Test Track refurb???

RSoxNo1

RSoxNo1

Well-Known Member
td1129 said:
Not at all. Everest with the yeti is, IMO, the single most impressive experience in all of WDW. It's just very annoying that anything something breaks we have three or four people with the inevitable disco or tarp comment. Show some originality.
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You forgot planters.

Look, when something so significant hasn't worked for so long complaints are going to be out there. If we stop complaining about it then it takes Disney off the hook. Do you want to excuse them for not maintaining their parks? If so, I have some Fastpasses I can sell you.
 
alphac2005

alphac2005

Well-Known Member
flynnibus said:
Ask yourselves this... Once the newness of the visuals wears off... Will you still yearn to repeat the attraction and if so... Which elements will draw you back?

What's the difference between Indy's emv and simply being thrown around in the dark? The integration between what you see and what you feel. Not just in making the movement more believable but to pull you into the story being woven. That connection seems weaker here. The reasons for the start stop.. The reasons for swerving, why am I going back and forth through these switchbacks?

I worry this lack of connecting tissue ultimately diminishes the enjoyment of the ride system (like being thrown around in the dark analogy).
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It's all very subjective. I'm a massive fan of EPCOT Center and absolutely loved World of Motion, so I have to evaluate anything related to Test Track 1.0 or 2.0 in relative terms. So much is personal taste. Personally, I felt the original Test Track was pretty lifeless. The block test, well, I used to drive down roads like that for work for two years, not so interesting. ABS test, whatever. Apparently the hot and cold rooms, that didn't amount to much, but it is now something to savor according to tons of posts all of the sudden. The road signs, non-working "crashing" Saturn Vue, not so impressive. You're so right, there is a clear theme, the testing of a vehicle on proving grounds. The story is understandable and evident, but it didn't make it great, to me. I think what can be lost here on WDWMagic is the idea of PERSONAL likes and dislikes. If someone felt the original was terrific to them, well, that's great. It's again all subjective.

With Test Track 2.0, when you look at it as a whole, you do have a concept of creating this "SIM Car" and essentially playing it out from the ride to the finish. Personally, I'm a massive future forward type of person and have been fascinated by futuristic vehicles since I was a kid. The whole idea of concepts in the queue to creating futuristic cars is downright exciting to me. Add in another feature of lighting in the dark effects, a pulsing soundtrack, I feel that it's an excellent concept here. To the average guest, I think it's clear that you're seeing how your design stacks up.

I'm always disappointed to see the strip mining of audio-animatronics throughout the property, but short of a complete gutting of the pavilion, the lack of them here isn't an issue. The fact that we have a scene with a cityscape that really gets your mind going back to the finale of World of Motion, the darkness, the lights, the futurism, it looks terrific. As long as the ride doesn't fall apart due to the lack of TDO doing anything right (ahem), I look forward to riding it many times.
 
copcarguyp71

copcarguyp71

Well-Known Member
Watched a POV video on another Disney site from onboard a vehicle. Sorry but at least from the video it seems kind of anticlimactic as refurbs go. Hopefully the video does not do it justice but it just seems like a bunch of neon like lights and some turns followed by the same old outdoor loop. Heck they even kept the same old "oncoming truck" gag at what seems like the same spot.I hope I am wrong but that is what I saw.

The common areas look pretty cool though and I am looking forward to seeing them in Sept.
 
raven

raven

Well-Known Member
copcarguyp71 said:
Watched a POV video on another Disney site from onboard a vehicle. Sorry but at least from the video it seems kind of anticlimactic as refurbs go. Hopefully the video does not do it justice but it just seems like a bunch of neon like lights and some turns followed by the same old outdoor loop. Heck they even kept the same old "oncoming truck" gag at what seems like the same spot.I hope I am wrong but that is what I saw.

The common areas look pretty cool though and I am looking forward to seeing them in Sept.
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The track stayed the same and we knew that. So those gags pretty much had to stay in to make those sudden jerks and breaks make sense.
 
HMF

HMF

Well-Known Member
lazyboy97o said:
I am cautiously optimistic. Have some doubts that I think could just be the shortcomings of filming an attraction.
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I went from cautiously optimistic to completely won over as soon as I saw the first video and it is well known that I am one of the least optimistic posters in these situations.
 
flynnibus

flynnibus

Premium Member
alphac2005 said:
Personally, I felt the original Test Track was pretty lifeless. The block test, well, I used to drive down roads like that for work for two years, not so interesting. ABS test, whatever. Apparently the hot and cold rooms, that didn't amount to much, but it is now something to savor according to tons of posts all of the sudden
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While you may not have found the elements awe inspiring - the movement of the vehicle vs the show scenes was very clear what the movement was for and how it worked with the set. The stops were the start of each test along with the staff talking to you about the upcoming test. The swerving was about stopping and tracking abilities. The fire and cold effects, while stereotypical effects, at least it all worked together. So maybe while one can say the effects weren't great - at least they worked together with the ride system and story.

alphac2005 said:
I think what can be lost here on WDWMagic is the idea of PERSONAL likes and dislikes.
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True - every person makes their own choice on what they like or not - but when you look at likes or dislikes over larger populations it's not entirely individualized.. there are trends, there are consistencies, there are things that a larger portion of people will like, etc. It's real popular for people to say 'well thats your opinion' - but ignore that elements that shape those opinions may be more commonly appreciated or not. So while no one can tell you what to like - it's possible to observe what people see in common, and even make reasonable predictions about what people will like or not. Not perfect, not 100% - but it's not completely random either.

alphac2005 said:
With Test Track 2.0, when you look at it as a whole, you do have a concept of creating this "SIM Car" and essentially playing it out from the ride to the finish. Personally, I'm a massive future forward type of person and have been fascinated by futuristic vehicles since I was a kid. The whole idea of concepts in the queue to creating futuristic cars is downright exciting to me. Add in another feature of lighting in the dark effects, a pulsing soundtrack, I feel that it's an excellent concept here. To the average guest, I think it's clear that you're seeing how your design stacks up.
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But how long before guests realize it doesn't matter what they do in the design - the ride experience is the same? And when that happens.. the design portion becomes 'detached'. Where is the feedback about what your design choices really do? You see it in the post show.. and the ride itself is always the same. So if you were really geeking about the design portion.. you'd almost want to SKIP the ride to see what your choices did. That's a problem for repeatability. You are really doing two separate things. That's why design needs to be reflected in the actual ride experience.. otherwise they are just two things you do.. that someone forced the order of events on you.
 
alphac2005

alphac2005

Well-Known Member
flynnibus said:
But how long before guests realize it doesn't matter what they do in the design - the ride experience is the same? And when that happens.. the design portion becomes 'detached'. Where is the feedback about what your design choices really do? You see it in the post show.. and the ride itself is always the same. So if you were really geeking about the design portion.. you'd almost want to SKIP the ride to see what your choices did. That's a problem for repeatability. You are really doing two separate things. That's why design needs to be reflected in the actual ride experience.. otherwise they are just two things you do.. that someone forced the order of events on you.
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Then the same then can be said about Mission: Space where you supposedly get a "job" to control things in the cabin, but in reality, you're not controlling anything. For those who love the concept of Mission: Space, does that stop them from going on it again and again? Most likely, no. Mission: Space might have light attendance many days, but that's more due to the fact that physical issues impair people from actually going on it or liking the idea.

Again, it's subjective and I think we have a little too much fanboi over-analysis as to repeatability of Test Track 2.0. I have nine year old twins. Guess what? They'll hit that up time after time. The pre-show design of building a car, they thought looked awesome. I had one of my sons go step by step through the new video and tell me what was there before and he was quite excited for the new ride even though he understands that the actual ride track and timing is the same.

C'mon, the honest truth about Test Track for most everyday riders has nothing to do with what is in the building. The racing outside around the pavilion is the ticket, everything else is ancillary.
 
montyz81

montyz81

Well-Known Member
I have to say, I watched the video and this is a significant improvement over TT1.0. Way to go Dis/GM. This is what happens when a sponsor and disney work together. I understand that this isn't everything to everyone, but it sure does beat out TT 1.0. This is just another sign that the Eisner years are being erased. They should use this as the poster child for bringing in new sponsors to fix the rest of the 5 outlaying pavilions in FW. I can't wait to ride this.
 
Tom Morrow

Tom Morrow

Well-Known Member
flynnibus said:
While you may not have found the elements awe inspiring - the movement of the vehicle vs the show scenes was very clear what the movement was for and how it worked with the set. The stops were the start of each test along with the staff talking to you about the upcoming test. The swerving was about stopping and tracking abilities. The fire and cold effects, while stereotypical effects, at least it all worked together. So maybe while one can say the effects weren't great - at least they worked together with the ride system and story.
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I get what you're saying, but the track still makes sense with the new scenes. Except maybe at the hill climb and rough road section.

The POV videos aren't really showing it, but there are screens before and after each test section, before showing what you'll be doing, and after showing how your custom vehicles ranked in that section.

ABS Off = the sim car automatically brakes to avoid the digital avalanche.
ABS On = the sim car automatically swerves to avoid the lightning strike
Environmental chambers = eco efficiency
hairpin turns = responsiveness testing
truck = automatic crash avoidance, part of responsiveness testing. It makes more sense now than having a truck in the middle of a testing facility.
barrier test = full power launch.
 
aladdin2007

aladdin2007

Well-Known Member
montyz81 said:
I have to say, I watched the video and this is a significant improvement over TT1.0. Way to go Dis/GM. This is what happens when a sponsor and disney work together. I understand that this isn't everything to everyone, but it sure does beat out TT 1.0. This is just another sign that the Eisner years are being erased. They should use this as the poster child for bringing in new sponsors to fix the rest of the 5 outlaying pavilions in FW. I can't wait to ride this.
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Agree, lets hope this makes other companies interested. The new test track looks incredible (though TronTrack woudl have been a cooler name at this point), love the effects, lighting, surroundings, sleek/smoothness, its a new power dark ride. So glad all that other empty scrap metal 90s mess is out of there. We even got a new future city! Take that Siemens!!
 
montyz81

montyz81

Well-Known Member
aladdin2007 said:
Agree, lets hope this makes other companies interested. The new test track looks incredible (though TronTrack woudl have been a cooler name at this point), love the effects, lighting, surroundings, sleek/smoothness, its a new power dark ride. So glad all that other empty scrap metal 90s mess is out of there. We even got a new future city! Take that Siemens!!
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Love the Future City. I am not sure if this is a direct reference to the original city in WOM as a tribute, but even so it does give a little bit of the WOM feel. So excited about the job the did here. I also noticed that the entrance canopy doesn't go all the way to the pavilion building. has it always been that way?
 
T

td1129

Well-Known Member
RSoxNo1 said:
You forgot planters.

Look, when something so significant hasn't worked for so long complaints are going to be out there. If we stop complaining about it then it takes Disney off the hook. Do you want to excuse them for not maintaining their parks? If so, I have some Fastpasses I can sell you.
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Not at all, but why can't we just acknowledge and celebrate that they've been knocking things out of the park, without injecting needless negativity? I swear there is no such thing as good news on wdwmagic. Even when something is awesome it will bet pummeled with disco jokes.
 

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