Epic Universe Expansion Speculation

[nikem3]

Wild Robot Forest land with a dark ride and a boat ride. Lets get it.

 

[themeparkpalooza]

I feel like Universal may go Wicked over LOTR to save on licensing fees - the Emerald City and rest of Oz would look fantastic with Potter level detail. You could do a lot with Oz (dark ride, family coaster, Splash Mountain-style flume, musical venue, walkthrough, etc.)

It'd be cool if they split the big plot between Wicked and something else. Hill Valley (maybe with portals to depict 1885, 1955, 1985 and 2015) or a general sci-fi area could be cool additions that add something different.

For Universal Monsters, an Amity mini land would be fun to bring back a revamped JAWS ride. The Creature concept would also be good.

Pikmin, Animal Crossing and Kirby (one or two of the three) would be a good toddler/preschool focused mini-land to add by Nintendo after Luigi's Mansion - a Fantasyland style dark ride, a couple flats, a M&G, and a play area. With the Mario and DK rides all having height requirements, it'd be good to have some Nintendo stuff anyone can go on.

Another striking flat ride concept for the whole family could be cool for Celestial Park.

The flying theater for HTTYD would be a good way to round Berk out with a major indoor ride for when it rains.

For Potter, I'm not sure. It seems like the area is pretty tapped out.

 

[belloq87]

Hill Valley (maybe with portals to depict 1885, 1955, 1985 and 2015)

Whatever it takes to get Cafe '80s in a theme park.

 

[bdubsCEO]

I want Hill Valley back so bad. Imagine a BTTF Hagrid’s with an 88MPH launch (or just a launch that’s themed to breaking the time barrier)…

 

[GAcoaster]

Assuming Wicked does as well as it’s tracking, I could easily see it filling the space at Epic, or replacing Lost Continent, Simpsons, Toon Lagoon, MSHI…

It would be more marketable and relevant than any of those existing lands.

 

[mccgavin]

If other rumored projects come to fruition, I'm guessing a potential Wicked land/attraction would most likely replace MiB and Fear Factor at USF.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

I think Wicked is perfect for either LC or TL in IOA. I think any Wicked land should contain a stage show as an E-ticket, and IOA desperately needs one.

I think it's hard to shove LOTR into either of the two existing parks. Doesn't fit into the landscape of USF or fit well within LC or TL.

 

[Crypt Keeper]

If other rumored projects come to fruition, I'm guessing a potential Wicked land/attraction would most likely replace MiB

 

[PerceptiveCoot]

Toon Lagoon, MSHI…

Wicked is not more popular than Spider-Man. Also, Toon Lagoon, as dated as it is, works?

I'm certain Wicked will continue to be a popular IP and will certainly warrant a ride at some point, but I don't want to fall too much under the sway of recency bias. Our perception of its popularity has undoubtedly been warped to some degree by the absolute marketing blitzkrieg Universal has unleashed upon our poor human brains.

 

[Mad Dog]

If other rumored projects come to fruition, I'm guessing a potential Wicked land/attraction would most likely replace MiB and Fear Factor at USF.

Tomfoolery said MIB isn't leaving. He's not been wrong on anything yet.

 

[bdubsCEO]

You have to wonder what the marketing budget was. I literally cannot escape Wicked. Every brand under the sun has pink and green plastered all over it, not to mention the in-park stuff

 

[TheUniC6]

IOA has a lot of areas based on dead IPs. To me that seems like the ideal park to put a Wicked land.

 

[Jake S]

the concept of a dead IP, particularly in an age so dominated by nostalgia, doesn't hold much water to me. people like things even if there isn't a new movie, video game or tv show about it coming out every two years. and trying to stay that current is, imo, a recipe for disaster.

 

[PerceptiveCoot]

the concept of a dead IP, particularly in an age so dominated by nostalgia, doesn't hold much water to me. people like things even if there isn't a new movie, video game or tv show about it coming out every two years. and trying to stay that current is, imo, a recipe for disaster.

Also, to be pedantic, your IP technically isn't dead if it has a theme park ride.

 

[Crypt Keeper]

The Wicked store seems to be enough. No need to incorporate the IP on a larger scale for the time being imo.

IOA has a lot of areas based on dead IPs. To me that seems like the ideal park to put a Wicked land.

Which ones are dead? They all seem timeless to me. Nostalgia sells too.

and trying to stay that current is, imo, a recipe for disaster.

USF fell right into that trap starting in the late 90s. Don't get me wrong, we've had a few all-timer attractions come out of it, but we've also had some pretty bad ones.

It appears Universal has learned from those mistakes and is avoiding a similar situation over at IOA and EU.

 

[PerceptiveCoot]

Don't get me wrong, we've had a few all-timer attractions come out of it, but we've also had some pretty bad ones.

I'd argue they fell into that true in the 21st century with Minion Mayhem, SLOP, and the two Jimmys. But people seem to like those rides, so again, the currentness of the IP really had no bearing on whether people enjoyed them.

 

[rageofthegods]

I feel like at this point, the minions are timelines. I mean, for God's sake, Despicable Me 4 just came out and made nearly a billion!

 

[TheUniC6]

Which ones are dead? They all seem timeless to me. Nostalgia sells too.

I seem to remember people on the form a while ago pining for Toon Lagoon to be updated.

 

[Legacy]

I want Hill Valley back so bad. Imagine a BTTF Hagrid’s with an 88MPH launch (or just a launch that’s themed to breaking the time barrier)…

Okay… I see this “launch to 88 miles an hour” thing a lot (and not just you, so please don’t take this response personally… I just had the time to do the math today).

To launch from a dead stop up to 88 miles, in two seconds, would be an acceleration of 65 ft/s, or 19.66 m/s. That would be the second quickest launch in the world. Universal would love a record breaker, but probably not like that.

A launch that quick would also require about 130ft of track. That distance is important, because of the whole point of a launch like that is to enjoy what happens after.

The second Velocicoaster launch is about 260ft, and typically uses momentum at that distance. The Starfall/Stardust racer launch is about the same. The Fast and Furious building is about 370 feet long. So, basically, a 88 mph launch, at a record-breaking quickness, basically becomes a stat coaster. It wouldn’t fit Universal’s MO.

So, let’s slow that acceleration down to 3 seconds, (13-ish m/s). Still pretty darn quick, but more in line with Universal’s MO. However, that requires more track length. Now, it needs a launch a little over 290 ft. That is longer than the VC and SR launch lengths, and basically takes up the entirety of FF, before any elements like turns are added.

The only viable location, in this structure, is replacing Rip Ride Rocket. Not a horrible idea, though it would be very out of place thematically.

Basically, don’t expect a BttF coaster. Doing a BttF that DOESN’T go up to 88mph is pointless. A dark ride or simulator (which… yeah… we’ve seen) is logistically the better more for Universal… that’s why we won’t see it.

 

[PerceptiveCoot]

I feel like at this point, the minions are timelines. I mean, for God's sake, Despicable Me 4 just came out and made nearly a billion!

The problem with the Minions though is they were so profitable that Universal wasted the only studio that could make theme-park viable blockbuster IPs for them on a single golden goose. Part of the reason why Wicked is being so heavily pushed as Universal's next blockbuster franchise is likely because, outside of Despicable Me, they haven't really created a 4-quadrant blockbuster franchise that they wholly own in some time. Disney creates, what, almost one a year on average?