But using that logic, you could say the same thing about dry park rides. Why do people expect to see Dreamworld theme their rides? Because of the atmosphere and the feeling it creates. Look, I do see your point. I do think water parks can get away with minimal theming in some cases. But they should at least have excellent landscaping and great presentation and signage to make up for it. Lush tropical landscaping can be a good alternative to decent theming. But we certainly don't see that at WnW Sydney, which basically reminds me of an expanded H20 Zone.
I remember back when WnW Gold Coast first installed White Water Mountain and for a while it was a real move to immersive themed attractions. As a kid I had never had any interest in visiting the park, until this attraction opened. I remember the picture on the front of the brochure showing two people on a raft flying out of the themed White Water Mountain. The brochure also made reference to the fibre optic special effects that were installed on the slide. This was enough to make me want to go to the park.
Not too long after they opened Calypso Beach: another brilliantly immersive attraction with a very distinctive theme and lots of attention to detail. Then -- and despite obvious attendance success -- they gave up. We got H20 Zone with no theming, super basic signage and almost no landscaping. It's like a water park version of Luna Park's Maloney's Corner. They repeated this at WnW Sydney; reversed only very, very slightly when they re-themed the kids area to Nickelodeon. Thankfully we have these other Australian water parks which understand the value of creating a bit of additional excitement and atmosphere. I personally appreciate the creativity and effort involved. And just like WnW GC back in the '90s, Jamberoo even managed to bring the story inside the slide, with special effects in the main funnel.