Skull Island: Reign of Kong - General Discussion

[Brian G.]

I hope they have a plan.

I'd imagine they want everything good by 2025. It's just a matter of when. Sadly, IDK when "when" is.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

I'd imagine they want everything good by 2025. It's just a matter of when. Sadly, IDK when "when" is.

Hopefully soon, unlike USF, IOA can handle an attraction closure for them to properly address the issue. Probably not anytime this year unfortunately as IOA needs indoor attractions during the summer months when it rains, but possibly later this year... which is unfortunate.

 

[Scott W.]

I hope they have a plan.

They have a plan, it's to never build a trackless ride ever again.

 

[Rhian]

In April/May it'll be a full year of the attraction bypassing the outdoor portion... so what are we waiting on? I'd imagine they want the ride to be in proper working order prior to the attendance boost from Epic.

Technically the ride is in working order? It isn't like the Yeti where the entire point was it lurching and swiping at the car. Kong's focal point aren't the doors, it's the Kong AA. They could refurbish everything except the doors and I think it would be fine for EU's opening. I don't think it's ideal but the average first-time guest isn't likely to be bothered.

Still, and I get there's a priority of things but I hope there is some solid movement in the background for this. It's a terrible idea but if they never get it back running again my next suggestion would be to let the queue run through that instead. lol

 

[Wesker69]

That KONG animatronic is nothing compared to the original(s) in Kongfrontation (ride & Studio Tour).

Universal has trouble with big gate doors, just look at JPRA, those iconic doors always love to break

 

[Jake S]

That KONG animatronic is nothing compared to the original(s) in Kongfrontation (ride & Studio Tour).

Correct: It's significantly better than either of the originals.

 

[ReelJustice]

Kong's focal point aren't the doors, it's the Kong AA.

I mean, it’s arguably one the focal points

 

[Wesker69]

Correct: It's significantly better than either of the originals.

Significantly better tech but not better overall. It is very much an after thought for this ride because it doesn't do anything other than grunt. For me personally, it was a waste of budget & would've been better as a photo-op like Raptor Encounter.

I'll gladly always take original Kong over this any day

 

[Jake S]

Significantly better tech but not better overall. It is very much an after thought for this ride because it doesn't do anything other than grunt.

To each their own, but I strongly disagree. The articulation of the animatronic and its lifelike appearance are extremely impressive and make the attraction for me (along with the queue).

 

[Rhian]

I mean, it’s arguably one the focal points

When talking about getting ready for EU it's not a priority nor something missing that the average guest would actually complain about which was my main point.

I agree with you fundamentally. It absolutely should be in working order from a showmanship perspective.

 

[belloq87]

I mean, if you skip a scene on almost any ride, the average guest is probably not going to realize it, either.

That's not a reason to accept it.

 

[Brian G.]

I mean, if you skip a scene on almost any ride, the average guest is probably not going to realize it, either.

That's not a reason to accept it.

I don’t think anyone is saying it’s acceptable.

 

[Scott W.]

Correct: It's significantly better than either of the originals.

It's a grumpy looking head and shoulders that's been placed into a corner like an afterthought. Technically, more advanced but does nothing of interest.

The originals were full body on display hanging from a bridge with banana breath with mild interaction with the ride vehicle that served the story.

Skull Island was made during a creatively bankrupt era of screen heavy rides with little to boring stories. Kongfrontation is superior in every way and to make matters worse, it took away an expansion pad from JP.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

Technically the ride is in working order? It isn't like the Yeti where the entire point was it lurching and swiping at the car. Kong's focal point aren't the doors, it's the Kong AA. They could refurbish everything except the doors and I think it would be fine for EU's opening. I don't think it's ideal but the average first-time guest isn't likely to be bothered.

Door is supposedly not the issue... it was working fine until they skipped outdoor portion. Everest is a fun coaster that even with a missing special effect, it's still great. Kong relies on its special effects to make the ride unique/interesting.

 

[Brian G.]

It's a grumpy looking head and shoulders that's been placed into a corner like an afterthought. Technically, more advanced but does nothing of interest.

The originals were full body on display hanging from a bridge with banana breath with mild interaction with the ride vehicle that served the story.

Skull Island was made during a creatively bankrupt era of screen heavy rides with little to boring stories. Kongfrontation is superior in every way and to make matters worse, it took away an expansion pad from JP.

Damn, Scott... LOL

Door is supposedly not the issue... it was working fine until they skipped outdoor portion. Everest is a fun coaster that even with a missing special effect, it's still great. Kong relies on its special effects to make the ride unique/interesting.

Eh, Sorta 6 of 1 deal. No, the door isn't THE issue, but the issue is happening at the door/entrance.

I will say that I agree that it's time to get around to a refurb (hopefully when they wrap up Popeyes in mid-March), I gotta disagree with the comparison. While both are in B-mode (Yeti may be in C-Mode now?), the Yeti is the crux of the attraction. The open doors, while cool, are designed to be skipped.

 

[IzzyB]

Technically the ride is in working order? It isn't like the Yeti where the entire point was it lurching and swiping at the car. Kong's focal point aren't the doors, it's the Kong AA. They could refurbish everything except the doors and I think it would be fine for EU's opening. I don't think it's ideal but the average first-time guest isn't likely to be bothered.

Still, and I get there's a priority of things but I hope there is some solid movement in the background for this. It's a terrible idea but if they never get it back running again my next suggestion would be to let the queue run through that instead. lol

I disagree, the Yeti is just one part of the coaster, but the coaster itself is the same length. Honestly as a GP person before ever stepping foot into these boards had no clue it did more or cared it did more. It was and still is a really fun coaster.

The part of Kong that is strange to me and tells me something is wrong is they tell you "I will tell you when to put the glasses on", then you begin moving and right away pass by the outdoor section and are told to put your glasses on. It feels like something is missing. My husband didn't know it should go outside until after the ride and he thought it was odd to put them on so quickly. When I told him why then he understood more. So maybe if this is longterm they should have changed that bit a little.

 

[OrlandoGuy]

I disagree, the Yeti is just one part of the coaster, but the coaster itself is the same length. Honestly as a GP person before ever stepping foot into these boards had no clue it did more or cared it did more. It was and still is a really fun coaster.

The part of Kong that is strange to me and tells me something is wrong is they tell you "I will tell you when to put the glasses on", then you begin moving and right away pass by the outdoor section and are told to put your glasses on. It feels like something is missing. My husband didn't know it should go outside until after the ride and he thought it was odd to put them on so quickly. When I told him why then he understood more. So maybe if this is longterm they should have changed that bit a little.

Agree with this…one missing effect is absolutely trumped by entire missing ride scenes. A better comparison would be Everest skipping the entire portion of the ride between the first lift hill and the second.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

While both are in B-mode (Yeti may be in C-Mode now?), the Yeti is the crux of the attraction. The open doors, while cool, are designed to be skipped.

It's not just the door opening that makes the scene spectacular, it's the entire approach, fire and awe of a massive vehicle going outdoor before venturing in to a massive facade. Everest doesn't skip the entire Yeti coaster segment and honestly the disco lighting does a solid job at making it appear like its moving.

Imagine skipping the city flyover on E.T., that's a more apt comparison.

 

[Brian G.]

It's not just the door opening that makes the scene spectacular, it's the entire approach, fire and awe of a massive vehicle going outdoor before venturing in to a massive facade. Everest doesn't skip the entire Yeti coaster segment and honestly the disco lighting does a solid job at making it appear like its moving.

Imagine skipping the city flyover on E.T., that's a more apt comparison.

I guess it all depends on what your preference is and what you're looking to get out of the ride. I still think Kong's meat and potatoes are there, but Everest (and speaking as someone who has seen A-mode) doesn't hit the same due to the Yeti's issues.

 

[Mad Dog]

That outdoor sequence sets up the entire ride. And the ambiance and kinetic energy it brings is irreplaceable. Kong's one of my fav attractions, but it significantly is lessened when the outdoor section is skipped, as they often did early mornings even before the breakdown. Generally, if I didn't see the trams moving outdoors, I would skip the attraction. Crazy they're taking so long to fix this. I could understand a couple months, but not this long for a major part of the attraction.