Let's see:
- Low cost to operate (while it seems like it may be expensive to run, the staffing needed is hardly different from any other real attraction AND you have virtually no maintenance to factor in)
- Low cost to construct (unless you take the Jay Rasulo approach to Meet-n-Gropes)
- They don't take up much space
- The are extremely popular (for whatever reasons)
- A resort desperate for more "attractions" to fill up more activities for guests to do
- A resort desperate for more "attractions" to gobble up FP+ reservations to steer people away from the "popular" attractions
Add all of that up and you end up with the current mess.
What's odd is that this the same resort that takes pride in going to Animal Kingdom to see critters in their natural habitat and that being a superior experience than going to your local zoo to see an animal in a cage continues to pull more and more of the Disney characters off the streets and putting them in a closet, just so they can have more stuff to get people line up for. This is one thing that really stands out as a difference between DLR and WDW. You still see characters wandering around all day long in Anaheim, just like you use to in Orlando. It's quite common to find the Fab Five wandering the parks without even a handler and a lot of the time, no photographer.
You mention capacity being poor for a M'n'G. It's not like the current MouseTrap in Orlando is designed to get you through the parks faster. It's designed to slow you down. Issuing you a FastPass for 8:00PM means you will still be in the park later and not someplace else. TDO doesn't care if waits for the M'n'G is slow so long as the people in line for them are there and not in line for other attractions.
Yes, they're undeniably cheaper and easier to add, with a built-in popularity, but that savings seems to dry up pretty quickly when you start to think about the day-to-day operating costs. Consider the staffing for a location like Princess Fairy Tale Hall, with 2 rooms on each side:
- 2 character performers per room (with 2 alternates, due to the 1:1 work/break schedule they have)
- 2 photographers per room
- 2 greeters/crowd control per side
Each side requires at least 8 cast members to operate, but is only able to process 360 guests per hour, or 1 cast member for every 45 guests
Compare that to a simple spinner attraction, which is known for being very low capacity but can process around 600 guests per hour while only using 1 or 2 CMs (plus an overnight mechanic, shared with other rides), or 1 CM for every 300+ guests
Now consider something a little more unique like the PeopleMover or Carousel of Progress, both of which operate with 2-3 cast members and are capable of processing over 3,000 guests per hour (and seem to get no maintenance attention), or 1 CM for every 1,500+ guests
In a resort where they're cutting any excess staffing possible and even reducing the park operating hours in an attempt to save money, why is there such continued emphasis on these experiences with inherently high overhead costs? The break-even point can't be that far down the road for a ride compared to a M&G, but they're so focused on short-term spending that they can't see the forest for the trees. How many real attraction additions have been skipped over because of the high operating cost for M&Gs, relative to the number of guests who are able to experience them each day?
And yes, waiting in line is a part of the theme park experience and is to be expected. But Disney knows that every moment you're waiting in line is time that you're not spending money; why else would they have implemented MM+ to get people out of lines and into shops and restaurants? And how many more bodies can they get into their parks each day to fill those shops and restaurants if the attractions are capable of processing meaningful numbers of guests?
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