PTR: The Dark Knight Coaster Media Event

[tsalas08]

The ride and themeing looks great its good to see that www.gothamcab.com/ is a real website always like stuff like that

 

beat me to it

[ShannonSomerville]

Nice TR. My boyfriend will be riding it in 2 weeks(He's going to Coaster Celebration). I'll be riding it in 2 months. Like the theming also.

[Kennyweird]

Looks nice. Kinda reminds me of the Exterminator at Kennywood.

 

Very nice theming for SF. Hopefully they'll theme their future attractions as well as this, but I somewhat doubtful.

[Speeddeamon128]

Awesome TR I won't b able 2 ride Dk until the 31 however I'm going 2 Fahrenheit's opening day next sat and I can't wait

[Lenaapple1974]

Awesome! I love a ride with good theming. I wish that Six Flags would bring in more theming to their rides. When I am at a Disney park, or a Busch Gardens park - there is something about the awesome theming that just makes me want to return over and over. It's just too bad that they seem to not be able to keep up with the little stuff they did manage to put into the park. Hopefully they can maintain it.

 

My son should actually be able to ride this. He 13 and just hit 54 inches this past summer, but has yet to get the courage for anything more than Runaway Train. He even told me that Skull Mountain changed the drop... I told him it's exactly the same lame ride.. Just imagine the horror when I told him El Toro's height requirement! So it will be a pleasure to go to the park, and have him ride SOMETHING with me.

[Bucket]

This steps it up a bit because of the effects, but it still looks cheap and horrible.

 

The only thing that I think that looked "cheap" would be the outside facade. It looks awful! Other than that, I am really impressed with all the pictures I've seen of the ride and with the theming. Can't wait to ride it this summer when I go!

[coasterking2981]

Kingda Ka was a way too expensive ride for a Six Flags park. I think Top Thrill Dragster is awesome, but that ride costs so much money, and Kingda Ka was so much more money.

 

I don't think Six Flags should be the innovator anymore. It's pointless. Look at the rides they bought that have had problems: X, Deja Vu, Superman the Escape, Batman and Robin, Kingda Ka, and the Vekoma Dutchman.

 

Let another park buy roller coasters first, and see what's happening with them over at that place. Check out all of these Euro Fighter coasters before you buy one.

 

The Mack standard mouse is a good buy because it's done so many times before.

 

I can agree on the expenses- after all, Universal Studios, Paramount (do they still own any parks or does Cedar Point own them now?) and Disney, as they are movie companies as well as amusement parks, are really the only companies that can fall back on one of their two industries (movies and theme parks) should one of their companies, either the amusement park or movie one, fall short of money.

 

But, first of all, SFMM needed X. Riddler's Revenge and Goliath were pretty much the best rides at SFMM until X came along and became the park's signature coaster. As far as I can recall, X had very few problems (but I'm probably wrong), but they were mainly with the parts of the train that all it to rotate 360 degrees.

 

As for the other rides mentioned, Six Flags doesnt really own anything outside of its parks, unlike Universal and Disney. The only thing Six Flags can do for its theming are those of the DC comics like the Dark Knight and Superman, whereas Universal can just make rides based on its own movies, while Disney can also do the same thing as well as put a story behind every ride they have, and spending thousands, if not millions, into the extensive theming of their rides.

 

So really, all those rides that cost the Six Flags parks so much are kind of needed, because they pretty much got nothing else to put themselves on the map.

[VivaLaVibora]

Did the coaster boom really help Magic Mountain though? The things I hear about X is that the trains need a lot of fixing, and the time it takes to send one out is a long time. Now, they are fixing it, and hopefully things will go good, but it's yet another 10 million on top of whatever it originally cost. The other one by S&S which I think is priced higher than Arrow is 31 million.

 

The estimated attendance for a park like Blackpool is only 5.5 million, and the roller coasters don't seem that unique like Six Flags Magic Mountain. There are manufacturers we don't even think of like Maurer Söhne, Gestaurler, or Mack (until now) that they could have bought rides from. The thing is that these ride manufacturers seem to have less capacity than the Vekoma's, B&M's, and Intamins as they are running smaller trains for the most part.

 

I like X too, and I would miss it if it ever left Magic Mountain, but I don't think it's a smart decision to buy a ride first because it might flop, and leave within 7, or 9 years. Let the UK buy it, and go over there, and research that ride. Maybe, even let someone buy 2 before you dive into buy a coaster. Go twice in a year to see how Air is doing over there. Are people's heads being banged on it. What are people's reactions?

[MikeyMigraine]

I don't really care how cool the themeing was, the ride was awful. Before getting in line all the people coming out were saying how dumb it was and that Skull Mountain was better. The next time I go to the park and someone wants to go on, I'm making them go by themselves, then go on Scream Machine.

[AmyUD06]

Calling ther Jersey Guys "O&A Wannabes" is an insult to the Jersey Guys like you could not believe. O&A is shock-jock, Stern-esque bathroom humor, whereas the Jersey Guys are actual political commentators.

 

Otherwise, good report.

[coasterguy618]

What I don't understand is why some people were expecting so much and were disappointed from the coaster itself. It's just a standard Mack Wild Mouse...not that special, except for the nice theming.

[MikeyMigraine]

The themeing wasn't even all that fantastic. I had no idea what was going on. My favorite part was when all the "HAHAHA" and "Why so serious?" lights came on during the preshow. It was like they built a coaster in a warehouse and put some Halloween decorations in there.

[rjholla2003]

Apparently I was by you during most of the event! My girlfriend and I are in the background (and sometimes foreground) of like half the pictures!

 

My verdict on The Dark Knight Coaster: It's a GOOD coaster with GREAT theming. The major problem it will have with the current guest we get at the park is that they are used to GREAT coasters, and the park has plenty. For a mouse, it's a pretty solid ride...after it warms up. On our first ride, the turns lacked the out-of-control feeling you usually get on a mouse. The second time however had loads of speed in the turns, and I would say that it did feel somewhat like you were in a city that was in a state of chaos. If they do add more effects such as mist to give it a smoky feeling, or better lighting so you can actually see Batman (I missed him both times, and I knew where he was), then I would definitely feel that it will be a GREAT dark ride that happens to be a GOOD wild mouse and GREAT theming. They said that it would be as immersing as Space Mountain would be, and I think it's safe to say that they did in fact hit that mark.

 

Bottom line: It does it's job. Guest who are disappointed with it seem to usually be those who are expecting El Toro in a box. It's a very fun, immersing, highly themed dark ride that happens to be a roller coaster.

 

Now maybe they'll do a refurb on Skull Mountain so it can kick DK's ass.

[Guy T. Koepp]

The major problem it will have with the current guest we get at the park is that they are used to GREAT coasters, and the park has plenty.

 

Wait! We're talking about 6FGAdv right? If by plenty you mean 2. Right?

[Erik Johnson]

^^ Come on Guy, SFGadv does have a good colleciton of coasters. I am sure you loved Toro and Nitro, but Batman is good as well. And you better have liked Skull Mountain, otherwise Elissa will ban you from the site.

[rjholla2003]

This is my "Great List":

El Toro

Nitro

Medusa

Batman: The Ride

Kingda Ka

 

Some may question BTR and Medusa being in the list, but I simply can't get tired of either of those two

[harbrian9]

Does Batman count as a SFGA coaster when you can pretty much ride it at any other Six Flags park in the country (world?)?

 

I mean, I know it exists there, but can you count it as one of Great Adventure's coasters and a reason to visit when you can ride it so many other places?

 

Kinda the same goes for Medusa.

[Guy T. Koepp]

^^ Come on Guy, SFGadv does have a good colleciton of coasters. I am sure you loved Toro and Nitro, but Batman is good as well. And you better have liked Skull Mountain, otherwise Elissa will ban you from the site.

 

Key word you used was good. He used the term great! More precisely "Plenty of Great." Plenty to me would imply at least more than half. Even by his list of Great coasters it's still not 50% of what the park has to offer. El Toro & Nitro are great coasters. Every time I pass through NJ I stop in and ride them.

 

Skull Mountain was fun. Was it great? Not as far as I'm conserned. No offense to the Batman, but there's one around every corner. In orger for their Batman to become great it needs to stand out from other coasters. Which is my complaint with all of them, they're all the same. There's no difference from that one that sets it apart from any of the other half dozen Batman clones. Same problem with Medusa & Superman. Kingda Blah is just that. Honestly, my third favorite coaster at the park is GASM. It's at least some what of a different layout than Viper. Which gives it a different ride. It stands out. I've said it dozens of times. If it wasn't for Nitro and El Toro I wouldn't waste time at the park. I stop in, get an express Q-bot, ride those two several times and move on to my next destination. When I'm there with friends, I go to have a GREAT time with friends. I don't go out of my way to get to the place to ride Medusa, Batman, Superman or heaven forbid Kingda Ka.

 

Now, I do understand that my tastes in rides differ from other enthusiasts, and I respect that. To each his own. I just personaly don't consider anything else there great.

 

With that said, I will stop by the next time I'm in Jersey and be sure to get the Dark Knight credit between the other two.

[rjholla2003]

Looks like we throw Batman on the side of the fence we have it on for the same reason. I put it there because the ride is amazingly solid, which is why it's cloned so much. You, on the other hand...well you know you. That's simply a case of "To each his own".

 

Kingda Ka, I still find it the most thrilling, lightning bolt type ride you can have. I haven't ridden TTD, but I personally don't find the OTSR more restrictive than any of the Intamin T-Bars I've ridden, or lap bars, since the shoulder straps are mostly a joke. I also think that between the second hill and the brake on the tophat, that I would find Ka more enjoyable than TTD. Of course, I'll leave my final judgement for when I get to the Point. I'm sure TTD has better trains.

 

And for my parting words: Super(lame)man sucks. Stop cloning it!

[VivaLaVibora]

I think Great Adventure might be a very awesome ride. I think it's great that they have cloned rides (or similar rides to other parks) because the New Jersey, and New York people probably love those rides.

 

However, I don't think it's worth it for me to go there.

 

Nitro - I don't like Raging Bull, so forget that.

Medusa- I like Dorney Park, and they have Hydra, or Magic Mountain has Scream!

Superman Ultimate Flight - Find it at Great America, and I think it's great.

Rolling Thunder - Maybe, it's like Judge Roy Scream at SFOT. I don't know. All I hear is that it's rough, and don't ride it.

 

Skull Mountain - I think it's probably similar to Runaway Mountain at SFOT. I crave SFOT.

Dark Knight - At Great America.

Kingda Ka - At Cedar Point (a little different but still)

Batman the Ride - at SFOT, SFGAm, SFMM, plus more.

Great American Scream Machine (I don't care for it, but it's similar at SFMM.)

 

El Toro - For one different ride, it's not worth it to me.

 

I think it's probably a great park, but I just don't see the need to visit when I can get those rides at other parks I visit.

[film&ridefanatic]

Heres My Honest Review of The Dark Knight Coaster:

 

Now, because I visit Six Flags fan sites I knew we were getting a wild mouse. So I wasn't expecting an El Toro in a box and I'm tired of the people who love the ride to use that as the reason why the people who don't like the ride, dont like it.

 

Ok so I knew what kind of coaster I was getting but I thought it'd be an overall experience ride so I excused that fact.

 

- The preshow wasn't all that good. Why? Because it's treated more like background noise. The preshow starts without the entire crowd even being in the room and half of the people don't know whats going on. It's hard to hear what Harvey Dent is saying. The glitches and stuff make it get interesting. But nothing happens. The Joker just puts HAHAs and says why so serious? A good preshow would be able to immerse the audience but this didn't do it. No one really paid attention because it didn't seem like there was a reason to. There was no real info. or story given in the preshow other than what we already knew we were going to experience. The preshow has good intentions but needs to be improved. 6/10 +/-

 

- Queue: Outside theming lacked. Skull Mountain's theming is a lot better. (-)

- Queue: indoor theming was better, it was a good subway theme. Liked the TV with clown faces (+)

- Subway cars were very cool looking and comfortable (+)

 

- Lift hill was cool however, going up, look to your right...you see the entire ride (-)

- The hairpin turns were nicely taken at fast speeds

- The "theming" was nothing spectacular. These were just scenes that light up along the way. I wasn't expecting The Mummy but I expected something more with movement audio and visuals. (-)

- one part of the ride that was very nicely done was the Joker clowns moving in the glass and then shooting at the very badly done burning building (+)

- After the burning building the ride continues a blank course where we can see the rest of the ride in front of us. It's not dark enough and too wide open.

- There is no ending and no real plot other then we're being attacked by the Joker

 

The ride made an attempt and failed. There was a strong lack of story. There was a general story of the Joker hijacking the subway.

 

I call it a more improved Batman version of Skull Mountain. Honestly theres nothing more to it than that. The difference between the 2 are:

preshow, one technologically advanced effect.

 

I believe they're too similar. The Dark Knight needs more to differentiate it from SKull Mountain.

 

While waiting on the 35 min. line all I saw were people coming out saying "boo." And no, it wasn't older people and teens. Young kids didn't like it either.

 

The six flags employees understood too because while we were approaching the boarding area of the cars they asked everyone getting off if they liked it and no one did, cars full of children, especially one I particularly remember of 4 little 8 year old blond girls saying "that stunk."

 

The ride was an attempt, but didn't make it. HOWEVER it can be improved. Turn the lights down, enclose the track more, add more effects and improve the story.

 

It doesn't make me think I'm in Florida. It makes me wish I was in florida because I know they have better ones, it reminds me I'm in six flags and shouldn't have gotten excited for the ride. It's a good family ride, but even the families weren't satisfied.

 

This was a crowded Saturday and The Dark Knight was really receiving a lot of negativity. Obviously no one expected an El Toro indoors so shut up with that.

[knottslover77]

While I have not been on this coaster, it seems all the people who don't like it, sound like they were expecting a Disney ride, it's Six Flags.

 

--Jay

[Wes]

Are the Batman figures static or do they move? I'm assuming they are static.

[MikeyMigraine]

While I have not been on this coaster, it seems all the people who don't like it, sound like they were expecting a Disney ride, it's Six Flags.

 

--Jay

 

The description Six Flags gave it sure sounds like it should be a Disney Ride.

 

"With The Dark Knight Coaster, guests experience the ride of their lives. Venturing through demented hallways of twists, turns and hallucinatory images, they are tormented by The Joker himself. Then as they set foot onto a distressed, vandalized train platform, they can only guess at what awaits them as they speed through six 180-degree hairpin turns, climb unseen hills, plunge into pitch darkness and dip into unforeseen danger. As they attempt to escape the terror, their only hope is that Gotham's Silent Guardian — Batman — can save them."

 

I experienced nothing that is in that description while riding except speeding through the 6 hairpin turns. I didn't even see a Batman figure and had no idea what the other figures were supposed to be. I understand it's Six Flags, but they could have done a much better job.

[film&ridefanatic]

I was NOT expecting a Disney ride, but I also wasn't expecting that. I knew I was in Six Flags but Mikey is right, with the descriptions of the ride it sounded like it was Batman version of The Mummy. But I didn't get my hopes up to that. I knew it was still six flags which is why I kept my excitement at a low and went in with a clean conscious despite the constant negative reviews of every person that came out of the exit door.

 

There is a Batman figure, it's around the first turn, it isn't that hard to miss, you just need to be looking on the sides of you, not in front of you. Yes all figures are static except for moving jokers (which is more of a projected image effect more than a figure).

 

What I've been hearing is. It's worth it the first time because...it's the first time. But after that, no. They didn't make a ride that you wanna ride over and over again.