New Star Tours II Queue?

[Disneyfanman]

I myself hope the info is wrong because I am a huge fan of the original Star Tours and want a queue that is just as good or better with REAL sets and robots and everything. Not sure how many of you have been to Disneyland but over there Space Mountains new queue (redone in 2005) is now mostly just empty white hallways with a few video monitors here and there and in the reopened submarine voyage there are long passages of darkness where there used to be show scenes and even old show scenes were retrofitted with screens rather than figures. Both projects were done when Fitzgerald was head honcho of Imagineering and i'm very concerned Star Tours's queue is going to end up like the tv section at the local best buy rather than an immersive set.

True, but this was 6 years ago before the recent re-emphasis on Queues. Also, SM's Queue at DL was never wildly elaborate due to the fact that it kind of climbs on the roof of another building. I always felt like that attraction was shoehorned into DL like none other. But anyhoo........hopefully we see a well themed queue with ST2. We'll know soon enough.

Hoping for the best....preparing for the worse.

 

[WDWJedi]

ST was WAY overdue for a revamp...but there IS such a think as TOO much of a change....removing iconic characters such as C3PO and R2-D2 is over the top...and I for one would HATE IT...

 

[Vernonpush]

unfortunalty I have some bad news. My friend who has seen the plans for the new queue has said that most of the well themed sets with animatronics will be replaced with simplistic rooms with lots of video screens. This makes sense given tom fitzgeralds track record (he is heading up this project and has made it clear he prefers video based attractions over live sets). The new droids shown earlier this year (Ace and Aly San San) will only appear on the video monitors for example.

I agree. Video screens are poor replacements for rich sets. Here in NYC, Bloomingdale's did video screens in their window for Xmas display. Although it was done well it was definitely second rate compared to the animatronic displays in other store windows.

Since the rumors are that the "ride" will be in "3-D", what would your reaction be if the "video screens" in the queue were also 3-D? I'm just arm- chair designing here. But, if when you first enter the queue and are given 3-D glasses and told to put them on so that when you walk through the queue you will experience it in 3-D (actual sets and 3-D screens, wouldn't that be amazing?:shrug:

 

[cynic710]

Since the rumors are that the "ride" will be in "3-D", what would your reaction be if the "video screens" in the queue were also 3-D? I'm just arm- chair designing here. But, if when you first enter the queue and are given 3-D glasses and told to put them on so that when you walk through the queue you will experience it in 3-D (actual sets and 3-D screens, wouldn't that be amazing?:shrug:

ehh, i mean the wow factor would be there, but i just dont think a video screen will ever truely capture disney magic. imho

 

[cynic710]

an example to my last post....DisneyQuest is cool, and fun, but in no way to me has any disney magic behind it.

 

[NYwdwfan]

Since the rumors are that the "ride" will be in "3-D", what would your reaction be if the "video screens" in the queue were also 3-D? I'm just arm- chair designing here. But, if when you first enter the queue and are given 3-D glasses and told to put them on so that when you walk through the queue you will experience it in 3-D (actual sets and 3-D screens, wouldn't that be amazing?:shrug:

It would be cool - but I'd imagine too many spastic people (and by that I am including myself) would trip over themselves and other people and put an end to walking with the 3D glasses on pretty quickly!

 

[Vernonpush]

ehh, i mean the wow factor would be there, but i just dont think a video screen will ever truely capture disney magic. imho

So, you don't like PhilharMagic? Or The Muppet's 4D? Or Tough To Be a Bug?
Lots of people love those attractions. I think that it could be amazing for a queue to have 3-D technology even before the actual ride.

But I'm just guessing here.

It could just be a bunch of video monitors lined up in a hallway.:shrug:

 

[baymenxpac]

So, you don't like PhilharMagic? Or The Muppet's 4D? Or Tough To Be a Bug?
Lots of people love those attractions. I think that it could be amazing for a queue to have 3-D technology even before the actual ride.

But I'm just guessing here.

It could just be a bunch of video monitors lined up in a hallway.:shrug:

just spitballing here, but screens and 3d technology...wouldn't it be cool if they could find a way to work in the star wars hologram messanger thing into the queue? you know, like leia's "help me obi wan kenobi" message, but obviously tailored to something done with the ride.

 

[iheartdisney91]

to me its fine if the change it, i just hope the dont change it TOO much, i love the ride que with C3PEO.

....i'll be happy the preshow "movie" will be gone.....will it? the one where the woman
with the "Starwars-y" hair tells you what to do.

 

[kingdaniel97]

Considering that C3P0 is your new pilot, he's definitely not going to be in the queue... Aside from that, I doubt they'd make the queue all screens considering that, in spite of apparent "trends" in queue design, Winnie the Pooh is pretty amazing, as well as Space Mountain. Just saying that with all the talk of next gen queues coming to Magic Kingdom, I doubt they'd ignore such a good test run.

 

[Texas84]

If they get rid of the attention chime and kuchana-kuchana, we riot.

 

[Captain Neo]

If they get rid of the attention chime and kuchana-kuchana, we riot.

not sure about kuchana-kuchana but I think the attention chime is confirmed to return (its in the commercial that they showed)

 

[retroeric]

If there was ever an attraction that absolutely SHOULD have animatronics and that those animatronics wouldn't be complicated to make, it would be Star Tours. I mean come on, they're robots to begin with, you do not need to create 178 different movements. They don't even have to be smooth movements or look human. They're ROBOTS.

If they indeed replace all animatronics and instead used video screens for this queue, it will be a long time before I go back there. To me, this would be a microcosm of the frugality, laziness, and overall lack of inspiration and creativity that has ruined many Disney attractions over the last 10 years or so.

I have a 3D LED in my bedroom. That thing is more advanced than a Disney video screen. This is Disney World, not a Best Buy Magnolia room. Give us something we can't see anywhere else.

 

[Ignohippo]

To me, this would be a microcosm of the frugality, laziness, and overall lack of inspiration and creativity that has ruined many Disney attractions over the last 10 years or so.

I have a 3D LED in my bedroom. That thing is more advanced than a Disney video screen. This is Disney World, not a Best Buy Magnolia room. Give us something we can't see anywhere else.

Very, very well said.

The Pooh queue is a perfect example of them getting it right. Let's hope that's the trend rather than just screens in the queue. I'm going to reserve judgement until we see what they're really doing. I find it inconceivable that they'd remove the amimatronics. I'm expecting the video screens to be more of an addition rather than a replacement.

 

[David Roberts]

If true then wow. The queue was almost like a ride itself. My family used to litterally stand and watch those corny comercials and R2 & C3PO interact before we went on the ride, even when there wasn't a line, every single trip. We'd love spending time in the StarTours queue because it was so wonderful.

I'm sooo hoping this isn't true, but I wouldn't be suprised for a second if it was...Is there any chance that maybe they'll be using the video technology used in "The Forbidden Journey's" queue? At least that'd be better than setting up a bunch of video moniters everywhere...still, it's a poor substitute for the current queue, and I wish they'd leave everything the way it was and just change out the current videos.

I also hope they don't remove C3PO's chair!!! hahaha

This past August I took a friend on Star Tours who was visiting Walt Disney World for the very first time but was a big Star Wars fan like myself and, not knowing to expect he went in the attraction and when we got out we asked him how he liked it? And he told us that he thought the queue was the attraction because he was so impressed. Just food for thought. I love the queue in its current state.

 

[Skipper03]

Great comments, but still didn't get an answer on the original question... to be more direct, will they be getting rid of the trees and giant robot outside?

 

[rct247]

I was hoping they would change the outside, but with around 3.5 months to rip out the current outdoor look and replace it with anything good, I highly doubt they will be. The outside of the attraction isn't even walled off and there has been no sign of it being touched since the attraction closed. (except for a few sign changes)

 

[hauntdmansion79]

First let me get this off my chest.....who the hell hired Tom Fitzgerald? Someone should handcuff him to Disney Quest, where he belongs. I wonder what people like Marty Sklar, Tony Baxter, and Joe Rohde think of someone like him.

Star Tours has one of the best queues in Walt Disney World and if they got rid of all those amazing detailed sets I would be so ED! Personally I really don't think they will.

I remember riding the ride the first year it opened and feeling like I was actually walking through the world of Star Wars. If they want to update the video screens in the queue, fine, but if they demolish the 3D sets, that would be a shame. But then again they did it with Horizons and World of Motion, so they are used to demolishing amazing works of art.

I'm also curious to see what they do with the outside of the ride.

 

[juniorthomas]

unfortunalty I have some bad news. My friend who has seen the plans for the new queue has said that most of the well themed sets with animatronics will be replaced with simplistic rooms with lots of video screens. This makes sense given tom fitzgeralds track record (he is heading up this project and has made it clear he prefers video based attractions over live sets). The new droids shown earlier this year (Ace and Aly San San) will only appear on the video monitors for example.

I'm calling shenanigans. Screens may be involved, but its unlikely they'd promote the refurb as much as they have if they were just going to cover everything with screens.

 

[Captain Neo]

Very, very well said.

The Pooh queue is a perfect example of them getting it right. Let's hope that's the trend rather than just screens in the queue. I'm going to reserve judgement until we see what they're really doing. I find it inconceivable that they'd remove the amimatronics. I'm expecting the video screens to be more of an addition rather than a replacement.

I haven't been following the news. Whats so good about the new pooh queue? All they added was some playground stuff for the kids right?