The Creator Games!: An Imagineering Competition - Omega Challenge

JokersWild

Well-Known Member
Hey, guys. So, here are my reviews for the projects. I would like to apologize beforehand if I come across as harsh. That is absolutely not my intention; I'm doing this a bit off the cuff so I'm kinda just writing notes as I read the projects. Anyway, reviews!

Disney Dad 300 - Wonders
First of all, great project overall. I don't mean to start off with what is essentially a nitpick, but I would like to say that the font you used was a bit small. I don't know if it was an unintended format issue, but I had a lot of trouble reading this project. Just for future reference, please use the normal font, or at least make the font size bigger.

On to the actual park, it was really good. I would like to say right off the bat that I worry that your park might be too similar to World Showcase. Of course, there are distinct differences, but I feel that the overall theme of the park was a bit close to WS. I'd also like to quickly mention that I feel that the name "Wonders" sounds a bit incomplete. It's a great name, no doubt, and I see exactly where you're coming from, but it's just missing something. Perhaps something like "Wonders of..." or something to that extent. Or even a pun like Disney's World. You Passport concept is also a great concept, though, also, might be a bit close to some World Showcase ideas. Also, a lot of the ideas you present for the Passport are also already being used by Disney through Photopass.

Getting into the park, I'd like to get something straight. What is the Transportation Hub exactly? It sounds like a second TTC of sorts, which, while it's an interesting idea, is a bit redundant.

World Avenue sounds great. The only thing I would suggest is maybe focus on a bunch of different aesthetics, rather than just Parisian. It could possibly really help put people into the ideas of the park if multiple cultures are represented. That's just me, though. There aren't really any problems with this land, it was really just a nitpick. In terms of the hub, it sounds...interesting. Let me get something straight: the hub is comprised of a bunch of fountains? I'm not entirely sure that this hub works. A hub is supposed to draw people in and get them to want to explore the rest of the park. Not only do I think this fountain concept may be too small for a park icon, I also feel that it might be too abstract: it's not a focal point, I feel. Other than that I have one other question: What is Wonders Lake? I saw it mentioned once, but never again.

South America sounds great. Indiana Jones is a much needed, and long rumored, addition to the parks, and it's a great and very realistic addition. The Donald Duck show is also very solid, but I feel it would have benefitted from a Three Cabelleros focus. Or even a Saludos Amigos approach. The South American Experience was probably the most solid concept in the park, honestly. It really captured the spirit of the continent, which I thought was really great.

Moving on, I'm not entirely sure how realistic The Tube is. With the water table in Florida, you would have to build the park up to allow for the tube to be built. The Big Ben Drop also doesn't sound very much like a Disney ride. Frankly, it sounds more like a Six Flags or Universal attraction. Not that that's a bad thing. It just doesn't quite fit in for Disney, I feel. 101 Dalmatians sounds like a great addition. Especially with the Toad elements.

Arendelle doesn't quite fit with the rest of the park. It's just a weird juxtapose seeing Arendelle among all of these real places. The attractions looked great, though.

North America is oddly large. Also, how does Stitch fit in Alcatraz. I see what you're going for, but it just doesn't work. Alcatraz is a great concept, as you could have really dug into the history of the island, but Stitch just doesn't fit. I'd also like to quickly mention that Lady and the Tramp already has a restaurant in MK, which might make it redundant to put one into your park. It sounds like a great restaurant. It just might be a bit redundant.

Overall, I really enjoyed this park. Most of my critiques were honestly nitpicks, and I did fully enjoy this park. Your park was definitely the most fully realized as well, which is a definite plus. Overall, great job!

DSquared - Forbidden Peak
First off, great name, and concept. Before we get into it, I don't have a ton to say as this project was a bit smaller than Disney Dad's.

Overall, the ideas were great, but the execution left a lot to be desired. You had WAAAY too many clones. That is my main critique with this project. When the rides were original, they sounded great, but the park is made up of A LOT of clones. What concerned me more was your habit of moving attractions from MK, and putting them into your park, seemingly for the sake of putting them into your park. It doesn't make sense to have Haunted Mansion and Mystic Point because Mystic Point was designed to be the Haunted Mansion of HKDL. You moved a ton of Mk attractions to your park. I feel that that really ruins part of the point of MK. Magic Kingdom is the main park. It's where all of the beloved classic rides reside. It's the park that many go to first, and rightfully so, to experience the classic attractions that have been ingrained in our pop culture for decades. Moving these rides out of the castle park really gives MK less impact.

The Gravity Falls additions sounded very solid. Definitely the highlight of your park, I feel. Darby O'Gill was also an incredibly interesting addition. It was a gamble, but I honestly like the idea.

In the end, this was a great park, but you need to realize that, while clones are good, you shouldn't/ can't design a park around them. Especially when you're moving so many attractions from MK.

Flippin'Flounder - Walt Disney's Dream
Interesting name, but, like Disney Dad, it doesn't quite sound like a park. The concept I feel also needs tweaking. It's a great idea, but is pretty damn dark. Perhaps focusing on the dreams of the masses rather than Walt Disney's dreams could help round the park out better. It's practically there in the Dreamfinder story.

Speaking of Dreamfinder, it's great to see him back in a park.

Tomorrow's Child is an interesting concept with a strange name, though I feel it's slightly disjointed. Perhaps if you focused on Walt's original dream of EPCOT rather than what EPCOT became. As it stands now, Tomorrow's Child is a weird conglomeration of concepts from the Tomorrowland of multiple eras, and EPCOT Center. Perhaps focusing on one of those ideas would help the land feel more coherent.

I also feel that the park loses its focus halfway through. We go from a Main Street dedicated to Walt Disney and his dreams, followed by Tomorrow's Child, a land based on his dreams of the future, followed by Cherry Tree Lane and Fairytale Gardens, which are based on...Disney films.

There are definitely great concepts here, and I know that you had trouble finishing this on time, but if the park was a bit more coherent with a few tweaks, you would be in much better shape. I'd love to see the rest of your park, if you ever get around to it.



Again, great job all around. I apologize if I came across as harsh at any point, as that was in no way my intention. Good luck to all of you.
 
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tcool

Well-Known Member
Tcool's Reviews

Wonders by @Disney Dad 3000

First of all I feel like this is in essence a copy of what World Showcase has become. It represents real places, but at the same time fictional. Looking at you Arrendelle at both Epcot and Wonders. I believe using the Richard Petty Driving Experience for shared parking for both MK and Wonders is a bad ideas. Although you didn't state it currently MK will be getting that area for parking.What I do wish is that you went into some detail about your stores and restaurants. For example a name would be nice. I would've also liked some detail about your nigh time water fountain show. To me its strange that you brought over the Passports, but not something similar to Kidcot.

South America -
I like the Macho Pisu, Indiana Jones, and Up. However it's Paradise Falls not Victoria Falls. I really liked Donald & Daisy's Carnival Theater, but I wasn't the biggest fan of of his three nephews coming. I feel like you meant Jose Caricoa to be included to be included, but never said so. I also would have loved for the Araucan Bird to be included. I'm not fan of Shelly's Turtle Tour as it sounds like all you'll do is see a bunch of Tortoises. I like the general concept of the South American Adventure. I feel like that one restaurant would not be enough. While the amount of stores feels wrong I don't think every attraction would need one.

London -
A Brave Experience would be bad at London since it takes place in Du'Broch it would be like Arrendelle in Norway. The Tube would be impossible due to Florida's water table, but that may not be a problem if Wonders was built onto a second floor similar to Magic Kingdom. Again the portion of stores and restaurants seem small. I feel like London would've been an excellent way to bring back Mr Toad's Wild Ride.

Arrendelle -
It's Kristoff not Christophe. Sledding with Christophe could've been easily a coaster, and honestly Snowcanons is not necessary as we already have two shooting attractions, and a third if you count Frontierland Shooting Gallery. It would be nice if The Love Trolls would've have something to go about. I like the last thing a lot because that means I can revisit the Snowgrounds. This land would've been a perfect way to move the Frozen stuff out of DHS, and into here where it would belong. I still don't think the amount of stores is right, and this land really needs a restaurant.

North America -
I'm not the biggest fan of 3G, but that's because I don't like coasters that much. However I do like the concept. I don't like Stitch's Great Escape. I don't like it here nor there, I wouldn't like it any where unless it's in Yesterland. I'm not a fan of Dumbo Spinner #5. I like the idea of the Trolley Restaurant. I honestly don't like the idea of a Fastpass only attraction, and is the theater a movie theater or a stage production? The wording confuses me, but if it were the stage shows I would approve. The taxi thing I'm iffy about, and the Rescuers Dark Ride is okay I guess. So are you just remaking Tony's, and Lady and the Tramp is not set in NYC. There's also not a single store in this land.

Arabia -
You could have honestly just called this place Agrabah, and there would be no difference. Mostly this area was good, but bared to much similarity to me to Morocco. Also it would've helped if there were a second restaurant, and I would think the Bazzar is large so no complaints on the stores here.

Overall the lack of stores, and restaurants sort of brought this proposal down. Some of the attractions sounded good, and others I could live without. This seemed like you honestly copied World Showcase, and made it bigger.

1) How would you rate the park overall?
Overall a 7

2) Quality of overall themes and designs?
Overall a 6

3) Quality of attractions?
Overall a 6

4) Quality of restaurants, eateries, shops?
Overall a 4

Total -

21


Forbidden Peak by @DSquared

I've told DisneyDad, and I'll tell you sharing parking with Magic Kingdom is a bad idea. And will likely create a parking nightmare. Also the layout seems odd, but you did say you worked on it on your Idevice.

Strange Street -
Even on opening day this area seems small, and it wouldn't have hurt to include a restaurant or two here other than ice cream. Bald Mountain sounds good, but I don't know how long Chrenabog will fully function in the Florida Weather.

Enchanted Forest -
This place is all over the place. There's the USA, Ireland?, Alaska/Cananda, and Germany in one land. The Gravity Falls stuff is bad idea by the time the park celebrates it's fifth anniversary the show would be over. Darbyo'Gill is a bad idea the general public don't know what it is, and necessarily wouldn't care about the movie. I don't even know what the film is about. The Once Upon a Time thing belongs in DHS/DHA. The 3 Spirits either belongs in AK or Epcot not here. The cloning of 7DMT is a horrible idea because why would you move that attraction here? It makes no sense at all.

Bad Bayou -
This is where Bald Mountain should be not Strange Street. The tech isn't really new or neon it's the same tech at Buzz. I'm pretty sure its just projections. Gaston's Tavern is a bad idea leave it at MK.

Ghostville USA -
Mystic Manor has nothing to do with ghosts. Leave the Haunted Mansion at MK. Leave TOT at DHS.

New Pandora -
I dislike this land this land doesn't make sense here at all. Having it in AK is a stretch, but another Pandora thing is not right. Also why would anyone want two Pandora Lands?

Pirate Cove -
The Little Mermaid and Finding Nemo aren't pirate related. Where did you even get pirats from Finding Nemo? That film takes place in the modern age not during the time of Pirates and Mermaids. Leave POTC, Mermaid, and Pirate's League at MK. I don't agree with bringing back Jack Sparrow. I'm not a fan of the retelling of Nemo, and I'm not sure about the location of all the Nemo stuff either. I think Nemo should be left at Epcot and AK. However it truly belongs at DHS.

2021 to 2031 -
I like the Strange Street expansion. (See I'm not against everything!) By 2031 Gravity Falls and Once Upon a Time likely wouldn't be relevant unless Disney continues to promote these shows for 16 more years. 7 Dwarves Jem Pile in essence to me sounds a lot like the current queue. SWSA doesn't fit in Bad Bayou the villain dies at the end. Also I don't feel like this ride is needed.

Mythica -
Why is there so many 3D attractions in this park? Not really a criticism just curious. Where did this train come from that would supply this land with a train stop? The Herculand is okay.

Misc Stuff -
I like villains, but Chernabog should really be in Bad Bayou. I like Sleepy Hollow this would be the best transition between the Forest and Bayou. The Underworld Show is called Villains Tonight. Unless it's brand new show, but it honestly sounds like Villains Tonight. Leave Dino land in AK. It fits there, and doesn't mesh with this park. For that part neither does Avatar. The parade sounds good. Mystic Manor has no ghosts everything has been enchanted b the music box. Whats SitS? Leave Fantasmic! at DHS I don't evn think it's been rumored to leave.

Overall I don't really like the park that much. It seems like at first you wanted to recreate MK. Then in came TOT and Once Upon a Time giving it the DHS vibe, and Dino Land and Pandora with the AK vibe. In essence your park was all over. The main problem with your park is that your just moving a bunch of WDW Attractions over here. Not only is that not going to happen on that scale, but Disney will likely not move all those attractions here ever. Along with the fact that Disney would probably leave all those locations empty for a long time. Also the usage of Gravity Falls didn't feel right. I'm not against it, but it depends on the scale something like a meet and greet or something similar to Agent P would be fine.

1) How would you rate the park overall?
Overall a 6

2) Quality of overall themes and designs?
Overall a 3

3) Quality of attractions?
Overall a 5

4) Quality of restaurants, eateries, shops?
Overall a 5

Total -
19


Walt Disney's Dream by @Flippin'Flounder

I like the backstory. It's a bad idea to share parking with the MK.

Walt Street -
It feels wrong have Figment and Dreamfinder, but still have Imagination! at Epcot. This land could use an additional restaurant or two. As well as a couple stores. The meet&greets sound fine.

Tomorrow's Child -
Overall I like this land however I'm not sure about having Autopia here. Also it would be nice to have a restaurant here.

Cherry Tree Lane -
I like this land it doesn't sound too big, and it seems that it will serve it's attractions well.

Fairytale Garden -
I like this land as well. However I would like more villains represented than the Gold and Silver ones. Also another store and restaurant would've be nice.

Honestly if you were to have finsihed the park you would've likely have gotten my highest score, but I do have to take into account you never truly finished. There's a big lack of stores in the park and that is my biggest complaint. I wouldn't mind additional restaurants. I had to subtract additional points due to it not being completed.

1) How would you rate the park overall?
Overall a 5

2) Quality of overall themes and designs?
Overall a 5

3) Quality of attractions?
Overall a 5

4) Quality of restaurants, eateries, shops?
Overall a 3

Total -
18


I hope I wasn't too harsh. Please don't be offended anyone. Thanks for reading my reviews.
 

spacemt354

Chili's
Original Poster
@Disney Dad 3000 - Wonders

For a first imagineering project, this really showed a lot of talent and detail driven imagination. For the park as a whole, I enjoyed it. Your costs were organized and your layout was solid (though I would suggest a larger font size) Maybe I'm just old but I was having trouble reading your presentation at times. :p

Starting off with the title, it sounds too similar to the Disney Wonder Cruise Ship to me. Disney loves to use words like Wonder, Journey, Adventure, Magic, and so on in their parks/rides, so you definitely are on the right track, but choose another "Disney-esque" term to go along with it. Wonders of Adventure? Maybe? Anyway...

You're park layout is nice and I like how you really got into the monetary portion of the competition. I'm a big fan of statistics and budget costs, so I really appreciated all the time you spent to calculate this stuff. For the park, it seems like a combination fo magic Kingdom and World Showcase. While the park does lie in between both of those locations, I think you would have been better off deferentiating yourself from those parks. Actually, if you didn't say that, I would have guessed it would be a combination of Animal Kingdom as well, since South America is a land that people have wanted to see for DAK.

For your lands, my favorite was London, and even though there is a UK pavilion in Epcot, I like how you expanded on it here. Arendelle was actually pretty cool as well, even though I'm a bit tired of Frozen, I would want to go and see that. Arabia and South America were my 3rd and 4th respectively, as I thought South America could be better suited in DAK, but that's just my personal opinion. Nothing really wrong with the land, just I think there's a better location for it. North America was interesting because it seemed to take up a lot of space and brought back Stitch in Alcatraz, which surprised me. But a lot of tourists to WDW come from the Northeast, and myself coming from the NYC area, the last thing I want to see in Florida is NYC.

Overall, this was really well done and a park I would definitely want to visit! The one thing I wish you included was a map. Maybe I missed it in the posts, but a map of the overall park would have been nice (and was also one of the rules I believe)

1) How would you rate the park overall? (1-10)

8
2) Quality of overall themes and designs? (1-10)
7
3) Quality of attractions? (1-10)
8
4) Quality of restaurants, eateries, shops? (1-10)
6

Total - 29 (out of 40)

@DSquared - Forbidden Peak

First off, I like the concept as a whole, but as I continued to read through it, the message of the park got lost to me. Overall, I think you may benefit from using less clones from other parks, because it makes the park a hodgepodge of different attractions instead of a park that functions as a unit.

For your map, the effort is definitely noted. Working on an Ipod can be difficult, so the fact that you got something is pretty good. I will start off with some of the things I didn't really like or was confused by, then I will get into the positives. For starters, why is the 7DMT cloned from right up the street? Will the FLE still exist? I don't know why Disney would want 2 copies of the same ride a few miles apart. The clones will be a theme here, as there are too many things cloned from the Magic Kingdom. Haunted Mansion and so forth. If your proposal just included your innovative, original attractions, it would have been a lot better. Which brings me to the positives...

Your original attractions, such as Gravity Falls and Jafar's Revenge sound really interesting. For future projects, I would suggest focusing on these parameters instead of cloning other attractions. Trust me, it goes a long way on these boards. So keep up the good work!

1) How would you rate the park overall? (1-10)
6
2) Quality of overall themes and designs? (1-10)
5
3) Quality of attractions? (1-10)
5
4) Quality of restaurants, eateries, shops? (1-10)
7

Total - 23 (out of 40)

@Flippin'Flounder - Walt Disney's Dream

An interesting concept that I really wish was finished for me to see the full result. But from what you proposed, this would be quite nice to see. I think the name could use some tinkering because Walt Disney's Dream sounds like "One Man's Dream" and not like a theme park. Overall, since you decided on this name, I wish the park didn't stray too far from Walt in the sense of Cherry Tree Land and the Enchanted Forest.

I'm not really a fan of having the Willis Tower(s) be the centerpiece of the park. How does that fit Walt Disney's Dream? If you designed the original Epcot tower I think that would better fit his dream. I also think the music selection is a bit too eclectic. One of my favorite parks of Disney Parks is the background music, and how it blends into different atmospheres so seemlessly. If this is a "dream" or a vision of the future, maybe some more techno beats like in Innoventions or Tomorrowland would fit better? Tomorrow's Child was very neat, as it calls back the retro-Epcot vibes and a little bit of Tomorrowland as well. But the Autopia and Peoplemover are already in the Magic Kingdom.

As I said before, I think this project had a lot of potential and I would really like to see the finished product someday.


1) How would you rate the park overall? (1-10)
5
2) Quality of overall themes and designs? (1-10)
5
3) Quality of attractions? (1-10)
5
4) Quality of restaurants, eateries, shops? (1-10)
5

Total - 20 (out of 40)
 
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JokersWild

Well-Known Member
Guess who forgot to do actual number ratings....

Disney Dad
Overall - 8.5/10
Themes and Designs - 9/10
Attractions - 7.5/10
Restaurants/ Shops/ Eateries - 6/10
Total - 31/40

DSquared
Overall - 6
Themes and Designs - 5
Attractions - 4
Restaurants/ Shops/ Eateries - 6
Total - 21/40

Flippin'Flounder
Overall - 7
Themes and Designs - 5
Attractions - 7
Restaurants/ Shops/ Eateries - 4
Total - 21/40
 

Flippin'Flounder

Well-Known Member
I might finish eventually, we will see. @tcool I chose Golden and Silver villains because Walt had nothing to do with anything after he died, and the live action and package ones are too obscure to put in a ride, except maybe the Headless Horseman. @spacemt354 The Willis Tower would just be at the entrance to block the view of Bald Mountain. I chose it because it is the most iconic building in Chicago, and I didn't have any better ideas.
 

spacemt354

Chili's
Original Poster
Alrighty then everyone based on the judges tally these are the final results:

1.) @Disney Dad 3000 (average overall score = 27)
2.) @DSquared (average overall score = 21)
3.) @Flippin'Flounder (average overall score = 20)

With that tally @Disney Dad 3000 is the winner of the Omega Challenge! You all did great work and we are all very glad that you're going to continue imagineering on this forum. We will see you all in Sorcerer's Apprentice Season 3!

Special thanks to @JokersWild and @tcool for judging and to @IDInstitute (although he's really busy right now, none of this could have happened without him)

Thanks everyone and see you on the forums!
 

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