I agree. Rides should have a low barrier of entry for understanding and enjoyment, but they should also have a very high ceiling as well.
Personally, as a kid, I didn’t understand the whole story of Splash Mountain, it was just a really cool ride with great music, scenery, some thrill, some water, and plenty of animatronics.
Despite not understanding, I loved it enough to name my account after the attraction. That’s a good ride.
HHN over at Universal also does this. You can enjoy the grandeur, scale, placemaking, spookiness, and design of the houses without a lick of backstory, but delving into the backstory only enhances the experience (it’s not the experience itself). You can walk through the houses 30 times and notice new details each one, which is why the event is so popular and so many fans buy the event passes.
Even spooky on the other side does the same, Phantom Manor, Big Thunder, and Frontierland, as a whole, have an overarching backstory in Paris that only serve to amplify the experience.
The jury is still out on Tiana, but complicated backstories are not necessarily a bad thing as long as the ride can stand on its own. I’m excited to check out the ride once it opens because it really does have a lot of potential.
