News New Haunted Mansion Grounds Expansion, Retail Shop Coming to Disneyland Resort in 2024

[britain]

Visiting the parks yesterday, what I think is the issue is not the era of the characters, but the approach of the theme park land. There's zero excitement in the Rise queue until you get to the Rey transmission. Other than that, it feels very bland. Not only is the cave design really bad, feeling like box rooms with faux rock as opposed to other natural queues that Disney has created. The closed off passages don't feel like real passages, the rooms are lifeless and have nothing but the occasional radio heard. This is the same pretty much for Smuggler's Run.

Disney was so focused on creating grounded and "realistic" adventures for the land that they forgot the storytelling. They forgot these stories are made for 12 year olds and should entertain them. Once we are on the ship for Rise, its fantastic, but getting there I am so bored. It should feel like the Resistance is scurrying and trying to move out, about to make a big play. There should be energy in the land using the stages throughout that cause effects to happen. Its like they learned every wrong lesson from WWoHP and missed all the clear examples.

If they swapped out Luke for Rey, Solo for Finn, and Vader for Kylo; it wouldn't affect the ride for me at all. The ride is fine, its the queue and land which are boring as sin and that's because Disney forgot that we are kids in an adventure serial. Lifeless map rooms and dust covered flight suits in cages doesn't get me pumped, regardless of what era they are part of.

It does seem like the outside queue pales in comparison to the Indy queue in terms of pacing, restrictions, expansions, etc. Hard to fault them though when they had a very ambitious second act to the queue in mind.

 

[Too Many Hats]

Did you see the updated “a ghost will follow you home” scene from Magic Kingdom today? I assume possibly a hint of what’s to come.

Oh boy. Do you have a link?

 

[Disney Analyst]

Oh boy. Do you have a link?

General Magic Kingdom News and Updates

I also wonder how many little girls there are out there who can identify him like they claim one did in the video. Not that everything should be catered to little kids. I just say that since they bring the story up in the video. My children are 9 and 7 and one of them did exactly what the...

forums.wdwmagic.com

 

[chadwpalm]

General Magic Kingdom News and Updates

I also wonder how many little girls there are out there who can identify him like they claim one did in the video. Not that everything should be catered to little kids. I just say that since they bring the story up in the video. My children are 9 and 7 and one of them did exactly what the...

forums.wdwmagic.com

I don't know how things will pan out for DL's HM in January, but digital effects (projections, screens on mirrors, or however they do it) will never be as good or as realistic as practical effects (2-way mirrors, pepper's ghost).

Sadly, all they care about is less mechanical things like turntables and animatronics to take care of than making a good effect. It's all about the Benjamins.

 

[mickEblu]

I don't know how things will pan out for DL's HM in January, but digital effects (projections, screens on mirrors, or however they do it) will never be as good or as realistic as practical effects (2-way mirrors, pepper's ghost).

Sadly, all they care about is less mechanical things like turntables and animatronics to take care of than making a good effect. It's all about the Benjamins.

I’m just getting to mentally start preparing for the worst.

 

[Professortango1]

It does seem like the outside queue pales in comparison to the Indy queue in terms of pacing, restrictions, expansions, etc. Hard to fault them though when they had a very ambitious second act to the queue in mind.

The second act is fantastic. But man, those caves are not up to what Disney creates. I've heard many folks react every time we turn and find ourselves in yet another boxy and barren cave room. Indy takes a similar idea and creates spaces that each feel unique and play upon the idea of mystery and exploration. There seems to be a feature in one of the cave rooms that looks like water was intended to drip down, but not sure if that was cut before opening. As I sat in there for 40 minutes yesterday, I was realizing that none of this portion of the queue was preparing me for the energy the ride would emulate. Outside to caverns is an escalation, but too many similar rooms that don't make sense naturally gives us a sense of endless waiting and lack of progress.

 

[D.Silentu]

There seems to be a feature in one of the cave rooms that looks like water was intended to drip down, but not sure if that was cut before opening.

Can't recall where I read this, but supposedly a more varied and interesting queue was intended before funds were syphoned away to the ride as it went over budget. Seems to be a theme at Galaxy's Edge unfortunately.

 

[mickEblu]

Bring on the CGI Hitchhiking ghosts!

 

[ᗩLᘿᑕ ✨ ᗩζᗩᗰ]

 

[zipadee999]

Did you see the updated “a ghost will follow you home” scene from Magic Kingdom today? I assume possibly a hint of what’s to come.

It seems to be a B mode that was only seen briefly when they first redid the scene. I believe it was used when they were still tinkering with the interactive effect and is used whenever there’s an issue with the regular effect. To be honest I like it slightly better actually as it matches the original effect a bit more though nowhere near as effective

 

[Too Many Hats]

General Magic Kingdom News and Updates

I also wonder how many little girls there are out there who can identify him like they claim one did in the video. Not that everything should be catered to little kids. I just say that since they bring the story up in the video. My children are 9 and 7 and one of them did exactly what the...

forums.wdwmagic.com

Thank you.

Hopefully it is indeed just MK’s B-mode. Otherwise… how depressing.

 

[Charlie The Chatbox Ghost]

Is it really more efficient to replace the animatronics with screens? I feel like practical effects are always more… well, practical.

 

[jmuboy]

I am really hoping there is more detail to come here!

 

[zipadee999]

Is it really more efficient to replace the animatronics with screens? I feel like practical effects are always more… well, practical.

Especially when the hitchhikers in the mirror seem to be simple animated figures. All they do remain attached to the stick and move their neck back and forth. In theory they should be simpler to maintain than some of the jungle cruise figures unless it’s the turntable itself that’s giving Disney trouble

 

[Castle Cake Apologist]

Honestly, Cracker Barrel has more thematic decor in one dusty forgotten corner than this entire building seems to have.

 

[chadwpalm]

I am really hoping there is more detail to come here!

There is. They will be serving a bottomless supply of cornbread.

 

[mickEblu]

There is. They will be serving a bottomless supply of cornbread.

I still haven’t been to CrackerBarrel. The closest one to me is in Camarillo. A pleasant 45 minute drive north usually with no traffic. Worth the drive?

 

[PiratesMansion]

I still haven’t been to CrackerBarrel. The closest one to me is in Camarillo. A pleasant 45 minute drive north usually with no traffic. Worth the drive?

This is wild to my Midwestern brain, haha. They're everywhere here and in the South.

I personally wouldn't drive that far for a Cracker Barrel, but then again, I haven't been to one in ages. From what I remember, it's not that different from any of the other chain breakfast restaurants, other than the countrified aesthetic and shop that you enter and exit through.

 

[mickEblu]

This is wild to my Midwestern brain, haha. They're everywhere here and in the South.

I personally wouldn't drive that far for a Cracker Barrel, but then again, I haven't been to one in ages. From what I remember, it's not that different from any of the other chain breakfast restaurants, other than the countrified aesthetic and shop that you enter and exit through.

Lol.

Our chain breakfast restaurants are pretty bad out here though. We’re talking IHOP and Dennys. I’d have to imagine Cracker Barrel is better than both of those?

 

[chadwpalm]

I still haven’t been to CrackerBarrel. The closest one to me is in Camarillo. A pleasant 45 minute drive north usually with no traffic. Worth the drive?

I've never been to one either. Closest to me is just north of Sacramento. I actually just did a quick google search saw something about the bottomless cornbread lol.