New Harry Potter Coaster Confirmed for 2019 (Dragon's Challenge Closing Sept 4th)

[JT3000]

Ok, good. The drop track building has been disguised, somewhat. Not as good as rockwork, but better than nothing.

The ride track area looks more like a well sculpted garden than a forbidden forest. Maybe it will look better with time for the vegetation to grow out.

Evidently only the back half is meant to look like the Forbidden Forest. The rest is the well-manicured grounds of... a set of dilapidated ruins.

It may not be entirely fair to judge this ride until the vegetation grows in, but unless something changes, I suspect we'll be seeing some things we shouldn't be seeing on opening day. The drop track building's mural has me concerned, because they haven't even bothered to finish it. There's a section of the building "hidden" by some trees where the mural abruptly ends and it becomes the same dark green seen on the other structures throughout the ride, which makes me think they aren't even putting trees in front of the mural itself. It's certainly not convincing enough for them to do that. I also wish they'd put brick work on the corner visible from the train station. It's gone from being an out-of-place building to an out-of-place building with a painting on it.

 

[raven]

Patience.

 

[Rich T]

Yep! I'm concerned Uni is only using a "it goes 50mph" story to indicate it's going to be intense. Space Mountain only reaches 28mph but I think it's a more intense experience than many faster roller coasters. I understand this coaster needs to be family friendly, but I was hoping for something more like a Mummy/Dragon Challenge hybrid and less California Screamin (fun, but kinda mellow in large coaster terms).

I have a feeling the new Jurassic coaster is the ride I'm waiting for, and I need to change my "coaster" expectations for this family launch ride.

Most of what I'm about to say is due to my age (I no longer enjoy super-intense coasters), but I think Universal and Disney are wise to stick to family-friendly attractions. I believe we're nearing the end of the intense-is-better coaster boom. With an aging population more and more prone to lawsuits, I think that people a couple of decades from now will look back in wonder at an era where parks would construct rides that caused many guests to "grey out" from intense G forces. I think fast-but-friendly is the future, and probably a better long-term direction for most parks.

 

[Timothy_Q]

Most of what I'm about to say is due to my age (I no longer enjoy super-intense coasters), but I think Universal and Disney are wise to stick to family-friendly attractions. I believe we're nearing the end of the intense-is-better coaster boom. With an aging population more and more prone to lawsuits, I think that people a couple of decades from now will look back in wonder at an era where parks would construct rides that caused many guests to "grey out" from intense G forces. I think fast-but-friendly is the future, and probably a better long-term direction for most parks.

Disney definitely seems to have moved on from inversions and overly-intense rides

Rock n Roller Coaster, Screamin', DLP's Space Mountain, Raging Spirits and Mission Space all happened roughly around the same time.

 

[sedati]

 

[Tom Morrow]

Amazing Photos Reveal New Details for Hagrid's Motorbike Coaster

Our best look yet at some of the details, creatures and more for Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure, opening June 13

orlandoparkstop.com

I didn't realize before that there is a virtual 3D model of the site that you can move around in 3D. The tree mural looks... okay. I can't deny that a proper full-scale themed structure would be better, though - perhaps a combination stone wall + rocky cliffside? Maybe even a waterfall effect for added realism?

My bigger concern is now the giant wall backdrop / sound barrier that existed with Dragon Challenge. It seems as though it is heavily visible throughout most of the ride and area. Are there plans to paint a mural on it as well? The wall could really even be replaced with a shorter one since this ride is not nearly as tall as Dragon Challenge was.

Before I get complaints that I'm being nitpicky, I'll remind you that Universal is promising the "most immersive coaster experience ever" and all along this was propped up as an industry shaker, but it is looking as though this is not the result.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

Never mind, @sedati beat me to it.

 

[JT3000]

That must be one quick switch track. It never stops.

 

[BubbaQuest]

That must be one quick switch track. It never stops.

Definitely surprised how seamless it is. It does look like the train slows a bit before turning into the switch. I'm assuming that's safety checkpoint #1 to make sure the curve is in place and the track is clear. You can see the track switch around the 40 second mark as the train is accelerating towards the tower. That means the second safety isn't until you are already falling backwards from the tower.

Even seeing how it works, it's so seamless I'll probably still be trying to look behind me to make sure we're not going to crash into something!

 

[raven]

My bigger concern is now the giant wall backdrop / sound barrier that existed with Dragon Challenge. It seems as though it is heavily visible throughout most of the ride and area. Are there plans to paint a mural on it as well? The wall could really even be replaced with a shorter one since this ride is not nearly as tall as Dragon Challenge was.

Was informed that paint testing has already begun on that.

 

[Rob562]

That must be one quick switch track. It never stops.

I will be the first to admit that I was totally wrong in my assessment on the switch and that it would require the train to come to a stop before or after the spike. They found a way to move it and get the brakes retracted in one sequence. Bravo.

-Rob

 

[WDWFREAK53]

Looks really good...but why is there snow covering all of the rooftops but no snow on the trees?

 

[lazyboy97o]

Looks really good...but why is there snow covering all of the rooftops but no snow on the trees?

I believe the snow is something particular to Hogsmead that does not extend to the Hogwarts grounds.

 

[ToTBellHop]

I believe the snow is something particular to Hogsmead that does not extend to the Hogwarts grounds.

Yes. Hogsmeade is supposed to be far enough from Hogwarts (and high enough) to be above the snow line. This makes the tunnels between the castle and Hogsmeade a bit confusing but...MAGIC!

 

[magicallactose]

Evidently only the back half is meant to look like the Forbidden Forest. The rest is the well-manicured grounds of... a set of dilapidated ruins.

It may not be entirely fair to judge this ride until the vegetation grows in, but unless something changes, I suspect we'll be seeing some things we shouldn't be seeing on opening day. The drop track building's mural has me concerned, because they haven't even bothered to finish it. There's a section of the building "hidden" by some trees where the mural abruptly ends and it becomes the same dark green seen on the other structures throughout the ride, which makes me think they aren't even putting trees in front of the mural itself. It's certainly not convincing enough for them to do that. I also wish they'd put brick work on the corner visible from the train station. It's gone from being an out-of-place building to an out-of-place building with a painting on it.

Since some of those helicopter shots reveal that the ruins are being re-purposed by Hagrid as stables, it makes more sense that the area immediately around the ruins should seem a bit more manicured. But yeah, I bet it will look very different in a year once everything has grown in.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

They should also be staining the concrete walkways to look less like sidewalks.

 

[BrianLo]

I didn't realize before that there is a virtual 3D model of the site that you can move around in 3D. The tree mural looks... okay. I can't deny that a proper full-scale themed structure would be better, though - perhaps a combination stone wall + rocky cliffside? Maybe even a waterfall effect for added realism?

My bigger concern is now the giant wall backdrop / sound barrier that existed with Dragon Challenge. It seems as though it is heavily visible throughout most of the ride and area. Are there plans to paint a mural on it as well? The wall could really even be replaced with a shorter one since this ride is not nearly as tall as Dragon Challenge was.

Before I get complaints that I'm being nitpicky, I'll remind you that Universal is promising the "most immersive coaster experience ever" and all along this was propped up as an industry shaker, but it is looking as though this is not the result.

I expect a bigger boy version of Big Grizzly/Big Thunder Paris, but with a few overt short cuts that we are now seeing.

This will certainly be the most immersive Universal coaster ever. Plus I definitely expect it to firmly belong in the list of most immersive coasters. But it's typical marketing hub bub that will cause you to expect a little too much if you take it at face value.

 

[Tom Morrow]

I expect a bigger boy version of Big Grizzly/Big Thunder Paris, but with a few overt short cuts that we are now seeing.

This will certainly be the most immersive Universal coaster ever. Plus I definitely expect it to firmly belong in the list of most immersive coasters. But it's typical marketing hub bub that will cause you to expect a little too much if you take it at face value.

This appears to be about the same thrill level as Big Grizzly, but not on the same level of detail... at least for the outdoor portions. I'm sure the interior scenes are elaborate and the queue is probably fantastic. Hoping it lives up to the original Dueling Dragons queue's legacy.

However, the exterior... I feel that it looks like something someone would design in Roller Coaster Tycoon. Wind the track around the allotted space. Line the track with identical trees, in a perfect line, perfectly spaced, as if on a grid. Key props somewhat arbitrarily placed along the track. Big, boxy structures for show scenes. I'm glad they've attempted to disguise the drop track building, but its hard to argue that physical theming would not have improved the look significantly. Picture a combination of "natural" rockwork/a cliffside and some sort of manmade stone wall (so it looks less monolithic). Maybe even with a waterfall feature for added realism.

Picture instead of straight lines of identical trees, they alternated the types of trees and spaced them to give a more natural, layered look. They could have created several massive fake tree structures that allow the train to swoop over and dive under their tangled, giant, fake limbs and roots, adding to the sense of speed and danger. The fake trees could also provide a tree canopy over sections of the track without the safety hazard real trees would create.

I'm glad to hear they will be addressing the walkways - they take up an unfortunate amount of space where additional theming and vegetation could have gone.

Who knows, though, maybe I'll eat my words and everything will look awesome when I finally ride. I hope so. I just have that creeping suspicion that Universal once again didn't swing for the fences on a key attraction where they absolutely should have.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

This appears to be about the same thrill level as Big Grizzly, but not on the same level of detail... at least for the outdoor portions. I'm sure the interior scenes are elaborate and the queue is probably fantastic. Hoping it lives up to the original Dueling Dragons queue's legacy.

However, the exterior... I feel that it looks like something someone would design in Roller Coaster Tycoon. Wind the track around the allotted space. Line the track with identical trees, in a perfect line, perfectly spaced, as if on a grid. Big, boxy structures for show scenes. I'm glad they've attempted to disguise the drop track building, but its hard to argue that physical theming would not have improved the look significantly. Picture a combination of rockwork/a cliffside and some sort of stone wall. Maybe even with a waterfall feature.

Picture instead of straight lines of identical trees, they alternated the types of trees and spaced them to give a more natural, layered look. Create several massive fake tree structures that allow the train to swoop over and dive under their tangled, giant, fake limbs and roots. The fake trees could also provide a tree canopy over sections of the track without the safety hazard real trees would create.

I'm glad to hear they will be addressing the walkways - they take up an unfortunate amount of space where additional theming and vegetation could have gone.

Who knows, though, maybe I'll eat my words and everything will look awesome when I finally ride. I hope so. I just have that creeping suspicion that Universal once again didn't swing for the fences on a key attraction where they absolutely should have.

My biggest concern about immersion breaks is right as you enter into the straight stretch where Fluffy is there is a green building on the right. It appears, on the end with the door, there will be no way to plant trees blocking if from view. If that's the case, that building should have been themed, at least on that end.

 

[JT3000]

My biggest concern about immersion breaks is right as you enter into the straight stretch where Fluffy is there is a green building on the right. It appears, on the end with the door, there will be no way to plant trees blocking if from view. If that's the case, that building should have been themed, at least on that end.

Why is it even there?