Universal Epic Universe (South Expansion Complex) - Opens May 22 2025

[PSUDisney77]

Just read and watched the preview video for Epic and I must say, I'm impressed. My trips to Florida theme parks have been sporadic through the years, more Disney oriented but I have come away impressed. If Universal can pull off what is all detailed so far, it will be a definitive game changer as I think most have predicted.

I'm already planning a Universal only trip in my head for when my now 5 year old is old enough to enjoy and appreciate the IPs at Universal. He's just getting into Mario and I still haven't been able to make it back to Universal since Harry Potter has opened. There will be something for both of us and then some.

 

[celluloid]

Just read and watched the preview video for Epic and I must say, I'm impressed. My trips to Florida theme parks have been sporadic through the years, more Disney oriented but I have come away impressed. If Universal can pull off what is all detailed so far, it will be a definitive game changer as I think most have predicted.

I'm already planning a Universal only trip in my head for when my now 5 year old is old enough to enjoy and appreciate the IPs at Universal. He's just getting into Mario and I still haven't been able to make it back to Universal since Harry Potter has opened. There will be something for both of us and then some.

My son is 8 and 5-8 was fun for height requirements hitting bigger and bigger things and now he is tall enough for any coaster or ride height requirement out there. Have a blast! (side note, my dad used to he he bled blue and white, WE ARE)

 

[SplashJacket]

HTTYD displays the problem with single IP lands -- if you don't care about the IP, it needs to be truly excellent to function as a draw. Pandora pulls this off, but I think it's a lot easier to do that when it's basically just beautiful scenery. I think Diagon Alley does too, but hard to know there because HP is such a massive franchise that most people have familiarity.

The visual style and what I remember reading about the supposed attractions for HTTYD aren't interesting to me on their own, and since I don't have an attachment to the IP, I have a feeling it's going to be a whole section of the park that I can basically skip.

I also think the Mario Kart ride is very bad -- not just as a terrible fit for the IP, but as a poor attraction on its own merits -- but that's obviously subjective.

I really want more information about what is in the monsters and HP areas.

I agree for a film attraction like a Shrek 3D or Philharmagic.

If you don't care about the IP, why care about the experience? Philharmagic goes shotgun approach and recently added Coco to expand that reach.

For HTTYD it's about the environment they're set in (similar to Pandora's design pith).

Sure there are nods to the films, but the world of Pandora is more a stepping stone than the content.

HTTYD has a gorgeous environment and music, and barring the theatrical show, the attractions aren't plot-heavy. The show stands on its own beyond the IP. In terms of single-IP lands, HTTYD works perfectly.

Nintendo is taking a different approach because while the lands are still cool if you don't care, they largely rely on familiarity with the IP to care. Nintendo benefits from incredibly deep market saturation, making it less of a concern, but regardless.

HTTYD will be the lowest barrier of entry for non-fans out of any of the lands.

 

[Lirael]

Personally, I'll take "yes, theres two different places and time periods here" simple explanation in the HP portion over some convoluted attempt to tie everything together like wdw is doing with the Tiana ride backstory

 

[UNCgolf]

I agree for a film attraction like a Shrek 3D or Philharmagic.

If you don't care about the IP, why care about the experience? Philharmagic goes shotgun approach and recently added Coco to expand that reach.

For HTTYD it's about the environment they're set in (similar to Pandora's design pith).

Sure there are nods to the films, but the world of Pandora is more a stepping stone than the content.

HTTYD has a gorgeous environment and music, and barring the theatrical show, the attractions aren't plot-heavy. The show stands on its own beyond the IP. In terms of single-IP lands, HTTYD works perfectly.

Nintendo is taking a different approach because while the lands are still cool if you don't care, they largely rely on familiarity with the IP to care. Nintendo benefits from incredibly deep market saturation, making it less of a concern, but regardless.

HTTYD will be the lowest barrier of entry for non-fans out of any of the lands.

I think Dark Universe will probably be the lowest barrier of entry.

We'll just have to agree to disagree on HTTYD as a single IP land. Hopefully more concept art changes my mind, but although you obviously can't tell too much from the overhead, it doesn't look especially interesting to me. It also looks much more reliant on buildings than the environment/nature. As someone with no connection to the IP, everything I've read/seen about it thus far merits a shrug from me.

Part of me wishes they'd dumped all IP lands and designed the entire park similarly to Celestial Park. It's beautiful, and they could then put anything they wanted behind those facades without being locked in to very specific IPs.

 

[lentesta]

On the latest Disney Dish, @lentesta seemed to imply that DAK may have moved to the back burner in favor of a DHS and/or EPCOT addition. It's puzzling, because all four parks realistically need many things.

I could be wrong. What I've heard is that MK and HS get the next big round of investments.

 

[UNCgolf]

I could be wrong. What I've heard is that MK and HS get the next big round of investments.

Sounds like @MisterPenguin needs to be fired if he got beat out for that investment money.

More investment at the MK is so stupid when all three of the other parks need it much more.

 

[PSUDisney77]

My son is 8 and 5-8 was fun for height requirements hitting bigger and bigger things and now he is tall enough for any coaster or ride height requirement out there. Have a blast! (side note, my dad used to he he bled blue and white, WE ARE)

April will be our first WDW trip with our son. He's absolutely obsessed with animals so AK will be the highlight. He's tall enough for most everything WDW has to offer, but there could be a fear factor of some things. A couple more years and Universal will be a trip on its own and I can't wait.

Penn State!

 

[MisterPenguin]

Sounds like @MisterPenguin needs to be fired if he got beat out for that investment money.

More investment at the MK is so stupid when all three of the other parks need it much more.

I turned down $3B for DAK to make it a 'full day park' again. I like to get home early and have a relaxing dinner.

 

[Earlie the Pearlie]

There have always been some inconsistencies that we look past (e.g. sometimes we are wizards; other times Muggles. The Gringotts ride takes place takes place at a time when some Diagon Alley shops wouldn’t be there. Etc.). But, this requires a Hungarian Horntail-sized mental leap.

You know what else travels between multiple times and places? Pirates of the Caribbean. A great land without temporal consistency in which you physically jump around. New Orleans Square in the late 19th century, to a bayou, to caves, to the Spanish Main in the early 1700s, back to New Orleans in the late 1800s. And both the land and the ride are among the greatest things ever created by WDI. The more I think about it, the more MoM seems like a modern version of NOS. This is the land I am most excited for.

 

[SplashJacket]

I think Dark Universe will probably be the lowest barrier of entry.

We'll just have to agree to disagree on HTTYD as a single IP land. Hopefully more concept art changes my mind, but although you obviously can't tell too much from the overhead, it doesn't look especially interesting to me. It also looks much more reliant on buildings than the environment/nature. As someone with no connection to the IP, everything I've read/seen about it thus far merits a shrug from me.

Part of me wishes they'd dumped all IP lands and designed the entire park similarly to Celestial Park. It's beautiful, and they could then put anything they wanted behind those facades without being locked in to very specific IPs.

I definitely agree, that theoretically Dark Universe is the lowest barrier, since the characters are societal staples and not really franchise based, but I do think the “scary” aspect could be off putting to some people.

The execution/depth of the scary will determine the approachability, but generally, I agree. Will just depend on how it’s executed so it’s up in the air.

 

[lentesta]

You know what else travels between multiple times and places? Pirates of the Caribbean. A great land without temporal consistency in which you physically jump around. New Orleans Square in the late 19th century, to a bayou, to caves, to the Spanish Main in the early 1700s, back to New Orleans in the late 1800s. And both the land and the ride are among the greatest things ever created by WDI. The more I think about it, the more MoM seems like a modern version of NOS. This is the land I am most excited for.

I think it was Werner Weiss at Yesterland who pointed out that adding Jack Sparrow in multiple places in WDW's POTC explicitly changed the story from 'a trip through town' to 'a trip through time'.

 

[SplashJacket]

I think Dark Universe will probably be the lowest barrier of entry.

We'll just have to agree to disagree on HTTYD as a single IP land. Hopefully more concept art changes my mind, but although you obviously can't tell too much from the overhead, it doesn't look especially interesting to me. It also looks much more reliant on buildings than the environment/nature. As someone with no connection to the IP, everything I've read/seen about it thus far merits a shrug from me.

Part of me wishes they'd dumped all IP lands and designed the entire park similarly to Celestial Park. It's beautiful, and they could then put anything they wanted behind those facades without being locked in to very specific IPs.

Going back to what I said earlier, I think HTTYD will feel the most like Treasure Cove in Shanghai.

Technically, Treasure Cove is a single IP-land (ride, restaurants, walk-around areas, and stunt-show) but it doesn’t feel Iike it, because it’s more a Carribean-themed town with Pirates.

Obviously, HTTYD is more so, but it’s more a Viking Village with dragons than a true dedication to HTTYD.

I think it’s going to be a sleeper hit land that speaks for itself at open (I could be wrong), but currently general sentiments are quite low and I feel it’ll greatly surpass those low expectations.

 

[ToTBellHop]

You know what else travels between multiple times and places? Pirates of the Caribbean. A great land without temporal consistency in which you physically jump around. New Orleans Square in the late 19th century, to a bayou, to caves, to the Spanish Main in the early 1700s, back to New Orleans in the late 1800s. And both the land and the ride are among the greatest things ever created by WDI. The more I think about it, the more MoM seems like a modern version of NOS. This is the land I am most excited for.

Thank goodness the Imagineers could create their own rules when they built Pirates. Harry Potter comes with rules baked in.

 

[Earlie the Pearlie]

I definitely agree, that theoretically Dark Universe is the lowest barrier, since the characters are societal staples and not really franchise based, but I do think the “scary” aspect could be off putting to some people.

The execution/depth of the scary will determine the approachability, but generally, I agree. Will just depend on how it’s executed so it’s up in the air.

My hypothesis is that the stage show was replaced by Werewolf because a small coaster you can see most of from outside of definitely more family friendly than a dark theater, possibly with something in common with Alien Encounter. The main ride is intimidating from the outside, which, coupled with the preshow, will scare off those who would be traumatized by the ride portion.

 

[build_it]

I’m very excited to see all of the images and fly thru released today. I enjoy seeing the details and this release excites me as the details look good. The big picture is not new, however the detail and updates to the previous concept art, appears to be based on exactly what is being built. If it turns out like these new images, it’s going to be very nice!

As an aside - we rode Mario Cart in Hollywood and we throughly enjoyed it. I suspect guests that are disappointed wanted a thrill ride. We were thrilled that it was not a thrill ride and felt it is more accessible to more ages than if it had been a thrill ride. I also suspect Donkey Kong will better fit the thrill seekers.

 

[Indy_UK]

On the latest Disney Dish, @lentesta seemed to imply that DAK may have moved to the back burner in favor of a DHS and/or EPCOT addition. It's puzzling, because all four parks realistically need many things.

They should be doing it all.

Epcot doesn’t need expansions for now. They need to just work on wonders of life and play pavilions.

Animal kingdom needs the South America expansion, a 3rd avatar ride and a nighttime show. How that park is not a full day park for a lot after how many years baffles me.

Yes the studios still probably needs the most amount of work. It’s a mess still. Galaxy’s Edge needs life put into it. Toy Story could add come small C-D type rides like the playlands have around the world. That’s before I even get to animation courtyard

 

[HauntedPirate]

We've been having this argument with MK's Frontierland, which was one of those junk drawers of time and geography. Some people seem intent on claiming a pure geographical and chronological thematic adherence that it had in its past (which it didn't)

There was an order to it. But don't take my word for it, how about from the Imagineers? From 'The Imagineering Field Guide to the Magic Kingdom':

 

[celluloid]

My hypothesis is that the stage show was replaced by Werewolf because a small coaster you can see most of from outside of definitely more family friendly than a dark theater, possibly with something in common with Alien Encounter. The main ride is intimidating from the outside, which, coupled with the preshow, will scare off those who would be traumatized by the ride portion.

It will be the dark in theme more than scary. Like the more frightening parts of Pirates, Mansion, former area of Lost Continent etc.

As a land, the evenings and nights will have rolling fog and sound effects change.

 

[HauntedPirate]

I'm liking the way they're going to release details on this - one land at a time. Very well done.