Soarin' Over California VS Soarin' Around the World

[justintheharris]

That's the allegation anyway. I know the elephant, killer whale, airplane, kite, whatever, for the transitions are CGI. And, sure, so are the fireworks and (shocker!) Tinkerbell. Don't know about scenes. To say that the Taj Mahal is "completely fake" is to say not any part of the entire scene was shot using a flyover but all generated by computer. Is that what you are saying? And how do you "know"?

Welcome aboard, by the way. For the record, I don't play the "I'm better than you because I have more posts game" like some others do. You could be a real expert having just joined. But, please show how you "know" the Taj Mahal is fake. I'm not saying you're wrong. I'm not saying you're right either.

I'm not trying to come off that way. But maybe I am wrong. I just know I have heard from multiple places the Indian government did not allow Disney to do a flyover of the Taj Mahal. I just now did some googling to find that a few places (granted, nothing from experts) are corroborating that. So if the Taj Mahal scene isn't fake, it's a common rumor. And the given the significance of the Taj Mahal to India as well as the fragile state that the building is in, I could very well believe that Disney wasn't allowed to do a flyover.

 

[TheDuke]

The Taj Mahal seen in the ride is not the real building. Don't see how anyone could possibly think that.

The motion simulator element is still fun, but the visuals are not as good as others have said due to a lot of CG and the gaudy transitions. The idea of international settings was great for EPCOT but it looks like they scimped on it, although I understand that getting real footage all over the world would have cost a lot more money than just doing it around California. Might as well have just left WDW with the old ride if they weren't able to replicate it's quality with the international version.

 

[danyoung56]

The Taj Mahal seen in the ride is not the real building. Don't see how anyone could possibly think that.

Umm, I think that. I've seen several of these monuments with my own eyes, such as the Taj Mahal and the Leaning Tower, and even live they don't look real. I don't doubt that Disney could put up some pretty realistic CGI. But I don't believe they did it with the Taj.

 

[StarboardSide]

I’m blown away that people prefer the California version over the World version. We’ve always loved Soarin and were thrilled when it was changed. It’s the only amusement park ride that people give a cheering ovation at the end! It would be cool if they make another version in a few years - so many possibilities...

 

[larryz]

Toss up for me.

"California" used actual photography but the entire experience was compromised, if not completely ruined by the contaminated projector and constantly deteriorating filmstock.

"World" appears crisp and beautiful, but the actual content of the show is mostly, if not entirely fake CGI, so the experience is lifeless and disjointed in comparison to original.

Well, if you've watched any promotional material about the ride/attraction/movie/show, you'll know it was all about the erector set they used to design it with.

 

[TheDuke]

Here's a picture of the Taj Mahal-

Here's a picture of the Taj Mahal on Soarin'

Aside from the leaning issue, one of those is clearly not a real photograph. See how the light reflects off the white building and the water in the first picture, as in real life. Even though it appears they did quite a good job replicating the area you can also see some small differences, the fountain appears to be wider in real life and the sidewalks farther away from it, there's much denser greenery around the building on Soarin', and so forth.

This isn't to say I hate the ride, it's still one of my favorite things at Disney, but all real photography as in California is certainly an upgrade.

 

[Myth Maker]

I wish now that they have digital projections they would go to a randomized flight path that rotates through say 10 of 30 scenes... would make every ride unique and have much better re-ride value.

 

[JohnWD]

I've never seen Soarin' Around the World at Epcot, but Soarin' Over California was one of my favorites at Disney World. I've only seen Soarin' Around the World at DCA, and if it's the exact same experience as Epcot, then hands down Soarin' Over California is my favorite. Hopefully we will be at Disney World this Summer/Fall, so I'll be able to compare DCA vs Epcot Soarin'.

 

[justintheharris]

I wish now that they have digital projections they would go to a randomized flight path that rotates through say 10 of 30 scenes... would make every ride unique and have much better re-ride value.

Say it louder for the people in the back!! Disney has been under utilizing that technology that they introduced with Star Tours. Soarin Around the World would've been a perfect opportunity for it and I would be a lot more forgiving about what it lacks in compared to its predecessor if it had the randomized sequences. A little off topic but Disney also needs to introduce that technology into Philharmagic and, after its popularity has died down a little in maybe 3 years, Flight of Passage.

 

[Po'Rich]

Regardless of the version (but I notice it more with Soarin' Around the World), I just always worry that my shoes are going to fall off.

 

[parrunner]

So.. title says it all. Which version do you think is better? In my humble opinion, I heavily prefer Soarin' Over California. What do you all think?

I guess I’m too old. Today’s generation prefers artificial computer simulated media vs the real thing. I counted 13 fake simulated scenes in World. And that is with my untrained eye. There were two in California, the golf ball and Tinkerbell/fireworks. I think today’s generation is perfectly happy with a fake whale jumping, or a glacier breaking off at the exact moment of the flyover, but I for one prefer the real thing.

 

[parrunner]

I guess I’m too old. The current generation prefers fake computer simulated media vs the real thing. I counted 13 fake computer simulated scenes in World, and that is with my untrained eye. There are two in California, the golf ball, and Tinkerbell / fireworks. I guess the current generation wants to see a whale jump just at the right time or a glacier break off just when the camera is filming, even if it isn’t real. I prefer the real thing.
Soarin WAS one of my ‘must do’ rides at Disney World. Now that I’ve seen World, I won’t have to waste my time on that ride any more.

 

[JusticeDisney]

I guess I’m too old. The current generation prefers fake computer simulated media vs the real thing. I counted 13 fake computer simulated scenes in World, and that is with my untrained eye. There are two in California, the golf ball, and Tinkerbell / fireworks. I guess the current generation wants to see a whale jump just at the right time or a glacier break off just when the camera is filming, even if it isn’t real. I prefer the real thing.
Soarin WAS one of my ‘must do’ rides at Disney World. Now that I’ve seen World, I won’t have to waste my time on that ride any more.

Not at all trying to be a jerk, but if you are spending your time on a ride actually focusing on and counting things like that, then maybe you are missing out a bit on why you go to a theme park in the first place?

 

[parrunner]

Not at all trying to be a jerk, but if you are spending your time on a ride actually focusing on and counting things like that, then maybe you are missing out a bit on why you go to a theme park in the first place?

I didn’t count the computer enhancements while on the ride, but you sure couldn’t miss them. When I got home I was curious, so I found a youtube and that is when I counted them. Then I became curious as to what everyone else thought, and no surprise, there wasn’t overwhelming support for World.

 

[danyoung56]

I enjoy World. Yeah, there are some computer enhancements, but I didn't go out of my way to look for 'em. They're obviously CG, but they don't take away from the beauty of the rest of the film. If I had my choice, I'd prefer they didn't do 'em. But it's still a pretty amazing attraction.

 

[ppet]

I enjoy them both, but my nose misses the scent of the orange trees as we fly over.

 

[aliceismad]

I guess I’m too old. The current generation prefers fake computer simulated media vs the real thing. I counted 13 fake computer simulated scenes in World, and that is with my untrained eye. There are two in California, the golf ball, and Tinkerbell / fireworks. I guess the current generation wants to see a whale jump just at the right time or a glacier break off just when the camera is filming, even if it isn’t real. I prefer the real thing.
Soarin WAS one of my ‘must do’ rides at Disney World. Now that I’ve seen World, I won’t have to waste my time on that ride any more.

Soarin is just a fun ride, but I prefer the original. Disney (and NatGeo) have such fantastic movies and imagery from around the world vs. the CGI. I'd love to see an update. Perhaps one linked more strongly with plants and animals.

 

[Bpmorley]

I like them both. I think they did a better job on the original. The new one is perfect, but only when you sit in the middle. The crooked screen drives me nuts

 

[JayKZ]

I'll have to go with the original. The scenery in "World" is indeed spectacular, but the distortion of verticals caused by the deeply curved screen distracts from the beauty, as does some (at least) of the CGI. What puts it over the top for me is Jerry Goldsmith's score in the original. It flows effortlessly from scene to scene, changing theme as appropriate (the orange groves, for example), and keeping pace with the visuals. I love the story that when Goldsmith first experienced the finished product in SoC, he wept. That's how good it was. For me, the revised score struggles to deliver the "musical ride", the effortless transition from scene to scene that Goldsmith's original manages so well.

 

[Po'Rich]

I guess I’m too old. The current generation prefers fake computer simulated media vs the real thing. I counted 13 fake computer simulated scenes in World, and that is with my untrained eye. There are two in California, the golf ball, and Tinkerbell / fireworks. I guess the current generation wants to see a whale jump just at the right time or a glacier break off just when the camera is filming, even if it isn’t real. I prefer the real thing.
Soarin WAS one of my ‘must do’ rides at Disney World. Now that I’ve seen World, I won’t have to waste my time on that ride any more.

You're really going to hate Flight of Passage then.