Why Walt Disney Parks Should Embrace Virtual Reality

I wrote this on my blog in 2017 but was thinking about it again today.

Walt Disney said that his parks would always change as long as imagination was in the world. That guiding statement has its share of problems.

Disney fans are excited to enjoy new interactive experiences at Disney Parks and the enhancements that freshen up older rides. After the success of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, Captain Jack Sparrow and other movie characters were woven into the venerable ride in a way that respected tradition but renewed interest. For a time, the Enchanted Tiki Room was under new management using birds from Lion King and Aladdin to a show that fascinated our grandparents. Apparently the old guard wrested back control and, it has reverted to its peaceful tweet-tweet of paradise. Which was the right move: incorporate new characters or preserve the ride we all knew?

If Disney Imagineers decide to bulldoze the Tiki Room to build a dynamic interactive attraction, Disney fans would rebel. Yet, when was the last time you passed on the Tiki Room, Hall of Presidents, or Country Bear Jamboree because of time? Some true Disney fans visit the parks many times bypassing these venerable rides but would howl if management decided to re-purpose the area. But the great dreamer wanted the park to change and morph. What to do?

Some attractions are refurbished, remodeled, or removed and are greatly missed. My youngest daughter, a devoted Disney fan, regrets that she never rode Epcot’s Horizon ride as it closed years before she was born. It was a favorite of mine and I have a sentimental attachment to “If You Had Wings” and the terrifying “Alien Encounter.” I enjoy the Buzz Lightyear and Stitch attractions and think they were good replacements; however, I would like to have shared the other rides, though more quaint compared to modern standards, with my kids.

Enter Virtual Reality
You can enjoy ride-through videos of old rides and 360-degree trips on current rides with YouTube. Watching the Horizon’s ride video I forgot how amazing it was and enjoyed again some of the scenes I’d forgotten about. You can find videos of changed attractions to remember the park landscape and rides from other times.Beautiful cyber woman over abstract blue background

This provides a perfect opportunity to build another park in the ethereal cyberworld. Before making major changes, and especially before removing rides, Disney Imagineers could use immersive audio and video capture technology to record the complete ride experience to be enjoyed with virtual reality. They could build a park of retired rides available to anyone with a connection, the equipment, and an E-ticket. They might even capture the experience of current rides, walking through the park, and visiting the resorts to share with those who physically cannot travel to the park but who want to relive an enjoyable vacation, perhaps from a hospital bed or from a remote location. Fans of Maelstrom could enjoy the boat ride with the trolls while, at Epcot, families are singing with the cast of Frozen. The park changes but we get to experience the old ride through VR whenever we desire. For the cost of storage space, bandwidth, and creative development Disney could have a perpetual park that would grow as the physical parks change.

I often listen to music loops, watch videos, look through my photos, and read articles to relive the many trips I have enjoyed and many Disney Park fans do the same thing. To have an annual pass to a virtual park created in high visual and audio quality that I could visit after a tough day at the office (“I’m tired, I need to mellow out at the Haunted Mansion a bit”) or want a bit of fairy dust in my hair would be very desirable. If any Disney Imagineers or Blue Fairies are listening, this is my wish.