Curse of DarKastle compared to Spider-Man

[knottslover77]

I have never been on Curse of DarKastle, but I have been on Spider-Man.

Spider-Man is considered to be like the best ride in the world. I haven't heard of Darkastle being in that debate.

I has wondering what does Spider-Man do that that Darkastle doesn't. What sets them apart?

 

And on a side note does anyone know how much Darkastle cost? I know Spider-Mans cost about 200 million.

 

Thanks, Jay

[DBru]

Hopefully you meant to say...$20 million (or less)?

 

That's one heck of an expensive ride...

[Nozzy]

Spiderman has well known characters and a more easily identifiable storyline. Even if you ignore any attempt to set up the ride you have Spiderman good, villains bad. Oh no please don't hurt us villains! On the other hand, Darkkastle tries to set up a storyline quickly in the preshow but due to accents and the speed of it all, you really need to pay attention.

 

As for the rides themselves, Spidey has a lot more special effects and sets, like the fireball and levitation parts. Darkkastle was much tamer and only had a water splash effect (which also appears in Spiderman), and from what I remember almost everything happens on 3-d screens. The best use of cars is probably when you are going down stairs backwards, but I didn't realize that's what we were doing until the second ride! Spidey's levitation scene was the highlight on the ride for me, and I thought it was done so well that my stomach and mind all were screaming "You're being lifted into the air OH MY GOSH HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE!" That scene alone made Spiderman better to me.

 

Darkkastle isn't bad, but espcially for a comic book fan like me, Spidey had a better story and from what I remember, much better effects. It has been 4 or 5 years since I rode Darkkastle though, so I may be forgetting some things. I rode Spiderman second.

[KDFAN]

I currently prefer DarKastle, if Universal was to upgrade the screens on Spidy it would rise to my number 1

[sam06pr]

I thought DarKastle was a bit weak and not as intense as Spidy. They both have very good effects. Spidy cars are bigger and I guess to me that made a difference, it seem to have more speed, forces and spin vs DarKastle. I dunno, just my opinion. Not that those rides create strong forces or go very fast

[robbalvey]

Hopefully you meant to say...$20 million (or less)?

 

That's one heck of an expensive ride...

No, he didn't. He meant hundreds of millions. Once again Dbru, you speak so condescending to others, yet you actually don't know what you're talking about at all!

 

Spider Man did in fact cost in the $100+ million dollar range! Your typical "major" roller coaster with little to no theming will cost between $15 - $25 million dollars. But a ride like Spider Man, Tower of Terror, Expedition Everest, etc, where the theatrics and theming budgets are huge, custom technology is used, and the ride is less of a production model and more of a "one-of-a-kind", you're talking in the $100 million range to produce.

 

BTW, Google is your friend, Dbru. Had you spent 30 seconds doing a Google search on this rather than being so quick to respond you would have found out that he was close to being right.

 

To answer the question, I feel that both rides are over-hyped, but Spider Man certainly is the more intense of the two. What they both do, they do VERY well, it's just not my thing, that's all...

 

--Robb

Edited May 9, 2010 by robbalvey

[cfc]

I was rather pleased that a seasonal park like BGW decided to put in a ride like DarKastle, even though I agree that Spider-man is the better of the two--much better than the average Wild Maus that used to be there.

[ginzo]

Universal got their money's worth with Spidey. I know people who think Spidey is the best ride in the world and will go to IOA just for that. I actually prefer the more subdued DarKastle, but I'm a bit weird in my tastes. For example, I like some Sally shooting dark rides more than MiB.

[larrygator]

In my opinion Spiderman has an easier storyline to follow and movements of the ride vehicles are more effective.

 

However, taking the time to follow it, I think DarKastle has a superior storyline and many of the 3D effects always make me flinch, which is not the case with Spiderman.

[Montupoopc]

Given the choice, I'd sooner ride Spiderman. Everything about the ride feels so grand. DarKastle isn't horrible, but it just didn't meet the same mark that Spiderman seems to do effortlessly.

[DBru]

Hopefully you meant to say...$20 million (or less)?

 

That's one heck of an expensive ride...

 

No, he didn't. He meant hundreds of millions. Once again Dbru, you speak so condescending to others, yet you actually don't know what you're talking about at all!

 

Huh?

 

I wasn't speaking condescendingly to the original poster...I was just trying to express how shocked I was to hear that these rides cost so much money. Hence the:

 

Sorry for the confusion.

[Gnome]

Universal got their money's worth with Spidey. I know people who think Spidey is the best ride in the world and will go to IOA just for that. I actually prefer the more subdued DarKastle, but I'm a bit weird in my tastes. For example, I like some Sally shooting dark rides more than MiB.

I wouldnt put it pass anyone to like a sally shooter over MiB. I myself wasn't to fond of it. Sets were great, but i thought the game experience was lacking.

 

The thing with Spidey is I felt so much more immersed. The fx were definately far superior compared to dark kastle. And i just walked away from it feeling over whelmed and I wanted to go on it again. Dark kastle was a lot of fun as well, but i wasnt blown away. I was amused and I would say it was a solid and imaginitive attraction, but not quite on the same level as Spidey.

[knottslover77]

Thanks a lot everyone!

I still think its great that a non Disney/Universal park would drop that much money on an attraction.

 

--Jay

[SKULLY]

Personally, I take my hat off to BGW for even building an attraction with the Spiderman style ride system. A non Disney or Universal park with this kind of technology really speaks loads for their management. Now as to which is better, just look at the budgets. Spiderman came in at around $100 million or more while Darkastle, I believe, came in around $20 mil. Even without development costs for the new technology, that's a lot of extra money for sets and effects. Spiderman is a bit more intense and does indeed have many features that Darkastle simply lacks, especially the fireball scene with the Hob Goblin's flaming pumpkin. However, despite costing close to five times more, is Spiderman five times better. I think the answer is quite obvious.

[Wes]

Now as to which is better, just look at the budgets. Spiderman came in at around $100 million or more while Darkastle, I believe, came in around $20 mil.

 

Source?

[knottslover77]

Now as to which is better, just look at the budgets. Spiderman came in at around $100 million or more while Darkastle, I believe, came in around $20 mil.

 

Yeah I know Spider-Man was well more then 100... closer to 200. And there is no way Darkastle was that cheep. Thats the price of a new b&m coaster or something. This is a huge show building, sets, 3-D, and so on.

 

--jay

[Hercules]

I first rode DarKastle the year that it opened. At the time I had never ridden Spiderman. I REALLY like DarKastle. I thought it was absolutely incredible. Ignorantly, even though I didn't have Spiderman to compare it to, I couldn't imagine Spiderman being close to what DarKastle had to offer.

 

I then rode Spiderman, and I was floored. I thought it was absolutely amazing. I find it to be better than DarKastle.

 

I have to agree with what Larry said earlier. DarKastle has a far superior storyline if you take the time to follow it (and strain to watch the videos and listen to the audio amid all of the people talking and not paying any attention in the queue). If you listen to the audio and watch the videos in the queue, they do set up the ride on DarKastle much better. I can't say the same for Spiderman, as the storyline is much more simplistic, and Spiderman is already a known character - most people, I would assume, know what they are getting into on a Spiderman ride, conceptually.

 

I think they thing that blew DarKastle out of the water when I rode Spiderman was, Spiderman was just plain FUN. DarKastle was interesting and kind of artistic. However, Spiderman was just all out fun and exciting for me. It is something that I can ride over and over again on a trip to Islands of Adventure. DarKastle? It's really a one and done each time I go to Busch Gardens.

[Electerik]

I think DarKastle is a great ride, when judged on its own merit. But Spider-Man is, in my book, the best dark ride ever. The problem, I think, is that DarKastle's creators mimicked Spider-Man a little too well, and didn't put a enough effort into making DarKastle unique. About the only thing DarKastle does that Spider-Man doesn't is the "angled trees" room (which is cool). Otherwise, it feels like virtually the same ride, minus some stuff (like Spider-Man's awesome "falling building" ascent scene).

 

And I'm not so sure DarKastle's storyline is better, even if you do overlook the fact that it's inherently more difficult to follow. Slightly less silly, perhaps--but that's about it.

 

Kudos to BGW for copying Spider-Man. I think that was a good move, and it makes BGW a better park. But in their heart-of-hearts, I doubt even they believe that DarKastle is superior.

 

/For the record, I have worked on Spider-Man.

//On the other hand, BGW was my favorite park during the time DarKastle and Big Bad Wolf co-existed.

[larrygator]

^J. Jonah Jameson is a tight wad who would never authorize the funds needed to build the "Scoop" vehicle. Major plot flaw!

Edited May 10, 2010 by larrygator

[alpengeist04]

I find both rides to be great, even though I put Spiderman a notch above. If I was to make a list of overall favorite dark rides, only Spiderman, TOT (DHS), and MIB would be ahead of DarKastle.

[Retro_Gaga]

I personally like Darkastle better because I just like the darker setting. When entering the queue for Darkastle you can tell by the architecture and theming that it's a darker mood. The storyline is a bit darker than spidermans. I liked the feeling of being nervous as the car was swinging around and I was waiting for the next big scare, even though there is none. I think Darkastle's atmosphere is alot because you have that creepy feeling all the way through the queue. Spidey's atmosphere really kicks in when the vehicle departs the station. Both rides are amazing and really can't be compared. I love both as Spidey is a great ride as well as Darkastle, it's all about personal preference.

[testtrack321]

I think Darkastle has a more solid story, but the Spiderman is better overall since it's easier to understand and to better conveyed. Darkastle is crazy cool for a local, seasonal park, and I hope more of these kinds of rides are added. But Spiderman is still better in my opinion. I do not find it the best dark ride, I'll take the physical over the projected (why I see MIB as still better than TSM), which makes my #1 dark ride still be Indiana Jones.