News Villains Land Announced for Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom

[TrainsOfDisney]

I'd rather have an amazing ride replace something very mediocre than a completely new mediocre thing.

The only time this has happened at Disney is universe of energy…. And since wonders of life is still sitting abandoned next door it seems a shame to have lost that pavilion even though it did need an update.

Since Disney feeds on classic charm and nostalgia…. Sometimes the “mediocre” has more to offer than an “amazing ride”

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

The only time this has happened at Disney is universe of energy…. And since wonders of life is still sitting abandoned next door it seems a shame to have lost that pavilion even though it did need an update.

Since Disney feeds on classic charm and nostalgia…. Sometimes the “mediocre” has more to offer than an “amazing ride”

Universe of energy is the poster child

But it handles less people and is behind a paywall

Is that “better”?

 

[Mike S]

I don’t buy the Epic expansion just yet.
They have LOTS of problems to fix at their other parks first. Not a fact but my opinion.

I mean, there’s no timeline for it. It’s just that whenever expansion happens current talks are that Luigi’s Mansion is one of the first up.

 

[TheDisneyParksfanC8]

I mean, there’s no timeline for it. It’s just that whenever expansion happens current talks are that Luigi’s Mansion is one of the first up.

There was a rumor over on the IU forums that LM was fast tracked for a 2027 opening.

 

[MisterPenguin]

There was a rumor over on the IU forums that LM was fast tracked for a 2027 opening.

Will they require everyone involved in the build to drink Red Bulls all day long?

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

I will be shocked if Epic sees any expansion in the next 5 years, my guess is it’ll outdraw USF from day 1. After Epic opens they’d be smart to focus on USF before spending another penny on Epic or IOA.

The ironic thing is I’d say the same about WDW, they should prioritize AK and HS, because they draw the fewest people, but most their announcements are going to MK… so who knows, maybe Epic will see expansions while USF remains mediocre at best.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Even within EU, the HTTYD land feels like a potential mistake to me.

I believe Berk will be the break out star of the park.

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

I believe Berk will be the break out star of the park.

I think it’s going to be the unexpected hit, I think it’s Epics Pandora, HTTYD fans are going to love it but even the people who aren’t fans of the IP are going to enjoy the theming and the details.

 

[Fox&Hound]

I believe Berk will be the break out star of the park.

Agree 100%.

 

[Fox&Hound]

I think it’s going to be the unexpected hit, I think it’s Epics Pandora, HTTYD fans are going to love it but even the people who aren’t fans of the IP are going to enjoy the theming and the details.

The water ride looks really fun!

 

[UNCgolf]

I believe Berk will be the break out star of the park.

It certainly could be -- I just don't see it. Nothing about it looks interesting at all to me.

That's not Universal's fault, though. I think the art style/design of the IP itself is kind of bland and generic.

 

[Mike S]

There was a rumor over on the IU forums that LM was fast tracked for a 2027 opening.

I would absolutely love that

I will be shocked if Epic sees any expansion in the next 5 years, my guess is it’ll outdraw USF from day 1. After Epic opens they’d be smart to focus on USF before spending another penny on Epic or IOA.

The ironic thing is I’d say the same about WDW, they should prioritize AK and HS, because they draw the fewest people, but most their announcements are going to MK… so who knows, maybe Epic will see expansions while USF remains mediocre at best.

I’d add in Zelda in IoA replacing Lost Continent but other than that yes USF should get ALL of the love it can. It’s funny how we can have the best resort overall but quite possibly the weakest Universal Studios.

I believe Berk will be the break out star of the park.

I think it’s going to be the unexpected hit, I think it’s Epics Pandora, HTTYD fans are going to love it but even the people who aren’t fans of the IP are going to enjoy the theming and the details.

It’ll be great for sure but at this point I think the crowds will be pretty evenly spread across the park. There’s absolutely no clear dud of a land here.

 

[CoasterCowboy67]

I mean come on man. 2 of the rides on Universals side is literally chopping up pieces of an existing ride and calling it 2 new rides. And yeah, obviously the park with new attractions coming out is going to have more rides coming out in the next 7 months, however, the last few years for Universal have been super light except for their major hits. I mean...we're comparing Flight of Passage and Rise to hits like... Jimmy Fallon.

What ride are you referring to that was broken out? Also, nobody should be comparing “hits like FOP and ROTR” to Jimmy Fallon — if you want to compare heavyweights, let’s see how Battle at the Ministry and Monsters Unchained stack up for a fair fight. Perhaps better to compare Jimmy Fallon with Under the Sea

Another point being missed — the left side are investments in just 2 parks vs. 4 parks on the right (original list). The right side should be twice as long (or “valuable”) than the left if we want to compare these evenly — and it’s not. With EU opening, you then have investments at 3 parks dwarfing those at 4 for the next several years (still not counting Volcano Bay)

Universal is reinvesting more per park and per revenue than Disney is

 

[CoasterCowboy67]

I’d add in Zelda in IoA replacing Lost Continent but other than that yes USF should get ALL of the love it can. It’s funny how we can have the best resort overall but quite possibly the weakest Universal Studios.

The unaddressed elephant in the room is Pokémon going to USF. That could be massive

 

[Moth]

Maybe, but I'm less convinced -- I don't think the land looks very impressive as someone who doesn't have any connection to the IP; it looks kind of generic and the rides aren't interesting.

I'm sure people that love the IP will love it, but that's a relatively small number of people compared to HP and Nintendo. It'll be interesting to see the reaction from people who don't care about the IP. I don't think it will be a complete failure or anything, but I feel like they might regret the choice down the road.

I think this is my biggest hold-up with Berk itself, I get it's aimed towards a younger crowd but... That's also Nintendo. I really think that instead of the boat-shooter ride it should've been a FoP-like ride.

Also the real wake-up call to Disney is the Pokémon IP coming to Universal. It doesn't matter the land itself or anything, the fact Universal can be allowed to use that IP is a Big Deal.

Back on topic: If this land lacks Chernabog it's a failure. Sorry I don't make the rules!

 

[Fox&Hound]

I had a thought. People get mad that Disney keeps replacing rides and not expanding. But could you imaging DIS always expanding the borders of their parks and never replacing their subpar rides (think Dinorama and not things like Splash). Imagine how huge their parks would be as people kept heading to the outer areas to ride “the next big ride”. Imagine the work force they would have to employ. Would guests say “why do they not replace x since no one rides it.” I am not saying I agree with their current philosophy to replace and not expand, but the thought hit me if people would be happy with pure expansion and if the parks could sustain such an undertaking.

 

[Fox&Hound]

What villains should be featured in this land? The usual (Ursula, Maleficent, Cruella, Hook, Jafar, Hades)? Or should those already featured elsewhere in rides/parks not have a presence (Ursula, Hook, Gaston, Wicked Queen, etc). Do they go top tier only or feature less known?

I think an E-ticket that features the main baddies would be a hit but too many silly nods (Evil Queen’s caramel apple store), Gaston’s gym, etc would make the land feel cheap.

Thoughts?

 

[Mike S]

The unaddressed elephant in the room is Pokémon going to USF. That could be massive

It will be. You’ll see crowds to CityWalk again for that one.

I had a thought. People get mad that Disney keeps replacing rides and not expanding. But could you imaging DIS always expanding the borders of their parks and never replacing their subpar rides (think Dinorama and not things like Splash). Imagine how huge their parks would be as people kept heading to the outer areas to ride “the next big ride”. Imagine the work force they would have to employ. Would guests say “why do they not replace x since no one rides it.” I am not saying I agree with their current philosophy to replace and not expand, but the thought hit me if people would be happy with pure expansion and if the parks could sustain such an undertaking.

There’s no complaint here when a bad attraction is replaced. We’re all practically BEGGING for an update to Figment as one example. No one is complaining that Test Track 2.0 is no more.

 

[TheDisneyParksfanC8]

The unaddressed elephant in the room is Pokémon going to USF. That could be massive

The current rumor going around on the IU forums is Pokemon is slated for 2030 at USF. The reason for that date is because the company is treating Pokemon for Orlando as a very large scale project. A lot of resources are going into it. Things are being moved around behind the scenes to accommodate it. Ground up attractions are being designed vs the MIB/MK type ride USJ is getting to replace Spiderman.

My hope is if EU saps enough of USF's guests, Pokemon will be fast tracked for 2028.

 

[CoasterCowboy67]

The current rumor going around on the IU forums is Pokemon is slated for 2030 at USF. The reason for that date is because the company is treating Pokemon for Orlando as a very large scale project. A lot of resources are going into it. Things are being moved around behind the scenes to accommodate it. Ground up attractions are being designed vs the MIB/MK type ride USJ is getting to replace Spiderman.

My hope is if EU saps enough of USF's guests, Pokemon will be fast tracked for 2028.

I can only imagine. Most think it’s an MIB & Springfield replacement, but there’s a whole lot of backstage space between Simpsons and MIB that they must be relocating to pave the way for a huge expansion

And the potential for interactivity and engagement with a Pokémon land is massive

Out of any of Disney’s announced investments, I believe Villains is far and away the most exciting and has the most potential to meet the high bar the HP lands set for immersion and fun. If done with heart. Which I believe they can still do