So, You Want to be an Imagineer Season 15: Uniting Universal (Official Hub Thread)

[spacemt354]

Also very true, but they have a purpose for the mission statement, so they make sense at the Magic Kingdom.

You gave me an idea working on it now

We're talking here about the Magic Kingdom's mission statement, and how that allows you to travel from the Caribbean to the Frontiers of America in about 100 feet, and nobody bats an eye. It also allows different IPs such as Winnie the Pooh and Snow White to exist parallel to each other, even though neither are related, because it all fits under the umbrella of the land they are designed for.

Universal rarely does this unless the land itself is based on a property that has multiple sub-properties. Most exist on their own Islands, not like that is a bad thing, but the transitions could be improved, and we have so many ideas here that building a land or 'island' for each IP while still intending to have good transitions might not be feasible.

Taking the Magic Kingdom model we have lands that theoretically, could mold into a model for a Universal park.

'Main Street'
- The toughest nut to crack. Originally I was thinking the Victorian land concept, but I think that is a bit too dark for an introduction into the main park. It'd be much better suited for the 2nd Disney Sea style concept we were working on I think. However, what about a Streets of America style entrance? Yet rather than false fronts, have it be modeled after the Art Deco designs of NBCUniversal/Comcast's headquaters in Rockefeller Plaza, NYC.

The park is being placed in Australia, so the proximity issue to NYC that DCA faced with Hollywood is null and void. Imagine that the entrance to the park comes to a central hub location, with the weenie being a Universal Great Movie Ride inside a miniature, forced perspective art deco 30 Rockefeller building.

Off the hub - you enter through art deco portals into the different film genres. While many films overlap in Adventure, Fantasy, Futuristic, etc - the landscapes are a pivitol factor in determining where they would be placed.

'Adventureland'
- Jurassic Park
- King Kong
- other jungle/forested/tropical environments.

'New Orleans Square/Liberty Square'
- Looking for a quaint village aesthetic. Possibly the Cape Cod seaside village of Jaws and further horror film genres more inland?

'Frontierland'
- Possibly a continuation of the horror genre set up in the seaside village?
- Bates Motel Haunted Mansion, The Shining Haunted Mansion, etc
- Old Europe Village for classic Universal Monsters?
- Transition from The Shrieking Shack into Hogsmeade Village and Harry Potter as a separate land towards the back of the park.

'Fantasyland'
- Suess Landing
- Despicable Me
- Hop idea from brb
- Shrek
- Secret Life of Pets

'Mickey's Toontown'
- updated/better Toon Lagoon
- Possibly Nickelodeon
- Nintendo if we decided to have two lands with transport between the parks as Brer Oswald suggested

'Tomorrowland'
- Back to the Future
- E.T.
- Men in Black
- Transformers

Obviously we wouldn't call these lands by their Magic Kingdom inspirations -- but just for the sake of keeping things comfortable as possible for people not as familiar with Universal parks.

For the Disney Sea style park -- I think it could be a very similar set up to IoA and TDS combined, with a Victorian Village entrance, then branching off into more themes that evoke lands that are embedded with story and unique purpose similar to the ports of TDS like Mysterious Island and such. A Parisian village with Les Mis, an ancient Gladiator attraction, Westeros, The Mummy, and perhaps the 2nd Nintendo Land towards the back of the park mixed in with other more kid friendly properties to balance the park.

Would love to hear some feedback on this and what everyone thinks!

 

[Suchomimus]

We're talking here about the Magic Kingdom's mission statement, and how that allows you to travel from the Caribbean to the Frontiers of America in about 100 feet, and nobody bats an eye. It also allows different IPs such as Winnie the Pooh and Snow White to exist parallel to each other, even though neither are related, because it all fits under the umbrella of the land they are designed for.

Universal rarely does this unless the land itself is based on a property that has multiple sub-properties. Most exist on their own Islands, not like that is a bad thing, but the transitions could be improved, and we have so many ideas here that building a land or 'island' for each IP while still intending to have good transitions might not be feasible.

Taking the Magic Kingdom model we have lands that theoretically, could mold into a model for a Universal park.

'Main Street'
- The toughest nut to crack. Originally I was thinking the Victorian land concept, but I think that is a bit too dark for an introduction into the main park. It'd be much better suited for the 2nd Disney Sea style concept we were working on I think. However, what about a Streets of America style entrance? Yet rather than false fronts, have it be modeled after the Art Deco designs of NBCUniversal/Comcast's headquaters in Rockefeller Plaza, NYC.

The park is being placed in Australia, so the proximity issue to NYC that DCA faced with Hollywood is null and void. Imagine that the entrance to the park comes to a central hub location, with the weenie being a Universal Great Movie Ride inside a miniature, forced perspective art deco 30 Rockefeller building.

Off the hub - you enter through art deco portals into the different film genres. While many films overlap in Adventure, Fantasy, Futuristic, etc - the landscapes are a pivitol factor in determining where they would be placed.

'Adventureland'
- Jurassic Park
- King Kong
- other jungle/forested/tropical environments.

'New Orleans Square/Liberty Square'
- Looking for a quaint village aesthetic. Possibly the Cape Cod seaside village of Jaws and further horror film genres more inland?

'Frontierland'
- Possibly a continuation of the horror genre set up in the seaside village?
- Bates Motel Haunted Mansion, The Shining Haunted Mansion, etc
- Old Europe Village for classic Universal Monsters?
- Transition from The Shrieking Shack into Hogsmeade Village and Harry Potter as a separate land towards the back of the park.

'Fantasyland'
- Suess Landing
- Despicable Me
- Hop idea from brb
- Shrek
- Secret Life of Pets

'Mickey's Toontown'
- updated/better Toon Lagoon
- Possibly Nickelodeon
- Nintendo if we decided to have two lands with transport between the parks as Brer Oswald suggested

'Tomorrowland'
- Back to the Future
- E.T.
- Men in Black
- Transformers

Obviously we wouldn't call these lands by their Magic Kingdom inspirations -- but just for the sake of keeping things comfortable as possible for people not as familiar with Universal parks.

For the Disney Sea style park -- I think it could be a very similar set up to IoA and TDS combined, with a Victorian Village entrance, then branching off into more themes that evoke lands that are embedded with story and unique purpose similar to the ports of TDS like Mysterious Island and such. A Parisian village with Les Mis, an ancient Gladiator attraction, Westeros, The Mummy, and perhaps the 2nd Nintendo Land towards the back of the park mixed in with other more kid friendly properties to balance the park.

Would love to hear some feedback on this and what everyone thinks!

They lost the rights to use Nickelodeon IPs remember ?

 

[spacemt354]

They lost the rights to use Nickelodeon IPs remember ?

Yes but it was an idea thrown around, so regardless of the logistics for now let's leave it as an option. Doesn't mean it'll be a part of the final proposal.

 

[Suchomimus]

Yes but it was an idea thrown around, so regardless of the logistics for now let's leave it as an option. Doesn't mean it'll be a part of the final proposal.

 

[spacemt354]

I know you don't want that, but I don't think it's that big of a deal really. They had the rights, they don't have them now, they could get them back theoretically, and it's not even confirmed going in the park yet. It's just laying out the ideas we've come up with so far so we can make some decisions going forward.

 

[StevenU]

We're talking here about the Magic Kingdom's mission statement, and how that allows you to travel from the Caribbean to the Frontiers of America in about 100 feet, and nobody bats an eye. It also allows different IPs such as Winnie the Pooh and Snow White to exist parallel to each other, even though neither are related, because it all fits under the umbrella of the land they are designed for.

Universal rarely does this unless the land itself is based on a property that has multiple sub-properties. Most exist on their own Islands, not like that is a bad thing, but the transitions could be improved, and we have so many ideas here that building a land or 'island' for each IP while still intending to have good transitions might not be feasible.

Taking the Magic Kingdom model we have lands that theoretically, could mold into a model for a Universal park.

'Main Street'
- The toughest nut to crack. Originally I was thinking the Victorian land concept, but I think that is a bit too dark for an introduction into the main park. It'd be much better suited for the 2nd Disney Sea style concept we were working on I think. However, what about a Streets of America style entrance? Yet rather than false fronts, have it be modeled after the Art Deco designs of NBCUniversal/Comcast's headquaters in Rockefeller Plaza, NYC.

The park is being placed in Australia, so the proximity issue to NYC that DCA faced with Hollywood is null and void. Imagine that the entrance to the park comes to a central hub location, with the weenie being a Universal Great Movie Ride inside a miniature, forced perspective art deco 30 Rockefeller building.

Off the hub - you enter through art deco portals into the different film genres. While many films overlap in Adventure, Fantasy, Futuristic, etc - the landscapes are a pivitol factor in determining where they would be placed.

'Adventureland'
- Jurassic Park
- King Kong
- other jungle/forested/tropical environments.

'New Orleans Square/Liberty Square'
- Looking for a quaint village aesthetic. Possibly the Cape Cod seaside village of Jaws and further horror film genres more inland?

'Frontierland'
- Possibly a continuation of the horror genre set up in the seaside village?
- Bates Motel Haunted Mansion, The Shining Haunted Mansion, etc
- Old Europe Village for classic Universal Monsters?
- Transition from The Shrieking Shack into Hogsmeade Village and Harry Potter as a separate land towards the back of the park.

'Fantasyland'
- Suess Landing
- Despicable Me
- Hop idea from brb
- Shrek
- Secret Life of Pets

'Mickey's Toontown'
- updated/better Toon Lagoon
- Possibly Nickelodeon
- Nintendo if we decided to have two lands with transport between the parks as Brer Oswald suggested

'Tomorrowland'
- Back to the Future
- E.T.
- Men in Black
- Transformers

Obviously we wouldn't call these lands by their Magic Kingdom inspirations -- but just for the sake of keeping things comfortable as possible for people not as familiar with Universal parks.

For the Disney Sea style park -- I think it could be a very similar set up to IoA and TDS combined, with a Victorian Village entrance, then branching off into more themes that evoke lands that are embedded with story and unique purpose similar to the ports of TDS like Mysterious Island and such. A Parisian village with Les Mis, an ancient Gladiator attraction, Westeros, The Mummy, and perhaps the 2nd Nintendo Land towards the back of the park mixed in with other more kid friendly properties to balance the park.

Would love to hear some feedback on this and what everyone thinks!

I like it! Could you add in a Godzilla vs King Kong ride to the Adventureland area? Like the one I made for @tcool123 's challenge.

 

[Poe Dameron]

I personally think that a water park would be a bit limiting for Nintendo, but if you guys want to go with it that's fine.

Fair enough. Curious about how a boutique theme park would work. Would it generate enough interest?

 

[Suchomimus]

What is a boutique theme park? I looked everywhere for the definition and I can't find it.

 

[D Hulk]

What is a boutique theme park? I looked everywhere for the definition and I can't find it.

I think it's something like a smaller, lower-capacity park with specialized experiences and higher ticket prices. Something like SeaWorld's Discovery Cove. Conceivably a wholly interactive LARPing park with an emphasis on role playing over rides would also fit the definition.

 

[kmbmw777]

We're talking here about the Magic Kingdom's mission statement, and how that allows you to travel from the Caribbean to the Frontiers of America in about 100 feet, and nobody bats an eye. It also allows different IPs such as Winnie the Pooh and Snow White to exist parallel to each other, even though neither are related, because it all fits under the umbrella of the land they are designed for.

Universal rarely does this unless the land itself is based on a property that has multiple sub-properties. Most exist on their own Islands, not like that is a bad thing, but the transitions could be improved, and we have so many ideas here that building a land or 'island' for each IP while still intending to have good transitions might not be feasible.

Taking the Magic Kingdom model we have lands that theoretically, could mold into a model for a Universal park.

'Main Street'
- The toughest nut to crack. Originally I was thinking the Victorian land concept, but I think that is a bit too dark for an introduction into the main park. It'd be much better suited for the 2nd Disney Sea style concept we were working on I think. However, what about a Streets of America style entrance? Yet rather than false fronts, have it be modeled after the Art Deco designs of NBCUniversal/Comcast's headquaters in Rockefeller Plaza, NYC.

The park is being placed in Australia, so the proximity issue to NYC that DCA faced with Hollywood is null and void. Imagine that the entrance to the park comes to a central hub location, with the weenie being a Universal Great Movie Ride inside a miniature, forced perspective art deco 30 Rockefeller building.

Off the hub - you enter through art deco portals into the different film genres. While many films overlap in Adventure, Fantasy, Futuristic, etc - the landscapes are a pivitol factor in determining where they would be placed.

'Adventureland'
- Jurassic Park
- King Kong
- other jungle/forested/tropical environments.

'New Orleans Square/Liberty Square'
- Looking for a quaint village aesthetic. Possibly the Cape Cod seaside village of Jaws and further horror film genres more inland?

'Frontierland'
- Possibly a continuation of the horror genre set up in the seaside village?
- Bates Motel Haunted Mansion, The Shining Haunted Mansion, etc
- Old Europe Village for classic Universal Monsters?
- Transition from The Shrieking Shack into Hogsmeade Village and Harry Potter as a separate land towards the back of the park.

'Fantasyland'
- Suess Landing
- Despicable Me
- Hop idea from brb
- Shrek
- Secret Life of Pets

'Mickey's Toontown'
- updated/better Toon Lagoon
- Possibly Nickelodeon
- Nintendo if we decided to have two lands with transport between the parks as Brer Oswald suggested

'Tomorrowland'
- Back to the Future
- E.T.
- Men in Black
- Transformers

Obviously we wouldn't call these lands by their Magic Kingdom inspirations -- but just for the sake of keeping things comfortable as possible for people not as familiar with Universal parks.

For the Disney Sea style park -- I think it could be a very similar set up to IoA and TDS combined, with a Victorian Village entrance, then branching off into more themes that evoke lands that are embedded with story and unique purpose similar to the ports of TDS like Mysterious Island and such. A Parisian village with Les Mis, an ancient Gladiator attraction, Westeros, The Mummy, and perhaps the 2nd Nintendo Land towards the back of the park mixed in with other more kid friendly properties to balance the park.

Would love to hear some feedback on this and what everyone thinks!

Hi, sorry for my inactivity recently. I've been swamped with homework.

I think this idea is really cool. A Universal theme park with Magic Kingdom's design. Also, Harry Potter land could be the equivalent of he new Star Wars land at Disneyland. It causes controversy, but a popular single IP land.

I guess my biggest question about this whole set up is - are we going to settle for all single-IP lands or try to create a Universal clone of Disneyland!

 

[spacemt354]

What is a boutique theme park? I looked everywhere for the definition and I can't find it.

Basically what Douglas said would be my guess. The new Star Wars Resort is supposed to be a boutique resort, rumored to have role playing experiences and costumes tied into your stay.

 

[spacemt354]

Hi, sorry for my inactivity recently. I've been swamped with homework.

I think this idea is really cool. A Universal theme park with Magic Kingdom's design. Also, Harry Potter land could be the equivalent of he new Star Wars land at Disneyland. It causes controversy, but a popular single IP land.

I guess my biggest question about this whole set up is - are we going to settle for all single-IP lands or try to create a Universal clone of Disneyland!

No worries - you're all good! And you make a good point about Harry Potter basically being the 'Star Wars Land' of Disneyland - didn't even think of that!

 

[D Hulk]

By now I've been to both USJ and TDS. I would love to do something like UniversalSea, but that's not such a simple concept.

USJ is completely choking on IPs. It's the most cluttered mess of a park I've ever seen - which is fun in its own right, granted. It's small, about the size of Disneyland, and as the world's most popular non-Disney park, it must satisfy a ton of different masters. IPs seen here include:

Jaws
Jurassic Park
Harry Potter
Despicable Me
Spider-Man
Terminator 2
Shrek
Backdraft
DragonBall Z
One Piece
Dreams Come True
A whole bunch of anime properties I don't know
A Nightmare On Elm Street
The Exorcist
Resident Evil
Nintendo (eventually)
Snoopy
Sesame Street
Hello Kitty
Chucky
Hello Kitty Chucky

I completely lost it at this last one!

For comparison, here are the IPs found at the much larger DisneySea:

Aladdin
The Little Mermaid
Indiana Jones
Captain Nemo
Finding Nemo
Toy Story
The Fab Five (general representation and walkaround characters)

UniversalSea would need to be exceedingly careful with what properties it uses. It wouldn't be able to add overlapping craziness as USJ does.

Coming next...How to do Uni as DisneySea, and if we should.

 

[D Hulk]

DisneySea is very conservative with IPs, with no more than one per land, and often as only a portion of that land's appeal. Sightlines never break. The central iconic volcano is a berm between lands, and it makes sense when seen from every single land. When lands do view each other, it's justified as something which conceivably could work in either land (Tower of Terror is great at this). Almost every single ride is a natural extension of its land, rather than a portal to another world. For example, Mysterious Island's rides depart from the island caldera, and then travel either under the sea or under the earth. It's stunningly effective.

Universal's Potter lands work perfectly on the DisneySea model. (Though I think Flight of the Hippogriff is a weakness.) If Universal were to do a UniSea, it would need to be all single-IP lands, plus a non-IP entry land to set the stage.

The challenge with Universal is how IP-hungry they are. A resort's anchor park needs to be able to handle all possible incoming IPs. @spacemt354's Magic Kingdom idea, sorted by genres, is best for that. Great idea! So broadly, I suggest developing UniMK first, and holding onto UniSea for the resort's second gate.

It'd be wise to sort out which IPs we want to save for UniSea, IPs which work best as entire lands. Harry Potter is one. So is Jurassic Park perhaps. Part of Nintendo should go into UniSea (I'm thinking Zelda, which could fit well in sight of the Hogwarts castle), with a broader Nintendo area done first in UniMK.

Next...Uni Magic Kingdom ideas.

 

[spacemt354]

DisneySea is very conservative with IPs, with no more than one per land, and often as only a portion of that land's appeal. Sightlines never break. The central iconic volcano is a berm between lands, and it makes sense when seen from every single land. When lands do view each other, it's justified as something which conceivably could work in either land (Tower of Terror is great at this). Almost every single ride is a natural extension of its land, rather than a portal to another world. For example, Mysterious Island's rides depart from the island caldera, and then travel either under the sea or under the earth. It's stunningly effective.

Universal's Potter lands work perfectly on the DisneySea model. (Though I think Flight of the Hippogriff is a weakness.) If Universal were to do a UniSea, it would need to be all single-IP lands, plus a non-IP entry land to set the stage.

The challenge with Universal is how IP-hungry they are. A resort's anchor park needs to be able to handle all possible incoming IPs. @spacemt354's Magic Kingdom idea, sorted by genres, is best for that. Great idea! So broadly, I suggest developing UniMK first, and holding onto UniSea for the resort's second gate.

It'd be wise to sort out which IPs we want to save for UniSea, IPs which work best as entire lands. Harry Potter is one. So is Jurassic Park perhaps. Part of Nintendo should go into UniSea (I'm thinking Zelda, which could fit well in sight of the Hogwarts castle), with a broader Nintendo area done first in UniMK.

Next...Uni Magic Kingdom ideas.

UniMK is officially the project's working acronym That's great!

And completely agree on all accounts

 

[D Hulk]

UniMK is good to soak up all excess IPs while UniSea can focus on more comprehensive design. @spacemt354's genre lands are a brilliant division. Perhaps for each genre, we can create a generic setting which could conceivably lead to any property, even future ones. But let's make those settings fully immersive anyway, like say a really cyberpunk neon street for Sci-Fi with elements of a spaceport, all distinctly grittier than Tomorrowland, and able to transition inside show buildings to the distinctive worlds of say Men in Black or Back to the Future.

Some genres:

Sci-fi
Action (we need a Fast & Furious ride)
Adventure
Horror
Animation
Video games (Nintendo)

Western is a genre I like, but Uni likely won't ever need any western IPs.

Musical and comedy are good too, but they don't really suggest a unique setting. Instead, could we fold elements of those into the entry land?

About that entry land. The Victorian land is a good idea for UniSea, but for UniMK I think something closer to Uni's classic studio model - but classier - would be great. Something like DHS's vintage Hollywood streetscape, more timelessly period-set and romanticized. Perhaps we could recreate Laemmle's Universal Studios circa the 1930s, when the studio was in its monster movie heyday. Inside the assorted soundstage buildings (weathered and textured to feel more inviting) we can still include all the random seasonal attractions and "flash-in-the-pan" stage/screen attractions Uni likes to do. Entry is by studio gates alongside a replica of the theater where Dracula premiered. Thoughts?

 

[spacemt354]

UniMK is good to soak up all excess IPs while UniSea can focus on more comprehensive design. @spacemt354's genre lands are a brilliant division. Perhaps for each genre, we can create a generic setting which could conceivably lead to any property, even future ones. But let's make those settings fully immersive anyway, like say a really cyberpunk neon street for Sci-Fi with elements of a spaceport, all distinctly grittier than Tomorrowland, and able to transition inside show buildings to the distinctive worlds of say Men in Black or Back to the Future.

Some genres:

Sci-fi
Action (we need a Fast & Furious ride)
Adventure
Horror
Animation
Video games (Nintendo)

Western is a genre I like, but Uni likely won't ever need any western IPs.

Musical and comedy are good too, but they don't really suggest a unique setting. Instead, could we fold elements of those into the entry land?

About that entry land. The Victorian land is a good idea for UniSea, but for UniMK I think something closer to Uni's classic studio model - but classier - would be great. Something like DHS's vintage Hollywood streetscape, more timelessly period-set and romanticized. Perhaps we could recreate Laemmle's Universal Studios circa the 1930s, when the studio was in its monster movie heyday. Inside the assorted soundstage buildings (weathered and textured to feel more inviting) we can still include all the random seasonal attractions and "flash-in-the-pan" stage/screen attractions Uni likes to do. Entry is by studio gates alongside a replica of the theater where Dracula premiered. Thoughts?

Love that idea for the entrance to UniMK - I'm much more of a visual person so I'll try to get some images to coincide with these descriptions! (In my head it's looking great!)

 

[D Hulk]

Been thinking about the various genres and how do divide their properties between the parks. (There's plenty of time to think when riding the bullet train.) Several of them, like horror and animation, have multiple settings we can play with. Some of those settings are better for single-IP lands (UniSea) and others better for the UniMK a-la-carte approach. I'll deacribe this by citing different approaches to horror:

Universal Monsters
They're basically a one-IP shared universe already, so good for UniSea. (And would transition easily to Hogsmeade.) This land couldn't take in non-Gothic horrors such as Exorcist, so not right for UniMK.

Contemporary horror
Usually suburban-set, sometimes rural, basically the setting of the Horror Nights stuff like Halloween, Nightmare on Elm Street, Paranormal Activity, etc. Not a very distinctive setting, more of a grab-bag feel. Could use Bates Motel as an icon?

Stephen King land
His books are already a shared universe. Main setting (Maine setting ) could be a small forest town like Derry, with a mountain road leading to the Overlook Hotel. King is big right now with IT. Picture a log flume through Derry's sewers encountering Pennywise! Granted, most of the good King movies are by WB, but Uni has a good relationship with them (see: Potter, lots of Horror Nights stuff). Could potentially overlap with the "contemporary horror" stuff.

H.P. Lovecraft land
Okay, there are barely any good Lovecraft movies so far. Still, he has a unique coastal New England setting for stuff like Innsmouth, which can tie in easily with Jaws (a unique setting which I fear will otherwise be hard to place).

Nearly every genre can be divided like this, to see which properties are best for each park. Like with animation, Despicable Me clashes with Seuss clashes with Dreamworks. (Didn't Uni recently obtain the park rights to all Dreamworks cartoons? ) Which of these ideas most needs to be isolated into a solo-IP UniSea land? And how does its toony kiddie land aesthetic not clash with that park's other realistic settings? (Isolating much of it either indoors or out-of-the-way works, like TDS's Mermaid Lagoon or USJ's Wonderland)

 

[Suchomimus]

(Didn't Uni recently obtain the park rights to all Dreamworks cartoons? )

Yes; just last year too.

 

[Daveeeeed]

You gave me an idea working on it now

I'd like to see.