News Test Track to be reimagined

[SplashJacket]

I don't think that's really a fair comparison.

Regardless, EPCOT was at its most successful when it existed in that form, so the argument that it needed more variety isn't really backed up by evidence. They keep adding more thrill rides and it keeps not working.

Many video games have very repetitive gameplay loops, but their fans still love them because the core gameplay is strong. That’s not to say those games could benefit from swapping some of that repetitive gameplay with fresh, new, different gameplay to keep players engaged and interested.

OG Epcot was very repetitive but its attractions were strong, so people loved them. That’s not to say it couldn’t benefit from more variety.

 

[UNCgolf]

I only visited "classic" Epcot once, I visited in 1985 but not again until 2009. If I had been going on a regular basis I would have preferred a larger variety in the types of rides.

Disney shouldn't design for people going on a regular basis, though (and I don't think they do).

People are going to get bored with certain attractions no matter how good they are if they are visiting several times a year.

I understand the point people are making, I just don't think it holds up based on the actual evidence. It also apparently isn't an issue for the large number of parks that currently exist with little to no variety in the ride offerings.

More importantly (and this is probably the biggest issue)... they could have increased ride variety through additions instead of replacements. Not that I'm suggesting that all of the original EPCOT rides could still exist today -- some would be wildly outdated, which is the reason they were losing popularity in the first place -- but the park would be much better today if they stuck with the original pavilion concepts with updated attractions.

 

[danlb_2000]

I understand the point people are making, I just don't think it holds up based on the actual evidence. It also apparently isn't an issue for the large number of parks that currently exist with little to no variety in the ride offerings.

Maybe we are talking about two different things. When I talk about the lack of "variety" in the original park, I mean a mix of different ride systems so you get visceral differences in the rides. The original Epcot rides provided a lot of variety in what you saw an heard, but not in what you felt.

 

[UNCgolf]

Maybe we are talking about two different things. When I talk about the lack of "variety" in the original park, I mean a mix of different ride systems so you get visceral differences in the rides. The original Epcot rides provided a lot of variety in what you saw an heard, but not in what you felt.

No, we're talking about the same thing -- just different opinions on it. To me, a park that's a bunch of unthemed roller coasters has little to no variety. A difference in feeling is far less interesting than a difference in content.

I.e., I found a lot more variety in original EPCOT than I find at a Six Flags.

 

[Jayspency]

One thing though that I will say about classic Epcot is that the actually had pavilions - areas with multiple related activities. While I think the rides needed to have some better variety of experiences, they should still have more robust and cohesive pavilions. No reason why M:S couldn’t have an area or show devoted to space travel (not just a kiddie play area) or some more in-depth transportation exhibits in TT and so on. And we list the upstairs Imagination. And of course WoL which had a movie and a show and a ride. Why isn’t there “more” in all that space in Cosmic Rewind? (And I absolutely adore that ride, but there still could be additional “stuff” there.)

That to me is the bigger issue with how FW changed from its origins.

More pre/post shows!

 

[C33Mom]

More pre/post shows!

I assume we are going to keep getting more pre/post shows because the “show” allows Disney to keep you in what is effectively the queue for 15-25m, even after it’s sold you a fastpass, especially when there’s an unavoidable queue post show (Cosmic Rewind, Test Track, RotR, Tower of Terror, Dinosaur…).

 

[WDWFREAK53]

Many video games have very repetitive gameplay loops, but their fans still love them because the core gameplay is strong. That’s not to say those games could benefit from swapping some of that repetitive gameplay with fresh, new, different gameplay to keep players engaged and interested.

OG Epcot was very repetitive but its attractions were strong, so people loved them. That’s not to say it couldn’t benefit from more variety.

But, to continue with your video game analogy...
Those old "repetitive gameplay loops" in video games would sometimes mix it up a bit and have a different type of level or "bonus level" which would break it up, and those were usually the most remembered of the games because they WERE different.

ie:
BattleToads. That level where you rode the speeders sticks out more than any other level.
TMNT...the swimming levels were you disable the bombs.
Mario 3: The bonuses that were like a slot machine
Sonic 3: The bonus levels where you ran on a sphere and tried to collect the blue balls