Attraction Changes

[MaxPower]

I am always surprised when attractions undergo changes that I consider to be negative.

For example:

1) On Test Track, just before your vehicle turns its final corner to speed you out of the building, ORIGINALLY you stopped briefly to watch a test vehicle with crash dummies in it hit a wall at full speed to demonstrate a crash test. Then your vehicle would turn to face an identical wall, and the joke was that you were going to do the same thing- of course your wall would open up and you'd be outside instead of crashing. I was saddened when they stopped showing the test crash.

2) At The Beauty and the Beast show, during the finale, doves used to be released from the stage and fly over the heads of the audience members which was a great effect. Those doves are long gone.

3) Live cast members used to be part of the Big Red/Little Red Poacher storyline on Kilimanjaro Safaris and it would always get a chuckle when the cast member with the rifle would talk to the ride vehicle. ALso there used to be a fake jeep that would race alongside your safari vehicle. Those elements have been removed.

Does anyone else have any attraction changes they consider to be a "change for the worse"?

[Lakin]

The change from Mr. Toad's Wild Ride to Winnie the Pooh was very disappointing.

Do you know how much it stinks to be 13? I've missed all of the classics! Not to mention Horizons. :(

[DreamFinder2]

1) On Test Track, just before your vehicle turns its final corner to speed you out of the building, ORIGINALLY you stopped briefly to watch a test vehicle with crash dummies in it hit a wall at full speed to demonstrate a crash test. Then your vehicle would turn to face an identical wall, and the joke was that you were going to do the same thing- of course your wall would open up and you'd be outside instead of crashing. I was saddened when they stopped showing the test crash.

When did this happen? We were there March '08, and I'm pretty sure the "demo crash" was still happening...

[joelkfla]

When did this happen? We were there March '08, and I'm pretty sure the "demo crash" was still happening...
In the current scene, you hear the sound of the crash, and the rear of the dummy car jumps up a bit as if it had just crashed. In the original scene, the car actually moved towards the wall and stopped abruptly.

My other favorite effects that have been scrapped due to maintenance are on Dinosaur. The pteranadon used to swoop towards the car as you passed under it; now it's just done with strobe lights. I think the small dinos that jump over the car no longer jump, either. (Not sure, as I haven't ridden it in over a year.)

And, of course, there's the Yeti ...

[AmandaChan]

Yeah I remember seeing on one of the Disney DVD's that there were doves at the end of BandtheB. I can't imagine though that they could have kept up the dove gig forever with they have so many shows to do everyday.

[joelkfla]

Yeah I remember seeing on one of the Disney DVD's that there were doves at the end of BandtheB. I can't imagine though that they could have kept up the dove gig forever with they have so many shows to do everyday.
The official justification for eliminating dove releases at BATB and other shows was that too many were being harvested by the local raptors before they could make it back to the coop.

[LovinWDW]

I liked Living with the Land much better when they had an actual person giving the tour on the boat. I don't enjoy the recorded tour as much.

[DisneyNut2005]

I liked Living with the Land much better when they had an actual person giving the tour on the boat. I don't enjoy the recorded tour as much.

That change, like any other, was done for several reasons.

In the case of LwtL, by cutting out the live guides, they're now able to...

1) Staff attractions/facilities that are in even greater need of staffing

2) Increase capicity by being able to cycle more boats through the ride at a time, since the number of boats being used would change depending on how many Cast Members they had on any given day

3) Shorten wait times in the queue line for the guests

4) Not all of the guides were engaging and enthusiastic


Personally, I don't mind the recorded spiels at all. They're just as informative as the live guides were and do update the spiels from time to time.

[mrsgaribaldi]

I liked Living with the Land much better when they had an actual person giving the tour on the boat. I don't enjoy the recorded tour as much.


Same here. I find that people didn't talk as much when it was live. Now they just talk throughout and I have a hard time hearing it.

[candleshoe]

I miss the crashing car in test track too. It was the best "bit" of the entire ride!! I assumed it was a maintenace issue and they just got lazy about it. Disney cutting corners is always a disappointment...

[Cheloconnell]

I miss the old Tiki room - not too much of a fan of the "new management". It is starting to grow on me, but the old one was much better. I also miss the talking skeleton flag that was above you right before you would go down the falls at Pirates of the Carribean :(

[Ian]

The Test Track one is a bigger disappointment to me, because it was an element that was used to advance the storyline.

The ride sort of always felt a little disjointed to begin with, but now it's so haphazard you're sort of like, "Wait ... what just happened?"

It's awkward that they removed a key story element like that.

[dmosher]

I miss the old Tiki room - not too much of a fan of the "new management". :(
I agree, this one actually NEEDS to go back to it's original state! Ugh it kills me to hear the music around MK and not be able to see the real show!
:pipes:
D

[dmosher]

At The Beauty and the Beast show, during the finale, doves used to be released from the stage and fly over the heads of the audience members which was a great effect. Those doves are long gone.


I am guessing this was a dove--> poo --> guests head related issue heheh



3) Live cast members used to be part of the Big Red/Little Red Poacher storyline on Kilimanjaro Safaris and it would always get a chuckle when the cast member with the rifle would talk to the ride vehicle. ALso there used to be a fake jeep that would race alongside your safari vehicle. Those elements have been removed.

I have no memory of wither of these events. Hmm that is weird! Why can I not recall any of this happening??
:pipes:
D7

[JabberJaws]

Unfortunately this happens with almost every ride at a major park that involves a lot of technology or man-hours to accomplish an effect. One of the most note-worthy non-disney related incidents being the best effect at Poseidon's Fury at IOA, the swirling vortex of water, being turned off to save water (a.k.a. to save money). Other disney effects to note:


Ptereydons (sp?) at DS,
jumping dinos in DS,
On RnR there used to be an actual person that would come out to pick up the black guitar during the preshow when asked to by one of the Aerosmith band members,
TT crash effect (though they sort of do it now)
Projection of brer rabbit (I think) hopping on the wall at SM,
The angler fish chasing nemo at seas (is still there I think but wasn't working the past few times I have been there),
CMs from safaris,
I know there are others but I can't think of them off the top of my head.


Lots of high-tech rides start off with these great features, problem is the higher-tech an effect, the more likely it is to break down, the more it breaks down, the more cost is involved in maintaining it. Eventually effects like that are deemed to costly to maintain.

Disney does bring back effects like that from time to time when they do major upgrades though, though I hate it when they get rid of the little touches like the live CMs and little red stuff on KS. Those details are what makes Disney, Disney!

[BluewaterBrad]

When did this happen? We were there March '08, and I'm pretty sure the "demo crash" was still happening...


Yeah it was working in Feb when we went also.:mickey:

[WDW_Obsessed]

I liked Living with the Land much better when they had an actual person giving the tour on the boat. I don't enjoy the recorded tour as much.

I also agree. I have definitley had less than enigmatic cast members giving the tour, but I still felt it was more enjoyable to have that personal aspect to it.

[Ryan Towle]

When did Brer Rabbit stop hopping on the wall? Has it been completely taken out?

Also, my vote for the worst attraction change - POTC.

[Grizz16]

The re-do of Spaceship Earth, the desending part with the touchscreen computer thing.

I'm not going to avoid riding it, but no longer am I going to make a point of riding it.

[TikiLounger]

3) Live cast members used to be part of the Big Red/Little Red Poacher storyline on Kilimanjaro Safaris and it would always get a chuckle when the cast member with the rifle would talk to the ride vehicle. ALso there used to be a fake jeep that would race alongside your safari vehicle. Those elements have been removed.

Does anyone else have any attraction changes they consider to be a "change for the worse"?

I, too, miss this original element from Kilimanjaro Safaris. Also, the driver of the safari vehicle used to stop for a moment on the creeky bridge and it would tilt to make it seem as if it were letting go. Now? It's just a quick drive over and the noise. Everytime we ride, my son mentions that he hopes the bridge breaks and that the jeep races along with us. Kind of disappointing.

[jaguarfeather]

I just returned from WDW after a 15 year gap, and I was heartbroken at the Tiki Room changes. Certainly, the Room needed an update, but Disney erased the charm and the successful dramatic structure of it and replaced it with a chaotic and crass assault.

The original show built up from one animated character, adding one at at time until the entire room was alive including the Tiki gods on the wall columns - all climaxing in the storm outside the virtual windows. As silly as it was, the drama worked and the charm was delivered.

The shame is that they could have made this show more magical with today's technology instead of playing to the lowest common denominator and still losing. What they lost was Walt's sense of class and Vision.

I'm glad I still have my old Disney LP record of the original show soundtrack. I’ll play it once and again and visualize the way this once beloved show worked its magic – gone now, like Walt himself.
:crying:

[DizneyRox]

A would say a majority of the original effects on EE don't work anymore, the Yeti is just one.

The initial scene in the Great Movie Ride used to move, not it's barely visible behind a scrim.

The animation tour used to have real animators.

B&TB used to have a decent pre-show.

MGM used to have a regular nighttime extraviganza.

Epcot used to be futuristic.

The backlot tour used to be fun.

The list goes on and on...

[Marceline]

I just returned from WDW after a 15 year gap, and I was heartbroken at the Tiki Room changes. Certainly, the Room needed an update, but Disney erased the charm and the successful dramatic structure of it and replaced it with a chaotic and crass assault.

The original show built up from one animated character, adding one at at time until the entire room was alive including the Tiki gods on the wall columns - all climaxing in the storm outside the virtual windows. As silly as it was, the drama worked and the charm was delivered.

The shame is that they could have made this show more magical with today's technology instead of playing to the lowest common denominator and still losing. What they lost was Walt's sense of class and Vision.

I'm glad I still have my old Disney LP record of the original show soundtrack. I’ll play it once and again and visualize the way this once beloved show worked its magic – gone now, like Walt himself.
:crying:

The original Enchanted Tiki Room is still up and running wonderfully at Disneyland....not gone, still magic, you can still sing like the birdies sing....tweet-tweet tweet-tweet. :mickey::thumbsup:

[BMan62]

... you can still sing like the birdies sing....tweet-tweet tweet-tweet. :mickey::thumbsup:

Now you've done it!!! You made me think of the Muppet Show version of Rockin' Robin -- with Animal doing the 'Tweet, Tweet, Tweet'!!!! :animal:

[JabberJaws]

A would say a majority of the original effects on EE don't work anymore, the Yeti is just one.


Well aside from the Yeti, which from my understanding is a problem they plan to fix, but will require significant downtime for the ride to fix, which is why they haven't done it yet, I can only think of one other effect that they don't do anymore - that being the flying eagle at the top of the Mt.

I never did like that effect anyways. I was working in disney marketing at the time so was among the first to ride EE and laughed as soon as I saw the "eagle on a stick." So I think that got removed b/c it simply didn't work!

Last time I rode it, all the FX remained (steam in loading station, shadow shiloutte of yeti, shaking track, sound FXs, water FXs, etc.) The yeti was motionless, but I knew that was like that.

Are there others that are permanently missing (I have noticed the steam in loading station effect isn't always running, but seems to not have been removed for good).

[estein80]

Also, my vote for the worst attraction change - POTC.

Ditto! I really miss the original.

[Imagineer1981]

Unfortunately, some of those positions are tough to justify staffing. Do we lay some one off or do we have a CM to pick up a guitar at RnR? Nice added effect to make it feel real, but does not directly affect the story line, so it gets dropped.

[DizneyRox]

Last time I rode it, besides the Yeti, the steam wasn't working (only saw that working the first year it was open and not all the time at that). The eagle has gone missing as you mention. There is a fog effect near the summit as well that I haven't seen since the first year.

Out of all the "highlights" of the ride, the only thing working seems to be a cheesy video projection, which has to be next to impossible to break unless the bulb goes out.

[JabberJaws]

Unfortunately, some of those positions are tough to justify staffing. Do we lay some one off or do we have a CM to pick up a guitar at RnR? Nice added effect to make it feel real, but does not directly affect the story line, so it gets dropped.

Yeah I understand what you are saying, though probably that task was part of the RnRc ride ops CMs task rotation. Now, granted, it has been 7 years since I was an in-the-park CM, but we always had rotations. We would log into our CMS (cast management system) when we first got into work, it would spit out a receipt telling us what to do first (i.e. go relieve so and so from there break at control tower 2). Then, throughout the day, we would get the occasional rotation slip from another CM. I assume that the task of picking up the guitar was probably a 30 minute rotation for ops CMs at the ride.

Having said all that, that is not one of my more missed effects, though there does seem to be an an ackward silent pause after the aerosmith guy asks for his guitar in the preshow video!

[JabberJaws]

Last time I rode it, besides the Yeti, the steam wasn't working (only saw that working the first year it was open and not all the time at that). The eagle has gone missing as you mention. There is a fog effect near the summit as well that I haven't seen since the first year.

Out of all the "highlights" of the ride, the only thing working seems to be a cheesy video projection, which has to be next to impossible to break unless the bulb goes out.

I think the steam effect just comes and goes. I saw it back last October when we were down, but there have been times off and on in the past when it wouldn't be working.

One effect I am not sure has ever really run the way it was intended was there was supposed to be a noticable mist coming off the peak of the mt. that was supposed to simulate the constant windy dusting of snow that is blown off the peak of the real-life everest.

[last real pirate]

The Test Track one is a bigger disappointment to me, because it was an element that was used to advance the storyline.

The ride sort of always felt a little disjointed to begin with, but now it's so haphazard you're sort of like, "Wait ... what just happened?"

It's awkward that they removed a key story element like that.


i agree. i love the idea of test track but i do think they could have done more with it. maybe a longer ride in the as it was going fast outside would have made the ride better.

[VolMickey]

The official justification for eliminating dove releases at BATB and other shows was that too many were being harvested by the local raptors before they could make it back to the coop.

PETA must have been freaked out! :D

[Giggy]

Well aside from the Yeti, which from my understanding is a problem they plan to fix, but will require significant downtime for the ride to fix, which is why they haven't done it yet


I bet they're going to close it to fix that for whenever we next go, just to spite us because when we last went they were still building it! ;)

[joelkfla]

One effect I am not sure has ever really run the way it was intended was there was supposed to be a noticable mist coming off the peak of the mt. that was supposed to simulate the constant windy dusting of snow that is blown off the peak of the real-life everest.
My understanding is that there were other weather effects planned as well, but they were all abandoned early on because they interfered with safe ride operation. I think it was a problem with condensation.

[SpecJoe Magic]

I, too, miss this original element from Kilimanjaro Safaris. Also, the driver of the safari vehicle used to stop for a moment on the creeky bridge and it would tilt to make it seem as if it were letting go. Now? It's just a quick drive over and the noise. Everytime we ride, my son mentions that he hopes the bridge breaks and that the jeep races along with us. Kind of disappointing.

I seem to recall that the bridge tilt has been working the last few times I've ridden it including my ride last December. When did you last ride it?

[Imagineer1981]

Yeah I understand what you are saying, though probably that task was part of the RnRc ride ops CMs task rotation. Now, granted, it has been 7 years since I was an in-the-park CM, but we always had rotations. We would log into our CMS (cast management system) when we first got into work, it would spit out a receipt telling us what to do first (i.e. go relieve so and so from there break at control tower 2). Then, throughout the day, we would get the occasional rotation slip from another CM. I assume that the task of picking up the guitar was probably a 30 minute rotation for ops CMs at the ride.

Having said all that, that is not one of my more missed effects, though there does seem to be an an ackward silent pause after the aerosmith guy asks for his guitar in the preshow video!

Ya, I remember at Space we logged into CDS (cast deployment system) and sometimes it would give us a "bucket" which meant go sweep the hallway or something for 15 minutes when we were overstaffed or no breaks were due. The guitar thing was probably similar, a short 15-20 minute part of the rotation

[jmjepp]

little red is still ok

[Jared]

Not to sound ignorant, but what's wrong with the Yeti? I rode Expedition Everest twice last weekend, and the effects seemed to be working fine.

Also, the projection of Brer Rabbit hopping on the wall at Splash Mountain was operational, as was the tilting bridge at Kilimanjaro Safaris.

[BMan62]

Not to sound ignorant, but what's wrong with the Yeti? I rode Expedition Everest twice last weekend, and the effects seemed to be working fine.

Also, the projection of Brer Rabbit hopping on the wall at Splash Mountain was operational, as was the tilting bridge at Kilimanjaro Safaris.

The arm of the Yeti no longer swipes at you as you pass. It is in a locked position and has a scrim and lighting effects now.