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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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I like Rock It for the layout and how unique some of the elements are. Airtime at the top of a non-inverting loop is something I've never experienced before. But when I rode it two weeks ago, it was bouncing laterally very hard during the entire ride course and it felt like those X-Cars are tearing the structure apart.

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I like Rock It for the layout and how unique some of the elements are. Airtime at the top of a non-inverting loop is something I've never experienced before. But when I rode it two weeks ago, it was bouncing laterally very hard during the entire ride course and it felt like those X-Cars are tearing the structure apart.

 

Were you in the front or back car? I always felt the ride would be so much better if it ran single cars.

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I just got back from a week in Orlando and spent 2 days at Universal Orlando Resort. I get to go to Florida almost every year so I have been to Universal quite a bit. This year, I got 2-day park hopper tickets and did everything that I wanted to do. Since I have been here before I will just point out some major things I noticed this year. First off, I would like to point out that both USO and IOA are some of my favorite parks that I have been to, and it really sucks to see the parks keep adding screen-based attractions. I hope that they will go back to their roots and add more thrilling attractions as that what makes the parks different from Disney, which is more family oriented. Anyway, I'll just write down some thoughts about my recent trip to both parks.

Islands of Adventure

This was my first time riding the refurbished Hulk and was pretty worried as old Hulk was one of my favorite coasters. The lockers on this ride are much better and hope that they will use this system for other rides. The entrance area is much better with the track and Hulk statue. The line is basically the same and just looks more modern, but the station I thought was very impressive with the green lights that go off when a train leaves the station. The launch tube looks really cool but will always miss Bruce Banner freaking out . The ride itself was the same but loved the onboard audio. while the ride is smoother than before, it still throws you around a little bit which I don't mind. Overall I thought the refurbishment was a success and Hulk is still one of my favorites. Kong was also a new ride for me and I heard mixed reviews about it, so I had pretty low expectations for this ride. I was lucky enough to be more towards the back for all my rides. Overall it exceeded my expectations as I thought that going outside, the 360 room, and the kong animatronic were all impressive. The first two screens were pretty disappointing as I would rather have had more practical sets instead of the screens. While Spiderman and Forbidden Journey are better, I liked it better than Gringotts and Transformers. With all the rumors, I was worried that Dragon Challenge would close before I got there but luckily it didn't. I still think that it is very smooth and intense, so I hope it doesn't get replaced with a family dark ride as that would really ruin IOA's attraction lineup.

Universal Studios

Fallon had soft opened about a week before I went which was a plus as I didn't expect to get on it this year. I also had low expectations for this ride as a lot of the reviews have been pretty negative. The queueless system worked out really well and only had to wait about 15min when I was in the building. The ride itself is pretty average. I think it is better than Simpsons, Despicable Me, and Shrek, but of course not as good as their more E-ticket dark rides. Twister has always been a ride that I went on once every time I visited and Fallon will probably be the same. Also when I went on Rocket it felt just as fast as years past so whatever is on the first drop isn't trim brakes (for normal operations at least).

Overall I am pretty excited and scared for the future of Universal Orlando. On one hand, you have volcano bay, Nintendo world, and the new land they bought. At the same time, some of my favorite attractions are rumored to be removed and the only attractions the resort is adding recently are screen based rides. Only time can tell whether or not I am going to enjoy what Universal is doing to both of the parks in the future.

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I like Rock It for the layout and how unique some of the elements are. Airtime at the top of a non-inverting loop is something I've never experienced before. But when I rode it two weeks ago, it was bouncing laterally very hard during the entire ride course and it felt like those X-Cars are tearing the structure apart.

 

Were you in the front or back car? I always felt the ride would be so much better if it ran single cars.

3rd row and 5th row, both times on train 7 and I judge myself for remembering that. Yeah maybe it would be a lot better if it ran single cars. The whole thing just felt like you're far away from the center of gravity on any direction. This plus the poor track work kind of ruined it for me. I did't hate Rock It or anything but I just felt like compared to Hollywood Dream in Japan, USO probably should have something of a higher standard.

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I just got back from a week in Orlando and spent 2 days at Universal Orlando Resort. I get to go to Florida almost every year so I have been to Universal quite a bit. This year, I got 2-day park hopper tickets and did everything that I wanted to do. Since I have been here before I will just point out some major things I noticed this year. First off, I would like to point out that both USO and IOA are some of my favorite parks that I have been to, and it really sucks to see the parks keep adding screen-based attractions. I hope that they will go back to their roots and add more thrilling attractions as that what makes the parks different from Disney, which is more family oriented. Anyway, I'll just write down some thoughts about my recent trip to both parks.

Islands of Adventure

This was my first time riding the refurbished Hulk and was pretty worried as old Hulk was one of my favorite coasters. The fluffy, fluffy bunnies filled with medicine and goo on this ride are much better and hope that they will use this system for other rides. The entrance area is much better with the track and Hulk statue. The line is basically the same and just looks more modern, but the station I thought was very impressive with the green lights that go off when a train leaves the station. The launch tube looks really cool but will always miss Bruce Banner freaking out . The ride itself was the same but loved the onboard audio. while the ride is smoother than before, it still throws you around a little bit which I don't mind. Overall I thought the refurbishment was a success and Hulk is still one of my favorites. Kong was also a new ride for me and I heard mixed reviews about it, so I had pretty low expectations for this ride. I was lucky enough to be more towards the back for all my rides. Overall it exceeded my expectations as I thought that going outside, the 360 room, and the kong animatronic were all impressive. The first two screens were pretty disappointing as I would rather have had more practical sets instead of the screens. While Spiderman and Forbidden Journey are better, I liked it better than Gringotts and Transformers. With all the rumors, I was worried that Dragon Challenge would close before I got there but luckily it didn't. I still think that it is very smooth and intense, so I hope it doesn't get replaced with a family dark ride as that would really ruin IOA's attraction lineup.

Universal Studios

Fallon had soft opened about a week before I went which was a plus as I didn't expect to get on it this year. I also had low expectations for this ride as a lot of the reviews have been pretty negative. The queueless system worked out really well and only had to wait about 15min when I was in the building. The ride itself is pretty average. I think it is better than Simpsons, Despicable Me, and Shrek, but of course not as good as their more E-ticket dark rides. Twister has always been a ride that I went on once every time I visited and Fallon will probably be the same. Also when I went on Rocket it felt just as fast as years past so whatever is on the first drop isn't trim brakes (for normal operations at least).

Overall I am pretty excited and scared for the future of Universal Orlando. On one hand, you have volcano bay, Nintendo world, and the new land they bought. At the same time, some of my favorite attractions are rumored to be removed and the only attractions the resort is adding recently are screen based rides. Only time can tell whether or not I am going to enjoy what Universal is doing to both of the parks in the future.

 

...

Edited by AUWent
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That boom coaster concept looks awesome and could potentially be just as (or more) thrilling as Mummy which is what the park needs. I also can't see a single dark ride replacing dragons. If dragons were to get replaced, then I would like to see a very well themed invert, similar to Nemesis or Oziris, with a family-friendly dark ride next to it.

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That boom coaster concept looks awesome and could potentially be just as (or more) thrilling as Mummy which is what the park needs. I also can't see a single dark ride replacing dragons. If dragons were to get replaced, then I would like to see a very well themed invert, similar to Nemesis or Oziris, with a family-friendly dark ride next to it.

If they were to remove Dragons I don't think they'd replace it with another inverted coaster. The general public wouldn't be able to differentiate the two and it would be a hot mess (see: Terminator replacing Psyclone)

 

I could see either a hotel or another big themed attraction (maybe a coaster) replacing Dragons, but not another invert.

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If DC does get removed I totally see them doing some attraction themed around the Forbidden Forest. I think motorbike roller coaster where you straddle cars shaped like broomsticks would be really cool, though. They could theme it to quidditch (which is supposed to happen right next to the castle too) or one of the flight scenes from the books. I hope they don't go the Fantastic Beasts route though; it's just not quite the same.

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^If it weren't for FSA opening Mine Blower next door, I'd love to see them build an RMC. There are no wing riders in the area, so that'd be a possibility, but I haven't heard overly good things about them. They do look really nice though, so I feel like it'd fit nice in that area.

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^If it weren't for FSA opening Mine Blower next door, I'd love to see them build an RMC. There are no wing riders in the area, so that'd be a possibility, but I haven't heard overly good things about them. They do look really nice though, so I feel like it'd fit nice in that area.

 

Mine Blower's going to Fun Spot Kissimmee, the other end of I-Drive.

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Mine Blower's going to Fun Spot Kissimmee, the other end of I-Drive.

You mean the complete other end of town! Fun Spot Kissimmee is about as far away from Universal Orlando in terms of "theme park distance" as you can get here in Orlando.

203354942_ScreenShot2017-04-02at18_55_15.thumb.png.74ce68a323b16b378335f1f0b2c66dc2.png

Also, Fun Spot's coaster isn't an RMC so why is that even being brought up?

Edited by robbalvey
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What infuriates me is not at all that they have metal detectors, but that they don't deul the ride anymore even though THEY HAVE METAL DETECTORS.

 

I bet it's still for insurance. I'm sure they would still charge them extra whether they dueled with or without metal detectors.

 

EDIT: sorry I am so late to this discussion.

Edited by RollerManic
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Mine Blower's going to Fun Spot Kissimmee, the other end of I-Drive.

You mean the complete other end of town! Fun Spot Kissimmee is about as far away from Universal Orlando in terms of "theme park distance" as you can get here in Orlando.

[attachment=0]Screen Shot 2017-04-02 at 18.55.15.png[/attachment]

Also, Fun Spot's coaster isn't an RMC so why is that even being brought up?

 

Ah, forgive my ignorance. I forgot there were two Fun Spots. Also I know Mine Blower is GG, but I thought RMC had a hand in its design. So maybe an RMC could work.

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Mine Blower's going to Fun Spot Kissimmee, the other end of I-Drive.

You mean the complete other end of town! Fun Spot Kissimmee is about as far away from Universal Orlando in terms of "theme park distance" as you can get here in Orlando.

[attachment=0]Screen Shot 2017-04-02 at 18.55.15.png[/attachment]

Also, Fun Spot's coaster isn't an RMC so why is that even being brought up?

 

Huh, I never figured Fun Spot Kissimmee would be that close to WDW. I know the one in Orlando is literally across the street from Universal.

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I know the one in Orlando is literally across the street from Universal.

It's literally NOT across the street from Universal. Unless of course you consider I-4 a "Street" and you ignore all the other little streets in the way...

723078997_ScreenShot2017-04-02at20_44_58.png.88bfbf6dc38c2e07bf879d0e6d2fa114.png

 

And, oh yeah, here's a little bit of light reading for you that I strongly recommend: http://theoatmeal.com/comics/literally

1135164060_ScreenShot2017-04-02at20_46_33.png.f709d86f34b1973800b375b4d0ca18dd.png

1927743951_ScreenShot2017-04-02at20_46_45.thumb.png.ebdbfee74055b8d9b9ca424680a9c1c8.png

276370418_ScreenShot2017-04-02at20_47_44.thumb.png.e9080508838012403069bcef3e0064a2.png

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Mine Blower's going to Fun Spot Kissimmee, the other end of I-Drive.

You mean the complete other end of town! Fun Spot Kissimmee is about as far away from Universal Orlando in terms of "theme park distance" as you can get here in Orlando.

[attachment=0]Screen Shot 2017-04-02 at 18.55.15.png[/attachment]

Also, Fun Spot's coaster isn't an RMC so why is that even being brought up?

 

Well at least one good thing came out of this discussion. I know now that public transport won't be an option when we finally do an Orlando trip. Although since we want our son to be old enough to remember it and do all the big coasters they've got around 10 years to make it better.

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Even Blake Shelton is tired of screen based rides. (skip to 2:17)

 

I had a good time going to Universal for my first time last year, even without Hulk...but this really isn't something that is going to get me to come back, I don't think Fast and Furious will either. I spent 3 days there and I would have rather spent that last day somewhere else, Fun Spot, Disney, SeaWorld, anywhere really. I enjoyed my time there but Universal got old for me pretty quick with a lot of their offerings being basically the same. Until they change that, I'll plan my next Florida visit around Disney.

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Even Blake Shelton is tired of screen based rides. (skip to 2:17)

 

I had a good time going to Universal for my first time last year, even without Hulk...but this really isn't something that is going to get me to come back, I don't think Fast and Furious will either. I spent 3 days there and I would have rather spent that last day somewhere else, Fun Spot, Disney, SeaWorld, anywhere really. I enjoyed my time there but Universal got old for me pretty quick with a lot of their offerings being basically the same. Until they change that, I'll plan my next Florida visit around Disney.

Hulk is enough to at least stop in for a day. IMO, it's the best coaster in Orlando.

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Even Blake Shelton is tired of screen based rides. (skip to 2:17)

 

I had a good time going to Universal for my first time last year, even without Hulk...but this really isn't something that is going to get me to come back, I don't think Fast and Furious will either. I spent 3 days there and I would have rather spent that last day somewhere else, Fun Spot, Disney, SeaWorld, anywhere really. I enjoyed my time there but Universal got old for me pretty quick with a lot of their offerings being basically the same. Until they change that, I'll plan my next Florida visit around Disney.

Hulk is enough to at least stop in for a day. IMO, it's the best coaster in Orlando.

 

Hulk in the back edge seats is debatable, but the middle of the first three rows is best ride in Orlando to me.

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