Spirited News, Observations & Thoughts IV

[WDWDad13]

You'd be surprised how many friends I have who recently took a vacation in Orlando and came back with comments like "I'm not quite sure why you're so obsessed with Disney parks but Islands of Adventure was pretty cool". People do notice. They may not be able to point out an exact reason but the feelings do linger.

that's probably because they didn't plan out their Disney vacation in advance and all they did at IoA was ride rides

 

[scout68]

You are absolutely right, we are in a new generation. This new generation expects everything to be on their iPhone. If it isn't, it is old fashioned. Walking around the park to machines grabbing bits of paper is going to seem very old-hat soon.

While I can certainly understand your comment I can't seem to eliminate one aspect of the equation.
While we are in or rapidly submerging ( sinking if it suits ya) into a new age of now! now! now! I can't help but look at the root of this whole thing, the foundation of all we do and discuss here.

This is about a vacation, a break, a shutting down of all things that drive us to go on vacation in the first place.
This idea of a turning off of all unessential headache causing minutia. Over the course of the past hundred years or more (since the old rat race began) we as people look to get away from the grind of our everyday responsibilities. I am well aware that no singular reason to vacate our day to day responsibilities apply to all who decide to go to Disney or anywhere for that matter. Having to put in more work to allow you to get away from work is hard to understand. (I should have prefaced this with the simple admission I don't understand much to begin with).

That being poorly said. I just returned from 2 essentially unplanned weeks in WDW and went in with the idea of trying to view my days as this was the first time visiting. We do visit a couple of times a year for about 10 days at a clip. We didn't miss a single attraction that we wanted to see nor a restaurant we wanted to experience. In fact we extended our planned stay 2 times and had no trouble booking rooms on site at the WL and made lunch and dinner reservations hours before arriving at the resturaunt. Our trip went off without a hitch and it leads me to believe the current system while not without its flaws is certainly not in need of such an expensive and targeted new direction. The driving force behind the wants and needs for vacations has and will remain the same. Escape.

I believe some things do remain constant. Specifically the need and want to relax and unplug, be it from your work, your kids, or your electronic devise. A certain degree of planning is to be expected for any get-away but there will be a tipping point as to the amount of scheduling people will be willing to do for a vacation.

Substituting one race for another will ultimately drive some if not most of us to an easier destination.

 

[danjen2331]

Face it, 99.9% of guests don't care about story. They're there to have a good time on a ride.

Then why are Six Flags' parks not the most visited in the world? Story enhances rides. Dark rides such as FJ or PPF could not exist if they did not tell a story. If you take the story away from ToT or Splash they would be average rides at the most. All people care about story yet many are unaware of it because they do not notice the correlation between story and the thrill or fun they have.

 

[ParentsOf4]

....right...and that's why a lot of people are complaining now because of "change" when in reality, they are ahead of the game. 5-10 years from now we'll be wanting more from it

There's a good chance that 10 years from now, FP+ will be viewed as antiquated technology.

The history of technology is that all technology has a limited shelf life. CDs and VCRs are just some recent examples of technology that are past their prime, that have been superseded by superior technology.

FP is criticized today by some yet when it was created 14 years ago, FP was considered the new "it" theme park technology by corporate Disney. However, the public never embraced FP the way corporate Disney wanted. We all remember FP instructions printed on park maps as Disney tried to sell the public on the idea of FP but even today, it's only a limited number of super-users that take disproportionate advantage of FP.

The pay-to-play FP-type system in use at Six Flags and Universal is perhaps the best way to recuperate investment. That system is relatively easy to use, requires no preplanning, and provides obvious benefits to the customer along with immediate financial reward to the supplier. Even today, it amazes me how many purchase these systems after arriving at the parks.

The current generation is obsessed with iPhone technology but as technology advances, that generation will face the same struggles that all previous generations faced when presented with "new" technology, whether it be the automobile or the VCR.

MyMagic+ represents a multi-billion dollar investment in a technology that will be superseded within a decade, two at the most. By the time MyMagic+ technology achieves sufficient penetration, a new technology will be there to replace it. It's difficult to imagine how Disney will ever recuperate its investment for it. Unlike a brick-and-motor attraction such as Haunted Mansion which is "ageless" and can drive revenue for decades to come, MyMagic+ will have a limited shelf life.

 

[PeterAlt]

The problem isn't that they won't get any return. The problem is the system, as of now, will not be making the returns that were promised to the board at the get go.

True or not - and I have no opinion on the matter - is that this is a very short-sighted opinion. I usually lean against short sightedism

 

[asianway]

No, there's an Imagineering rule that every project must tell a story and creating a script and story board are part of the creative process. This rule was created by the head Imagineer himself Walt Disney. That doesn't mean he followed his own rule. He was known for consistently being hypocritical and had a pattern of breaking those rules. For example, no employee were allowed to have mustaches. Only he was allowed to break these rules. Employees who broke them were fired immediately.

EDIT - That's what the company needs again - A CEO who is also Imagineer In Chief!

The moustache policy was enacted around the time DL opened, but any existing CMs-yes Walt-were grandfathered in.

 

[PeterAlt]

The moustache policy was enacted around the time DL opened, but any existing CMs-yes Walt-were grandfathered in.

Instead of ignoring me, you can simply correct me. I didn't know that. I stand corrected.

 

[GLaDOS]

No, there's an Imagineering rule that every project must tell a story and creating a script and story board are part of the creative process. This rule was created by the head Imagineer himself Walt Disney. That doesn't mean he followed his own rule. He was known for consistently being hypocritical and had a pattern of breaking those rules. For example, no employee were allowed to have mustaches. Only he was allowed to break these rules. Employees who broke them were fired immediately.

EDIT - That's what the company needs again - A CEO who is also Imagineer In Chief!

You might want to do some more research.

 

[GLaDOS]

that's probably because they didn't plan out their Disney vacation in advance and all they did at IoA was ride rides

People going to a theme park just to ride awesome rides!? The audacity!

 

[WDWDad13]

People going to a theme park just to ride awesome rides!? The audacity!

a "theme park" is more about rides... this IMO is where Disney will always shine over Uni

 

[GLaDOS]

Then why are Six Flags' parks not the most visited in the world? Story enhances rides. Dark rides such as FJ or PPF could not exist if they did not tell a story. If you take the story away from ToT or Splash they would be average rides at the most. All people care about story yet many are unaware of it because they do not notice the correlation between story and the thrill or fun they have.

If you took the story away from ToT or Splash they would still be two of the most advanced rides of their kind on the planet. I'm not saying taking away show scenes or AAs. I'm talking about story.

Pirates, Haunted Mansion, Big Thunder Mountain. None of them have stories yet are 3 of the best attractions ever created. Story matters little.

 

[choco choco]

Am I alone in thinking that DLR is really not in need of a 3rd gate. They just had to spend a billion dollars to fix the half-cooked second one.

No, you're not the only one.

I think it would be another Animal Kingdom situation, a 3rd gate will just cannibalize business from their other parks. People aren't getting any more vacation time. A DLR trip is usually tacked onto a Southern California trip, and no one is going to give up another one of their So Cal days just to spend it yet again at Disneyland. There's other stuff to do here.

So what are they hoping is going to sustain the 3rd gate? More annual passholders, aka the least profitable demographic they have?

Plus if the third gate is just gonna be lands based on franchises, I'd rather the space stay a parking lot rather than support that dumb idea.

 

[GLaDOS]

a "theme park" is more about rides... this IMO is where Disney will always shine over Uni

We must be going to different parks. Uni's parks are themed.

 

[PeterAlt]

You might want to do some more research.

I'm going by vague memories of things I either read or watched on TV...

 

[PeterAlt]

We must be going to different parks. Uni's parks are themed.

But with the story element, a theme park is more like a theme park.

 

[DisneyFan 2000]

that's probably because they didn't plan out their Disney vacation in advance and all they did at IoA was ride rides

And isn't that a telling sign that something's wrong? The average guest, who came to vacation to, as you put it, "ride the rides" and doesn't care to plan can simply walk up to UOR and enjoy themselves while one cannot simply stroll into WDW and notice all the good it has to offer without a ready "plan of attack". All that means, at best, is that WDW has become more of a headache than a vacation and is sacrificing guests as a result. (BTW don't get me started on the Harry Potter ravings coming from even the most casual, only-saw-the-first-movie fans)

 

[GLaDOS]

But with the story element, a theme park is more like a theme park.

 

[ScoutN]

Complaints about the amount of money are coming from the hardcore fan ( or critic) community that makes up a relatively small number compared to the millions of fans who go, have a great time, and don't notice the perceived reduction in quality and/value the the avid fan community sees.

I would not be so quick to make that statement. I know a very casual family who was just in WDW that has not been in seven years. From the mouth of them "Wow, there really is nothing new, merchandise sucks now, and the focus is on these flashing lights for FastPass." I had been talking with them about booking in December a trip for them. They have ZERO interest in it and would rather go to Vegas or try Universal. They are the definition of the casual visitor with disposable income and they have zero desire for any WDW and MM+.

 

[asianway]

I guess we will found out very soon - my feeling is that it will be very popular. Just the fact that guests wont have to walk between FP machines will sway a lot of people. I can very well imagine people at breakfast whipping out the iPhone and picking up some FP+. Much better than charging across the park in a mad dash to a FP machine in a lot of people's eyes.

Maybe. The trend in the US is moving towards shorter last minute trips which runs counter to long range planning.

 

[ChrisFL]

But with the story element, a theme park is more like a theme park.

Not sure what you're getting at, practically ALL of Universal's attractions have a story element.