News Tiana's Bayou Adventure - latest details and construction progress

[Incomudro]

These are very interesting. And believe it or not, they've actually partially alleviated some of my concerns about there only being 6 AA's. They do indeed look legitimate, and I can imagine it's fairly accurate to the sets they construct. But it's also clear that the renders can't be used to assume how many AA's there are going to be.

One of these renders is just the empty set without any of the figures inserted yet. Another render shows the lefthand building (formerly occupied by the Swamp Boys) with Eudora and Charlotte. But two of the other renders are of the main building (where the riverboat's wheel used to be) showing two different sets of figures each occupying the same platform. One variant has Tiana and Louis, the other variant has Naveen and Ralphie. So they were still testing different AA's and placements when these renders were made.

The buildings are also similar to the old Riverboat in the sense that it has a lot of empty spaces and platforms on the side where plenty of other AA's could be placed. So until further notice, I suggest taking the "only 6 AA's" claim with a grain of salt. We'll see, but it makes me strongly suspect there will be more figures in the final version. Either critters or also additional human characters as well. Just a hunch, but you have my reasoning now.

I thought this looked like the riverboat location as well.
That riverboat finale has always been a high point for me.
I remember how wowed I was when I first saw it in the early 90's.
If this is indeed that location, I'm getting more of a Frozen attraction feel from this.
Like you say, many less advanced animatronics - like the chickens on the rocking riverboat - can be far more impressive than one or two highly advanced AA's.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

I thought this looked like the riverboat location as well.
That riverboat finale has always been a high point for me.
I remember how wowed I was when I first saw it in the early 90's.
If this is indeed that location, I'm getting more of a Frozen attraction feel from this.
Like you say, many less advanced animatronics - like the chickens on the rocking riverboat - can be far more impressive than one or two highly advanced AA's.

This is definitely the finale room, and they've placed the new restaurant building precisely where the old riverboat was. The two renders showing either Tiana/Louis or Naveen/Ralphie are precisely where the water wheel was located. The way the staircase, rails, landings and upper balcony is constructed, it also looks a lot like the riverboat. Again goes to show how pointless getting rid of it was given how they built something that is so similar anyway.

But that said, it has a ton of space for additional figures. As much, if not even moreso than Splash. It's extremely hard for me to imagine that they'd only include 6 AA's and leave all of that empty space that looks tailor made for characters to occupy. Especially given that some of the figures will be on the lefthand building instead of the main restaurant...

Like you said, not every figure needs be state of the art, older tech in large quantities still looks great as well. Better than fewer more advanced ones. But as I said, I have a feeling we'll probably get a bit of both here. I could be wrong here, but at the very least these renders definitely weren't showcasing fully finalized AA quantity/placement.

 

[harrisonm]

Something I found interesting is that you can see all of the movement points on Louis, including the gap between his lower head and his jaw. Just thought that was an insight into how the figures would move on the final product

 

[Incomudro]

This is definitely the finale room, and they've placed the new restaurant building precisely where the old riverboat was. The two renders showing either Tiana/Louis or Naveen/Ralphie are precisely where the water wheel was located. The way the staircase, rails, landings and upper balcony is constructed, it also looks a lot like the riverboat. Again goes to show how pointless getting rid of it was given how they built something that is so similar anyway.

But that said, it has a ton of space for additional figures. As much, if not even moreso than Splash. It's extremely hard for me to imagine that they'd only include 6 AA's and leave all of that empty space that looks tailor made for characters to occupy...

Like you said, not every figure needs be state of the art, older tech in large quantities still looks great as well. Better than fewer more advanced ones. But as I said, I have a feeling we'll probably get a bit of both here. I could be wrong here, but at the very least these renders definitely weren't showcasing fully finalized AA quantity/placement.

Yes, my hope is that these renders are just concentrating on the most advanced AA's and their placement.
Hoping that the scene will be fleshed out with more less advanced ones.
That's my hope.

 

[Disgruntled Walt]

So they were still testing different AA's and placements when these renders were made.

It looks to me like they can all fit in the locations they were placed in. I'll bet all four of them are on the restaurant spot. It's also possible Tiana is doing a little spin-dance sort of thing, given her arm-positioning.

Yes, my hope is that these renders are just concentrating on the most advanced AA's and their placement.
Hoping that the scene will be fleshed out with more less advanced ones.
That's my hope.

The renderings give me very little hope for the old animatronics remaining in this scene. It looks to me exactly like the Frozen set-up. Any extra animatronics from Splash would almost "take away" from the focus of these new, advanced animatronics. If anything, we'll get them in the bayou scenes earlier, but here it looks like the space is pretty well planned out to focus on the advanced animatronics.

 

[Incomudro]

It looks to me like they can all fit in the locations they were placed in. I'll bet all four of them are on the restaurant spot. It's also possible Tiana is doing a little spin-dance sort of thing, given her arm-positioning.


The renderings give me very little hope for the old animatronics remaining in this scene. It looks to me exactly like the Frozen set-up. Any extra animatronics from Splash would almost "take away" from the focus of these new, advanced animatronics. If anything, we'll get them in the bayou scenes earlier, but here it looks like the space is pretty well planned out to focus on the advanced animatronics.

Frozen is exactly the vibe I am getting as well.
Trying to remain optimistic against that.

 

[Incomudro]

In the words of Han Solo: "I've got a bad feeling about this."

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

It looks to me like they can all fit in the locations they were placed in. I'll bet all four of them are on the restaurant spot. It's also possible Tiana is doing a little spin-dance sort of thing, given her arm-positioning.


The renderings give me very little hope for the old animatronics remaining in this scene. It looks to me exactly like the Frozen set-up. Any extra animatronics from Splash would almost "take away" from the focus of these new, advanced animatronics. If anything, we'll get them in the bayou scenes earlier, but here it looks like the space is pretty well planned out to focus on the advanced animatronics.

Tiana and Louis are both in a "T-pose" position, which is the default state of 3D character models when they haven't been assigned any other poses or animation yet. It doesn't indicate that they're going to be spinning. Here are some other examples from Ratatouille's models for instance-

How we made Ratatouille characters

A few words about working on Ratatouille. The approach taken on this film really required a collaborative environment. All the characters you see here I worked on, but as it was a collective effort...

www.jonathanpaine.ca

If this was supposed to convey the final quantity and placement of the figures, then one has to wonder why they didn't just show all four of those figures on the platform simultaneously. All four of them may well end up there in the final version. But my point is that these renders were still in a very incomplete state when they were screenshotted. They cannot be used as evidence that this is the quantity of figures that will be present in the final version.

To me, it makes little sense for them to build this new physical restaurant facade with so many obvious platforms that look specifically designed to hold animatronics, only to leave them empty. Otherwise they could have done something much more flat and simplistic and leave most/all of those platforms out. Like the very different Tiana's Palace from the film (and also what they based the Disneyland restaurant off).

For the record, I'm not even arguing they'll reuse any of Splash's figures specifically for this scene. But there are still a number of other characters from just the original film that you would think would be likely to appear in the finale. Naveen's parents and Big Daddy LaBouff were specifically mentioned in statements to be a part of the ride. I could also possibly see Mama Odie being present as well. There's also the other new musical critters as well as Tiana's employees that were created for this ride and the D+ series.

If I hear something to indicate that we are indeed only getting a very small quantity of AA's for this scene, I will share it and readily join in on the negativity. I haven't heard anything either way, just that the ride as a whole is supposed to have quite a lot of AA's. And the scarce pieces of art they've released thus far has lent credence towards that claim being accurate. I have my doubts at the moment that the finale of all scenes would have such an absurdly tiny amount (that would likely be fewer than two of the other earlier scenes they've shown art of). Especially with the clearly primitive state in which these renders were taken in, as well as the copious amount of empty platforms they've constructed that look like they're supposed to have characters present.

 

[Brer Panther]

I don't see why they should remove the Swamp Boys. They're gators! They could easily fit into the ride.

 

[Ayla]

In the words of Han Solo: "I've got a bad feeling about this.

Frozen is exactly the vibe I am getting as well.
Trying to remain optimistic against that.

These don't go together. lol

 

[Bocabear]

Tiana and Louis are both in a "T-pose" position, which is the default state of 3D character models when they haven't been assigned any other poses or animation yet. It doesn't indicate that they're going to be spinning. Here are some other examples from Ratatouille's models for instance-

How we made Ratatouille characters

A few words about working on Ratatouille. The approach taken on this film really required a collaborative environment. All the characters you see here I worked on, but as it was a collective effort...

www.jonathanpaine.ca

If this was supposed to convey the final quantity and placement of the figures, then one has to wonder why they didn't just show all four of those figures on the platform simultaneously. All four of them may well end up there in the final version. But my point is that these renders were still in a very incomplete state when they were screenshotted. They cannot be used as evidence that this is the quantity of figures that will be present in the final version.

To me, it makes little sense for them to build this new physical restaurant facade with so many obvious platforms that look specifically designed to hold animatronics, only to leave them empty. Otherwise they could have done something much more flat and simplistic and leave most/all of those platforms out. Like the very different Tiana's Palace from the film (and also what they based the Disneyland restaurant off).

For the record, I'm not even arguing they'll reuse any of Splash's figures specifically for this scene. But there are still a number of other characters from just the original film that you would think would be likely to appear in the finale. Naveen's parents and Big Daddy LaBouff were specifically mentioned in statements to be a part of the ride. I could also possibly see Mama Odie being present as well. There's also the other new musical critters as well as Tiana's employees that were created for this ride and the D+ series.

If I hear something to indicate that we are indeed only getting a very small quantity of AA's for this scene, I will share it and readily join in on the negativity. I haven't heard anything either way, just that the ride as a whole is supposed to have quite a lot of AA's. And the scarce pieces of art they've released thus far has lent credence towards that claim being accurate. I have my doubts at the moment that the finale of all scenes would have such an absurdly tiny amount (that would likely be fewer than two of the other earlier scenes they've shown art of). Especially with the clearly primitive state in which these renders were taken in, as well as the copious amount of empty platforms they've constructed that look like they're supposed to have characters present.

I would have agreed if I did not ride the Frozen attraction at EPCOT...
It just looks like half of the setting is missing when you get to the top of the lift hill... Maybe it was planned with a lack of characters or the buget got cut, but it looks incomplete...I guess this could happen here too... lots of places designed for characters that will later get cut down to a few...
I am hoping for the best though.

 

[UNCgolf]

I would have agreed if I did not ride the Frozen attraction at EPCOT...
It just looks like half of the setting is missing when you get to the top of the lift hill... Maybe it was planned with a lack of characters or the buget got cut, but it looks incomplete...I guess this could happen here too... lots of places designed for characters that will later get cut down to a few...
I am hoping for the best though.

The lack of characters isn't really a big problem in Frozen; it's the lack of everything else.

More characters would help but they wouldn't address the main issue.

 

[Incomudro]

These don't go together. lol

I know.
I'm back and forth with conflicting emotions about what they are doing with this attraction.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

I would have agreed if I did not ride the Frozen attraction at EPCOT...
It just looks like half of the setting is missing when you get to the top of the lift hill... Maybe it was planned with a lack of characters or the buget got cut, but it looks incomplete...I guess this could happen here too... lots of places designed for characters that will later get cut down to a few...
I am hoping for the best though.

Frozen was always a cheapo retheme, you could even tell this from the concept art. They built what was promised, but what was promised sucked. Even the scenery is poor, a lot of flat empty corridors with minimal detail. In that regard, it's a downgrade even from Maelstrom, which itself didn't even have many AA's but it had some high quality scenery to compensate. Having more figures (and non face projected ones) would improve things, but it wouldn't be enough to save Frozen.

Tiana is already looking far better of an attraction than Frozen and has a much higher budget. Not only should the scenery be of much higher quality, but it's already looking like it will be a more populous attraction than Frozen. At least based on what has been teased in press reports as well as the couple of pieces of art they've released. They're not just using film characters either, they're creating a ton of brand new characters specifically for the ride and D+ series. I see exceedingly little evidence that this ride is going to be as cheaply and poorly done as Frozen.

If the finale has only 6 figures, it will make no sense. There's also several key characters that are slated to be in the ride that you would figure should be in that scene but are missing from the renders. Even ignoring the copious amount of other empty spaces that other figures should occupy. The artwork of the very first scene alone shows 11 characters. The prior artwork of Tiana and Naveen in the boat (which Splash Archive claims will be located in the old Laughing Place) had at least the same amount based on the foreground figures alongside the other instrument playing silhouetted animals. I can't imagine that the finale would have the fewest amount of AA's of any major scene in the ride...

 

[rd805]

Frozen was always a cheapo retheme, you could even tell this from the concept art. They built what was promised, but what was promised sucked. Even the scenery is poor, a lot of flat empty corridors with minimal detail. In that regard, it's a downgrade even from Maelstrom, which itself didn't even have many AA's but it had some high quality scenery to compensate. Having more figures (and non face projected ones) would improve things, but it wouldn't be enough to save Frozen.

Tiana is already looking far better of an attraction than Frozen and has a much higher budget. Not only should the scenery be of much higher quality, but it's already looking like it will be a more populous attraction than Frozen. At least based on what has been teased in press reports as well as the couple of pieces of art they've released. They're not just using film characters either, they're creating a ton of brand new characters specifically for the ride and D+ series. I see exceedingly little evidence that this ride is going to be as cheaply and poorly done as Frozen.

Calling Frozen a downgrade from Maelstrom is the biggest hyperbole and hottake. You can argue all day about the fit in Epcot, but the attraction itself is a renowned upgrade from the former.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

Calling Frozen a downgrade from Maelstrom is the biggest hyperbole and hottake. You can argue all day about the fit in Epcot, but the attraction itself is a renowned upgrade from the former.

It's not hyperbole or a hot take in the slightest, I legitimately consider Maelstrom to be a superior ride by a significant margin and Frozen a major downgrade. I don't even think you'd have a hard time finding people who agree either. I know others on this forum who share my opinion. I've spoken on this matter and given my reasoning multiple times. The quality of Frozen's scenery alone is trash. Lots of blank black and/or blurry walls. The face projections are also awful.

I'm glad Hong Kong is getting updated AA's without projection crap (though it's still otherwise a clone of Epcot's and will retain its other problems). Maelstrom's only real flaw was its brevity, something that Frozen also did nothing whatsoever to fix. Even if it had been placed in a more appropriate location such as Fantasyland, it still would have been a poor ride IMO. Tokyo is getting a unique version of Frozen that isn't a clone of the Epcot variant (too bad about Hong Kong and Paris), hopefully it turns out much better as a result...

Give me this literally any day over Frozen Ever After-

 

[mickEblu]

The Zip finale on Splash was so Grand and well executed and just so happened to perfectly work with the theme of PatF. Seems like they re intent on changing it so people aren’t “constantly reminded of Splash.” If they re going that route they better put the money and resources so it doesn’t pale in comparison to the same scene Splash Mountain. People would rather have a similar setting (that again, works perfectly with the new theme) than something half @$$ed that looks totally different. I can’t understand what the point of recreating a Tiana’s Palace in the last room is when the “real” restaurant is right outside.

They didn’t have to do a thing to that last scene but take the name off the River boat and put in the new AAs.

 

[Honeycomb]

The Zip finale on Splash was so Grand and well executed and just so happened to perfectly work with the theme of PatF. Seems like they re intent on changing it so people aren’t “constantly reminded of Splash.” If they re going that route they better put the money and resources so it doesn’t pale in comparison to Splash Mountain. People would rather have a similar setting (that again works perfectly with the new theme) than something half @$$ed that looks totally different. It can’t understand what the point of recreating a Tiana’s Palace in the last room when the “real” restaurant is right outside.

They didn’t have to do a thing to that last scene but take the name off the River boat and put in the new AAs.

Doo Dah Landing was my favorite area in all of Disneyland.

 

[UNCgolf]

Calling Frozen a downgrade from Maelstrom is the biggest hyperbole and hottake. You can argue all day about the fit in Epcot, but the attraction itself is a renowned upgrade from the former.

A renowned upgrade? Really?

This is the first time I've ever heard anyone say anything like that. I personally think Maelstrom was a better attraction (it wasn't great, but FEA is near the bottom of WDW attractions) -- but even people who think FEA is better don't generally think it's any kind of masterpiece. Renowned is a strange word to use.

 

[rd805]

A renowned upgrade? Really?

This is the first time I've ever heard anyone say anything like that. I personally think Maelstrom was a better attraction (it wasn't great, but FEA is near the bottom of WDW attractions) -- but even people who think FEA is better don't generally think it's any kind of masterpiece. Renowned is a strange word to use.

We (the WDW Disney Enthusiasts) often have a different viewpoint from the every day targeted Disney guest. The Frozen ride is immensely popular. Maelstrom had a place in all of our heart's, but the wait times were average walk on VS. Frozen which is consistently 60 minutes.

Again, the historian and avid fan (most of this board) may have different views, but the echo chamber we converse in shouldn't be the end all/be all on how successful this ride is for the park.