Project Gemini Revealed

[SirNim]

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!

NO

NO

NO!!!!!!!

In absolutely NO WAY am I intrigued by this rumor.

A rollercoaster through a jungle? Sounds very compatible with the dedication...:
To all who come to this place of joy, hope and friendship, welcome.
Epcot Center is inspired by Walt Disney's creative genius. Here, human achievements are celebrated through imagination, the wonders of enterprise, and concepts of a future that promises new and exciting benefits for all.
May Epcot Center entertain, inform and inspire. And, above all, may it instill a new sense of belief and pride in man's ability to shape a world that offers hope to people everywhere.

Epcot would be totally demolished, practically, in order to add some cheap rides like "Jr. Autopia" (which, I must say, really teaches the little kiddies about transportation, and inspires them about it... Yeah, inspires them to drive really fast on the highway!) COP will be closed?! :fork: How dare they!... They should bring COP over to Epcot, not bring COP parts (AAs and such) ... Epcot...is where COP belongs... they should not get rid of it... And it will continue to show the possibilities of the future and our Ascent from the past... Progress... Argh! :fork:

But...
A fast-forward through history via Time Racers?

That leaves us very little Time to learn about the Past, and the Future. Because we are speeding through it haphazardly...

I see that this rumor (I am not trusting this, or believeing it, all that much, anyway) is trying to make Epcot appeal more to the younger guests... And I applaud that. Making this entertainment appealing while adding in partial education... But, honestly, a hedge maze? We have that at the UK!
I also see that this rumor does try to accentuate education with entertainment...
But now, according to it, the entertainment will outweigh the education, bar-none! We all know Epcot attendance is not what it used to be, and Disney is trying to attract more people with these thrill rides, like TT and MS, and I am all for not a Rehab, but a Refurbish of the Living Seas, and something new there, and a Soarin' at the Land, and perhaps a makeover at the WOL, but this plan / rumor is far too extravagant...
I think that if this ever happened, it would be done tastefully, and with a nod and use of modern technology, and a general Purpose, but what I am saying is that the ratio of this high-tech thrill entertainment to Education, and general Knowledge, Inspiration, Creativity, and Wisdom, or application to life, will be totally out of whack- and will turn Epcot ultimately into just another thrill park that kids want to go to... I like Epcot how it is, I liked Epcot more how it Was, but I don't think I will like Epcot how it will be... I am jumping to conclusions, I know, but in the pit of my stomach I hope this rumor is and only is just that... a Rumor that will be passed up for a more innovative, more Purposeful concept that holds true to Epcot's dedication plaque...

 

[Sorcerer1]

I don't know guys. I think this may be a good thing. I love Epcot as much as anyone, but the park needs some serious changes. I don't like the jr. autopia and rollercoaster idea, just for the main fact that the track would clutter the beauty of this idea. I am not sure about the trees, but i think i could get use to it. The soarin ride sounds great, anf timeracers may be nice, if done well. If Disney never changed any of the rides, they would loose a huge fan base. Who wants to pay $50 a day to see the same stuff. I know that you and I would, but the average joe woud not. Just my 2 pennies.

PS they better leave that fountain alone!

 

[Michael72688]

That would be the coolest thing ever, Epcot could just go to the top of my favorite theme park list if this happens!!!

 

[Nut4Disney]

It makes you wonder, does Disney ever even get the opinions of the paying customer or how they feel about changes to the parks?

 

[MKCustodial]

Originally posted by Michael72688
That would be the coolest thing ever, Epcot could just go to the top of my favorite theme park list if this happens!!!

Well, this just proved my point, we all know Michael LOVES thrill parks...

I see that this rumor (I am not trusting this, or believeing it, all that much, anyway) is trying to make Epcot appeal more to the younger guests... And I applaud that.

Same here, Sir Nim, but every time I think about this I go back to the same thought: today's teens will be tomorrow's grandpas, and what happens if tomorrow's teens don't care for coasters? Epcot will go bye-bye, cause they won't pay to get it back the way it was.

 

[SirNim]

Originally posted by MKCustodial
Same here, Sir Nim, but every time I think about this I go back to the same thought: today's teens will be tomorrow's grandpas, and what happens if tomorrow's teens don't care for coasters? Epcot will go bye-bye, cause they won't pay to get it back the way it was.

Exactly...

This concept would make Epcot totally irreversible...

(just like Michael Jackson's face:lookaroun )

 

[bearboysnc]

To the West, you'll find the "Home of the Future" (which -- provided that what I've been hearing coming out of WDI lately proves to be true -- could become the new home for most of the AA figures that used to be featured in the soon-to-be-closing "Carousel of Progress" show over at WDW's Magic Kingdom),

OMG GrizzlyHall is gunna go balistic!

 

[cindy_k]

No plan lasts past the first engagement...

I don't see all of this coming into being, but I think you will probably see some of it. Like redoing the ride in SE to Time Racers or whatever. Especially if they can get Microsoft to sponser it.

I wouldn't be suprised if Disney is waiting to see what M:S does for attendance to EPCOT. If it boost attendance a bit, I think you will see more of this plan put into motion.

Just my opinion...

Thanks for listening.

Cindy in NY

 

[SirNim]

Re: No plan lasts past the first engagement...

Originally posted by cindy_k
Thanks for listening.

Cindy in NY

We didn't listen...

We saw!
:lol:

No, I agree with you... This concept will Definetely be Altered...
And will be thought of more and more in relation to the attendance that MS gets when it opens...

 

[JRead]

"what happens if tomorrow's teens don't care for coasters?"


If they can turn it from a dark ride park into a thrill ride park there is no reason why 40 years later they couldn't turn it BACK into a dark ride park. Really. Personally, I hope this does happen.


"This concept would make Epcot totally irreversible..."

Like my Raincoat


(sorry couldnt resist being a Mel Brooks fan)

 

[agdbeanie]

Some things sound cool, some things sound blah. It sounds WAY too costly and ambitious to all be true. If they were going to spend this amount of money, I think they'd probably put it into Animal Kingdom. I'm not so sure about this. It just seems like A LOT of changes for them all to be true. I'm not freaking out or getting excited. I'm just gonna chill and see what happens.

 

[AndyMagic]

Originally posted by Nut4Disney
It makes you wonder, does Disney ever even get the opinions of the paying customer or how they feel about changes to the parks?

If you had read the article ... it talked about how the number 1 complaint about Epcot is that it is boring. Disney DOES get the opinions of the paying customers and they aren't attempting Project Gemini just for the hell of it. They are responding to the general public. I stress GENERAL PUBLIC and not fanatical WDWMagic members. Members here are in the minority when it comes to opinions on change. Pretty much everyone here hates thrills and change and loves education and nostalgia. Disney HAS to do something about Epcot's sagging attendance and revamping the already stale attractions won't do anything. They had to completely re-invent the park and I think they did a splendid job with this. Also, PLEASE remember to read the article before complaining about things. It states VERY clearly that the fountain will remain yet people are already complaining about how it isn't going to be there?!? Sigh.

 

[EchoOfOphelia]

Thank you sooo much for posting that! It was really interesting to read! To be honest, I think that most of it looks pretty fantastic.
It will be interesting to look at this "master plan" and see what actually is allowed to be built if anything.

They didn't mention anything about The Land (inside) and it doesn't have any notes on it on the drawings. I wonder if it will be touched?

Well, if this is going to happen, I will be sure to enjoy Epcot Center as it is now until they start to revamp. I would urge everyony to start taking some serious video footage of it because it might not be the same on your next trip! I bought a home video tape from just your average video-camera junkie father that has a bunch of old and closed rides on it, including 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and the original Journey Into Imagination, plus a bunch of others. It is such a treasure to have those, especially because with time I tend to forget the little details.

 

[SirNim]

I think that there are many other ways/concepts/possibilities that Disney could explore to make Epcot more "exciting" and that this one concept is much TOO radical... I doubt this is the only concept Disney has come up with, and it would be shameful if it actually was the best of them all... I just think that there are ways a bit more conservative, banking on the future, to change Epcot. I hope people understand what I mean by that...

 

[JasonCajun]

Add more thrills. Fine. Epcot could use some more thrills. World Showcase could use a few more rides and they do not necessarily have to be thrill rides.

But theme these rides right. Last thing most of us want is for it to be a Six flags with exposed roller coasters everywhere. Or a Dino-Land that looks like a cheap fair. Its not Disney.

Do not forget the educational part of Epcot. You can have fun while learning! Epcot is all about having fun while learning. Its not about cheap thrills. So you find it boring? Go somewhere else. There is Busch Gardens, Island of Adventure, water parks, Six Flags, etc that you can go for thrills. I love thrill rides, but I am open-minded enough to be able to appreciate a park like Epcot too.

It just bothers me that people's attention spans are so short now that we have to cater to the cheap thrill set.

 

[dopey]

It sounds mostly positive. The Time Racers concept sounds cool. I can live without Cranium Command :hammer: and Body Wars :hurl: But it's hard to imagine Disney going on a big spending spree right now. I'll hold off for now on buying everything that says "Future World" on it.

 

[MKCustodial]

Originally posted by JasonCajun
Add more thrills. Fine. Epcot could use some more thrills. World Showcase could use a few more rides and they do not necessarily have to be thrill rides.

But theme these rides right. Last thing most of us want is for it to be a Six flags with exposed roller coasters everywhere. Or a Dino-Land that looks like a cheap fair. Its not Disney.

Do not forget the educational part of Epcot. You can have fun while learning! Epcot is all about having fun while learning. Its not about cheap thrills. So you find it boring? Go somewhere else. There is Busch Gardens, Island of Adventure, water parks, Six Flags, etc that you can go for thrills. I love thrill rides, but I am open-minded enough to be able to appreciate a park like Epcot too.

It just bothers me that people's attention spans are so short now that we have to cater to the cheap thrill set.

Amen. That's all we've been saying: just because you gotta update it, it doesn't mean you gotta resort to cheap thrills,

Wow, here's a WDWMagic member who doesn't seem a fanatic!

 

[DMC-12]

Discovery Land? ick... they could come up with a better name... sounds too much like something in AK.

Rainforest Rollercoaster again... they could put this in AK... it needs it bad.

Adding a bunch of trees and making FW more "green" sounds neat... The shade alone would be a great payoff and well worth it.

Transforming Living Seas into a Little Mermaid theamed thing...I dont like it... I know Living Seas needs major help... but.. sheesh... Lil Mermaid? :brick: Do something with the lil mermaid in the 20k lagoon in MK.

I do agree with the WoL thing though.... I dont know what they could/should do with that space though....

 

[Moustronaut]

Originally posted by big3red
Maybe everyone should read the article before getting upset about the fountain. :animwink:

:brick:
Oops... my bad. Still think I was in shock from the rest of it. It's hard to tell what's what in the new map

 

[DMC-12]

Originally posted by MKCustodial
Amen. That's all we've been saying: just because you gotta update it, it doesn't mean you gotta resort to cheap thrills,

Its the dumbing down of Epcot.... for the sake of cheap thrills...