For my theme park evaluation
I chose Universal Studios’ Islands of Adventure. It’s
been a place of great fun for me, my family and friends so going
there this past weekend was hardly work at all. Reading the online
article by Bob Rogers it is amazing to see how far theme parks
have come in terms of their themes. Universal has taken a lot
of Walt Disney’s ideas about having storytellers design
the rides but took well-known stories for its attractions. Throughout
my evaluation I will use the terms for amusement parks as described
in the article, “An Introduction to Themed Attraction Design:
Defining Terms” by Nate Naversen found at http://www.themedattraction.com/intro.htm.
Veering off to the left of the park I encountered the Marvel Super
Hero Island. There is a daily parade of the comic book heroes
and “Entertainment” giving the guest the chance to
experience some kinetic action. The Hulk, a “ride vehicle”
while an astounding piece of machinery, left me nauseous the last
few times I’ve been on it. My favorite ride in the Marvel
section is the Spiderman ride. It usually has the longest line
but it’s always the one I see the most people enjoy without
screaming. It combines the theme of the being part of a comic
book action sequence but it’s a “safe” ride
that the whole family can enjoy. The “motion simulator”
combined with the actual movement of the car provide a unique
experience unlike anything else until the recent addition of the
“Mummy’s Revenge” ride.
The Toon Lagoon past the Superhero Island offers thrills that
young children can experience but are better than the average
waterslides and boat rides. I noticed two parents were comfortable
letting their children (who had to be younger than 10) ride the
Dudley Do-Right “flume ride.” The element of thrills
in a safe environment I believe is the lure of a great Theme Park.
Jurassic Park, the next Island in the Park has the promise of
being a great attraction for people who love movie. It’s
hard to replicate the seamless reality of the dinosaurs in the
movie with the animatronics in the park. The Jurassic Park River
Adventure works best when you are in the dark and the dinosaurs
strike at you from a distance. The majority of guests in my boat
seemed bored by initial part of the ride and entertained themselves
by making fun of the creatures until the ascent into darkness.
It’s difficult to provide the guest with the experience
of the film’s adventure but out of all the Islands Jurassic
Park comes closest to give the guest the feeling of being in the
movie they love.
The other two islands; Lost Continent and Seuss Landing have great
appeal to those seeking medieval fantasy and picture-book rhyming
fun. Since I’m not really fan of either genre I usually
skip to the rides and go back to the other islands. The thrilling
Dueling Dragons and the dizzy, psychedelic Cat in the Hat rides
are usually the ones I see people my age ride.
If I were designing a theme park I would add more characters in
the park and give the guests more of a feeling of being in the
film/comic book/literature of their choice. “Islands of
Adventure” seems to bring the guest closer to the story
than others but there are still a lot of new ideas they can try
out. It is a great model for the modern theme park.
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