with all of the parties and stuff. You know what we have on days that you would have parties on in high school? FINAL EXAMS!
imagineer boy
Well-Known Member
Agreed 550%!!!! :sohappy:
headhoncho34
Member
Anyone who says that the Wizarding World wont affect WDW is just a fanboi defending a company that hasnt done anything romotely impressive within a decade. The fantasyland expansion's budget clocked in at around 3 billion dollars which now has been reduced to 400 million. Very dissapointing and shows that TDO should no longer be in control of the parks or WDW will never get any new attractions until 2075. Ive been going to the parks for decades and it infuriates me when they become stagnant. The new Harry Potter land will crush WDW and when it does hopefully managment will recieve a wake up call and start pumping in new attractions to raise the bar and enter competition with Universal.
Spike-in-Berlin
Well-Known Member
If I read what those management boneheads think, I have the feeling as if Walt has died a second time. After his death the company at least followed his ideas for nearly another generation. But the present board of directors seems to be the same mindless bureaucrats that run nearly every major company in the western world today.
Walt would have fired this scum on the spot.
Walt would have fired this scum on the spot.
Pumbas Nakasak
Heading for the great escape.
No it wont, you cant compete with pixy dust and 50+ years of indoctrination. The criticisms of Universal from folk who have never been say it all. But they will still be happy to buy into the dream of the World that was not as is now purely because of a corporate logo and blind brand loyalty.
Sad given that most of these are supposedly grown ups.
There was absolutely no way that 3 billion would be spent on Fantasyland, that is just insane. If you really believe that, you are the one that has lost the plot.
As a reminder, the $400million budget for FL is roughly double that which Universal spent on Potter. Not saying that means antyhing, but Disney are clearly spending money, and spending more money than Universal.
In the last decade, Disney have created some bleeding edge attractions. Mission Space, Soarin' and Toy Story Mania are absolute first of their kind. Expedition Everest was a $100million+ attraction, which can hardly be called un-impressive (yes I know the Yeti is currently out of action).
It's irrelevent to how good Potter is, but you are massively mistaken if you think that Harry Potter will crush WDW, or do anything to their attendance. The only actual hope it will make any difference is if it's good enough, it might awaken some egos at Disney, and encourage some more big Disney rides.
headhoncho34
Member
I agree, people who criticize Universal fail to see that they are surpassing WDW in every way possible. They buy into this company run by a corporation who could careless about the parks and sees no reason into adding new and innovative attractions.
:brick:
You really want that Worst Poster Award badly, don't you? It's unfortunate that we don't actually have one.
Will spending lead to results? That is the question. What WWoHP cost (which no one is actually sure of) is irrelevant. We can see the payoff.
And you will see the payoff of a huge expansion to the MK. Regardless of whether everyone likes the idea of Fantasyland, the results will be there.
Two things:
1.) Potter came in significantly over budget. There was a reason it blew its opening target by six months. I doubt anyone will ever admit to how much this project cost, but Universal Orlando's SEC filings can provide fodder for some educated guesses. They leveraged themselves to their eyeballs in debt to get this thing operational. The only reason this expansion realized its full potential is because Warner Bros/JK Rowling etc held Universal's feet to the fire and forced them to deliver. Had they been left to their own devices this would have been another Mummy.
[EDIT: I don't know why I didn't include this originally but I do remember WWOHP's budget being quoted by the media at $300 million initially. Where it went from there, I have no clue, other than it went UP. Disney is spending a similar amount on FL. Bear in mind that Uni chose to spend the lion's share of the money on the Hogwarts experience itself, followed by Hogsmede, then the other attraction redos. Disney chose to spread the money around so that means there may be more stuff to do, but the cornerstone of the expansion is Little Mermaid and it is going to be very underwhelming compared to a real E-ticket experience. Dumb move.]
2.) Getting guests to leave Disney for at least one day of their five day trip represents a significant loss of revenue for Disney. Yes, the guests may be staying on property, but Disney's theme park earnings have been annihilated by years of discounting (bookings during this time tracked from flat to now down 10%). What would have been an "acceptable" loss two years ago is going to sting quite a bit in the new economy. Plus Disney has not one but two money losing overseas resorts (probably three when Shanghai opens). Every dollar counts and WDW really is the cash machine that keeps the lights on everywhere else.
Wizarding World is a game changer because its going to be the biggest intellectual property in the theme park business. It also helps that Forbidden Journey is without a shadow of a doubt the best theme park ride in the world (and yes, I've been on it. 3x to be exact). Disney is already trending down in a year when Universal is guaranteed to rack up a 20% attendance increase at bare minimum. From a bragging rights standpoint this is great for UO, business wise for Disney I doubt it it will mean much.
Harry Potter isn't going to slay the mouse, but the collateral damage it causes will probably be enough to cause some headaches in Orlando. Think more relentless pressure on costs, more declining quality, more of the same crap.
And with much respect to the Fantasyland expansion, they're walking into a buzzsaw if they think its going to compete with Harry Potter. Living character initiatives and personalized experiences are great but they don't hold a candle to the latest, greatest, most technologically advanced, best ride ever blah blah blah. Plus by the time this area opens Universal will likely be unveiling their next major project.
BTW, I do want to make one thing clear. I don't really feel like Universal is that much better of a product than Disney overall (Wizarding World notwithstanding). In fact, BOTH resorts are very poorly operated. That being said Universal did open this thing in a year when their competitors sat on their ______ and did nothing. It's actually the complete opposite of 2005/2006, when Disney debuted new rides left and right and all Universal brought to the table was a lame Fear Factor show.
Lastly, I don't expect Disney or anyone else to build anything that tops Forbidden Journey for a while. Disney flat out doesn't build attractions like FJ anymore, and Universal wouldn't have had a snowball's chance in hell of recovering their investment if they went with any other IP than Potter.
headhoncho34
Member
To comment futher, what attraction do you think WDW will respond with when FJ becomes a massive headache to the company?