Universal Strikes Back! well maybe

[Disneychick75]

A Fast and Furious Ride?
Jimmy Kimmel Tonight Show related experience?

http://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/...ndo-set-to-fire-back-with-more.html?ana=yahoo

 

[eXo]

It makes sense they would announce something soon as they have promised a new ride every year (even though I don't think anything new opened this year?) and Kong is set for 2016. They would have to start getting going relatively soon to make a 2017 date for any large ride.

That said, there have been rumors of a Jimmy Fallon Experience or Fast & The Furious ride coming to replace twister for sometime now. However the Twister spot is relatively small and not suited to F&F at all (at least the version running at their LA location). Employees at Twisted have been saying on and off since early this year that a Fallon experience was coming to that area, but there has been nothing official.

Honestly, the tone of that article is silly. How anyone thinks that either of these announcements even come close to stealing thunder from a Toy Story Land/Star Wars Land announcement is beyond me.

The only thing(s) universal could announce at this point that would make a splash are:
A: Harry Potter Phase 3 (the rumored Ministry of Magic on top of the Fear Factor stage)
B: Videogameland (either replacing ToonLagoon or getting shoehorned into Woody Woodpeckers KidZone)
C: A third gate

Announcement A runs the risk of pushing the park TOO far into Potter land. As it stands, as cool as Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley are, the shops begin to look the same after a little while. Considering the expansions seem to have a 1:2:4 ratio (ride:eatery:shop), that would be a LOT more potter shops they would have to open and not much left to merchandise. Some might argue they could just build a ride there, but that's not exactly where the money is at....

Announcement C appears to require land that, as of their latest footprint, doesn't appear to exist. However as mentioned in the News & Rumors thread, some folks seem to believe that Uni is in the midst of acquiring that land as we speak. There was also a leaked document in 2012 that outlined a 10 year plan for the parks, culminating in a third gate. Now, Volcano Bay could conceivably be that gate and/or plans could have changed. But the acquisitions of Nintendo and heavy Konami rumors does raise suspicions...

Announcement B seems to most likely. Toon Lagoon is dated. The rides are not fun year round due to how wet one can get. The characters are based on dated Sunday comics that anyone under 25 would be hard pressed to recognize. And even someone like me, who grew up *loving* Rocky & Bullwinkle, feels that they have not made the best use of character sin the area. There is practically no original merchandise to speak of in that section, nor is there anywhere worth eating. The log ride has poor theming on the ride itself, and really the facade of the ride itself is the most impressive thing about it. Either way, even if they kept the rides, they could pull a Dragon's Challenge on them and simply re-theme them. However I find pulling the barges and replacing the river with a kart track for a mario kart style ride to be much more attractive

Either way, it draws traffic towards a dead part of the park and allows them to fill stores with tons of new merch.

 

[PuppyJonathan]

Ugh, as much as I would like to see the Nintendo characters in the park, this is a little more so them being an attention hog if they announce it now. That same article mentioned they announced Volcano Bay right after SeaWorld announced Mako. Kind of bad for its character but whatever

 

[Josh Hendy]

Toon Lagoon is dated. The rides are not fun year round due to how wet one can get. The characters are based on dated Sunday comics that anyone under 25 would be hard pressed to recognize. And even someone like me, who grew up *loving* Rocky & Bullwinkle, feels that they have not made the best use of character sin the area. There is practically no original merchandise to speak of in that section, nor is there anywhere worth eating. The log ride has poor theming on the ride itself, and really the facade of the ride itself is the most impressive thing about it. Either way, even if they kept the rides, they could pull a Dragon's Challenge on them and simply re-theme them. However I find pulling the barges and replacing the river with a kart track for a mario kart style ride to be much more attractive.

More like anyone under 45. How many decades has it been since Blondie and Gasoline Alley ran in any newspapers? I remember them from my childhood in the 60s and early 70s but they were not exactly beloved comic strips. They were relics even then.

I'm not sure what I would do with that land ... gut it and rebuild, or merely overlay. The water aspect is most welcome for half the year, probably unwelcome the rest of the year.

 

[ChrisFL]

As I predicted, "Universal set to strike back" is inaccurate at best. These attractions have been in the works for a while now. Fast and Furious is replacing Disaster, Fallon is replacing Twister.

 

[DDLand]

They're launching park 3, and debuting 2 new attractions. Disney will be launching Avatarland and probably Toy Story Land.

It's going to be a close call on who wins out on the buzz.

 

[DDLand]

Ugh, as much as I would like to see the Nintendo characters in the park, this is a little more so them being an attention hog if they announce it now. That same article mentioned they announced Volcano Bay right after SeaWorld announced Mako. Kind of bad for its character but whatever

I agree that I don't generally like it when competitors do this sort of thing. I think it's cheap. With that said, Universal has created a perception of being the king of attraction building, and protecting that perception is valuable.

Also they have earned the right to gloat about new attraction opening because... they're actually opening new attractions.

 

[rteetz]

A Fast and Furious Ride?
Jimmy Kimmel Tonight Show related experience?

http://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/...ndo-set-to-fire-back-with-more.html?ana=yahoo

Jimmy Fallon not Kimmel. Also yes the fast and furious ride has been rumored for a while now.

 

[rteetz]

They're launching park 3, and debuting 2 new attractions. Disney will be launching Avatarland and probably Toy Story Land.

It's going to be a close call on who wins out on the buzz.

Well park three will be a water park not a new theme park.

 

[lockedoutlogic]

They're launching park 3, and debuting 2 new attractions. Disney will be launching Avatarland and probably Toy Story Land.

It's going to be a close call on who wins out on the buzz.

Barring a complete collapse of cable television - universal will announce more significant additions after the recent ones and construction will be underway before any of Disney's roll out.

So the comparison isn't likely to hold.

 

[DDLand]

Well park three will be a water park not a new theme park.

Yep, the one and only Volcano Bay. They're not selling it like a water park though. They're making sure to sell the fact that this is a companion park to IOA and USF. Not some second rate park.

 

[ChrisFL]

I wonder if we'll start seeing more details about Volcano Bay soon...if it really is a next-level type of water park, that could take away some hype for now (again, we're talking 4-5 years at least for Star Wars to open probably)

 

[DDLand]

Barring a complete collapse of cable television - universal will announce more significant additions after the recent ones and construction will be underway before any of Disney's roll out.

So the comparison isn't likely to hold.

They're spending a lot, and stretching a significant amount of resources to launch a lot of stuff in 2017. Even with Comcast's aggressive investments, I doubt that they'll get much more out the door then the two rides and a water park.

Maybe a new Avengers attraction/upgraded land?

In any event, we know that they'll have something spectacular going into 2020. Disney basically just revealed almost all their plans for the next 5 years. Universal is keeping their cards close.

 

[DDLand]

I wonder if we'll start seeing more details about Volcano Bay soon...if it really is a next-level type of water park, that could take away some hype for now (again, we're talking 4-5 years at least for Star Wars to open probably)

Exactly. I'm not a big HP fan at all, so that didn't draw me in. VB looks amazing! I'm really excited to experience that someday.

 

[ChrisFL]

They're spending a lot, and stretching a significant amount of resources to launch a lot of stuff in 2017. Even with Comcast's aggressive investments, I doubt that they'll get much more out the door then the two rides and a water park.

Maybe a new Avengers attraction/upgraded land?

In any event, we know that they'll have something spectacular going into 2020. Disney basically just revealed almost all their plans for the next 5 years. Universal is keeping their cards close.

Let's compare shall we?

Disney:
Soarin' around the world
Other minor Star Wars stuff
Toy Story Land
Star Wars Land
Frozen
Avatar
Rivers of Light

Universal Orlando:
King Kong
Incredible Hulk Extreme? Makeover (details still not out entirely on that)
Fast & Furious
Fallon ride
Nintendo Land (no details besides announcement) but still probably opening by 2017-2018 if I was to guess
Volcano Bay

I think we'll see at least 2-3 more other unannounced attractions, Avengers is a good possibility.

 

[rteetz]

Let's compare shall we?

Disney:
Soarin' around the world
Other minor Star Wars stuff
Toy Story Land
Star Wars Land
Frozen
Avatar
Rivers of Light

Universal Orlando:
King Kong
Incredible Hulk Extreme? Makeover (details still not out entirely on that)
Fast & Furious
Fallon ride
Nintendo Land (no details besides announcement) but still probably opening by 2017-2018 if I was to guess
Volcano Bay

I think we'll see at least 2-3 more other unannounced attractions, Avengers is a good possibility.

Don't forget the doom drop tower makeover that is also supposed to happen within the next year.

 

[luisov]

In my opinion they shouldn't go for Fast and Furious. That's the kind of franchise that is going to fade into oblivion a few years after the last film is released, and it will become dated rather quickly.

Don't forget the doom drop tower makeover that is also supposed to happen within the next year.

They should get rid of that drop tower altogether. As a thrill ride it's quite dissapointing imo.

 

[MissPrincessKendall]

I personally do not think it even matters what they add. Universal can't stand up to disney is many aspects, one major thing is their guest service. It is subpar at best, and that's why I gladdly give disney much more of my attention and therefore money. I think they may come up with more rides or areas before the disney expansions but I personally do not think it wil matter all that much.

 

[DDLand]

I personally do not think it even matters what they add. Universal can't stand up to disney is many aspects, one major thing is their guest service. It is subpar at best, and that's why I gladdly give disney much more of my attention and therefore money. I think they may come up with more rides or areas before the disney expansions but I personally do not think it wil matter all that much.

Everyone has their favorite. I prefer Disney for some of the these reasons: they have the IP I love, awesome immersive themed areas(Universal has been stepping up their game in a BIG way), Big Thunder Mountain, SpaceShip Earth, and a massive all in one Resort experience with unbeatable integration.

With that said, someone could come back with a list of reasons why they think Universal is better. Everyone has their own set of priorities. While you may not find what they're up to appealing, more and more people are. Don't count them out. They're growing bigger and bigger.

I have heard that in recent years the team members have been getting really great... Can anyone vouch for this?

 

[luisov]

Everyone has their favorite. I prefer Disney for some of the these reasons: they have the IP I love, awesome immersive themed areas(Universal has been stepping up their game in a BIG way), Big Thunder Mountain, SpaceShip Earth, and a massive all in one Resort experience with unbeatable integration.

With that said, someone could come back with a list of reasons why they think Universal is better. Everyone has their own set of priorities. While you may not find what they're up to appealing, more and more people are. Don't count them out. They're growing bigger and bigger.

I have heard that in recent years the team members have been getting really great... Can anyone vouch for this?

They've become better, that's for sure. However, what has really improved their game is that they are collaborating with the right people. They hired Stuart Craig, the production designer for every Harry Potter film (who in my opinion is brilliant) to do every single piece of architecture in both HP areas. They also collaborated with Peter Jackson for Kong. And they didn't invent Forbidden Journey's ride system, but they were clever enough to make an exclusivity deal with Kuka... I'm not quite sure that Universal's creative team has gotten significantly better. In my opinion, they are just collaborating with the right people.

EDIT: Nvm, I realised you were talking about the staff, right? In that case, yeah, they are better than they used to be. There's a new sense of pride in the employees that wasn't there before.