The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Hollywood

[Jonathan]

I wouldn't discount everything about a potter phase 2. Universal like all businesses will go where the money is. I have no clue as to if we are getting phase 2 but this I do know, theme parks are planning years into the future rarely do parks fly by the seat of their pants ( exception may be six flags)

 

[Allen The Actor]

Ok, but that makes more sense in Florida where they actually HAVE space to spare and expand into.

Look at USH. If they remove anything else on the upper lot for phase 2, they might as well rename the park....

Makes sense in Florida and would make sense here IF we had the room. We simply don't. We're not even getting all of the "phase one" so to speak.

The Diagon Alley/London expansion is MASSIVE. Gringotts itself is massive.

I'm gonna say it'll never happen....

Anyway, for those familiar with Forbidden Journey from ride videos or in person, what would you like to see improved in our version? Most likely it will be a clone, as it's already an advanced major ride. I believe the protections are already 4K but if for some reason 8k projection will be ready in 3 years, I think they should remaster the footage in 8k but I HIIIIIGHLY doubt that.

I'd maybe like to see more wind effects, hell, maybe even some smell effects. Idk what else they could add beyond what they have....

OH I know, they need to update certain animatronics...

 

[Miss Betty Juice]

For those of us who have avoided spoilers, don't give ride summary/plot details please. I don't want to have to go around spoiler tagging people, nor do I want any info on WWoHP rides beyond the ride system or show building itself. T_T 

 

[Allen The Actor]

^ yeah, good point.

My question still stands. Spoilers regarding the ride aside, what would those who are familiar with the ride like to see realistically updated in terms of technology/effects?

 

[William]

I'll make sure not to give away spoilers. But I will let you know, Potter fan or not, you will NOT be disappointed by Forbidden Journey. 

I follow another forum website called "Orlando United" that has TONS of threads spanning over several different Orlando theme parks, mainly Disney and Universal. One of the threads is based on the screens in the Forbidden Journey ride. Apparently, they seem blurrier and darker than usual. This may be because guests' eyes aren't adjusted to the dark atmosphere within the building, but I'm sure when they build the ride here that they'll make sure everything is top notch for opening. What's good about the fact that we're not the first park to get the ride is that Universal can improve upon what they've already done before. I personally think the animatronics in the ride are great, though! Same with the effects. No matter how many times I ride Forbidden Journey, some parts still give me a spook! Words really can't do the attraction a justice. I don't think "smell" effects within the ride are necessary, but they'd sure be cool. Not really sure how they'd fit in, though. If you've ridden FJ or have seen VERY good videos on YouTube (videos are usually very hard to capture within the ride since it's so dark in there), you'll know what I mean. More wind effects are always nice, though. I feel like the Transformers ride's wind effects aren't as extreme as they should be. 

 

[Allen The Actor]

The only animatronics I'd improve are the dementors. They're cheesy IMO lol. Everything else is great! And yeah, better wind effects are necessary especially when you're flying, whether its transformers or potter.

 

[William]

That's something I don't get - I've heard from several people online that the dementors seem cheesy or unrealistic, but they're okay in my opinion. Their movements are a bit odd, but they're certainly in your face.

 

[smoaT]

Everyone stating what J.K thinks and what she wont approve I think are thinking ahead of themselves. When the news was out that Ollivanders was going to be in Hogsmeade everyone freaked out and they said it wasn't true to J.K.'s vision, when it was approved by her all the way. So lets not get into the "she won't allow it" sort of thing, because she might approve a Gringotts branch on Hogsmeade as she allowed Ollivanders (as ridiculous as it may sound. I don't want that but my point is that if they want, they can make it happen). From a storytelling stand point it doesn't make sense because no one in the books ever bought a wand in Hogsmeade, if there was a branch there, why do you go all the way to Diagon Alley to buy a replacement? Well, she allowed something like that...My point is that we are getting one freaking ride for all the space is going to take... theming will devour a lot of space, so I just don't want a freaking excuse to charge 100 dlls (calculating inflation up to 2016, remember that now IOA stands at a price tag of 90 dlls per ticket) to get into USH when, lets be honest, it's not worth it, like it happened in Islands of Adventure that is the most expensive theme park, even more expensive than any Disney park. I don't want only one good ride added, counting that it will bring a lot of extra people to the park crowding it, the prices going through the roof only for one ride. Adding another good ride, like Gringotts, won't make this "Harry Potter theme park" since well it will be 2 or 3 potter rides and like 7 other rides non Potter.I am just concerned that we are getting so little for a lot of hassle. Prices going up, again it happened in Florida becoming the most expensive park in the US. If they are going to make a huge expansion such as using the Gibson for the park I want a lot of rides... if the Potter vision of theming takes a lot of space and well it only adds one ride... lets get other options that don't require so much theming and adding stand alone attractions like the ones we currently have. I am a Potter fan and would love to see it here in USH but if ditching Potter (impossible) gives us the possibility of adding 3 rides with Universal properties, to the hell with Potter (which obviously won't happen).I just don't want corporate greed here, adding one ride, addding 20 dlls to the ticket price, adding a lot of people, which obviously are not going to stay only in Potter, they are going to flow to the rest of the park, as it happened in Florida. To prove my point see the reviews IOA is getting "too crowded, not worth the hefty price" and such. 

 

[William]

Not to be a stick in the mud, but it's going to be a little hard to chew on the fact that this will be opening a full two years after the USF expansion opens. I wonder if Forbidden Journey will feel incredibly old hat in comparison.

I wouldn't be surprised if USJ would be opening the same expansion in 2016 either.

It may seem like it'll be a tedious process, but once it opens, I think guests will be happy. It's a nice addition to the park, but I've certainly thought about that before.

 

[smoaT]

Not to be a stick in the mud, but it's going to be a little hard to chew on the fact that this will be opening a full two years after the USF expansion opens. I wonder if Forbidden Journey will feel incredibly old hat in comparison.

I wouldn't be surprised if USJ would be opening the same expansion in 2016 either.

Actually that's a pretty good point... don't know how things will be by then... I don't even know if they have figured exactly what were getting yet. Either they are still figuring out what to construct, or they're playing the secrecy card. Maybe they change plans halfway through (ehem Jurassic Park 4).

Forgot to post the link of the reviews... http://www.tripadvisor.ie/ShowUserReviews-g34515-d258685-r131042206-Universal_s_Islands_of_Adventure-Orlando_Florida.html

 

[Allen The Actor]

Not to be a stick in the mud, but it's going to be a little hard to chew on the fact that this will be opening a full two years after the USF expansion opens. I wonder if Forbidden Journey will feel incredibly old hat in comparison.

I wouldn't be surprised if USJ would be opening the same expansion in 2016 either.

Sad how slow stuff gets constructed here.And whataya mean Forbidden Journey will feel old? Technically it's still a very advanced ride and California has never had anything like that, nor will it until Forbidden Journey opens. It will still be extremely fresh. Look at Transformers. Uses 10 year old technology from Spidy and it's still fresh because 99% of California residents haven't been to Florida

 

[William]

Everyone stating what J.K thinks and what she wont approve I think are thinking ahead of themselves. When the news that Ollivanders was going to be in Hogsmeade everyone freaked out and they said it wasn't true to J.K.'s vision, when it was approved by her all the way. So lets not get into the "she won't allow it" sort of thing, because she might approve a Gringotts branch on Hogsmeade as she allowed Ollivanders...

(Excuse me while I let my inner-Potter nerd out!) There's a difference, though - if there really was an Ollivanders shop in Hogsmeade (in the movies), we could've over looked it. After all, it's a small shop that could've easily blended in with its surroundings. Gringotts, on the other hand, is a full-on wizarding bank full of underground caverns housing several full-sized dragons that are protecting large vaults full of plentiful riches. I don't think Rowling could twist the story slightly and say, "Oh, yes. There was a large, white structure hidden within Hogsmeade, but you just can't see it." It's a bit far-fetched, and doesn't hold true to the story at all. The Hogsmeade in Universal Orlando has an ATM with a sign over it that says, "GRINGOTTS AUTOMATED TELLER MACHINE." This is obviously a very slight stretch in the fiction to make things easier for guests, and I'd be a lot happier if that was the only sign of Gringotts in our park. I'd also be much more satisfied if all Diagon Alley elements stayed in Orlando because it would be one of the things I'd be excited about visiting for. I want certain things to stay over there so that seeing Potter on the west-coast is actually worth while because you see new things you don't have at home.

Jurassic Park is a very large, wildly popular franchise that involves a topic that could be recreated as a theme park attraction in so many different ways. Orlando took advantage of that and created an entire land themed to the books and movies complete with several attractions, restaurants, and stores. All we got was a ride, a shop, and a restaurant. For our park, that's a lot. It'd be kinda greedy of Universal to let Potter consume more of the park than it already will. It's simply too much of one thing in our park. They're already giving up an attraction of ours, along with an entire concert venue - they're certainly dedicated if they're willing to stretch USH's boundaries to something like the Gibson Amphitheater. Another deciding factor of whether or not Gringotts will come here is what the reviews and thoughts are like for the ride in Orlando. They haven't even finished the ride there, and something like this hasn't been done before.

*I'm very passionate about Potter. Don't think I'm trying to be menacing if I let my love for Jo's work overcome me. 

 

[Allen The Actor]

Transformers, though, is not Spiderman. The tech may be identical, but it's an entirely different experience. FJ at USH will be the same experience that Florida visitors will have had for six years. It won't be the end of the world, granted, and will definitely be enjoyed by many CA locals... still for theme park fans this will seem rather blase after Gringott's opens.

.

For theme park fans, yes, Forbidden Journey in California will be nothing new, especially once the even more advanced Gringotts opens, but for most California residents and theme park fans who can't afford to travel, our Wizarding World will feel aabsolutely new and fresh.

 

[William]

Also, since we're only one park, ticket fees won't be as much of a hassle as they are in Florida if you want to visit both IOA and USF.

 

[Allen The Actor]

(Excuse me while I let my inner-Potter nerd out!) There's a difference, though - if there really was an Ollivanders shop in Hogsmeade (in the movies), we could've over looked it. After all, it's a small shop that could've easily blended in with its surroundings. Gringotts, on the other hand, is a full-on wizarding bank full of underground caverns housing several full-sized dragons that are protecting large vaults full of plentiful riches. I don't think Rowling could twist the story slightly and say, "Oh, yes. There was a large, white structure hidden within Hogsmeade, but you just can't see it." It's a bit far-fetched, and doesn't hold true to the story at all. The Hogsmeade in Universal Orlando has an ATM with a sign over it that says, "GRINGOTTS AUTOMATED TELLER MACHINE." This is obviously a very slight stretch in the fiction to make things easier for guests, and I'd be a lot happier if that was the only sign of Gringotts in our park. I'd also be much more satisfied if all Diagon Alley elements stayed in Orlando because it would be one of the things I'd be excited about visiting for. I want certain things to stay over there so that seeing Potter on the west-coast is actually worth while because you see new things you don't have at home.

Jurassic Park is a very large, wildly popular franchise that involves a topic that could be recreated as a theme park attraction in so many different ways. Orlando took advantage of that and created an entire land themed to the books and movies complete with several attractions, restaurants, and stores. All we got was a ride, a shop, and a restaurant. For our park, that's a lot. It'd be kinda greedy of Universal to let Potter consume more of the park than it already will. It's simply too much of one thing in our park. They're already giving up an attraction of ours, along with an entire concert venue - they're certainly dedicated if they're willing to stretch USH's boundaries to something like the Gibson Amphitheater. Another deciding factor of whether or not Gringotts will come here is what the reviews and thoughts are like for the ride in Orlando. They haven't even finished the ride there, and something like this hasn't been done before.

*I'm very passionate about Potter. Don't think I'm trying to be menacing if I let my love for Jo's work overcome me.

Amen, my friend.

 

[William]

Amen, my friend.

Haha! Potter fan forever. 

 

[smoaT]

(Excuse me while I let my inner-Potter nerd out!) There's a difference, though - if there really was an Ollivanders shop in Hogsmeade (in the movies), we could've over looked it. After all, it's a small shop that could've easily blended in with its surroundings. Gringotts, on the other hand, is a full-on wizarding bank full of underground caverns housing several full-sized dragons that are protecting large vaults full of plentiful riches. I don't think Rowling could twist the story slightly and say, "Oh, yes. There was a large, white structure hidden within Hogsmeade, but you just can't see it." It's a bit far-fetched, and doesn't hold true to the story at all. 

Well there is no Ollivanders in the movies nor in the books placed in Hogsmeade, so anyways it doesn't make sense. The second part about underground caverns, do I need to remind everybody about that there are actually a lot of caverns underneath Hogwarts? a lot actually, many of them connecting Hogwarts and Hogsmeade... which are pretty far away from each other by the way. Ollivanders in Hogsmeade doesn't hold true to the story either since "There was an Ollivanders hidden within Hogsmeade, but you just can't see it"  It's a bit far-fetched, and doesn't hold true to the story at all. Either way, missing the main point discussing about an imaginary world, the main point is that I don't want to feel cheated for all the reasons I explained above...

 

[Allen The Actor]

There is no space in USH for a proper Phase 2.

Gringotts is a massive show building. Phase 2 took the place of an entire old land, Amity. They have two theme parks, we don't. We don't have the space...

 

[smoaT]

I UNDERSTAND THAT... USH is not Hogwarts to have hidden space somewhere... the main point of all the post is that I don't want this "here, you have one more ride, a lot of shops and restaurants. Give me 20 dlls more!!!"

 

[William]

There very well could've been an Ollivanders branch in Hogsmeade that was just never mentioned. Same could go for Gringotts, but I think it would've been mentioned since it's a very large focal point in Diagon Alley.. Also, Hogwarts is in a completely different location from Hogsmeade, but it was placed a lot closer to Hogsmeade in Orlando to keep a cohesive theme all within the same area. Anyways, that set aside, I don't think we'll be disappointed. The queue for FJ is like an attraction within itself, and the ride is absolutely incredible. I trust Universal in bringing Potter to the park in a smart manner. We don't really have much to worry about at this point.