aaronm

Topgolf coaster confirmed. 😆

That’s interesting to learn, I do remember much more haze a decade ago, music was much louder too. Hopefully the redo sees MXPX blasting in our ears once more.

Several years ago I rode Prater's Insider and remember thinking "oh this is what Scooby could have been like with more than two lasers". It's basically another Mack in a box but with a much more liberal use of lighting and lasers, for a far more effective result. Here's a video, though it's definitely more impressive in person.

Sounds like the recent round of maintenance was just enough to get it through the school holidays. Here's hoping they remove the underwhelming screens and add more lighting effects in the wild mouse room.

It’s clickbait pure and simple, people love a bit of disaster porn and theme park “incidents” are low hanging fruit for media outlets. Does not matter if it’s a ride e-stop or the hot dog cart running out of sauce, drama attracts eyeballs and consequently these stories pay their way on the web. As others have noted here, best to ignore, anyone with half a brain can figure out these “journalists” are exaggerating for the sake of clicks and there’s no substance beyond a hyperbolic headline.

Completely off-topic but it's always surprised me that VRTP haven't done anything inside the Superman helix, even something as simple as some city/skyscraper facades to really sell the "Superman is flying you through the city" idea.

A Mack Big Dipper along the lines of Lost Gravity would be my pick. That ride is criminally underrated!

$69 is pretty steep for an event primarily about selling people food. That said, all VRTP pricing is aimed at selling annual passes so most people are probably getting in that way. I've always enjoyed Carnivale for what it is, fingers crossed Leviathan's operations a running well for some night rides.

JL3D and Doomsday today’s unscheduled outs. Not posted outside but showed up on the website bang on park opening… 🤔

Some commentary has been added: "Temporary closure for minor rectifications and enhancements" I guess we'll see how temporary this closure is but really underlines how valuable soft openings/technical rehearsals are for new rides. Sea World should at least remove the "Leviathan - Ride It Now" branding from their homepage until the ride is back up. It's definitely misleading and as much as VRTP love money I have a hard time believing they're deliberately trying to trick people into coming to the park only to be disappointed.

Twist Coaster Robin begs to differ. At least Leviathan managed a second day of operations.

Honestly the park should be offering free return passes for anyone visiting while the new rides are closed. Minimal cost and much better PR than “oh sorry we hoped they would be open but oh well…”

It'll be the same useless offers they roll out to passholders from time to time. Discounted helicopter flights, free breakfast at the Sea World Resort, partner offers for Stan etc. I can't see them doing anything substantial.

Would it have been a good move to have a soft opening? Yes. Is it unexpected for a new ride to have teething issues? Absolutely not. When I travel I always consider it a bonus to be able to experience a new ride in its opening season. I reckon maybe a third of “new for this year” attractions have been out of action for me in the months after their official launch date. If Leviathan is still having these issues in six months’ time then we have a problem. But on opening weekend… nothing to see here.

What's confusing me is why this needs to be linked to NFTs at all. If VRTP want to have some sort of park fan club upcharge offering surely they can just do that on its own?

I wonder what units are used to measure iconicness.

Same, we used to do it twice a visit at $10/15, then down to once a visit when it hit $20, now it's a yearly treat. So instead of getting $20-30 off me each visit VRTP now get $30 once a year.

$30 is no surprise but similar to Taipan’s spinning seats will be a one and done for me. Expect that row to be empty on 9 out of 10 trains, it’s too expensive for an impulse buy and I doubt it’s anywhere near as thrilling as Rivals’ back row.

Alpine coasters tend to be fairly low capacity, wouldn't a family spinner or woodie be a better fit?

I'm roughly your height and used to be around 140kg, at that weight there were definitely rides that were a no go for me. Based on past experience, some observations: - Jet Rescue and Scooby really depend on how big your thighs are, less so the midsection. Back row of Scooby has a little more room. Motocoaster is similar, seems to be ok as long as the restraint can hit the lock position over your legs. - Green Lantern and Gold Coaster have quite generous restraints and should be fine. Storm Coaster and Shockwave might also be alright. Even at my heaviest I could ride Wild West Falls though that was with the old boats. - Pandamonium, TailSpin, Batwing, Tower of Terror, Superman and Madagascar all come down on your midsection and aren't always friendly to bigger riders. Of these TailSpin is probably the loosest fit. - The Claw is tight even for average-sized people. Being on the shorter side can make it easier to fit, slide back in the seat as far as possible and cross your legs if need be. Wear "stretchy" pants and empty your pockets, this will help. Fortunately all of the parks have things to see and do outside of the rides so you can still have a great day regardless. Enjoy your trip!

Some selfie/photo ops would be a reasonable replacement, probably more popular with guests as well!

The park could definitely use some kind of "movie making" experience, even if it's not a studio tour-style attraction. Universal's special effects or horror movie makeup shows come to mind. Bollywood Park Dubai has a smaller-scale version of this sort of thing that might be more suited to Movie World. I enjoy the movie showcase but it could definitely be relocated if they wanted to use the theatre for its original purpose.

Surfrider to Gumbuya, Australia’s home of unloved rides 😆

Even if (and it's a massive if) the business case for an Australian park stacked up, I can't see Disney buying Dreamworld instead of doing a greenfields build. On the other hand, Dreamworld becoming Legoland Australia is entirely possible, as Merlin have "converted" parks before. There will absolutely be more Disney cruises coming to Australia. They seem to have sold very well, and it wouldn't surprise me if one or two of the older ships are permanently based in the Western Pacific to serve Asia and Australia going forward.

Based on the description "theme park" seems a very generous description. This looks like a selection of Instagram-friendly photo ops with a few simple games and a 4D theatre. Will wait and see but I'll definitely be going in with low expectations.