Sega World Sydney discussion

[Jobe]

Hi guys I just saw this extremely interesting video on Youtube regarding the history of Sega World Sydney. The video is a mine of information and features virtually every known image and video of Sega World found on the net currently.

I had the pleasure of visiting Sega World in 1997 the first year of its operation and I remember feeling underwhelmed at the time. It had some ok attractions but there is no real surprise as to why it eventually failed.

The biggest blunder for mine is that none of the major attractions were ever picked up by local operators- Rail Chase the Ride roller coaster was sold for a paltry $140,000!!! Imagine if one of the smaller operators such as either Luna Park, Aussie World or Adventure World had managed to secure this unique ride!! Such a waste of an opportunity! Also the Ghost Riders interractive Ghost train was a decent attraction and once again, would not have looked out of place in any traditional amusement park.
 

Very interested to see how many members of the forums actually visited Sega World in its hey day? Please add your memories and impressions below!

 

Enjoy the video if you have not seen it before!!

 

 

 

 

[Brad2912]

Visited Sega World numerous times in my early teens (13-14). My friends and I really enjoyed it, and I remember it being one of the first “solo” days we were allowed to do - catch the train into the city, spend the day at Sega World, and train home - sans adults (prior to that it was only day trips to wonderland). 

Rail Chase and Ghost rider were fun imo. At that stage it was the only indoor coaster in the country to my knowledge (or accessible to me anyway) so that added to the allure. I certainly feel with upgrades along the way both rides wouldn’t be out of place in the likes of Aussie World. 

Edited January 7, 2019 by Brad2912

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

I went to SW many times, and never paid for anything (free radio station tix). It was a great place, but lacked on several fronts - it was small, so couldn't accommodate large amounts of people - which in turn made pricing high, to offset that, which in turn kept people away.

Due to many of the attractions having both mechanical and VR elements, there were lengthy processes to group, load, set up, and start, for what then amounted to a fairly short experience.

Rail Chase was certainly an awesome little experience, but all-in-all it wasn't that great when compared elsewhere. It certainly wasn't the first indoor coaster in Australia (not sure if there are others out there, but Expo 88's SuperNova was definitely prior), but probably was the only one operating at the time.

The tank battle thing was also a bit ridiculous - such a large floor space, difficult to operate 'tanks' and a distinct lack of ammo.

Honestly, in a similar space, Intencity Parramatta had a much more superior offering, and as everything was 'user pays', pricing was much more reasonable, and capacity \ wait times were much more tolerable.

[Wil_i_am_not]

I recently heard about some plan to redevelop the Sega World concept, was posted on one of those Australian amusement facebook pages, however I can't for the life of me find the post. From memory, there wasn't a whole lot of information available, although I do believe it's planned to be more of an arcade/VR centre rather than an amusement park. I'll keep my eyes peeled for more info. 

[Baconjack]

I'm the guy responsible for the production of the Sega World video. I probably sat there for about a year on and off producing the video.

I made a second video with updates to what is going on in 2018. The statues that used to sit out the front of the park as photo ops are sitting in a junkyard along side the final Wonderland sign. I had a hand in trying to get them for restoration but the owner refuses to sell them, sadly. Wonderland's sign is there for $25k if anyone wants to buy it, though.

It is an absolute crime how only the AS-1 ride stayed in Australia post closure, LPM have it at the minute. Ghost Hunters would have been a solid pickup for Dreamworld who had bought Big Dipper used from LPS around the same time. In fact most of the ex SW rides should have been looked at by our own theme parks if they wanted cheap new(ish) rides.

On the topic of SWS 2 as Wil mentioned, I did touch on how it could happen in the new video. Probably would happen as some sort of 'retro revival' but I still don't see it being likely.

[DaptoFunlandGuy]

Anything that enters the Windsor Junkyard, never comes out. The pricetag given for the sign is a prohibitive figure to put you off wanting to buy it.

If you pulled out the cash, he'd find another reason to not sell it, or up his price again.

It is a pointless exercise trying to negotiate with that guy... unless you have a lawyer and legal proof of ownership.