Universal Orlando Resort (USF, IOA, Epic) Discussion Thread

[dylanreich]

I really enjoyed this, but it's probably time for a change! Glad I'll get to see T2:3D one more time time before it closes.

[Dombot]

Pitch Perfect Live.

 

There. I said it.

Not gonna lie, I freaking love this idea.

[Satans Hockey]

I also love the Terminator movies but it really is dated, I would have loved to see a newer Terminator version but I'm curious to see what they come up with.

[cfc]

I liked the actual show itself, but always found the "pre-show" annoying. There were some pretty cool effects in the theater.

 

It's time for it to go.

Edited September 8, 2017 by cfc

[Garet]

I always find it funny that out of all the parks USJ is the one that seems to retire them last with BTTF just closing and Jaws potentially disappearing sometime after Nintendo Land, it's like an encore where you get a couple of extra years to get another nostalgic ride... Are we sure they won't take Dueling Dragons?

[Rollercoaster Rider]

Everyone is talking about Secret Life of Pets, I'm kinda hoping for a Madagascar themed attraction.

 

Or... Maybe something like Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor themed to "Sing?"

 

 

-- Oh, Would you say the T2 Building is about the same size as Fear Factor Live?

[cpfanatik77]

First time posting in years, but wanted to pay tribute to the Dragons. I remember watching them as they were being built. They were just a beautiful sight to behold. And then when they opened, I marveled at the way that they twisted and interacted with each other. In my opinion, this ride was one of the absolute greatest feats of coaster engineering ever. The two unique layouts, speeding/slowing the lift hills to time everything up, calculating the close calls - as far as unique track layout, this ride has yet to be topped, in my opinion.

 

Our marching band played at IOA in 2002, and I got to ride both Fire and Ice in all their dueling glory. My favorite part was the first near miss on fire. I still remember - knowing full well that it was coming - pulling my legs up as the ice trail flipped up underneath us. Had several non-enthusiast friends with me that week and they all had a blast on them. And the queue. That thing was great! Made the wait seem like it's own little ride.

 

RIP Dueling Dragons. You will be missed!

[Rollercoaster Rider]

What would've been cool with Dragon Challenge is if they put VR Goggles that made it seem like every turn you were dueling with the other train/ an actual dragon.

[DorneyKid14]

Over/under that this will become a Harry potter attraction?

T2:3D isn't anywhere near any of the Potter lands so I'd say it's pretty unlikely. Also, Potter isn't a "Universal franchise" which is what it said in the announcement.

 

My apologies. Didn't see the "Universal franchise" part on Twitter.

[robbalvey]

What would've been cool with Dragon Challenge is if they put VR Goggles

There is never a scenario where putting VR Goggles on a coaster makes it "cool."

Edited September 8, 2017 by robbalvey

[kenban]

The announcement states that the replacement will be a "live action experience". Combined with the size and shape of the building makes me think Terminator will be replaced with a show. Live action also seems to imply actors so I do not believe this will be an attraction based on a 3D or animated movie.

 

My guess is either a show similar to Terminator which features live actors combined with a 3D movie, or a stage show of some kind. Bourne is a Universal property, but at the same time so is Pitch Perfect.

[B&MBoy1982]

So. I was at IOA on Monday, and while I had a great time, I had some awesome, fun, sad, and memorable rides on Dragons.

 

First and foremost, the line was the typical station wait most of the day. It started picking up later in the day.

 

Our first ride was on Horntail(Ice) in row 8. This was probably the BEST ride I have ever had on the dragons out of all the times I had ever been to IOA. It was so smooth, and the cobra roll wasn't as jerky as I remembered it being on some of my previous rides.

 

Next we rode Fireball(Fire) in row 1. Other than what felt like a bad road wheel, it was a great ride, with the usual snap at the top of the second immelman. Still a very smooth ride.

 

I took a couple people who had never been, and they couldn't understand why they are removing such a smooth and fun roller coaster.

 

The longest we waited was either for River Adventure, or Kong. Both had 20 to 30 minute waits. Not sure which one was longer.

 

We made a loop around the park, and ended the day with a mini Dragon marathon that was interrupted by a storm that lasted from about 6:30 until after 8 pm. They finally got the ride cleared to reopen after the storm passed, and we waited it out.

 

Finally, we got the last public train on Fireball! Such an awesome ride!

 

It was very sad for me as someone who loves B&M's. I could not imagine Kings Island closing Banshee. I would be devastated.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[BlahBlahson]

I'm disappointed yet again that they couldn't just announce T2 and Dragons at the same time as well as some hard details about what is coming next, but at least something with 3D glasses is closing. I'm on board with Universal but hot damn they are making it difficult to stay on the train with so much crap being put out. Fallon is terrible, Fast and Furious is going to be exactly the same as Kong, which is a very forgettable ride experience. Closing one of their top 5 park attractions for dubious reasoning, Closing T2 terminator probably because it's one of the only 3D rides that requires actors and maintenance of live effects. Volcano Bay is nothing like the "World Class never before seen water theme park" they promised and its system is chaotic.

 

HHN is kind of copy-paste from year to year but at least the number of Houses is up to 9 now and the quality holds steady, but being the Final year of Bill and Ted i'm honestly way off the fence for next year's edition already.

 

As much as it should be appreciated that they are actively trying to improve the resort, Basically everything since Diagon Alley (where the Gringott's ride has screen-itis anyways) is really not living up to any hype, and isn't any good at all in some cases. I wonder if this will actually affect attendance and profits at some point.

[BarryH]

I'm leaning towards the DreamWorks Theater or an attraction based on the Dark Universe as a replacement for T2.

[Mr Stratosphere]

What would've been cool with Dragon Challenge is if they put VR Goggles

There is never a scenario where putting VR Goggles on a coaster makes it "cool."

 

 

AMEN. They are even doing it on the Manhattan Express..... NOT COOL.

[VegasBaby]

What would've been cool with Dragon Challenge is if they put VR Goggles

There is never a scenario where putting VR Goggles on a coaster makes it "cool."

 

I couldn't agree more, VR on coasters is a terrible trend and I really hope it dies out soon. Having ridden both VR New Revolution and VR Kraken, I can honestly say that the VR experience is vastly inferior to riding these coasters normally. I thought Kraken was better than TNR, but the headsets were heavy, uncomfortable, and made loading the trains a nightmare.

[cookiex]

I could deal with VR when it was on a smaller coaster like Alpenexpress at Europa Park, but when I tried VR on Daemonen at Tivoli Gardens and it honestly made me a bit nauseous. I wouldn't want to ride a bigger coaster with it.

[Rollercoaster Rider]

What would've been cool with Dragon Challenge is if they put VR Goggles

There is never a scenario where putting VR Goggles on a coaster makes it "cool."

 

I couldn't agree more, VR on coasters is a terrible trend and I really hope it dies out soon. Having ridden both VR New Revolution and VR Kraken, I can honestly say that the VR experience is vastly inferior to riding these coasters normally. I thought Kraken was better than TNR, but the headsets were heavy, uncomfortable, and made loading the trains a nightmare.

 

 

I've heard that with the lockers, The capacity outweighed it's demand. And VR would help solving the demand.

[robbalvey]

[i've heard that with the fluffy, fluffy bunnies filled with medicine and goo, The capacity outweighed it's demand. And VR would help solving the demand.

OK, let me just clear something up here...

 

"Long lines" is NOT synonymous for "guest satisfaction." The two are COMPLETELY DIFFERENT things. I'm so sick of people saying "oh, Dragons didn't have that long of a line anymore, that's why they took it out."

 

Dragons didn't have a long line because it wasn't popular or people didn't like the ride, Dragons didn't have a long line because it pushes through THREE THOUSAND PEOPLE PER HOUR!!!

 

We even just had one of the Attraction Tech Supervisors post on our social media saying how they didn't need most of the queue that was built in the beginning because the ride had a capacity of "thousands per hour!"

 

Now, it didn't help that Universal installed the lockers and metal detectors and created a hassle to even ride the coaster. It also didn't help that they built giant walls hiding the coaster or a really lame and boring ride entrance that a lot of people completely missed.

 

Personally I think all of this was done on purpose because it's no secret that JK Rowling never liked Dueling Dragons and I think if she had her way it would have been gone in 2010.

 

But please stop with this fake news "Oh, people didn't like it anymore and it didn't have a long line crap" because that's not true at all. Stand by the exit of the ride and people would come off LOVING it. I just don't think Universal wanted people to even find the ride to begin with so that way it would make it easier to get rid of it later on down the road.

[Imagineer Josh]

Guess I'll be in the minority of liking it. Love the Terminator movies.

You're not the only one

[Nrthwnd]

The only version of it I saw and experienced, was at Universal Japan, in Osaka.

 

Couldn't understand a word, but the actors were so over the top, their physical & facial reactions

made it just as crazy funny to myself, as as it did the locals. I just wish I understood Japanese.

 

But I would see it again, even if I still didn't completely understand it, heh.

 

And now I wish I did get to see (and hear) this version.

[bgtlover]

Personally I think all of this was done on purpose because it's no secret that JK Rowling never liked Dueling Dragons and I think if she had her way it would have been gone in 2010.

 

I honestly wouldn't be surprised if it was in their contract to have it removed within 10 years...which this would fall under at this point.

[JRice92]

I'm sure going to miss the Dragons. I was lucky enough that in 2002 when I was 10 years old my parents planned a 4 day Disney Vacation for me and my (at the time) 8 year old sister. I was a small thrill seeker and somehow I convinced my parents to ditch our day at Animal Kingdom and buy tickets for Universal/Islands of Adventure instead because I wanted to ride Dueling Dragons. I got 1 ride on Fire & 1 ride on Ice and those two rides were honestly the highlight of my entire vacation.

 

Fast forward to now I'm heading down to Florida on the September 25th this year. My friends & I had this trip planned since January so I was really looking forward to riding the dragons again after all these years and multiple trips to Florida since without visiting Islands of Adventure. For 10 year old me those were my favorite coasters at the time, and I still vividly remember the near misses in the vertical loops. I'm sad to see them go and wasn't able to get one more ride on them. We'll see what the future holds for expansion, but I think the dragons will be hard to top.

[raptor6]

My guess for the replacement of T2:3D is that it will be part of the future Nintendo Land. It appears that the current Woody Woodpecker Kid Zone and T2:3D could be combined together for a giant patch of land for Mario, Link, and Donkey Kong.

[Garet]

^

Terminator 2: 3-D at Universal Studios Florida will run its last shows on Sunday, October 8 to make way for an all-new live action experience based on a high-energy Universal franchise. It will open in 2019. This is one of many exciting new experiences coming to Universal Orlando Resort as we continue our epic growth. Stay tuned – more details will be released soon.