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Whitewater World 😍

I'm going to disagree (shock horror) but I have a simple point to counter here. Pretty much all I hear from folks who knew 'old dreamworld' is 'it's not as ______ as it used to be'. And its true. We know that. Like you said - gangrenous limbs and all that. Folks are getting nostalgic for old dreamworld because current dreamworld has its share of problems. We also know that they can't wave a magic wand and replace everything tomorrow. Rebuilding the brand, and the lineup, takes time. Adding some simple entertainment elements that people see and go "oh my gosh, remember when we visited and those barbershop guys sang to mum \ sister \ whatever? oh those were the days" Like any player of RCT will tell you - if you can't afford to fix the problems right away - hire some entertainers to distract the guests. I agree that thematically these entertainment options and nostalgic things don't fit anymore with the current dreamworld, but it is a 'dream' world, and since anything can happen in a dream its not that far out of the question, right? I don't see some of these things continuing on, but for now, for their 40th birthday celebrations and as a gap filler this year until the next thing arrives to start plugging the holes, i'm ok with that offering to distract the guests for the time being...

Honestly, one of the best things for dreamworld to happen after the tragedy is to get Greg from village. Not just him, but quite a few of his team that worked with him too. He is someone with a real history of managing people and he understands that theme parks arent all about rides. Its the experiences people remember decades later. Be good to see what ideas he can develop without having others hovering over him. Tapping into the nostalgia is a smart move when the public is routinely saying the parks arent what they used to be. Bringing back some of the personality that made each park unique could work very well. Its something i think ardent and village are both guilty of, destroying their heritage for the sake of new toys. They have all been streamrolled and turned into a big lifeless retail outlet designed to squeeze the last dollar out of you at absolute minimum running cost. Pretty much the only reason to stay at a park for a full day now is because of the queue times.

This is about the most backwards thing I have ever heard anyone say. 'Remember how good the place used to be' is a terrible strategy. I didn't like SW doing it this year, so it's not a village v ardent thing which people still can't get out of their heads, but DW's nostalgia campaign is a big 'miss' to me. DW trying to be nostalgic at a time when they're trying to launch the future is just a fatally flawed concept. If I ask 100 people what's the first thing you think about when you think about DW's history, I reckon roughly 100 people will say either something about the rapids ride, or how good it used to be and how shit it is now. Why in the hell would you want to put that thought in people's mind? They also brought back elements that while nostalgic, have no thematic link to the park. Barbershop quartet is great example of that. When they originally used to get around the park, main street was turn of the century themed, with horse drawn carriages and very few things to break that immersion. Now main street is a hodgepodge with SV, Claw and the foot court all breaking the turn of the century vibe. Putting a quartet into that is nostalgic, but thematically it makes no sense. Same thing is true of Bushrangers. There is no old world themeing at DW any more, Bushrangers have nothing to do with DW. It doesn't make sense having bushrangers. It would be like if SW had someone who was playing a character from Lassiter's Lost Mine. You'd see it and just go 'Errr what in the hell is that about?' I like Greg fine, and I think he has had some decent enough ideas. Getting ST was a great move at the time they did it, I think with what happened to the world since then it's probably not worked out how you would think, but you can't blame that on them. There are things I disagree with in a passionate way, and sometimes see them doing things and have to actively remind myself that some of the stupid crap they're doing is the theme park equivelant of amputating gangrenous limbs to keep the rest alive. As far as a family ride goes, yeah plus one to a shoot the chutes ride in Ocean Parade, ideally with the drop looking straight down the guts of the land as a big weenie. Nothing fancy, no elevator lifts, no attempt at a story, just a well presented tropical shoot the chutes with a proper big splash. A year or two after that a small but thrilling coaster to replace RHLR, throw in some sort of Bluey attraction and whatever other improvements you want to make along the way and you have a half decent park again.

I honestly sit somewhere between the two of you. I think tapping into history is fine. All the major parks are doing it and it's just the in thing at the moment. Retro is chic and I don't blame people for welcoming a little nostalgia into their lives considering that things in recent years have been fairly universally dreadful. And frankly, what park on the GC isn't a shadow of it's former self? But again, the implication is that they're just tapping into it, not making it their entire identity, or at least I hope so because as it's not the direction that the park needs moving forward. I honestly think this is true for you, and please don't see this as me saying you're wrong, but I think this also has to do with the people you're surrounded by. In NSW the discussion of the Dreamworld incident was fairly minimal and most people see it as a tragic stain on the park's history considering that very few people care to delve into the specifics of the incident beyond headlines. This even came up in conversation on the weekend with some friends and family where they were only concerned whether the TRRR had been demolished. Once I told them that it was demolished they all seemed relieved and appeared to have no issue with visiting the park. The actor's they have hired for the bushrangers are good fun. Sure, they barely fit in, but that didn't stop them from bolstering the atmosphere. Thematic consistency is barely relevant on the Gold Coast so I don't really see this as a problem. If it doesn't detract from the experience then I have no issue with it. Thank goodness they have the Hotdog Stand to match their RCT philosophies.

i’m going off of what people have said in here, which is both attractions are clones and looking at the footprint and layout of those clones, plus the reactions of people who have ridden them, they are mild.

Honestly, I'd take that over cookie cutter corflute anyday.

i think it would be a lot more different if it was 1 Vekoma thrill coaster compared to 3 mild family coasters tbh.

I reckon he fits in fine… Dreamworld have moved to individual ride themed maintenance signs (a-frames) I would like to see the same at minimum. I did like the DC/Tunes themed signs and I also felt that their size helped with a-frame fatigue.

The quote is right there - family ride will be more sky voyager than steel taipan... My bet is some sort of enclosed attraction than a thrill ride... and given the closure of Big Red Car was at the beginning of Greg's time at the park, that's probably a good spot for it too, provided you can give it an appropriate theme for the area. (Especially since ABC Kids was also due for a refurb before Covid) I hope they realise the old train was also wheelchair accessible. For all the folks who neg this guy - this is the sign of a great park leader. Ivory towers don't help execs understand what the boots on the ground can tell them - they've got to get the same boots on and walk a mile beside a guest to know what impact their decisions are having on the guest experience.