GoGoBoy

I think it's fair to say that there are many park enthusiasts, and I count myself as one of them, who care greatly about park aesthetics.

Looks like it's going to be the cheapest refurb ever. And those coloured cars on the old Cyclone, reminds me too much of Motocoaster. As does all the chequered flag 'theming'. So weird to have two separate Motocoaster zones now. I've got a funny feeling Dreamworld is about to be smashed by Movie World in the not too distant future.

Actually, the crowds/queuing were only one of the complaints, by no means all! Part of running a successful operation is keeping customers happy! If you screw up initially, the chances of them coming back are reduced. I understand their first season was a big success, but not sure if the follow-up seasons have been as successful. Regardless, even if the park is not performing as well as it could, by limiting the opening hours it's was always going to seem busy. I assume this is still the case, although I wouldn't know as I haven't been back.

No, it's 100% Village Roadshow - no joint venture or separate structure. So no excuses! Re the operating hours - I think it's ridiculous to have a major water park such as this one only operating between 3.30pm and whatever it is on certain afternoons, especially as one of the biggest problems is the excessive queuing on the full days it is open (ie. weekends and school holidays). I have friends who are shift workers who never want to go back as they can't visit the park on a day during the week when there might otherwise be a chance to get on a slide without queuing up for an hour.

Thanks for this review. I think the points you've made are entirely legitimate and reasonable. The park's operations truly have been a disaster from day one. It should have been such a success story, and I, like many others on here, wanted it to be. But the management decisions all the way along have been abysmal to say the least. I totally agree about the park being sparse - it feels like the Maloney's Corner of waterparks. They sent me a survey asking why I hadn't renewed my annual pass, and the complete lack of atmosphere/landscaping/theming was one of the reasons I put down. Then there are all the other operational issues, some you referred to, such as ridiculous operating hours and practically zero public transport. And yes, on a busy day, it is horrendous. You spend all day standing on the stairs and end up with very little left to talk to your friends about.

Skeetafly - good job! Some of the best contributions I have seen to this forum in ages. Whether or not your predictions turn out to be right is irrelevant. Your obviously strong knowledge of planning is very insightful.

Wow they are doing everything possible to avoid spending capex on a new coaster, aren't they! This will be the THIRD incarnation of this now 20-year-old and not-particularly-special roller coaster. And I agree with others, I have zero interest in a motorsport museum. Looking forward to seeing what Movie World have planned!

It's terrific that the studios are doing so well that they are having to expand. I remember it wasn't that long ago that the studios were sitting there dormant, rarely used for anything. What a change! And this is why I think Movie World should continue to focus on indoor rides (indoor coasters, traditional dark rides etc.). That way the screams are contained, they can continue the show-buildings-as-fake-sound-stages theme, and allow for plenty of theming and atmosphere, in true Movie World style. Also makes for a good all-weather park!

I still think it's crazy that they haven't build Legoland on the Gold Coast yet, or at the very least an indoor Legoland Discovery Centre (which I think was proposed for MW at one stage). I reckon it'd be an absolute hit. Only today I was reading an article in the Sydney Morning Herald about lego exhibitions at a couple of the museums here. They reckon attendance surges massively whenever they hold one.

I'd argue just about every attraction Village Roadshow installs could be considered world class, particularly Movie World. But this certainly sounds above and beyond even their normal standard. I doubt a VRL director would use that term unless there was some substance behind it. Exciting indeed!

Either way Adam C, I reckon this sounds like a perfect trip!

Bit more believable than the re-opening of Wonderland in Sydney.

DJKostya - Do you really believe a company has given him $1 billion? It just seems highly improbable, in my personal opinion. Wet'n'Wild Sydney, developed by Village Roadshow, was a bit over $100 million. This is ten times that, supposedly. A $1 billion theme park proposal from Village or Disney or any of the other major conglomerates would be believable, obviously. But can you name ONE project the proponent of this project has developed previously that comes anywhere near this scale? I can't find anything. Where is the list of completed projects? Where is the client list? You don't just develop a major theme park with no or little experience, and you're even less likely to secure $1 billion in funding, even if you had decent, not incredibly dodgy, renderings. Buying and selling a few houses doesn't come close.

It just makes you realise even the major commercial news sites can't be trusted (except perhaps Fairfax, who notably did not run this story). So many outlets covered it, and I bet not one of them bothered to look into the details of the 'international consortium' known as 'Fox Petroleum', or 'Urban Estate Developments' -- the two companies supposedly behind it. Any decent journo would ask how serious this proposal is and what the chances are that these companies can legitimately pull this off and fund a $1 BILLION development. But leaving this aside, it seems utterly bizarre to me that if a developer actually did have access to that level of funding, they'd choose to develop a theme park based on the defunct and now entirely dated Wonderland theme park -- which even when it was still alive was actually nothing special in comparison to other parks around Australia and the world. There is this strange obsession with the park, but with $1 bil you'd surely want to aim higher than an old boomerang coaster and the rather average bush beast. And going by the renderings, a chair swing, ferris wheel and arcade make up the park's other 'major' attractions. Just weird, and entirely inconceivable. How can anyone actually give this any credence??

Nonsense. It keeps coming up because he keeps announcing it. Won't happen. Have you seen his website? Have you seen the 'Fox Petroleum' website?

THIS GUY again!! Why won't this die? It's not happening -- it's so obvious. Yet even Channel Nine Sydney is advertising it on the promo for its evening news bulletin. Talk about being sucked in! Maybe if Village was the proponent, it might hold a bit of weight. But how many times has this 'ex-employee of nine years' announced and re-announced this bizarre 'project'? How embarrassing for Channel Nine.

Those eyes are amazing! They've chosen a great theme. I love the way Adventure World is going the extra mile and giving their new rides strong story lines with theming and presentation to match. But at the same time it makes me really sad that Wet n Wild GC and Sydney make no attempt to theme their slides, and in the case of WnW Sydney, does not even bother to give the slides logos. One of the biggest complaints about WnW Sydney is the lack of atmosphere. Adventure World is showing Village it is indeed possible to theme a slide, thereby improving its appeal and, no doubt, the atmosphere of the park as well.

Would it be the most painful coaster in the world? Worse than the old Thunderbolt? I can imagine serious wear and tear on the track and wheels too as it literally slams into each corner. Funny though

​Haha, very true Westical!! What's a better word for a mildly animated prop that isn't quite an animatronic? Great to hear that so many of the show effects are fully operational across the major attractions. Surely it can't be a coincidence? I get the feeling there has been a concerted effort to fix up all of the little details that have been out of action for a long time. Perhaps the maintenance division was able to set aside some extra time?

Really? That seems very strange. I know the old Looney Tunes River Ride used a system of beams and reflectors that would trigger the scenes when a boat passed through. They were easily spotted on the approach to each scene. But as I understand it, most rides with show elements, particularly if they are track based, would not normally have that same system. They would be more likely to have sensors on the actual track itself. Justice League, for example, I would think has an entire ride control system which knows where the cars are on the track and activates the show elements based on that. Any experts with better knowledge of this care to chip in?

Justice League has a screen with pics of the riders and scores?? When was that installed? I don't remember it being there when I visited a few months back. But it was something that was always needed.

I'm not sure they'd be able to check the show effects when they do a track walk as I assume for the effects to be triggered the cars would need to be moving. Surely staff are not permitted to walk around the ride with moving cars? Regarding the final Scooby animatronic -- I was just referring to his mouth not moving. Not sure if any other parts used to move.

Firstly, I wish DW would stop with the motor sport themed additions. Secondly, if they must do it, as others have suggested it'd make more sense to put any new attraction next to the existing, isolated, motocoaster. Having two separate motor sport themed areas makes no sense. But then again, it would fit with the now all too common mentality of our GC parks that says themed zones are irrelevant.

You've just explained to me the relevance of the 'Park Row' sign in the first scene on Justice League. I knew you were meant to be travelling through the alleyways of Gotham City, but was never sure what Park Row was all about.

Have they actually fixed the fog screen and Starro projection? It's been so long I thought they might have given up on it. Did you also notice if they've fixed the other problems in the ride, like the spaceship door no longer operating and issues with darkness of the screens in the spaceship scene? The animation has been barely visible for some time. When the ride opened, the visuals were as clear and vibrant as all the other screens.