RotR: Disney is still not at Universal's level

[Jedi Stitch]

I think they did just fine.

 

[piru]

I've been only once to Disney and only once to Universal. My kids were 6 and 12. After spending one day in IOA and two days in Universal, the 2nd day after having lunch they asked me if we can return to the hotel and spend some time in the pool. While visiting Epcot, and I'm talking about Epcot not MK or AK...I suggested them to return to the resorts' pool and they said no way and we stayed for Iluminations and EMH. Why am I telling you this story? Disney is kids friendly, it's magic, it's the bubble and Universal is a bunch of rides, all of them alike with simulators and big screens.

 

[piru]

I guess a more specific gripe is that RotR's vehicles (outside of the drop part) don't really interact with the action in the ride. You're just an outside observer, watching what's going on. In Universal rides such as Spider-Man, Kong, Transformers etc the action interacts with the vehicles. The vehicle actually reacts to characters pushing it, stomping onto it, explosions, etc. You really feel the urgency of being part of the action. That is not the case with RotR where you basically go from room to room to watch as an outsider.

True

 

[seggerman]

Disney isn't about thriil rides - there are plenty of Six Flags all over the country for that. I just came back from 4 days at WDW and even though I didn't manage to squeeze in RoR I did do Millennium Falcon. I don't remember the actual ride itself (which says volumes about it) but I vividly remember going through the line with my boyfriend, a maintenance mechanic, who pointed out the functions of various parts of the Galaxy's Edge objects. Disney is all about the total experience - and theming is a huge part of it. Has to be if people wait an hour or more in line for a 4 minute ride.

 

[correcaminos]

I don't find most of Universal's rides thrilling in the way I do amusement parks. 3D rides are all blurry and thus boring due to how my eyes focus. I don't even like FOP for that reason. Will ride RotR next year, but glad it's not a simulator like FOP. Those bore me.

 

["El Gran Magnifico"]

I mean this is completely subjective. Yes. WDW doesn't have the thrill rides to compare with Uni. But Uni doesn't have a Splash Mountain. Or heck, even a WEDWAY. And you sure as h*ll can't get drunk in Germany over at Uni.

I love both Uni and DW (have AP to both). You want to compare the immersion aspect in Potter World vs Galaxy's Edge - I get that. I get comparisons about food quality. But, I still don't "get" the comparison threads when it comes to rides. Or which is a better overall Theme Park. It's a different product. There should be a different expectation.

 

[NickMaio]

I mean this is completely subjective. Yes. WDW doesn't have the thrill rides to compare with Uni. But Uni doesn't have a Splash Mountain. Or heck, even a WEDWAY. And you sure as h*ll can't get drunk in Germany over at Uni.

I love both Uni and DW (have AP to both). You want to compare the immersion aspect in Potter World vs Galaxy's Edge - I get that. I get comparisons about food quality. But, I still don't "get" the comparison threads when it comes to rides. Or which is a better overall Theme Park. It's a different product. There should be a different expectation.

It really is apple's and oranges.
Comparing both parks doesn't really work.
I love that they are both in Orlando.....we get the best of both worlds 45mins apart.

 

[Hank Hill]

It really is apple's and oranges.
Comparing both parks doesn't really work.
I love that they are both in Orlando.....we get the best of both worlds 45mins apart.

While Dis and Uni are the main draws, SeaWorld has 3 really good coasters, and one more on the way. Legoland has some great stuff for little kids that can be enjoyable for adults, and Busch Gardens is a nice fun park too. All within an hour or so of each other. Heck, I have had some great times at Fun Spot! The guests are the antithesis of what you think of as Disney guests, but it's nice to change things up sometimes. You can't compare any of those places against each other, but for someone who enjoys theme/amusement parks, I can find time for all of them and enjoy the experience for what it is.

 

["El Gran Magnifico"]

While Dis and Uni are the main draws, SeaWorld has 3 really good coasters, and one more on the way. Legoland has some great stuff for little kids that can be enjoyable for adults, and Busch Gardens is a nice fun park too. All within an hour or so of each other. Heck, I have had some great times at Fun Spot! The guests are the antithesis of what you think of as Disney guests, but it's nice to change things up sometimes. You can't compare any of those places against each other, but for someone who enjoys theme/amusement parks, I can find time for all of them and enjoy the experience for what it is.

Funny you say that. I'm headed to Legoland tomorrow, EPCOT Sunday, SeaWorld Monday. I agree. All different, all offer something a bit unique.

 

[Disstevefan1]

I absolutely love SeaWorld at Christmas! The "O Wondrous Night" stage show is excellent! The ice skating and Christmas show at Bayside Stadium is Excellent! The best part - No standing!! Excellent seating to enjoy both the stage show and Bayside Stadium.

 

[Incomudro]

I can agree with the OP here. The immersive detailing on RotR looks incredible, but the actual experience appears to be dominated by copious levels of detail and not as much visceral thrill. But to each their own .. obviously.

Having recently ridden Hagrids, Spiderman, HP FJ and Gringotts, RotR has a lot to live up to and I'm really looking forward to checking it out.

Where's the visceral thrill in those Uni rides?
Honestly, I like thrill rides - and so does my family - but the only thrills we found at Uni were on Mummy and the rollercoaster.
Spiderman, Hagrids, Gringotts, all promised thrill but didn't deliver.

 

[Incomudro]

I haven't ridden RotR either, since it just opened. I have however ridden the Spiderman ride, the Transformers ride, the Simpsons ride, the Fallon ride & the Despicable Me ride. Except for the ride vehicles these are all the same ride. They have the same story line and all end with
a big fall and you are some how caught. All heavily using screens, go to a scene, something attacks or blows up, go to the next scene. Honestly, ride these rides all in the same day and you can get bored with the storyline. Not really that thrilling.

I've said this before about these rides at Uni, when we went a couple of years ago for the first time - my twin son's were 14.
I thought Uni was going to be a huge hit for them because they were typical teenage boys into Marvel, they loved The Simpsons tv show, and were watching more grown up movies.
By about the 3rd ride at Uni they were saying; "Is this another one of those rides?" Meaning 3D screen ride.
We booked 3 days at Uni, and that was too much.
We used our 3rd day to go over to SeaWorld, and that was a hit.
Uni tries to be cool, but it tries too hard.
Anyway...
We are booked for an April stay in Disney and can't wait to see Galaxy's Edge and Pandora.
My sons who will be 18 by then have no interest in going to Universal.

 

[OG Runner]

Right. Spider-man is all on a single floor. Transformers is spread over 2 floors utilizing 2 sets of duel elevators like Star Wars: Rise of the Risistance.

It doesn't really matter if the ride "system" is exactly the same. The experience is the same, with the use of screens, and as I said with a
very similar storyline. How do you end the Spiderman ride? Knocked off a building and caught by webbing. How do you end the Transformers ride? Knocked off a building an caught by Bumblebee. Same or similar endings with the other rides I mentioned, even
though the ride systems are different. To quote Ryan Reynolds, from Deadpool, "That is jus lazy writing."

 

[Club Cooloholic]

I don't find most of Universal's rides thrilling in the way I do amusement parks. 3D rides are all blurry and thus boring due to how my eyes focus. I don't even like FOP for that reason. Will ride RotR next year, but glad it's not a simulator like FOP. Those bore me.

Same boat. I asked my eye doctor what of it was because I am color blind and she said my eyes aren't working together fast enough. I could do some exercises to train them.....for a ride or movie? No thanks lol.

 

[WDWTrojan]

Rode this twice now. The first time I was pretty blown away. The second time I saw some of the flaws a bit more clearly. The lack of thrills didn't bother me, but the reliance on projection mapping in lieu of more practical stage effects (sparks, smoke, etc), lack of AA movement (AT-ATs, hangar bay) and some of the cheesy effects (collapsing ceiling) really took what was an A+ on my first ride to a B+.

 

[WondersOfLife]

Umm, honey, (pointing at your hem), your bias is showing.

There are exactly 2 screen based attractions at IOA ( Spider-man and Kong). USF is more egregious on this front. DM:MM, Shrek, Fallon, Transformers, Simpson's, Fast and Furious, and Gringott's, (7 out of 29 attractions) are screen based. But how many WDW attractions are SLOW moving RVs (Omnimover or Boat) moving in front of repetitive robots? Jungle Cruise, PotC, HM, IASW, Peter Pan, Pooh, Mermaid, Splash, CoP, PeopleMover, Spaceship Earth, Nemo, El Rio de Tiempo, Frozen, Figment's, Living With The Land and Star Wars: Rise of the Resistence. Thankfully they just got rid of the god awful Ellens and GMR. Throw in the rides that don't move at all in front of repetitive robots, Tiki, CBJ, and American Adventure. Disney seems much more egregious in finding a formula and sticking with it. Just sayin'.

Talk about bias. Once you group Haunted Mansion, Rise of the Resistance, and Peter Pan all in the same category, then that’s when you’ve lose all credibility.

Also, you’re adding those up across FOUR parks. Not two. Not even one. I believe all four parks are very well balanced.

but it’s cool. Go put on your “3D Glasses.” They help you see better.

 

[It Is What It Is]

Retroeric, I ask this with all due respect: are you in your teens or twenties? If older, all good. I ask because when I was in that stage of life, thrills were at the top of my list of what I wanted from a theme park attraction. I'm in my 50's now and for at least the last twenty years, theming and immersion have gone to the top of my list.

It's an 'Eye of the Beholder' opinion, but the measuring stick is dollars spent. And we know which one of these conglomerates is thrilled more at dollars earned at their parks.

 

[Mickeyboof]

At least Univeral’s screen attractions are flamboyant and generally exciting.

I prefer that over the abundance of lifeless screens at Walt Disney World. No, I don’t want to watch a circle vision movie or film festival or boat ride where nothing happens but cartoon Donald flying through stock footage of Mexico, or feel bugs crawling under my ***.

No thanks. Universal may have lots of screens, but they use them quite effectively.

 

[NickMaio]

Rode this twice now. The first time I was pretty blown away. The second time I saw some of the flaws a bit more clearly. The lack of thrills didn't bother me, but the reliance on projection mapping in lieu of more practical stage effects (sparks, smoke, etc), lack of AA movement (AT-ATs, hangar bay) and some of the cheesy effects (collapsing ceiling) really took what was an A+ on my first ride to a B+.

Thanks for the spoilers

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Have you ridden Tron? Because while I agree it’s not the craziest coaster in the world, it’s also not even close to being “mild.”

I’m looking forward to this...as it is a moderate example of coaster designers concentrating on speed and change of direction to provide the thrill as opposed to inversions.

Based on my experience: accelerations and overbanked turns can cause “stomach drop” just as much If not more than 80’s “bang your heads” loops and corkscrews

Outside of the one drop near the end, there is absolutely nothing on the ride should merit a warning sign like that. But I realize they have to be over careful.

The lawyers and accountants are giving fuel to the apologist fire with that silly sign.

I'm on both sides of this argument. I don't want hyper coasters all over the place but thrill rides like everest and tower of terror I would like them to add more. In some ways this shows the capacity problems in the parks. You shouldn't have to feel you didn't get your moneys worth because you aren't a big fan of certain types of rides. It's all about balance and having enough for everyone. I do think galaxys edge needs an outdoor attraction to add some visual movement to the land.

Amen, Reverend. A good thrill ride should never be a “negative”...if well themed. It shouldn’t “detract”...the problem really is capacity. Because they open something every 5 years now per park on average....people get mad if the entire mob can’t wait 3 hours for each new thing. That was never the intent of a “theme park” anyway. The point is to vary and appeal on different levels. Some people like cowboys...some like astronauts.

I would not object to bigger thrills either, but it is not really their brand.

It is kind of like comparing a Cadillac and a Corvette. We might like to mix in some features of a Cadilac into a Corvette or vice versa, but the majority of their customer base does not want that.

People like us just have to buy both.

That’s a bit of a copout, master....

They can certainly make a themed ride to Star Wars that has more pep than a screen sim or a trackless dark ride. They’ve gotten fairly lazy on this front...it will have to change. The demand for thrills isn’t going away.

The last two “thrill rides” designed for wdw are dippy dwarves and dippy doggie. Nice middling rides but doesn’t fill the void for old fashioned sensory stimulation.