News Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser coming to Walt Disney World 2021

[Patcheslee]

Considering that there appears to be multiple activation stations my guess is yes. Move rocks via magnets or make the water flow again. Maybe.

Can we make the water flow over at Moana while we're at it

 

[Tha Realest]

Now, THAT's a dining room!

THIS is podracing!

 

[MrPromey]

I'm surprised they did not even try to use the transparent monitor tech presented by Samsung a few years ago. Which is also present in the prototypes of flexible and transparent mini screens for cellphones.

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Anyone remembers when Disney was putting top of the line cutting edge tech on most attractions?

They wouldn't have even had to have gone this route. I assumed they were going to go with a Pepper's ghost effect which they've used a number of times in different creative ways over the years both with projection from screens and with physical props/characters, most famously in the ballroom scene of the haunted mansion but also is I believe something like how they do the translucent screens on the track in Test Track to show everyone's ranking along the way.

Think teleprompter like these but like a wide bar smaller and a lot closer with the display panel itself just built into the table:

I remember when the folks at Disney were creative enough that they didn't have to use cutting edge tech (as an expensive stand-in for story telling and genuine entertainment) to make something appear like it was cutting edge.

 

[Sir_Cliff]

I imagine they are talking about these chairs at the "good" tables near the front of the room. They are bought off the rack, but they don't look comfortable. Especially for a space where over half your awake time "on board" is supposed to happen.

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It's the low ceiling and the windowless and featureless walls that do that. The space is long and narrow and hemmed in on all sides, like a church basement. It's not attractive, and it certainly doesn't convey "luxury".

Which is odd, because for the past 150 years since the first steamships plied the Atlantic, the dining room of any cruise ship was always the largest public room and most grand and elaborately impressive space on board. But not so in Bob Chapek's universe.

A 20th Century Ocean Liner Dining Room For Upper Class Americans (or Frenchmen, as it's the SS Normandie).

A 21st Century Ocean Cruise Ship for Upper-Middle Class Americans. (Celebrity Cruises, Equinox)

A 21st Century Space Cruiser Dining Room For Upper-Middle Class Rubes Fooled by Bob Chapek.

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The more I think about it and read reports of the whole thing feeling claustrophobic (and it certainly looks claustrophobic from the things we've seen so far), the more surprised I am that the Starcruiser doesn't seem to have even one big, impressive set piece. As capacity is not that high, I guess the dining room was never going to be that huge in terms of floorspace, but even high ceilings coupled with detailed theming could have created a big impact when compared to the relatively tight spaces in the rest of the hotel. This was supposed to be a luxury starcruiser in its day, so it's not like that would have been out of theme for the ship to have had one large open space. Even if they combined the bar and restaurant into a two-level space to increase its sense of scope, that could have created a kind of "wow" moment. The closest to that seems to be the lobby, which also doesn't really compare to the scale of the lobby of a luxury cruise ship.

They really could have made this as big as they wanted to, so the fact they have squashed everything so tightly in together is an interesting choice.

EDIT: I see a few people above have made basically the same observation!

 

[BrerfoxVA]

Yes, the recent change in tone from WDI "behind the scenes" videos is striking and saddening.

It's almost as if WDI senior management thinks by putting their middle management in these videos and giving them a self-congratulatory script that drones on and on about how talented and amazing they are, that they will get credit for not paying a bit more or giving an additional week of vacation every year.

The end result for us, the audience, is that we get to see very self-important people talk about how proud they are of their very important work. It's pukey and dumb.

Contrast that with a video like this of Walt and his truly great Imagineers, where the tone is humble and gracious and only meant to engage the audience instead of satisfy HR, and the difference is striking. What the heck happened to this organization?!?

I love that video and often contrast how Walt and Julie are able to get you excited with calm, clear speech and simple visual references instead of hyperventilating or wild gesticulations like the current marketers. Not to mention the emphasis on quality storytelling and fun that you couldn’t get anywhere else. Can you imagine Walt doing a similar walkthrough of the Galactic Starcruiser? ‘And here is where the youngsters will be able to play video games. Now this will be just like what they’re able to do at home, only on a bigger screen. We won’t need to worry about our story because pushing buttons is the story. And they can come back again and again because there will always be another TIE Fighter on our screen to blow up. You see at Disney, we believe that young minds are impressionable and their entertainment should be completely emptied of any educational content, moral purpose, or sense of wonder.’

 

[durangojim]

Interesting that no images of the Captain have leaked out, nor can I find any official recent photos either.

 

[UNCgolf]

They really could have made this as big as they wanted to, so the fact they have squashed everything so tightly in together is an interesting choice.

I think it all goes back to what I posted above about Disney being afraid the concept might not work and thus being unwilling to spend the money to actually make it truly impressive. It's essentially going to be a self-fulfilling prophecy where the concept does fail (at least at this price point) because they didn't spend the money to build large, elaborate settings (among other things).

 

[CinematicFusion]

I hope Galactic Starcruiser is a huge success and the videos/pictures we have seen have been outtakes and lack context.
Example:
1.rooms appear small while looking at released videos but in context while in the hotel and engaged in the story the size fits perfectly.
2.Maybe the generic seating in dining hall was used to get better camera angles of the actors while filming the advertisement and we weren’t supposed to see that.

These reviews tomorrow will tell the story of influencers advertising a product.
The real reviews will come in after.

I’ve taken my shots at this hotel based on leaked videos and marketing campaigns.
I hope I’m wrong and it’s an incredible experience.
Let’s see if Disney delivers….

 

[FigmentFan82]

oof

 

[Incomudro]

When you know you're about to win the bet on using "immersive" in the preview.

Did I hear him say "empowering" too?
I'd love to never hear that word again.
I'm surprised "inclusive", and "diversity" weren't similarly used.

 

[Tha Realest]

I think it all goes back to what I posted above about Disney being afraid the concept might not work and thus being unwilling to spend the money to actually make it truly impressive. It's essentially going to be a self-fulfilling prophecy where the concept does fail (at least at this price point) because they didn't spend the money to build large, elaborate settings (among other things).

I think it's more than that.

Yes, I think they dialed back the extravagance, to their ever-lasting detriment. This is not going to be as easily "plussed up" as DCA was.

But more than that, I think they've fundamentally missed the mark by restricting themselves to an unknown, unfamiliar periphery of the Star Wars IP. I get the argument that creating Batuu or some random cruise ship gives them (the Imagineers, mind you, NOT the guests) the freedom to have their own sandbox unrestricted by decades old films. But is that what the customers want? That, I feel, is the fundamental misunderstanding that has misinformed all of these decisions. We can second guess whether the main dining area should have had higher ceilings and been more opulent. My point is that even if they had thrown more money at this project than they did, it wouldn't have been the success it could have because of a bizarre strategic decision made years ago to restrict all Parks' SW projects to a fixed point in the timeline that makes no coherent or storytelling sense, and is anchored to the most divisive era in all of the films (TLJ-Solo-TROS).

 

[Incomudro]

Gone are the days of REAL IMAGINNEERS the likes of Walt himself, Rolly Crump, Bob Gurr, Marc Davis, Tony Baxter, Marty Sklar, Mary Blair and many many others who used their imagination and were passionate. Who wanted to entertain. Always telling you in those old videos like the Haunted Mansion one, of the creative things they were coming up with not to pat themselves on the back but to get YOU excited for what they were working on. To let you know they were working their butts off to break new ground to entertain YOU! Not to go off a checklist of different ways they can bring up the word 'immerson' that they are scripted to say. People who used every creative bone in their body to make something FOR YOU. Those days are long gone.

This sums up various forms of today's entertainment.
People who lack truly creative abilities of their own checking off boxes.

 

[mergatroid]

I hope Galactic Starcruiser is a huge success and the videos/pictures we have seen have been outtakes and lack context.
Example:
1.rooms appear small while looking at released videos but in context while in the hotel and engaged in the story the size fits perfectly.
2.Maybe the generic seating in dining hall was used to get better camera angles of the actors while filming the advertisement and we weren’t supposed to see that.

These reviews tomorrow will tell the story of influencers advertising a product.
The real reviews will come in after.

I’ve taken my shots at this hotel based on leaked videos and marketing campaigns.
I hope I’m wrong and it’s an incredible experience.
Let’s see if Disney delivers….

Can't disagree with those sentiments

 

[Incomudro]

Does anyone still believe that they went to the expense of building in flight simulators into those trucks that shuttle you to Batuu?
I've been noticing while viewing this experience and looking at it the way WDW does their hotels (yes, they're not billing it as a hotel) this appears more like a moderate level hotel at best - and I'm talking about design, details, etc...
Yes, the comparisons aren't 1 to 1.
But the price for what they've designed and executed... What they've put into it... I just don't see it.

 

[AEfx]

One of the funniest things about this is that the scale seems so small and unimpressive. It's exactly the opposite of how RotR feels (to me at least). And Disney has no one to blame but themselves. Why the heck didn't they just make everything 50% larger? It's not like they didn't have the "blessing of size" when it came to the land.

That's just it...as people have been here comparing square footage with actual, real ships, this point seems to have been forgotten. There is no reason for a bathroom so small you can barely turn around in it...this is just a regular building. One purpose-built, no less.

The more I think about it and read reports of the whole thing feeling claustrophobic (and it certainly looks claustrophobic from the things we've seen so far), the more surprised I am that the Starcruiser doesn't seem to have even one big, impressive set piece.

Yeah, that's a better way to put it - I think even the skeptics were expecting SOMETHING that would make you go "Wow, that's Star Wars!" or even "Wow, I really need to see that in person!" As has been pointed out, in-universe this is supposed to be a luxury space liner, not some cramped military ship.

For reference, this is what a luxury space liner looks like in Star Wars.

 

[wdwmagic]

Does anyone still believe that they went to the expense of building in flight simulators into those trucks that shuttle you to Batuu?
I've been noticing while viewing this experience and looking at it the way WDW does their hotels (yes, they're not billing it as a hotel) this appears more like a moderate level hotel at best - and I'm talking about design, details, etc...
Yes, the comparisons aren't 1 to 1.
But the price for what they've designed and executed... What they've put into it... I just don't see it.

There is a video display and sound effects. Some testers say it’s obvious it’s in a truck bed, but a seamless transition between the Starcruiser and Batuu.

 

[Cesar R M]

Now, that's a WOW. Since I've never been on a cruise, I didn't really see the complaints the "entertainment" is getting here. I think the Gaya singer is good. Not sure it's even in the same league as what you linked to. Thanks @Cesar R M for that. You really put this experience into perspective!

I recommend also watching some of the AQUA theater shows from the OASIS class.
They have been pushing not only Broadway shows, but also Circle du Soleil style mega shows on their major ships (All Oasis classes and most Quantums).
The entertainment on RCCL is impressive.

Hence why I feel this whole Gaya thing to be completely a downer for the price. (and nothing to do with the singer herself, just the show that surrounds her).

 

[Incomudro]

One of the funniest things about this is that the scale seems so small and unimpressive. It's exactly the opposite of how RotR feels (to me at least). And Disney has no one to blame but themselves. Why the heck didn't they just make everything 50% larger? It's not like they didn't have the "blessing of size" when it came to the land.

Yes, they constructed things as if this had the actual size constraints of a spaceship.
But it's on the ground. They didn't have those actual limitations.
They could certainly have made it appear to look like a ship, while making accommodations larger than they did.

 

[dreday3]

I recommend also watching some of the AQUA theater shows from the OASIS class.
They have been pushing not only Broadway shows, but also Circle du Soleil style mega shows on their major ships (All Oasis classes and most Quantums).
The entertainment on RCCL is impressive.

Hence why I feel this whole Gaya thing to be completely a downer for the price. (and nothing to do with the singer herself, just the show that surrounds her).

Now this is getting silly.
Were people really expecting cruise style entertainment extravaganzas? (which for us is the least important part of why we choose a certain cruiseship) Or just a lounge-act type of show?

I was expecting a lounge-y feel, I don't think they achieved it from what was shown so far.

 

[Cesar R M]

That guy is Scott Trowbridge, the creative who led the team for "The Amazing Adventures of Spiderman," at Universal Creative. Might be having some thoughts like "I could've been working on Epic Universe right now instead of this."



Edited the above for space. How about the dining room of a mass market line aiming for Disney's previous demographic? The main dining room on one of Royal Caribbean's ships.

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Hell, lets be more direct.. let's compare the themeing on one of the most popular restaurants in DCL

A place where there is interactivity, the whole place lights up and changes.. screens showcase animation features in screens and even face to face interaction with Crush. ( Imagine if they could have added something similar for kids by having them have a convo with chewbacca or other character)