I want to preface this with the fact that this is just my opinion. If you disagree, please tell me your reasoning. I do not want to believe that Disney will fall short of expectations and I would truly love for someone to change my mind on this matter.
So I have been thinking about how Toy Story Land will perform overall and, while I think the land itself be just fine at the end of the day, I do not expect the grand opening to be successful and the land itself will not be appreciated until 2019 after the opening of Star Wars Galaxy Edge. Hollywood Studios is a park in desperate need of capacity as it only has 4 rides and this has created the need for new attractions to be rushed out of the gate; however, this is dangerous as it could create new rides with subpar quality (see Dinoland U.S.A). It almost seems Disney is about to do the same with Toy Story land and the only real difference is that the IP is more appealing. Here's the issues I'm seeing with the land:
1. It's being advertised as a family land. It's not. Disney is trying to insist that the land is family friendly and while a family will likely enjoy the land as a whole, it is obviously aimed at little kids. It's hard to blame Disney for this issue as Hollywood Studios has always suffered from a lack of things for kids to enjoy but advertising Toy Story Land as a family land can and likely will backfire (see New Fantasyland). In addition, height restrictions will exist on Slinky Dog Dash and Alien Swirling Saucers which has already upset some people and, in my humble opinion, prevents a substantial amount of children who would otherwise enjoy the new land from being able to ride. Therefore, the ride will exclude a fair amount of children who would enjoy the ride and leave teens and adults unsatisfied
2. Both of the new rides are slightly above an off-the-shelf ride. As technology improves, the quality of off-the-shelf rides do as well and I believe that Cars Land, A Bug's Land and now Toy Story Land are proof. All of them include rides that are essentially carbon copies of an off-the-shelf ride with a minor twist. For example, Flick's Flyers is a Dumbo rip off. The only twist is that the carts tilt. In Toy Story Land, Alien Swirling Saucers will fill this role. It is nothing more than a carnival ride with Toy Story theming. As for Slinky Dog Dash, I must emphasize that yes, it is a unique roller coaster and will (probably) have two separate launch sections. However, ask yourself "How much effort was actually put into this roller coaster?" There's no real innovative technology and the ride is going to be almost solely dependent on its extensive theming as well.
3. The new rides will not have good capacity. Now I understand that Disney has not released any numbers for the capacity that these rides will carry (or at least to my knowledge, they have not) but from the looks of both Slinky Dog Dash and Alien Swirling Saucers, neither ride is going to be good at digesting the crowds in the way that Toy Story Midway Mania will be. Disney has announced June 30th as the opening date and I am personally expecting that the new land will not be able to handle the opening day crowds.Problems that will be exaggerated with fastpass plus. While it obviously won't be the crowd control catastrophe that opening day was over at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, people should expect absurdly long lines for (as stated above) rides with little pay off.
4. The flagship attraction of the land is already open and has been for nearly 10 years. This is the biggest worry I have for Toy Story land. Toy Story Midway Mania is undoubtedly one of the greatest attractions ever created; however, it opened in 2008. Now, Disney is counting on the ride to headline a brand new land in Hollywood Studios. Toy Story Midway Mania is capable of doing this; however, Disney is expecting guests to be satisfied that the main attraction of their new land is one that has already been present for 10 years and one that many people have already experienced multiple times.
Once again, this is just my opinion. I am completely open to the idea that I am wrong. What do you guys think?
So I have been thinking about how Toy Story Land will perform overall and, while I think the land itself be just fine at the end of the day, I do not expect the grand opening to be successful and the land itself will not be appreciated until 2019 after the opening of Star Wars Galaxy Edge. Hollywood Studios is a park in desperate need of capacity as it only has 4 rides and this has created the need for new attractions to be rushed out of the gate; however, this is dangerous as it could create new rides with subpar quality (see Dinoland U.S.A). It almost seems Disney is about to do the same with Toy Story land and the only real difference is that the IP is more appealing. Here's the issues I'm seeing with the land:
1. It's being advertised as a family land. It's not. Disney is trying to insist that the land is family friendly and while a family will likely enjoy the land as a whole, it is obviously aimed at little kids. It's hard to blame Disney for this issue as Hollywood Studios has always suffered from a lack of things for kids to enjoy but advertising Toy Story Land as a family land can and likely will backfire (see New Fantasyland). In addition, height restrictions will exist on Slinky Dog Dash and Alien Swirling Saucers which has already upset some people and, in my humble opinion, prevents a substantial amount of children who would otherwise enjoy the new land from being able to ride. Therefore, the ride will exclude a fair amount of children who would enjoy the ride and leave teens and adults unsatisfied
2. Both of the new rides are slightly above an off-the-shelf ride. As technology improves, the quality of off-the-shelf rides do as well and I believe that Cars Land, A Bug's Land and now Toy Story Land are proof. All of them include rides that are essentially carbon copies of an off-the-shelf ride with a minor twist. For example, Flick's Flyers is a Dumbo rip off. The only twist is that the carts tilt. In Toy Story Land, Alien Swirling Saucers will fill this role. It is nothing more than a carnival ride with Toy Story theming. As for Slinky Dog Dash, I must emphasize that yes, it is a unique roller coaster and will (probably) have two separate launch sections. However, ask yourself "How much effort was actually put into this roller coaster?" There's no real innovative technology and the ride is going to be almost solely dependent on its extensive theming as well.
3. The new rides will not have good capacity. Now I understand that Disney has not released any numbers for the capacity that these rides will carry (or at least to my knowledge, they have not) but from the looks of both Slinky Dog Dash and Alien Swirling Saucers, neither ride is going to be good at digesting the crowds in the way that Toy Story Midway Mania will be. Disney has announced June 30th as the opening date and I am personally expecting that the new land will not be able to handle the opening day crowds.
4. The flagship attraction of the land is already open and has been for nearly 10 years. This is the biggest worry I have for Toy Story land. Toy Story Midway Mania is undoubtedly one of the greatest attractions ever created; however, it opened in 2008. Now, Disney is counting on the ride to headline a brand new land in Hollywood Studios. Toy Story Midway Mania is capable of doing this; however, Disney is expecting guests to be satisfied that the main attraction of their new land is one that has already been present for 10 years and one that many people have already experienced multiple times.
Once again, this is just my opinion. I am completely open to the idea that I am wrong. What do you guys think?
