I haven't been there since fall of 2004... Can't say I enjoyed my visit... horrible weather, horrible crowds, horrible queues, horrilbe arcade games... I can't say ALL the rides were horrible... The Grizzly is the coaster to ride if you're feeling you can care less if you die or not... Top Gun (or "Flight Deck" as it is now called )... was the first coaster we hit once the park opened... and after 4 rides with no wait, we just got sick of it... The Rapids were THE WORST when I was there last... the water was GREEN, and Nickelodeon Splat City was long gone at that time, so there was no excuse.
I also HATED the Spongebob hype that flowed bountifully throughout the park... Spongebob parades, Spongebob merchandise, Spongebob balloons, Spongebob music, Spongebob picture booths, and worst of all, Spongebob 3D... which I heard is STILL operational at the park even though everything has been changed to Planet Snoopy... booooo!
Food was over-priced, drinks... eh, don't get me started...
Let's just say Great America was the reason I've become a Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk fan, and the fact that I get a season pass to that place every year...
But the good rides at CGA were the rides I grew up with, as well as some that are long gone...
The Good Rides:
Top Gun
Demon
Invertigo
Drop Zone
Double Decker Carousel
Psycho Mouse
Celebration Swings
Delirium
Revolution (the swimging upside-down boat)
Log Ride
RIP Long Gone Rides:
Tripple Play
Tripple Wheel
The one merry-go-round where the Drop-Zone is now
Cartoon Carousel
The Edge
Tidal Wave (or "The Wave" it might have been called)
The Boat Ride (was near the Log Ride before they put Stealth in)
Stealth (I got to ride it once!)
The Train Ride
The Lobster (it was some red thrill ride that spinned like crazy... might have been called something else though)
AND...
Dr. Dark's Mansion of Madness... (Okay, I heard at one point THIS was the title of CGA's dark ride, but nobody seems to recall it... unless I'm remebering it wrong... but I remember people saying that they RODE it a long time ago...)
Anyway, if CGA never had a dark ride, I think it's time they got one... At least a prototype of Ghost Blasters would do... because let's face it, mostly ALL the good theme parks have at least ONE dark ride... (except Six Flags... so they're in dire need of dark rides as well...)