Six Flags Great America (SFGAm) Discussion Thread

[BenFreeze]

^That actually wouldn't be a bad idea. Any coaster in total darkness is fun by my standards!

[mcjaco]

If you got to sit through the whole pre show without interruption, it's set the story. I thought they did a pretty good job for what that coaster is.

[BenFreeze]

^I actually agree. I'm not a fan of TDK coasters, but I think they get more hate then they deserve. It's meant to be a family coaster in the dark with Batman theming, and for general Six Flags expectations, I think they did a good job. The GP also love it, so the parks aren't really losing anything with them.

[DanM64]

My only problem ith the preshow was the fact that they didn't have queues in the preshow room, so everybody would shove towards the door. GAdv's is much better since they have the queues. If GAm added the queues I wouldn't mind if they brought the preshow back, but since they never did I'm glad it's gone.

Edited June 9, 2013 by DanM64

[Ed Farmer]

I also went on The Dark Night...

 

Masterfully done.

[goatdan]

The preshow was confusing, but it was the only themed part of the attraction.

I vote remove all the lights, sounds, and themeing and make it pitch black.

Rename it "Black Hole" or something.

 

 

I don't get all the hate that these rides get, but last I checked the trains were themed, the ride had a bunch of stuff in it that was themed, and the queue line after the pre-show was also themed... heck, even before the pre-show there was some, although minor, theming. I actually love some of the tiny details they pulled off in the queue line for the theming.

 

The only major misstep that I think that it had was that the preshow is a little too intense for the little ones, and then the ride itself isn't. I don't think you could run it in the dark without trouble. While I like rides in the dark, a mouse with it's quick turns probably wouldn't be very comfortable.

 

As for the pre-show, depending on the amount of people there, I've seen them not running it before. I'd wait to see if it doesn't run for a few weeks or more in a row before declaring it dead.

[Woodie Warrior]

The preshow was confusing, but it was the only themed part of the attraction.

I vote remove all the lights, sounds, and themeing and make it pitch black.

Rename it "Black Hole" or something.

 

 

I don't get all the hate that these rides get, but last I checked the trains were themed, the ride had a bunch of stuff in it that was themed, and the queue line after the pre-show was also themed... heck, even before the pre-show there was some, although minor, theming. I actually love some of the tiny details they pulled off in the queue line for the theming.

 

The only major misstep that I think that it had was that the preshow is a little too intense for the little ones, and then the ride itself isn't. I don't think you could run it in the dark without trouble. While I like rides in the dark, a mouse with it's quick turns probably wouldn't be very comfortable.

 

As for the pre-show, depending on the amount of people there, I've seen them not running it before. I'd wait to see if it doesn't run for a few weeks or more in a row before declaring it dead.

The reason these rides get the hate is because their whole point was to be a themed enclosed roller coaster. The themeing is pretty much a Batman statue and neon "HAHA"'s all over the ride. The themed queue led up to a very disappointing ride. So with mediocre themeing on the ride, you lose the entire point of the attraction.

[goatdan]

^

 

There are multiple "statues" that you go by, scenes from the movie like the policy center station on fire, clowns, stuff that appears out of no where, and so on. Besides that, it is a rolled coaster, not a slow dark ride, so adding tons of movement would have been lost. Having the queue themed more than the ride is normal with coasters. It isn't like Batman the Ride has some amazing on ride stuff that reminds you of the movie, but no one complains about that.

 

Heck, I'd argue it's themed more than Rock N Roller Coaster, and that is Disney. It can also be said that all of the Disney coasters are themed more in the queue than on the ride...

 

The teeming isn't great, but what Six Flags ride is better that isn't a straight dark ride?

[Woodie Warrior]

^

 

There are multiple "statues" that you go by, scenes from the movie like the policy center station on fire, clowns, stuff that appears out of no where, and so on. Besides that, it is a rolled coaster, not a slow dark ride, so adding tons of movement would have been lost. Having the queue themed more than the ride is normal with coasters. It isn't like Batman the Ride has some amazing on ride stuff that reminds you of the movie, but no one complains about that.

 

Heck, I'd argue it's themed more than Rock N Roller Coaster, and that is Disney. It can also be said that all of the Disney coasters are themed more in the queue than on the ride...

 

The teeming isn't great, but what Six Flags ride is better that isn't a straight dark ride?

Rock N Roller Coaster has much more themeing than the Dark Knight. And it is much more thrilling than Dark Knight.

Dark Knight is not "horrible". But many people were hoping that this ride was going to help Six Flags start moving from amusement parks to theme parks, and this did not happen. Who cares though, there is a great roller coaster next door to ride.

[goatdan]

Rock N Roller Coaster has much more themeing than the Dark Knight. And it is much more thrilling than Dark Knight.

Dark Knight is not "horrible". But many people were hoping that this ride was going to help Six Flags start moving from amusement parks to theme parks, and this did not happen. Who cares though, there is a great roller coaster next door to ride.

 

Rock N Roller Coasters theming consists of flat signs that light up (at least here in the states, I like the Paris version more, but it is basically just stage lighting). Dark Knights theming is at least 3D.

 

I can understand the disappointment if you were expecting Disney quality on this, but to be fair we all saw the budget beforehand. Disney level theming costs millions upon millions of dollars. DKC did not. For the price, I think it was pretty decent, really.

[Ed Farmer]

Who cares though, there is a great roller coaster next door to ride.

 

Batman: The Ride is two doors down.

[deathbydinn]

But many people were hoping that this ride was going to help Six Flags start moving from amusement parks to theme parks, and this did not happen. Who cares though, there is a great roller coaster next door to ride.

 

If anything, putting a Batman themed ride next to a Superman themed ride in an Orleans themed area would make the park more of an amusement park and less of a theme park. As much as I do like Dark Knight, the old theater continued the theme of the area much more than DK.

[mcjaco]

Rock N Roller Coasters theming consists of flat signs that light up (at least here in the states, I like the Paris version more, but it is basically just stage lighting). Dark Knights theming is at least 3D.

 

I can understand the disappointment if you were expecting Disney quality on this, but to be fair we all saw the budget beforehand. Disney level theming costs millions upon millions of dollars. DKC did not. For the price, I think it was pretty decent, really.

 

This. I was going to say, how does Rock N Roller Coaster have more theming? It's plywood cutouts lit up?

 

I recall trying to stay away from reading any of the Great Adventure previews before I did Dark Knights Media Day for TPR. I wasn't enamored with the placement, for two reasons 1) I'm old school and don't like seeing the park change from when I was a kid, and 2) I felt it was too close to BTR. I thought they did a pretty good job of making it fit, and the "box" is at least a bit farther back.

 

As for the ride, everyone knew it was a mouse in a box. How you could expect anything very thrilling from that, you must be slightly delusional. I thought SF hit the nail on the head. A family coaster, that was well above any theming they'd done since BTR.

[goatdan]

^

 

I didn't like the fact the park got rid of an excellent entertainment venue for the queue line, and I didn't love the placement, but I too was surprised by how well it fit. The pre-show, although a little too long, was really well done in my opinion, and a little too intense for the family ride that followed. And the story of the ride wasn't as strong as I wished it was (someone once described it as a "Batman themed acid trip with random Batman images popping up everywhere", and I do tend to agree with that)...

 

But, for a themed coaster ride, and for the price, I can't imagine it being much more than it was.

[NAMTABSFGAm]

Hello,

I attended the igNIGHT Grand Finale commercial shoot today. We were finally let in a little bit late around 8:45 and they didn't start filming until even later. Filming concluded around 12:10. During the shoot we were given a styrofoam glow stick. The glow stick had a Six Flags Great America logo on it as well as the igNIGHT Grand Finale logo. I believe that they will sell these before each show. There were many cameras there, including one on a boom. They kept on videotaping the same scene over and over again. But then as a surprise, we got a treat from them. They performed the whole show for us. It lasted a little longer than 20 minutes. But they also didn't do any costume changes. Overall, I think the show is pretty good and I think the general public will love it. I would give it an 8.5 out of 10. Some of the effects that they use in it is very cool, and the projections, lasers, lights, singing, and choreography is very well done. They even did some pyrotechnics for us. One of the fireworks ended up shooting out towards the crowd a bit and a part of one of them ended up landed on the Hometown Square bathrooms and then exploded on the roof of it. It was a really fun event and I want to thank Six Flags Great America for doing it. One thing that I noticed when I was leaving and that I thought was strange was that they drained Columbia Carousel's Pond. It was filled up when we all entered the park for the commercial shoot. So does anybody know why they did this? I have a video of the whole igNIGHT Grand Finale performance that I will hopefully post on YouTube later today. Thanks for reading.

[Jerrykoala2112]

I was at the commercial shoot last night too (and I am keeping my igNight glow-stick as a souvenir!) And I can honestly say that I'm very impressed with the show. My friends and I signed up for the show and were very skeptical at how fun it would be, but it turned out great! The white boards look very bad during the day, but at night, it looks really good and I'm sure people will go crazy to see the show.

 

Sorry Luminosity

[Domm]

Quick Question- I have a free southwest ticket that I was thinking of using to check out SFGA sometime this month. Looks like the park is about an hour from the Midway Airport- Are there any recommended hotels to stay at nearby? How would a Friday 6/21 or Friday 6/28 be for wait times at the park?

 

Really looking forward to comparing/contrasting my home park CGA to this GA (and being very jealous of how much more awesome it is )

[mcjaco]

Midway is much farther than an hour. You'd have to go straight through downtown, and depending on the time of day that could be, it might take an hour just to get through that part!

 

There's a Holiday Inn Express across I94, and a couple of option on the East side of I94. I think one is a Hampton Inn.....

[GoBears]

Quick Question- I have a free southwest ticket that I was thinking of using to check out SFGA sometime this month. Looks like the park is about an hour from the Midway Airport- Are there any recommended hotels to stay at nearby? How would a Friday 6/21 or Friday 6/28 be for wait times at the park?

 

Really looking forward to comparing/contrasting my home park CGA to this GA (and being very jealous of how much more awesome it is )

 

They opened a new Holiday Inn (last year I believe) off Grand Avenue just a couple minutes or so from the entrance to the park. It's very convenient and for one night it's about $85 for both the 21st and 28th. Almost every Friday during the summer is pretty busy. After all, there's only one theme park (unless you count the Dells) in the whole Chicago/Milwaukee area which is about 11.5 million people combined.

 

Sometime you'll get lucky though but as someone who has been going to the park since the 90's, chances are it'll be busy. There will be days where the lines are shorter than usual but that's hard to predict. I would expect waits around 30 minutes to an hour but it could be more or less. Wish I could be more help but it can be so unpredictable!

[Woodie Warrior]

Personally, I don't think that SFGAm really needs another coaster. The next time the park will need a new coaster is when one closes. And really, all of SFGAm's coasters look like they will be there for a long time. If the park ever tried to remove American Eagle or Whizzer, park fans would go into a frenzy, so I don't think either of those classic coasters will be removed until they are no longer stable. Batman, Raging Bull, Superman, Vertical Velocity, Viper, and X-Flight are all popular and exciting rides and are safe. Dark Knight and Little Dipper aren't very exciting, but they are moderately popular and new, so I'm sure they are safe to stay. Spacely's is kind of needed as a calm family coaster. So the only rides I could see going are Ragin' Cajun and Demon. Demon is sort of a classic and is a toss-up, but I don't know if it would leave enough space for anything great. Iron Wolf had a very small footprint, but removing Spacely's or replacing Ragin' Cajun with it could add a little more room. In fact, all of Camp Cartoon could be relocated or just removed.

 

Really, SFGAm could use a few modern flats, like a Screamin' Swing or maybe a SkyScreamer. The park has a nice variety of flats, but none of them are modern.

[GayCoasterGuy]

^Old flat rides are indeed a good thing I often joke about Fiddler's Fling to my friends "wanna ride the fastest ride ever built!?" The park has really gone out of their way to take care of old rides they could have simply sold off or scrapped long ago - Whizzer, Lobster/ERC, Yankee Clipper, etc. The people I've talked to at the park seem to be very proud of having older "classic" rides. There were many coaster nerds telling the park a Screamin' Swing would be a great idea. Perhaps up front, next to Sky Trek Tower? Heck, anywhere. Those rides are great!

 

About the park not needing another new coaster - you're smart! They really have a great collection as is. Of course, we all want Eagle to run GREAT all the time, not just part of the time (and a topper-tracked helix, etc. etc.). I'm proud of my home park, I think it's one of the best - if not the best - in the chain. Well-rounded with family, flat, thrill rides and coasters.

 

Supposedly, Ragin Cajun is the one the park "hates," but it's so darn popular. Maybe just add another one next to the one that's already there! It's fun to wish, ain't it!?

 

Demon has always been a headache, but it's still a great ride. The theme is too good to get rid of. Maybe a new Mack or Gerstlauer (they do work out of the old Anton factory) version of the Demon would be a good idea, eventually.

 

Or at least let's get those replacement Arrow trains with lap bars from Gravity Group (now that was a good rumor). I actually think Gravity Group's seat set up (with an added high-back, of course) would work well on an old Arrow coaster. The seats lean-back on Timberliners, so that would be good for entering loops (won't push your head forward as hard.) And the lap bars are perfect. My buddy came up with the name "Ironliners." Heck, if anyone could do it, it would be Gravity Group. They rock.

[NAMTABSFGAm]

That is the complete and full showing of igNIGHT Grand Finale that the park did for us yesterday at the Commercial Shoot. I video taped and uploaded to YouTube today so people that weren't there can watch the whole show.

[Woodie Warrior]

That is the complete and full showing of igNIGHT Grand Finale that the park did for us yesterday at the Commercial Shoot. I video taped and uploaded to YouTube today so people that weren't there can watch the whole show.

I hope it looks better up close.

 

The projections are very cool. The singing was, well, um... average Six Flags quality . I really couldn't see the dancing.

 

It is sad that amazing projection system went into THAT show. I just really wasn't impressed by the plot and singing in the show.

 

Maybe next year just pair up that awesome projection system with lasers and those glow-in-the-dark people/dancers and build an entire spectacular out of that.

[Turkey Leg]

Congratulations to Great America for doing more with less. Usually, every time Great America gets a ride, they are one-upped by Cedar Point. Xflight is 3000 feet long with a top speed of 55 mph and costs between $12-15 million. Gatekeeper is 4,164 feet with a top speed of 68mph, and cost between $25-30 million. Xflight has better corkscrews, a better first inversion, and a better view and theme. Also, Xflight seems to break down less in my experience. Xflight is the better coaster in my opinion, and it costs significantly less.

[GoBears]

Congratulations to Great America for doing more with less. Usually, every time Great America gets a ride, they are one-upped by Cedar Point. Xflight is 3000 feet long with a top speed of 55 mph and costs between $12-15 million. Gatekeeper is 4,164 feet with a top speed of 68mph, and cost between $25-30 million. Xflight has better corkscrews, a better first inversion, and a better view and theme. Also, Xflight seems to break down less in my experience. Xflight is the better coaster in my opinion, and it costs significantly less.

 

Have you ridden both? I usually prefer the more compact style of certain rides. For example, I'll take BTR over Raptor any day. I have yet to try out Gatekeeper but I must say it looks pretty cool. X-Flight is my 3rd favorite coaster at SFGAm.