Avengers Campus (DCA)

[Parkscope Joe]

Jumping in since I haven’t seen it posted yet: the ride has music but was turned off for b-roll footage.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

 

[OrlandoGuy]

- Ride vehicle: One fits the property completely, the other is a box.
- Theming: One is a fantastic mix of AR and incredibly detailed physical, dynamic sets, one is 3D and screens
- Locations: One visits iconic locations from the franchise, the other visits a storage hall, a basement, a warehouse, and a hangar...
- Animatronics: One features animatronics, one doesn't

I can keep going, but other than the "shooter" aspect, I don't even see them as comparable. This is almost a TSMM clone with different shooter technology. There's incredibly little going on here, no iconic characters are really anywhere to be found, the audio is clunky, Spider-Man barely speaks, the scenes are almost the same thing on loop with rough animation, etc.

I have no issue with not being the target audience for an attraction. I enjoy many, many attractions that are not designed for me. But this is a joke of an attraction for one of the biggest franchises in the world made by a company that is capable of making some of the greatest attractions in the world.

I get a lot of this, but it also speaks to the difference in expectations—Mario Kart SHOULD have better sets, it’s the signature draw of its land (not a supplementary kid’s ride).

The ride vehicle...I mean, I guess? The MK car does seem cool, but it lends itself naturally to Mario Kart and I dont know of anything comparable for Spider-Man (is the Scoop not also more or less a box?).

I don’t see animatronics on either...yes Mario Kart has moving elements but, again, that should be expected for a higher-caliber ride.

The quality of the animation, I was actually kind of impressed with. Granted, I understand that 3-D won’t translate to video so maybe that’s why. I also thought the AR* (my bad) looked hokey and unrealistic on MK but again, the caveat is that it doesn’t (and shouldn’t) translate well on video.

I will definitely agree there’s a lot of iconic stuff they missed from Spider-Man...I’ll stand by the point that going all in on villains doesn’t fit what the ride sets out to do, but the warehouses do get a bit boring. Although, besides the Daily Bugle and generic New York streets, I’m not sure what iconic Spider-Man locations are really missing (especially in the context of MCU Spider-Man).

This is just my honest opinion/take after seeing both on video. Granted, I had higher expectations for one ride vs the other so maybe that’s where my comparison comes from. In any case, I think they both look fun because I really like the shooter rides. I’m just baffled at how aggressively negative the response is on here for a supporting kid’s ride when the response to any criticism of Mario Kart was that it was for kids, it was supposed to highlight interactivity, and we couldn’t judge it based on video.

 

[PerceptiveCoot]

Jumping in since I haven’t seen it posted yet: the ride has music but was turned off for b-roll footage.

I guess they listened to criticism of the Galaxy's Edge media days and decided to give the press a worse experience than regular guests.

 

[Parkscope Joe]

I guess they listened to criticism of the Galaxy's Edge media days and decided to give the press a worse experience than regular guests.

Hey, I get it, if you’re filming to include in video packages for news outlets then turning off music will help!

 

[Tbad556]

I get a lot of this, but it also speaks to the difference in expectations—Mario Kart SHOULD have better sets, it’s the signature draw of its land (not a supplementary kid’s ride).

I'll just say I went in to this land with no expectations and still feel underwhelmed. And until they decide to actually begin building the new attraction, this is basically the signature draw of the land. ROTR not opening with Galaxy's Edge was bad enough but could be excused since it was at least under construction and opened a year later. The Avengers attraction isn't being built right now and has no opening timeline at all. This is the full experience they're offering guests for at least several years.

I don’t see animatronics on either...yes Mario Kart has moving elements but, again, that should be expected for a higher-caliber ride.

Animatronics may be the wrong word, but there are physical, moving characters such as Chain-Chomps & Piranha Plants. I don't think you can use the "one is high-caliber, the other isn't" excuse if you're actively trying to compare the two as being on par with each other.

The quality of the animation, I was actually kind of impressed with. Granted, I understand that 3-D won’t translate to video so maybe that’s why. I also thought the AR* (my bad) looked hokey and unrealistic on MK but again, the caveat is that it doesn’t (and shouldn’t) translate well on video.

Not for me, but to each their own. I feel like I'm essentially watching an old arcade shooter like Time Crisis or something tbh.

I will definitely agree there’s a lot of iconic stuff they missed from Spider-Man...I’ll stand by the point that going all in on villains doesn’t fit what the ride sets out to do, but the warehouses do get a bit boring. Although, besides the Daily Bugle and generic New York streets, I’m not sure what iconic Spider-Man locations are really missing (especially in the context of MCU Spider-Man).

If that's not what they set out to do, that's honestly on them. Why do Marvel if you're not setting out to give a Marvel experience? It's Galaxy's Edge all over again. People want recognizable characters. Not Spider-Bots. IOA's attraction had no issue at all making it feel like you were in a Spider-Man story. They managed to give a recognizable location with iconic NY spots rather than "generic" ones, we got Bugle references, we got Jonah Jameson content, we got Stan Lee cameos, etc.

 

[Brian G.]

It does seem the negative response goes beyond this Universal fan forum. The positive feedback seems to be in the minority on the social channels.

 

[Tbad556]

It does seem the negative response goes beyond this Universal fan forum. The positive feedback seems to be in the minority on the social channels.

Yup. Twitter and WDWMagic are a mess over it.

Like, I don't think most of us actively want the attraction to disappoint . ROTR is actively one of my favorite attractions. I'm looking into getting a WDW AP again in the near future. I'm trying to plan a DL trip currently for the first time ever even. I've seen every Marvel movie multiple times including most in theaters. I definitely don't want the land to fail and am not biased towards Uni in anyway (Fallon and Fast deserve immense levels of bashing). This just... isn't good.

 

[OrlandoGuy]

I'll just say I went in to this land with no expectations and still feel underwhelmed. And until they decide to actually begin building the new attraction, this is basically the signature draw of the land. ROTR not opening with it was bad enough but could be excused since it was at least under construction. The Avengers attraction isn't being built right now and has no opening timeline at all. This is the full experience they're offering guests for at least several years.

Isn’t Guardians the signature draw of the land? Just because it’s older doesn’t mean it hasn’t been getting rave reviews and is generally considered among the best in the resort.

And anyway, I feel like this is an unfair movement of the goalposts. Not opening alongside a bigger ride doesn’t change the fact that the immediate need post-Bug’s Land was a ride with no height requirement and no overtly menacing elements. Sure, the GP won’t give the land the benefit of the doubt not knowing what’s (supposedly) coming later...but they also won’t be as harsh on the ride I would guess.

Animatronics may be the wrong word, but there are physical, moving characters such as Chain-Chomps & Piranha Plants. I don't think you can use the "one is high-caliber, the other isn't" excuse if you're actively trying to compare the two as being on par with each other.

I dont mean to imply they’re on par with each other...the initial question I posed was “how is one significantly worse?” Objectively, the Spider-Man ride is not as elaborate or groundbreaking...but it’s also not meant to be. One wouldn’t rip apart Secret Life of Pets for not being Velocicoaster...but both do well at what they set out to do.

Not for me, but to each their own. I feel like I'm essentially watching an old arcade shooter like Time Crisis or something tbh.

Lol, fair enough. I’d ride the crap out of a Time Crisis ride tbh.

If that's not what they set out to do, that's honestly on them. Why do Marvel if you're not setting out to give a Marvel experience? It's Galaxy's Edge all over again. People want recognizable characters. Not Spider-Bots. IOA's attraction had no issue at all making it feel like you were in a Spider-Man story. They managed to give a recognizable location with iconic NY spots rather than "generic" ones, we got Bugle references, we got Jonah Jameson content, we got Stan Lee cameos, etc.

I think Spider-Man *is* the recognizable character. I still don’t agree that the ride should’ve been chock full of actual villains or menace (target audience aside, this would feel redundant when an actual thrill ride opens up), and adding Stan Lee and Jonah Jameson would be an improvement of the smallest margin.

To be clear, I wouldn’t wait longer than 20-30 minutes to ride this and if the next time I visit it requires a VL, I’d opt out in favor of doing Rise of the Resistance. All I’m saying is that puts it in the same category as Mario Kart for me.

It does seem the negative response goes beyond this Universal fan forum. The positive feedback seems to be in the minority on the social channels.

I don’t think anyone is even making this a Disney vs. Universal thing. Wasn’t the Mario Kart ride given pretty lukewarm reception among social media as well?

I don’t mean to imply there’s any bias or foul play here....just legitimately wondering what’s driving the immense difference in reactions between the two because for me (maybe I’m just a simpleminded theme park fan), there’s similarities here.

 

[Amity6]

What’s the status on the lands E ticket that may or may not open in 5 years

 

[Brian G.]

I don’t think anyone is even making this a Disney vs. Universal thing. Wasn’t the Mario Kart ride given pretty lukewarm reception among social media as well?

I don’t mean to imply there’s any bias or foul play here....just legitimately wondering what’s driving the immense difference in reactions between the two because for me (maybe I’m just a simpleminded theme park fan), there’s similarities here.

I'd say Mario Kart was more towards the positive side. There were definitely detractors, but not to the scale of this. The common complaint with it was the whole "it's slow" - which is why the argument was made that the AR and effects won't capture well on a POV so it's hard to judge.

With Spider-Man, it's Toy Story Mania. There is no simulated speed. It's basically going screen to screen waving hands. We've basically seen this before. The POV translates a bit better in that regard.

Yes, it's still fair to wait for an official ride to give it a full review, but something definitely seems off with the ride based on POVs (and the land, in general, seems like a miss). On a personal note, I love shooters but hate the shooting mechanics for TSMM and this. Just let me pull an old-fashioned trigger.

What’s the status on the lands E ticket that may or may not open in 5 years

It's anyone's guess at this point.

 

[Tbad556]

Isn’t Guardians the signature draw of the land? Just because it’s older doesn’t mean it hasn’t been getting rave reviews and is generally considered among the best in the resort.

And anyway, I feel like this is an unfair movement of the goalposts. Not opening alongside a bigger ride doesn’t change the fact that the immediate need post-Bug’s Land was a ride with no height requirement and no overtly menacing elements. Sure, the GP won’t give the land the benefit of the doubt not knowing what’s (supposedly) coming later...but they also won’t be as harsh on the ride I would guess.

:shrug: Guardians opened before the land was ever announced, but that's The Disney Way at this point, so judge as you'd like.

I mean, just because the area needed it doesn't mean it excuses it being mediocre. Something isn't good by default IMO just because it filled in where something was needed. But to each their own.

I dont mean to imply they’re on par with each other...the initial question I posed was “how is one significantly worse?” Objectively, the Spider-Man ride is not as elaborate or groundbreaking...but it’s also not meant to be. One wouldn’t rip apart Secret Life of Pets for not being Velocicoaster...but both do well at what they set out to do.

I honestly don't see much of a difference between the two? It's significantly worse IMO because there's far less to it and it delivers a much lesser and less innovative experience. There's no other ride like Mario Kart in USJ. There is another ride like Web Slingers in DLR. I would rip this attraction apart for not being better than TS:MM at the very least. I'd likely wait for TS:MM over this.

Lol, fair enough. I’d ride the crap out of a Time Crisis ride tbh.

Absolutely same. I adored Time Crisis growing up. But I also don't think they could do better than something like this for Time Crisis

I think Spider-Man *is* the recognizable character. I still don’t agree that the ride should’ve been chock full of actual villains or menace (target audience aside, this would feel redundant when an actual thrill ride opens up), and adding Stan Lee and Jonah Jameson would be an improvement of the smallest margin.

To be clear, I wouldn’t wait longer than 20-30 minutes to ride this and if the next time I visit it requires a VL, I’d opt out in favor of doing Rise of the Resistance. All I’m saying is that puts it in the same category as Mario Kart for me.

To each their own. I'm happy you're not disappointed in it. Not trying to take that away from you for any reason.

What’s the status on the lands E ticket that may or may not open in 5 years

Posting strictly for the headline of the tweet:

 

[Legacy]

The difference between Mario Kart and Web Slingers is a difference between Men in Black and Toy Story Mania. One immerses you in a setting, the other is a virtual shooting gallery. Experience wise, that’s the primary thing. We can argue the technical differences (of which there are many, and of which Mario Kart is a vastly superior ride considering Web Slingers is basically a Kinect on wheels), but the experience is what matters. Web Slingers is static interactivity. Mario Kart is kinetic interactivity.

 

[PerceptiveCoot]

Inevitable:

 

[Brian G.]

One final point I wanna make as I don't wanna continuously pile on but..

After what's been produced by Disney... I will never understand the want for the Marvel theme park rights to go to Disney (Outside of wanting to see the MCU characters come to life)

 

[UPSguy]

I don't think anyone who's been paying attention thought this had a shot at coming close to IOA's Spider-Man (which would've been a tall task no matter what). Looking at the types of Marvel rides Disney has put out there since buying Marvel, no one should've really had any high hopes for this.

It's actually fairly telling that all of the Marvel rides so far are either re-skins/clones (Iron Man Experience, Ant-Man & The Wasp: Nano Battle!, and GotG: MB) or practically the exact same thing that can be found at regional parks (Web Slingers). The first truly original Marvel ride will be Cosmic Rewind. I want to hope Avengers Quinjet won't be a clone themed to Marvel, but I feel like i've heard that it may utilize a Pandora system (which in and of itself is more of a souped up Soarin', which again, is already in DCA).

The Avenger's E-Ticket will NOT use FoPs ride system, it will have a new and unique ride system, yet to be seen at the Disney Parks before, where Scot Drake (Creative Executive at WDI) told a crowd New York Comic Con that guest will start off the ride together in a Quinjet, then the ride will transform into an "individual experience" where your seat will break apart from the group.
It sounds interesting, and from what Drake told the crowd, it seems like the concept art from D23 seems to be accurate.

 

[Scott W.]

I know you shouldn't judge a ride based on a POV but this does look kinda crap but I have a feeling it might be a fun experience. I thoroughly enjoy Midway Mania.

It seems like the two biggest mistakes are opening this as the only ride of a new land and this new land, given the IP, should be top tier.

 

[DK745]

At least it's not Superstar Limo, but it doesn't look particularly good. Even with music it doesn't look like a fun experience.

 

[HalfGlass]

One final point I wanna make as I don't wanna continuously pile on but..

After what's been produced by Disney... I will never understand the want for the Marvel theme park rights to go to Disney (Outside of wanting to see the MCU characters come to life)

So I’m beginning to wonder - maybe Disney cut budgets on this because they realized they CAN’T build this in Orlando. SWGE (which is still a mess to some extent) was built with a budget knowing it would produce revenue in two parks.

 

[Nick]

There should've been a Sinister Six team-up in the ride to be villains. The problem lies in that they are using a live-action version of Spider-Man, which means villains would have to be live-action (and further working with Sony to bring people like Keaton, Leto, Hardy, etc on-board to play Vulture, Morbius, Venom, etc).

However, even if they just used one villain (maybe Keaton's Vulture again) then it probably couldn't have been any worse than this and it certainly would've been more fun for fans of the character and of the MCU.