Dark Universe (Epic Universe)

[Killer Klown]

Do I wish werewolf was longer? Absolutely. But I think the vibes of the ride with the queue weaving through the woods with the various fortune teller stuff and the old barn are gonna be some of the best in the park. I don’t understand thinking this ride shouldn’t exist at all.

 

[Mad Dog]

Not a big fan of one minute coasters. But at least this seems somewhat themed. This is something I would only ride if the line was short. But I have the same opinion of the big E Ticket Tron, which is also only around a minute long. As I've said before, I love live shows, but with Universal's horrendous track record of live show closures, the planned one probably would have been closed within a couple of years. So, bottom line, this is better than nothing in that space.

 

[Brian G.]

Nobody has this mentality. We're allowed to criticize a ride for being short and/or unneccessary without saying it needs to be an e-ticket lol

Short, sure. It is short. I'd argue that it's fine as it's a secondary attraction for the land but I can see why people would have a problem.

Unnecessary? That's a strong word.

 

[GAcoaster]

I don't understand why Curse of the Werewolf exists to be honest. I'm sure it'll be fine, but why add another family coaster to a park that already has two and lacks in other ride types? I'm imagining something like a creepy version of an Antique Car ride here. It could still be family friendly, plus it would have no height requirement and it could use the same space.

Because they originally were planning a third stage show for the park, but realized it was too heavy on shows and not enough on family thrills. Same reason why planned princess meet and greets in New Fantasyland turned into Seven Dwarfs Mine. While shows are a great part of a park, if they're not good shows it's not worth it. I think they have their hands full with the HTTYD and Fantastic Beasts shows already and the Monsters show would have been an "also ran" unless they really pulled out all the stops and budgeted for it properly. There will be plenty of other entertainment throughout the park that will be Universal's strong suit of "street entertainment that's great, but you don't have to line up and sit in a theater to see".

 

[TheCodeMan95]

Does this even really take up that much space? Is it any different than Hippogriff existing? Something cool squashed into a small space?

This is gonna be way cooler than Hippogriff btw lol

 

[GAcoaster]

I think the queue will be an attraction all by itself, much like many of the post Potter attractions. While the ride may be short, then entire "experience" will help make up for it.

 

[tommyhawkins]

Short, sure. It is short. I'd argue that it's fine as it's a secondary attraction for the land but I can see why people would have a problem.

Unnecessary? That's a strong word.

Very necessary, probably because they found out what I'm saying below.

And also can I point out the DK is probably going to sit at about 1:15 and have a throughput of around 700-950/HR and was never going to be an Eticket like people think it is. Here's a to scale mock draft up I did of that ride....with several pauses that definitely won't be in there.



I know which line I'm joining opening day.

 

[TheCodeMan95]

Very necessary, probably because they found out what I'm saying below.

And also can I point out the DK is probably going to sit at about 1:15 and have a throughput of around 700-950/HR and was never going to be an Eticket like people think it is. Here's a to scale mock draft up I did of that ride....with several pauses that definitely won't be in there.



I know which line I'm joining opening day.

... DK isn't an E-ticket?

 

[Casper Gutman]

People love coasters. That’s why Six Flags is so much more popular then Disney or Universal.

That’s glib, of course. The truth is that getting the right attraction mix is a balancing act. EU is a bit coaster heavy. That’s not going to come anywhere close to breaking the park, but it’s fair to comment on it and point out that Werewolf feels like a bit of an afterthought (which it is). It can still be fun.

I’d argue that dark rides are what distinguish world-class theme resorts like Disney and Uni. What the EU mix really lacks is a family-friendly dark ride and a water dark ride. This latter point (coupled with Werewolf’s more modest ambitions) is a good reason to fast track Creature.

 

[Tbad556]

I’d argue that dark rides are what distinguish world-class theme resorts like Disney and Uni. What the EU mix really lacks is a family-friendly dark ride and a water dark ride.

But... EU literally has family-friendly dark rides?

I just don't really get the issue tbh. Most of the lands have dark rides. Coasters & dark rides can (and will) co-exist here.

 

[Disneyhead]

My plan for the land is Werewolf first. Then The Frankenstein Experiment. Then a beer and a pretzel at The Burning Blade Tavern to process everything I just experienced.

 

[Casper Gutman]

But... EU literally has family-friendly dark rides?

I just don't really get the issue tbh. Most of the lands have dark rides and coasters. They can (and will) co-exist here.

Yoshi has a relatively brief dark ride section. What else are we counting as family-friendly dark rides?

Of course coasters and dark rides can co-exist (even on the same ride). No one here, as far as I can see, wants to eliminate Universal coasters. The point is that EU’s mix tilts a bit towards coasters, and Werewolf, being the last one added and (I believe) the shortest feels a bit extraneous. It might have been nice if that space had been allocated to a different sort of attraction.

 

[Tbad556]

Yoshi has a relatively brief dark ride section. What else are we counting as family-friendly dark rides?

Of course coasters and dark rides can co-exist (even on the same ride). No one here, as far as I can see, wants to eliminate Universal coasters. The point is that EU’s mix tilts a bit towards coasters, and Werewolf, being the last one added and (I believe) the shortest feels a bit extraneous. It might have been nice if that space had been allocated to a different sort of attraction.

Mario Kart and Ministry of Magic for sure. Monsters Unchained you can debate whether it's family friendly or not, I suppose. Hard to say how scary it is until we see the inside.

I just don't see this dramatic "tilt" towards coasters. The only ride in the HP land is a dark ride. Monsters has both a dark ride and a coaster. Nintendo has a dark ride, a coaster, and an ominmover (with a brief dark ride section). HTTYD has a coaster, but also 2 different rides and an award winning show. And so on. This isn't some crazy ratio. People like coasters, people like dark rides. Universal went the ol' "¿por qué no los dos?" route.

I mean, hell. The first rumored expansion for the park is even a Luigi's Mansion dark ride.

 

[Casper Gutman]

Mario Kart and Ministry of Magic for sure. Monsters Unchained you can debate whether it's family friendly or not, I suppose. Hard to say how scary it is until we see the inside.

I just don't see this dramatic "tilt" towards coasters. The only ride in the HP land is a dark ride. Monsters has both a dark ride and a coaster. Nintendo has a dark ride, a coaster, and an ominmover (with a brief dark ride section). HTTYD has a coaster, but also 2 different rides and an award winning show. And so on. This isn't some crazy ratio. People like coasters, people like dark rides. Universal went the ol' "¿por qué no los dos?" route.

I mean, hell. The first rumored expansion for the park is even a Luigi's Mansion dark ride.

I believe Ministry and Mario both have height limits, which seems like a fair measure of “family-friendly.”

 

[Killer Klown]

Honestly dark rides and coasters enhance each other, not compete. Especially for theme parks where most coasters have dark ride elements and sections and that’s no different here with Epic’s coasters. Dark rides and coasters are the two biggest crowd pleasers and I think most people, especially the GP, would significantly prefer that Uni put a lot of energy into making coasters (which they’re clearly good at) rather than simulators like they used to.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

Very necessary, probably because they found out what I'm saying below.

And also can I point out the DK is probably going to sit at about 1:15 and have a throughput of around 700-950/HR and was never going to be an Eticket like people think it is. Here's a to scale mock draft up I did of that ride....with several pauses that definitely won't be in there.



I know which line I'm joining opening day.

It's a family-thrill coaster, lower height requirement, well-themed, and with a major IP attached to it. Whether or not the intent was to be an E-ticket or not, it'll certainly draw E-ticket crowds.

Big failure on their part to approve a major coaster with less than 1K riders an hour.

 

[belloq87]

And also can I point out the DK [will] have a throughput of around 700-950/HR and was never going to be an Eticket like people think it is

I guess we'll have to see how it plays out, but that's slightly concerning, as I think the ride is going to have the draw of an E-ticket (whether that was intended or not).

People love coasters. That’s why Six Flags is so much more popular then Disney or Universal.

That’s glib, of course. The truth is that getting the right attraction mix is a balancing act. EU is a bit coaster heavy. That’s not going to come anywhere close to breaking the park, but it’s fair to comment on it and point out that Werewolf feels like a bit of an afterthought (which it is). It can still be fun.

I’d argue that dark rides are what distinguish world-class theme resorts like Disney and Uni. What the EU mix really lacks is a family-friendly dark ride and a water dark ride. This latter point (coupled with Werewolf’s more modest ambitions) is a good reason to fast track Creature.

But... EU literally has family-friendly dark rides?

I just don't really get the issue tbh. Most of the lands have dark rides. Coasters & dark rides can (and will) co-exist here.

I've been toying with the idea of creating a "Coasters vs. Dark Rides" thread (that's a bit of a sensationalist title, but it's just an example) to have these kinds of bigger-picture, philosophical discussions so they don't clutter other threads. Don't know how much interest there'd be, though!

 

[PerceptiveCoot]

Very necessary, probably because they found out what I'm saying below.

And also can I point out the DK is probably going to sit at about 1:15 and have a throughput of around 700-950/HR and was never going to be an Eticket like people think it is. Here's a to scale mock draft up I did of that ride....with several pauses that definitely won't be in there.



I know which line I'm joining opening day.

You know if they wanted to increase the ride time, they could probably get rid of all those random launches in the middle of the track and turn the launched lift into a lifthill.

It's a family-thrill coaster, lower height requirement, well-themed, and with a major IP attached to it. Whether or not the intent was to be an E-ticket or not, it'll certainly draw E-ticket crowds.

Big failure on their part to approve a major coaster with less than 1K riders an hour.

For what it's worth (which is very little at this point), L.C.A Studios over in Japan has been observing the dispatch rate of test cars past the Temple facade visible from the Potter area, and has calculated a hourly capacity of 1144 an hour, which seems a bit high, but definitely clears something like 700 people per hour.



Of course, as they point, these are just calculations with available data, and we'll either just have to wait and see what actual capacity. Or we could try to make a smug point in an arbitrary argument about a different attraction by pulling data out our butt.

 

[Brian G.]

I guess we'll have to see how it plays out, but that's slightly concerning, as I think the ride is going to have the draw of an E-ticket (whether that was intended or not).



I've been toying with the idea of creating a "Coasters vs. Dark Rides" thread (that's a bit of a sensationalist title, but it's just an example) to have these kinds of bigger-picture, philosophical discussions so they don't clutter other threads. Don't know how much interest there'd be, though!

Go ahead.

We should also prob focus back on the Monster side of things.

 

[Mad Dog]

My plan for the land is Werewolf first. Then The Frankenstein Experiment. Then a beer and a pretzel at The Burning Blade Tavern to process everything I just experienced.

Wow, domestic life must be calming. In the old days the beer at Burning Tree would have been first on the list.