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Universal Orlando Resort (USO, IOA) Discussion Thread

p. 624 - New Epic Universe details, including Isle of Berk!

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Seriously, HOLY CRAP. Being the complete Zelda/Mario fanboy that I am, this is the most awesome thing in the world. And I live less than two hours away from the park, so now I'm in heaven apparently.

Universal's approach to their new developments has been really interesting. They seem to be building a rapport of people who want to visit the parks for one specific land or experience, and are willing to pay full price to do so.

 

I hear tourists all the time talk about going to "Harry Potter World" instead of Universal, and I expect that a lot of people will want to go to "Nintendo Land" or whatever it ends up being called exclusively. I feel that, to those people, every other land and attraction becomes a "bonus" after that. There's nothing inherently bad about going that way, and as always I'm happy to be proven wrong. But the game then becomes - how do we make the land awesome enough for people to want to come to the park exclusively for it, but not so time-consuming that they ignore the other areas?

 

I have always thought that Universal has always had the two- to three-day crowd locked down. If Universal with its "only" two parks (soon to be three with Volcano Bay) becomes so densely packed with awesome stuff that people end up staying four or even five days to truly experience it all, which parks in the area will step up to cater to the weekend crowd? Legoland? SeaWorld?

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They are just snatching up popular brands, since that is the name of the game now.

 

Prior to buying Dreamworks, Universal had pretty much exhausted their own collection of "famous" brands, so it made perfect sense to go out and snatch up big names that no one else owns the rights to.

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I want here twice before. Once when i was 9 in the summer of 1999 and the second time was a few years back. Hearing about the changes now it does seem like USO/IOA is a lot different then i remembered it being. I guess interests change... I though Earthquake was so cool. Same with Twister even though it wasn't an actual ride. So was the other classics they got rid of. It would be very sad if they got rid of their signature water rides but hopefully they wont do that. Not bashing 4D rides they are fun in their own ways but traditional rides will always be the best in my opinion. A lot of people bag on the VR googles on coasters,as long as they dont over do it,i think thats pretty awesome as it combines the best of both worlds. Now imagine if they had rides like that.

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The rumor has been Nintendo will replace the kids area in the studios. The only place I think this could appear in IoA is toon lagoon, if this is where it goes I would be surprised if ripsaw falls survives.

 

The only large unused plot of land in either park right now is the corner of the studios between MIB and kids area. This is where the two sprung tents which are used for HHN are located. This would provide a lot of room and gives easy expansion options. For example change the theme on MIB or expand towards the current kids area.

 

Also another possibility is the fabled third gate. They recently repurchased a huge chunk of land and this could easily form the cornerstone of a new park.

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I've always thought Nintendo's aesthetic would fit perfectly in a theme park. Bright, vibrant and family oriented. I think it also could be a smart move considering the Switch is coming out early next year. It'll do well to bolster the Nintendo brand and experience.

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I've always thought Nintendo's aesthetic would fit perfectly in a theme park. Bright, vibrant and family oriented. I think it also could be a smart move considering the Switch is coming out early next year. It'll do well to bolster the Nintendo brand and experience.

I mean, Nintendo has likely had the Switch in the pipeline since before we even heard of the theme park licensing deal, and it will have likely been on the market for at least a year before any of these theme park lands are completed. If anything, the upcoming Super Mario Run mobile game will help to bolster the brand more than these theme park lands.

 

I don't think people don't go to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter to learn about Harry Potter - in my opinion, they go there because the stories, films and other media have already had such a positive impact on their lives. I would honestly base the Wizarding World's, and the Harry Potter film franchise's success, on the ABCFamily / Freeform television network, and their constant replays of all of the films - at least partially.

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I would honestly base the Wizarding World's, and the Harry Potter film franchise's success, on the ABCFamily / Freeform television network, and their constant replays of all of the films - at least partially.

 

Which is ironic considering ABC Family/Freeform is a subsidiary of Disney...

 

And Harry Potter is produced by Warner Bros. It just so happens that Disney has the television rights contract to those movies while Universal has the park rights.

But the irony with the Marvel contracts is not lost on me.

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I would honestly base the Wizarding World's, and the Harry Potter film franchise's success, on the ABCFamily / Freeform television network, and their constant replays of all of the films - at least partially.

 

Which is ironic considering ABC Family/Freeform is a subsidiary of Disney...

 

Those rights are shifting to Universal (guessing that wasn't a coincidence).

 

But more to the point: Harry Potter is the Star Wars of the "millennial" generation. The books and movies came out when people who are now 20-30ish years old were growing up.

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Skull Island: Reign of Donkey Kong 2019?

Bullet Bill Astro Orbiter 2020?

 

In earnest, I think it's a pretty cool idea, and Universal tends to handle attractions and themes with care. There's certainly an infectious & energetic kind of fun to Nintendo, and there are lots of ways of bringing that to a park. I'd love to be a fly on the wall in Universal/Miyamoto creative meetings!

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I've been hearing rumors of them wanting to replace E.T. for some time now. Having done the attraction a few times, I honestly won't miss it if it does become something else. With the large amount of land behind M.I.B. along with Kidzone I can see this Nintendo land being huge...If they use all that space of course. Once they get this completed, I can see Hollywood area of the park along with T2 getting the next big upgrade.

 

But of course if none of that happens and it goes in IOA...I'd say The Lost Continent needs to be the area instead of Toon Lagoon. Toon Lagoon is actually fun.

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But of course if none of that happens and it goes in IOA...I'd say The Lost Continent needs to be the area instead of Toon Lagoon. Toon Lagoon is actually fun.

 

Toon Lagoon is one of my favorite area's in IOA. We can spend hours in that area with everything that it has to offer. Not to mention Dudley Do Rights and Popeye are two of my favorite water rides in any park. Curious if they would ever touch The Lost Continent anymore than they already have with Mytho's being part of that area.

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I've been hearing rumors of them wanting to replace E.T. for some time now. Having done the attraction a few times, I honestly won't miss it if it does become something else. With the large amount of land behind M.I.B. along with Kidzone I can see this Nintendo land being huge...If they use all that space of course. Once they get this completed, I can see Hollywood area of the park along with T2 getting the next big upgrade.

 

But of course if none of that happens and it goes in IOA...I'd say The Lost Continent needs to be the area instead of Toon Lagoon. Toon Lagoon is actually fun.

 

I would totally understand the removal of E.T. but I'm still sort of rooting for it to stay. Universal should really have at least one "classic" attraction on property. I struggle to even call it a classic but it's the closest thing they've got. The fact that they keep removing old rides and updating is part of what makes them awesome and part of what sets them apart from Disney but I really do like that they still have E.T. That's just a personal preference though, from a business standpoint I could absolutely see the case for removing it.

 

I agree completely about Toon Lagoon. I always liked it.

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But of course if none of that happens and it goes in IOA...I'd say The Lost Continent needs to be the area instead of Toon Lagoon. Toon Lagoon is actually fun.

 

Toon Lagoon is one of my favorite area's in IOA. We can spend hours in that area with everything that it has to offer. Not to mention Dudley Do Rights and Popeye are two of my favorite water rides in any park. Curious if they would ever touch The Lost Continent anymore than they already have with Mytho's being part of that area.

I dont think i been on the Popeye ride but Dudley Do Rights ride is awesome. Its pretty much my favorite log flume ride. Also Toon Lagoon is pretty much a staple to that park be kind of sad if they got rid of it.

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I think its really obvious that it's going to replace Kidzone and possibly ET. Curious George, Woody Woodpecker, Barney...none of these are relevant anymore. Also I think Jaws was considered more of a classic attraction than ET but that didn't stop it from being replaced with Harry Potter. Speaking of Harry Potter, seems like what's left of Lost Continent is prime expansion space for that franchise.

 

In a strange way, the current management of Universal sort of reminds me of Premier/Six Flags in the early 2000's. They are really building some great stuff, but are operating their parks poorly from a guest perspective. However, the difference is that Universal has been financially successful, while Premier/Six Flags expanded their parks in such a way that bankrupted the company, closed the largest amusement park in the world (Geauga Lake), and turn some parks into shadows of their former self (Elitch Gardens).

I have to disagree with you bigtime here. The metal detector/l*cker situation is an annoyance but running 1 train on the most popular rides (if open at all) during busy times of year is much more of an annoyance. Also Universal as far as I know fully staffs its third shift maintenance and custodial, and the rides have very little downtime.

Six Flags those days you never knew what rides were going to closed, late opening, running 1 train, down for staffing, etc. Universal Orlando's operations are probably just as good if not better now than ever.

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Besides being really excited to see the Nintendo additions I wonder if this relationship with Universal is what finally gets Nintendo to put their characters into some movies. These cgi cartoon movies are the perfect thing for so many Nintendo franchises.

PLEASE MAKE A STAR FOX MOVIE

PLEASE MAKE A STAR FOX MOVIE

OH FOR THE LOVE OF GOD PLEASE MAKE A STAR FOX MOVIE

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TPR attended the Universal Holidays Media Event yesterday and got to experience some of the awesomeness that starts TODAY at Universal Studios Orlando! It was a great sneak peak at Grinchmas, the Macy's Holiday Parade and their Christmas decorations throughout the resort. Here is the official information from Universal Studios Orlando - then on to the photos!

 

UNIVERSAL ORLANDO RESORT’S HOLIDAYS CELEBRATION BEGINS THIS SATURDAY, DEC. 3

‘Tis the season to celebrate joyous holiday traditions including Grinchmas, the 15th Anniversary of Macy’s Holiday Parade, and Holiday Concerts by Mannheim Steamroller

Beginning this Saturday, Dec. 3 and running daily through Jan. 1, families can create lifelong holiday memories at Universal Orlando’s Holidays celebration. Guests will have the opportunity to:

 Experience the 15th anniversary Macy’s Holiday Parade, featuring some of the same larger-than-life balloons seen in last week’s famous Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City. Colorful holiday characters and fantasy-filled floats will fill the streets of Universal Studios Florida followed by a tree-lighting ceremony by Santa Claus. New to this year’s parade is the “Virginia” balloon depicting the 8-year old girl from the famed Yes, Virginia there is a Santa Claus newspaper editorial of the late 1800s, as well as the “Mother Ginger” special character from The Nutcracker.

 Come face-to-face with the mean, green one himself and the Whos from Who-ville as Grinchmas comes to life throughout Seuss Landing in Universal’s Islands of Adventure. Guests can experience the “Grinchmas Who-liday Spectacular,” a heartwarming live retelling of Dr. Seuss’s classic holiday tale “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” or join the Grinch and friends for a special holiday breakfast buffet on select dates.

 Plus, the Christmas music sensation – Mannheim Steamroller – returns to the Music Plaza stage in Universal Studios on select nights to perform electrifying holiday classics with a modern twist. Performances will take place on Dec. 3, 4, 10, 11, 17 and 18.

Access to Universal Orlando’s Holidays festivities is included with admission to the theme parks.

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Such a fun time of the year to visit Universal Studios Orlando!

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You can see they already have their entrance gate decorated!

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We started off in IOA, since that is where Grinchmas is!

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Time for a sneak peak of the Grinchmas show!

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The stage really captures the spirit of the Dr. Seuss books.

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We get to meet the Grinch himself!

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Stacey was a little afraid, but he is a friendly grinch!

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See? Once you warm up that Grinch heart... :)

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The show has all your favorite parts of the story!

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Including great live singers!

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Off to check out some of the Christmas decorations!

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These balloons are all over the park.. and HUGE!

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OMG! Garfield is almost as tall as the NY Public Library!

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Time to check out the parade!

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We got a special sneak peak! This is the 15th anniversary of the parade!

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These were actually used in the New York parade!

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This inflatable guy is new this year and based on a balloon from the 40s.

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Cool to see how the balloons are held - just like NYC!

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These high kicking ladies are awesome!

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The event also features Mannheim Steamroller on select nights!

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