A.J.

I like this discussion! A different kind of experience wouldn't necessarily come with increased short- and long-term costs. What if our amusement park was a big, open park land with large, configurable event spaces and a small, consistent amusement zone? What if it was made up of indoor and outdoor performance venues and no actual rides? Both of these examples are entertaining spaces in their own regard, and are different from the amusement park norm. While it's obviously not a US park, Tivoli Gardens makes a lot of business out of the people who only pay the small admission fee to explore the gardens section along with its restaurants and performance venues. Back in the US, the Phipps Conservatory in Pittsburgh draws both locals and tourists on its own, and it also provides dynamic open space for farmers and other vendors. Both of these places have a "static" attraction (the gardens / the conservatory) as well as smaller "dynamic" attractions (the performance venues / the local markets), and they both attract a demographic that isn't interested in the rides.

That's why it's important to create a different experience. It's all about creating a truly entertaining space to all guests, regardless of what sort of entertainment options are contained within. I feel like the only way for a new park to stand out in the current super-competitive landscape is to go beyond the coasters, rides and occasional show. I have my own personal vision for "the perfect new amusement park", but that's another story.

It's also gotten to the point where building a new "amusement park" simply won't cut it anymore in the United States. There has to be something to set it apart - not necessarily something exciting, but something different.

That thing that they're doing to the boomerang loop is really unusual. Have they ever done that before?

Version 2.2 is on its way. They've added both variations on the Gerstlauer Infinity Coaster trains, support for DirectX 11, keyframed scene objects and more. Also, FYI, they're still working on the Mac version, they haven't forgotten about it. EDIT: For those of you who are seeing frame rate drops after updating your game, there's an ongoing thread about it over at the NoLimits Exchange. http://forum.nolimits-exchange.com/comments.php?DiscussionID=4412&page=1 Thanks ride_op!

Hooray! The track won't be colored orange or red! Finally!

This is cool, but please give us more content.

Also, if I'm not mistaken, Sidewinder is the only coaster in the park that's ever had the pinwheel logo painted on the train. Sooperdooperlooper's blue trains had "Hersheypark" on the front but that was it.

That thing on the Ferris wheel is Hersheypark's old logo.

September 9 is a good day to be a coaster fan and an Apple fan.

The Larson page lists the overall height as "up to 140 feet" under the specifications tab. http://www.larsonintl.com/pages/super-shot/super-shot.html

Add me to this camp, I have to keep the glasses off on all the 3D rides or else I get sick. I would love to see more "ride" rides at the Studios park. Rip Ride Rockit is my favorite attraction on the entire resort.

Whoopsie, missed it. Apologies.

But seriously though. How many times has this thread spiraled into oblivion over this?

Is that a Rotoshake I see in the background of the second photo?

Curious that they're closing Beetlejuice. Isn't there a sequel to the film in development?

Surprisingly, I was able to get to the "hands up, legs out" point rather quickly. Going over the hills like that, especially the twisted one, is a surreal experience. I still put my hands down around the turns though, that's just what I do during high-G moments by nature.

The artwork makes it look like new attractions are all on the right, my mistake. The Kite Flyers are usually called "Linus Launcher", right? Maybe Snoopy's Space Buggies is actually the Kite Flyer.

EDIT: Repost.

Well, duh, it's a new-generation Mack train. What did you expect?

To add to this, while they are within an hour of each other, Busch Gardens and Kings Dominion don't necessarily tackle the same market, so you can't really say that Kings Dominion needs a new big-ticket attraction every other year to "keep up".

I agree with you here, definitely. Canada's Wonderland is pretty much the only amusement park in the Toronto area (Ontario Place, we barely knew ye) - they know that people will come to the park regardless of whether there's a new big-ticket coaster installed every four to five years or not! They don't have to put in big investments all the time because, at least right now, the market is generally satisfied.

So, that's, what? Three wooden coasters at three Fantawild parks, each with a corkscrew, each named Jungle Trailblazer, each with different layouts?

Nope, it's called "being a captive audience" and "no outside drinks allowed in the park".

What's the downtime (if any) like on Psyclone? Just because they have issues with Windseekers doesn't mean that they have issues with Mondial's other rides.