New perspectives: Changes at WDW

[Bob O]

My daughter who was 4 when we last went to both parks much perferred MIB to Buzz even though she likes Buzz. The movement of the ride was alot more fun for her. Disney could have made Buzz from scratch by tearing down the building and starting new but did it on the cheap by using same type of ride mechanism. When ive been to both parks MIB was alot busier but with FOTL it was great to ride it numerous times to try to best your score. I guess everybody will have their own perferences but i see Universal as trying to create new experinces while disney is satisfied with getting by. As a example TDS gets a pooh ride that is new while we get a pooh ride thats runs on the same track with cutouts and a bigger store.

 

[All Aboard]

Disney likely could not have torn down the Dreamflight Building and started from scratch. Certainly not without shutting down and rebuilding a portion of TTA, destroying the CircleVision 360 theater and making Tomorrowland look horrible for a period of time.

Universal built a new structure for MIB, true. They did not for Twister. Why not? Simple, they made efficient use of an existing structure. Same for Hanna Barbera.

WDW built a new structure for RnR because it made sense. They tore down Horizons to build Space from scratch. They retained the World of Motion building and adapted Test Track to it. It's on a case by case basis. Personally, I don't want them to start ripping out existing MK structures to make room for more technologically advanced attractions. Many show buildings are shared by 3 or 4 attractions, it's just not feasible.

 

[Conure]

I agree with gcurling. Every time Disney creates a new attraction it can't rebuild from scratch. They need to find an efficient and consistant way of doing that with minimum wait time. (have they?) Anyway, it's a lot nicer to not have something ripped up and a lot closed.

 

[raidermatt]

Bob, without getting into a debate about whether Tiki Room and CBJ are outdated, you have to acknowledge that many people would be very upset if these were closed. And, if they were replaced with a "height requirement" ride, families have been alienated.

We're going to WDW for 2 weeks and will be spending one day at Universal. MIB was something I wanted to try, but if its got a height requirement of anything over 40", I'll most likely be skipping it.

I do agree with a couple of your attractions on your list, Star Tours and the Living Seas. But absolutely disagree on Universe of Energy. Ellen maybe outdated, but one does not have to know anything about Ellen to get the show. And the remainder of the ride/show is fun without scaring 90% of the little ones.

JIYI- Not really fair to crack down on this one, since it hasn't re-opened yet.

Really, most of the stuff you named is not outdated, its just relatively tame.

Again, I agree on the need for innovation, but still have to disagree on the move towards more thrills. Its just not what Disney has built itself on. "WOW!", does not have to become "WOW! AHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!"

 

[hopemax]

Bob, without getting into a debate about whether Tiki Room and CBJ are outdated, you have to acknowledge that many people would be very upset if these were closed. And, if they were replaced with a "height requirement" ride, families have been alienated.

See this is what gets me about the WoM -->Test Track, Horizons -->Mission, Space conversions. 2 non-requirement rides were replaced with ones with requirements. And it's just not height requirements, but physical requirements. There are a lot of people out there with back problems who probably shouldn't be riding some of the more thrilling rides but don't want to miss out on all the good Disney attractions or separate from their other family members. Some of those people get hurt, and then some of them file complaints, reports, hire lawyers. I just wonder if the need to put your body at risk would be lessened if there were a few more high-quality, signature rides like HM that are ridable by everyone regardless of height or physical condition.

 

[Conure]

A lot of the stuff that sets Disney aprt is the focus on family. take that away and there's really no difference between it and just another cheap carnival ride. I completely agree that "height requirement" rides should be minimum. The family focus is what has kept Disney from being overpassed entirely by Universal.

 

[daannzzz]

I thought IOA was a great start to a new park. I only stayed until 3:00 P.M. though as I ran out of stuff to do. I didn't hit the 3 coasters or Dr. Dooms. What they need there are a few more attractions like Cat in the Hat, Jurrasic park ( maybe a little longer in the show scene department) and such. Spiderman is awesome but almost the limit on my motion sickness scale. Jurassic Park and Dudely are both fine. If they add more etreme thrill rides though, without adding other major attractions they will loose me as a guest. Give me rides with lots of visuals!!!

 

[Bob O]

No disney didnt have to tear down the building but they could have gutted the interior and did something from scratch rather than use the old ride mech. which severly limits what the ride can offer in the way of being interactive.(Buzz Ride)
I think Hanna barbera was always the way it was, i remember riding it when the park was very new.
Raidermatt no matter what you do people will be upset, thats just a fact of life. We have people complaining about World Of Motion being gone when it was replaced(imho) by a superior attraction. If you worry about complaints you would never have progress!!I wasnt commenting on the new JIYI, the old one that was inferior to the ride it replaced. I like Universe of Energy, hate the ellen portion but EVERBODY else in my family dislikes it so i ride it by myself, the dinosaur part is great but the rest is dated IMHO.

Hopemax i would love more rides like HM/POC but disney isnt into making those type of rides anymore. Regarding lawsuits that will happen no matter what ride is built. Didnt somebody step off Its a Small World(or was it POC) last year and sue, with our current culture being sued will happen no matter what the ride and how badly the patron behaves and causes their own injury.