Toy Story Mania! (Plus Other Cool Disney News) Thread

[Ryan King]

More News + Picture

Courtesy of Mouseplanet.com

 

Toy Story Mania confirmed as attraction title, details emerge

Walt Disney Imagineering Executive Vice President and Senior Creative Executive Tom Fitzgerald confirmed Friday that Toy Story Mania will be the name of the new attraction under construction at the former site of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire – Play It at the Disney-MGM Studios and along Paradise Pier at Disney's California Adventure.

 

Opening at the same time on both coasts in 2008, the attraction features a virtual shooting gallery where, through the use of special goggles, riders will shoot varying types of ammunition in each room of the attraction, and experience a ride personalized to their abilities.

 

Guests arriving at the attraction will find a six-foot-tall Mr. Potato Head acting as a carnival barker, interacting with the guests. This next product of the Living Creatures initiative will be able to remove and rearrange body parts while chatting with (and perhaps teasing) those in line. Once inside, guests will board eight-person ride vehicles that seat four riders on each side, sitting back-to-back. Riders will wear glasses that will enable them to see all of the 3-D projections on the attraction.

 

The ride consists of several rooms, each set up as a different carnival booth hosted by a different Toy Story character. Each features a different kind of ammunition. In the target practice room, for example, riders will throw pies at targets on a fence, behind which the Toy Story characters are standing. In HAMMnEGGS, the piggy bank tells how to throw eggs at hens and a henhouse. Bo Peep's Baa-a-alloon Pop has riders throwing darts at balloons. The Little Green Men have you throw rings around the aliens, and if you score high enough in that room, you could become "The Chosen One."

 

To match the 3-D effects, wind, water and other effects used in the current 3-D movies at the parks will be employed to put you more into the action.

 

But those without extensive game experience need not worry; Toy Story Mania will adapt to players' skill, making it easier for those experiencing difficulty, while making it more difficult for those who are scoring quite highly.

 

Since the attraction will be mostly virtual, Disney will be able to modify the game at will. For example, some of the hidden targets will not be revealed on opening day but will be added, "o there'll always be this buzz about what's being added and what are the super-secret targets that give you a high score," said Fitzgerald.

 

Look for the attraction to open some time summer 2008.

Kids Getting "Target Practice" Before the ride

[Satoshi]

^ whoa! that thing looks like some kinda shooting 'em out game

and this is going to get funny a lot. thanks for an info.

[BeemerBoy]

Just a little more Disney news for you all to ponder.

 

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Walt Disney Co. is considering "blue sky concepts" of creating smaller theme parks and stand-alone hotels, retail, dining and entertainment centers, Jay Rasulo, chairman of Disney's Parks and Resorts told analysts at a conference on Wednesday.

 

Building stand-alone hotels in urban areas where families already travel would give Disney the chance to reach out to parents who feel their children are still too young to appreciate a trip to a Disney theme park, Rasulo said.

 

Along those lines, Disney could locate versions of its Downtown Disneyland, a high-end retail, dining and entertainment district, in urban areas far from its parks, he said.

 

The company also was exploring alternatives to full-size theme parks, including "a smaller, deeply immersive park" that would offer consumers a more interactive experience at higher prices.

 

These ideas are "blue sky concepts" that will not be executed unless the new businesses could achieve a high return on invested capital, Rasulo said.

 

Disney also was looking into expanding its water park offerings beyond Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach and possibly adding ships to its two-vessel cruise lines, Rasulo said.

 

Rasulo had little to add about the lackluster performance by Hong Kong Disneyland, which opened in September of 2007, and failed to meet first-year attendance target of 5.6 million.

 

"Hong Kong Disneyland developed a little more slowly than we expected in 1999 when the deal was put together" but the company was confident of its growth trajectory, he said.

 

"We identified some challenges to be addressed in the near future in sales and marketing and seasonality," he added.

 

 

The company also was exploring alternatives to full-size theme parks, including "a smaller, deeply immersive park" that would offer consumers a more interactive experience at higher prices.

Hmmmm, interesting.

[America Sings Freak]

Well, since I am a West Cost Person I was wondering what comes after pacemaking for Disneyland and California Adventure, because the real future is what they should be looking at (not the present future).

[loozzr]

I Have Been heraing around at the Disney Resort In California that the watershow ill be at Disney California Adventure. Many people have been saying it. It's just a roomer but i have seen in DCA many new things on their lagoon like waterjects and lazers or firework things but still im not sure! I hop it in DCA!

[speedster]

There is a rumor that it is going to be the main theme for the new park in northern Michigan

[rollercoasterbuff]

Wow! Thats a lot of new stuff! I only heard about 3 of the new concepts...I didn't know there were so many!

[minuitmlrj]

GO DISNEY!

[CK Media]

So will there be submachine guns on Toy Story Mania?

[Gnome]

^ rumors are suggesting that there will be a large selection of fire arms at your disposals. From Barrettes to RPG's.

[toddsolus]

Carland is obviously going to go where the test rack is in florida..that ride wasmade to be turned into a "Cars" theme

[knottslover77]

No, they won't retheme Test Track and it doesn't race.

 

--Jay

[Gnome]

^ I'm almost certain he was joking.

[JT3000]

I really don't think he was.

[zztop]

carland will go in a parking lot next to dca

[robbalvey]

carland will go in a parking lot next to dca

You really need to read our posting rules because your posts pretty much suck:

http://www.themeparkreview.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=31454

[KingOfNynex2003]

If DCA doesn't get Carland I'll be really disappointed because since WDW already has Test Track they shouldn't really get Carland as well so it would seem right for DCA to get it because they don't really have any rides based on cars.

[Stuart-J]

i think magic kingdom or epcor will get that carland attraction, and i thought i saw this stuff before somewhere else?

[Disney Dood]

No, it won't go into MK or EPCOT because it's going into DCA!

 

Besides, EPCOT already has Test Track and MK might retheme the Tomorrowland Indy 500 to Cars, anyhoo.

[ChrisFL]

You're all wrong, its going to that property Disney bought in Texas...Garland, Texas but they're going to rename the whole town Carland, Texas to fit the theme of the ride.

[speedracer]

More News + Picture

Courtesy of Mouseplanet.com

 

Toy Story Mania confirmed as attraction title, details emerge

Walt Disney Imagineering Executive Vice President and Senior Creative Executive Tom Fitzgerald confirmed Friday that Toy Story Mania will be the name of the new attraction under construction at the former site of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire – Play It at the Disney-MGM Studios and along Paradise Pier at Disney's California Adventure.

 

Opening at the same time on both coasts in 2008, the attraction features a virtual shooting gallery where, through the use of special goggles, riders will shoot varying types of ammunition in each room of the attraction, and experience a ride personalized to their abilities.

 

Guests arriving at the attraction will find a six-foot-tall Mr. Potato Head acting as a carnival barker, interacting with the guests. This next product of the Living Creatures initiative will be able to remove and rearrange body parts while chatting with (and perhaps teasing) those in line. Once inside, guests will board eight-person ride vehicles that seat four riders on each side, sitting back-to-back. Riders will wear glasses that will enable them to see all of the 3-D projections on the attraction.

 

The ride consists of several rooms, each set up as a different carnival booth hosted by a different Toy Story character. Each features a different kind of ammunition. In the target practice room, for example, riders will throw pies at targets on a fence, behind which the Toy Story characters are standing. In HAMMnEGGS, the piggy bank tells how to throw eggs at hens and a henhouse. Bo Peep's Baa-a-alloon Pop has riders throwing darts at balloons. The Little Green Men have you throw rings around the aliens, and if you score high enough in that room, you could become "The Chosen One."

 

To match the 3-D effects, wind, water and other effects used in the current 3-D movies at the parks will be employed to put you more into the action.

 

But those without extensive game experience need not worry; Toy Story Mania will adapt to players' skill, making it easier for those experiencing difficulty, while making it more difficult for those who are scoring quite highly.

 

Since the attraction will be mostly virtual, Disney will be able to modify the game at will. For example, some of the hidden targets will not be revealed on opening day but will be added, "o there'll always be this buzz about what's being added and what are the super-secret targets that give you a high score," said Fitzgerald.

 

Look for the attraction to open some time summer 2008.

 

Been curious about exactly what this is suppose to be, found this, very well could be the software behind TSM (Disney is listed as a "User"). Scroll down under "THEME PARKS - ENTERTAINMENT", right hand video:

 

http://www.t-immersion.com/video_gallery/main.asp?idf=a0#

 

Here's an even more impressive demonstration of all the possibilities:

 

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-446063140444016106

 

Knowing Disney, they'll do a knock out job of plussing this to make it all as totally immersive as possible.

[Primogen18]

wow... that video is awesome, I haven't been following the entire thread, but that is some very cool stuff.

[ChrisFL]

Knowing Disney, they'll do a knock out job of plussing this to make it all as totally immersive as possible.

 

Actually, knowing Disney of recent times, they'll take an idea like this and slash the budget so badly that what we end up with isn't anything special.

 

Let's hope I'm wrong.

 

BTW, if they DO somehow add augmented reality aspects to this attraction then they will surely have a huge hit.

[America Sings Freak]

I think that this is going to be the new standard at California Adventure and will help with the remolding "cough" destruction and redesign "cough" of this park.

 

Big DCA announcement tomorrow!

[TC Ridesalot]

So I heard a rumor today and it is simply a rumor! But it made me remember this post for some reason. So I heard today that in Kansas City the original home of Walt Disney's teenage years they have the old Union Station building. It has been refurbished and has a kids Science Center in it. It has done weak in generating the support from the community, at least financially speaking. The recently passed a light rail system that would pass through the area as well as some sort of Gondola connecting the Station with a couple of high end hotels as well as a large park. In the drawings they have shown the public (I don't have them but there out there if you look at light rail for KCMO) they show a couple of rides (ferris wheel and such) and they also show the Union Station dressed up exactly like the picture on the front page that says New Urban Entertainment center. Now the rumor I heard today came from a friend in the city office that said he was in a meeting and they were discussing the latest Disney proposal to build an indoor themed entertainment area. He of course knew nothing about the conception art but after seeing it felt that Disney may have designed it as some sort of meeting prop to show the city. The Downtown area has been neglected for years and recently they built the Sprint Center Arena and a large district for entertainment around it. This would tie into the concept and would actually fit quite well in the area. He also mentioned that there was also talk of some Disney themed restaurants popping up with the project. I told him that Disney was building a T-Rex restaurant in Downtown Disney. Not for certain if anybody knows but that concept started here in Kansas City at the Kansas Speedway's LEGENDS entertainment district (right across from where Sliterbaum is building their vacation village). I believe Kansas City is going to be a true Midwest Destination City by 2010. WOF, OOF, Sliterbaum, and possibly Disney!