DarrenLevesley
Member
Has the Vortex been restored to its formal glory?
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Just back from 4 days at Universal
- Thread starter captainkidd
- Start date
CoasterKing
Member
It was working perfectly on our last visit in May!
Bravo 229
Member
It was working last week!
DarrenLevesley
Member
Excellent last time I was there in 2009 it wasnt working at all. Took a lot of the aww factor out of it for me.
Crockett
Banned
^This
The original was much better than the current version. Poseidon was originally the villain, voiced by Jeremy Irons. The attraction's name seemed more appropriate back then. Instead of Taylor, your tour guide was an old bearded man named the Keeper (because he's the keeper of tales), who would tell you the story of an ancient battle between Zeus and Poseidon, then lead you through the attraction until the finale, where he would reveal himself to be Zeus and battle Poseidon once again. The finale used pure CGI characters instead of hokey live-action footage. It included a cool transformation effect where the Keeper actor would turn into the Zeus seen on-screen. The room-changing effect was also much more impactful, since you'd start out in the large finale room and suddenly end up back in the previous room.
No one knows for sure why they chose to ruin the attraction. :shrug:
Yeah, but then you couldn't watch Bill Paxton swagger across the screen talking like Puddy from Seinfeld, trying to scare the bejeezus out of everyone about "the finger of God".
But yeah, I agree. People still love and watch Ghostbusters. Who the hell cares about Twister?
dave&di
Well-Known Member
I 'experienced' Poseidons in 2008, it was ok but I was expecting more, one thing that was distracting me was the need to sit, so it's interesting to see others felt that too, after walking around a park for hours I find I notice the tiredness and aches more once I'm standing still! I didn't bother in 2010 but will probably make the gesture next year!
I love Bubba Gumps, I only been twice but both times I enjoyed the food and atmosphere.
I agree some pre shows are too long and boring, and understand the reason behind them, BUT in relation to 'Twister' I would rather wait in a longer queue! But saying that the actual event is not worth queuing for anyway!
WDW are my favourite parks, then IOA is next on my list, US I can take or leave BUT I would rather be there than in my everyday life here in England! I enjoy them all!
I love Bubba Gumps, I only been twice but both times I enjoyed the food and atmosphere.
I agree some pre shows are too long and boring, and understand the reason behind them, BUT in relation to 'Twister' I would rather wait in a longer queue! But saying that the actual event is not worth queuing for anyway!
WDW are my favourite parks, then IOA is next on my list, US I can take or leave BUT I would rather be there than in my everyday life here in England! I enjoy them all!
I liked the atmosphere in terms of the look of the restaurant. It was just a bit too frantic for me. Food wasn't awful. I just had a shrimp appetizer. I've had better shrimp.
You're 100% right about the standing for Posiedon. I have a bad back, and the worst thing I can do is stand still for any length of time. I couldn't wait to get out of there.
jlandis44
Member
Interesting comments on all these topics. Been to Universal twice, and had similar observations...
- Gump is a neat place, but I found the food to be pretty heavy, considering it's seafood based. I felt greasy afterwards.
- Twister is a '"do it once to say you did it" type experience. Frankly, everything Bill Paxton does sounds so monotonically, overdramatic that I find him humorous. Can't take him seriously.
- We stayed at Royal Pacific both times. Liked the hotel overall, but the service at the Islands Dining Room was horrible. Waited forever to even have a host greet us (and the place was empty) and it took 2 hours to eat. Too long with two kids.
- Love MiB. Favorite shooter ride anywhere!
- Poseidon is another "do it once" experience. It is way too long for the amount of time you're standing.
In the end, I found that Universal was a fun time, but a "been there, done that" experience. WDW always makes me feel like I want to come back.
- Gump is a neat place, but I found the food to be pretty heavy, considering it's seafood based. I felt greasy afterwards.
- Twister is a '"do it once to say you did it" type experience. Frankly, everything Bill Paxton does sounds so monotonically, overdramatic that I find him humorous. Can't take him seriously.
- We stayed at Royal Pacific both times. Liked the hotel overall, but the service at the Islands Dining Room was horrible. Waited forever to even have a host greet us (and the place was empty) and it took 2 hours to eat. Too long with two kids.
- Love MiB. Favorite shooter ride anywhere!
- Poseidon is another "do it once" experience. It is way too long for the amount of time you're standing.
In the end, I found that Universal was a fun time, but a "been there, done that" experience. WDW always makes me feel like I want to come back.
Well, as it turns out, we're staying at the Royal Pacific again next August. We were gonna do Hard Rock, but we're getting 2 rooms, and it would be about $900 to stay there. For that, I'll stay at the Royal Pacific.
Walt Disney1955
Well-Known Member
That's what has bothered me in the past about Universal. They should find a better way to build around things. They seem to have enough space from what I saw. Why get rid of Ghostbusters when even to this day it is more popular than Twister ever was? Why not keep the Ghostbusters show (which I loved) and add Twister somewhere else? If they can add a huge steel rollercoaster then why not more shows?
Same with Kongfrontation. I love the Mummy and it is better than Kong, but that doesn't take away from the fact that Kong was still a great ride. Going through New York in a cable car with a giant ape chasing you, I loved it.
Then the Simpsons replacing Back to the Future. That bugged me a bit. Sure, add something from the Simpsons in there but the Back to the Future ride was more intense and a bit darker. I went on it in 1993 and while I was only 13 years old and had yet to experience much more thrilling rides, I always claimed that this was the best ride I had ever been on for a few years. Just some poor personnel decisions at times
Rowdy
Member
So, all of our arguments the past few months are completely void because you're basically agreeing with me now. This was all I was saying the whole time.
I was never in total disagreement with you. On a resort scale, Universal can't compete with Disney. The problem is, Universal seems to be doing more with the parks.
But I have to be honest. I saw many ride breakdowns at Universal and was not impressed with the hotel this time around.
The thing is, I EXPECT perfection from Disney because I've experienced it there before. My expectations for Universal are much lower.
thelookingglass
Well-Known Member
What are you talking about?? Universal Orlando has very little space left, and they utilize what space they DO have extremely well, which, sad to say, Disney has not exactly done well with their 47 square miles or however many still remain.
Walt Disney1955
Well-Known Member
Disneyland seems to cram a ton of rides into a confined space better so it can be done. And what I was saying is that they could add a rollercoaster that dominates at least 3-4 other dark rides but not find room for Kong AND Ghostbusters?