Matrix will arrive at Movie World?

[thunder001 33]

The latest news is that the park has the rights to the Matrix name and that they intend to use it over the next year. The two rumors at this time is that the Stunt show will be closed to make way for a new Matrix themed stunt show. The second one and this is one that I do like is that on the release of the third matrix movie, the park will announce a new coaster to be themed to the Matrix movie. This also ties in with the info I have reguarding a new B&M coaster to be built within australia over the next 3years. However this also could be the new big thing that wonderland has promissed us for the last year. I believe that the Hulk coaster in Florida is a B&M and ties in with the new marvel deal that the park has signed. Any thoughs?

[Richard 879]

Let's just hope that they keep the rights to this one a bit longer than they did with Wild Wild West - that licensing lasted only four years. Rumour number one. I don't like the sound of a new stunt show. I'm terribly sorry, but Warner-Village have proven over the past few years, in particular most recently at Warner Bros. Movie World, that their internal staff aren't the most capable people when it comes to developing shows. Sea World's Ski Challenge isn't the greatest ski show to hit Sea World, the Bat Spectacle needs a bit of work. The Star Parade seems to be okay, certainly relative to some of the other stuff going on at the parks. When the Police Academy show was first produced, the park didn't have the internal staff to develop such a show, so they went to industry professionals. Vic Wilson coordinated the Police Academy Stunt Show (contrary to what Movie World says, there is no record of him having any involvement with the production of Scooby Doo). I'm afraid that Movie World won't take the same approach again. Internal staff would coreograph the show, with the safety and effects done by other companies. What we'll be left with is a dry, mimed show with a pathetic beat sound track, similar to what Action Man is at Wonderland Sydney. They work for the younger audiences, but don't have the 'zest' that a real show like the Police Academy Stunt Show had. John Menzies won't settle for a plain B&M coaster. He'll want something that brings the film to life. This means a bloated effects budget, directly hampering the amount that can be spent on the core ride. Sure, a ride like Scooby-Doo Spooky Coaster may leave damn fine first impressions, but there comes a point, after a few rides, where it gets to be somewhat hollow. For Movie World to get anything of the magnitude we're thinking here, we'll be looking at a ride that is $16m + theming/enhancements. A $20m+ investment like this would be the largest capital expenditure put toward a single attraction in the history of Australian theme parks. Don't get me wrong, I've already got the colour scheme and the orientation of the lift hill all worked out in my head. Just that such an investment would be a huge one.

[zztopless 0]

Where's the option for Intamin? From many accounts, Intamin Hypers are the best coasters around (mainly the superman coasters, Expedition G-Force, Goliath SFH and Millenium force) I want an intamin Hyper, then I'd probably vote for a B&M flooless.

[Ian 0]

a hong kong stunt team did the scobby doo movie (dvd extras show this) also I can say its about 95% chance that matrix coaster will happen (barring some thing like terriost attacks )

[joz 2,043]

You have to admit though Richard, if they did can Police Academy now, they wouldn't exactly be cutting it off in its prime (Like they did with Western Action show RIP Old friend). I agree that the Warner Village Show department is down the drain. At Seaworld there's Ski Challenge, Reef Discovery which really make you wonder who approves the shows (Although a little birdie told me that even John Menzies doesn't like Reef Discovery. I've also heard that he personally delayed the opening of the show in a last ditched attempt to improve it). As for shows out at Movieworld, all I can say about that is: Super Stars Live in Concert. If you've seen that show then you'll know that the entertainment department of the parks is really performing below par. Although, I say give them a chance, their due for a big success any time now. As for the coaster, I have to ask.... When does construction have to start to get the ride open for the movie realise :?:

[Ian 0]

superstar live in concert isnt there anymore joz. as for construction I was told by a boss that matrix coaster cant open till matrix 3 comes out which is nov 2003 (but thats the american date so maybe dec) 8)

[Shaun 0]

I would love a B&M coaster over here, preferably a floorless or a flying one You have got to rember just how big a B&M is though. A floorless probaly has a capacity of over 2000 people an hour and do we really need a coaster that big? I mean I would love one and all but are parks really going to pay that much for a ride that will hardl ever run full capacity? (How many people would atend an Australian theme park a day anyway?) That said though a B&M flying coaster would hvae a much smaller capacity. The general public also don't know about B&M and coasters like that so we don't know what we are missing out on anyway so our parks could just build any new coaster and we would be happy with it. I dunno, I just think B&M's are to big, to expensive but I will still keep my fingers crossed for one. :? Anyway Shaun

[Richard 879]

Joz, I'm sure will be in later to give you the rundown on the park attendance figures, which he knows much better than I do, but an average summer day at a Gold Coast park is over 10,000. 23,000 is the Australian record, set by Wonderland in the early 90's. A floorless coaster, with a mid-course block brake capable of running three trains with minimal fuss, could do probably 1500pph. B&M seems to be largely building two train rides, with no mid-course. This makes the ride more flowing, and the new Superman at Warner Bros. Movie World Madrid has shown that they don't necessarily have to be small ones. A two train like this, which is what I'm expecting most of the future Floorless coasters to be like, would realistically have a capacity of maybe 1200-1400pph. Scooby-Doo at Movie World consisently has 45min+ queues, and it is running steadily at 1000pph. I've found most Australian parks are overwhelmed with crowds, and almost any high capacity coaster would still have hefty queues at the peak of the season. And also, let's not forget the tendancy for parks here to use one-train operation wherever possible. It is fair to say that B&M are unknow by Australia, but in all honesty, most people agree that with computer technology, the differences in manufacturers' end products is getting less and less. Vekoma and Arrow have both proven that they can match B&M with smoothness, and Intamin always have.

[Shaun 0]

Yeah good points Richard, but I still think it sounds to good to be true for us to get a B&M :? I just figured out how to add pictures! I hope you like it You can see why they call it a cobra roll! Shaun

[Ian 0]

dude ive been to one of the top parks in the world Knotts Berry Farm and the longest queue I had was 15min for ghostrider (park about same size as Dreamworld), trust me Dreamworld and Movieworld can afford to have big coasters they attendance is around the same as most overseas parks "with the exception of Disney" Rich was right scobby doo has a queue every day today after training for my new postion ? I had to wait 20 min to ride scobby. And every year as "JOZ" will tell you the attendance at our parks is rising I found out tonight at the movieworld awards that because of the Bali Bombings most Aussie and Kiwis who were going that way for xmas are now coming to the Gold Coast and we have been told all the hotels are really full over the next few weeks from boxing day.

[Richard 879]

I thought it was an interesting fact, seeing as we've talked about American parks. Six Flags Worlds of Adventure, just down the road from Cedar Point, has 10 coasters, of them they have 1 B&M (Floorless), 1 Intamin (Impulse), 1 CCI, 1 Vekoma Flyer -- all these rides are ones with a theoretical capacity of greater than 1000pph. The interesting part, is this park barely breaks 1 million guests per year, and most Australian parks beat it out for attendance. I understand that this park is seasonal, and ours are year-round, but they have a summer holiday there that is about double the length of ours, which is when attendance is most.

[zztopless 0]

Richard, you made the comment that a bloated effects budget could mean less spent on the coasters itself. However it coudl also be argued that many of the new compact B&M's seem to be getting rave reviews due to their intensity and fast pacing. Batman: The Dark Night and SFNE is a good example of a nice compact B&M. I'm still undecided as to which flavour of coaster (B&M in particular, they they do get the job) I would like to see. Some elements I do want however are: a camelback twist (a.k.a 0-G Roll) A dive loop (we already have an immalen on lethal weapon and dive loops just look so cool, althought i guess a dive loop would probably not feature if it was a compact design, I would also like to see at lease one airtime hill. Well, thats my 2 cents for now.

[joz 2,043]

I agree with both Richard and Rabid on the capacity thing. While the examples are going around, I just thought I'd mention that Bermuda Triangle, which has a capacity of 1,200 p/h and is walk on pretty much all year, during summer has a queue time upwards of an hour. During summer, parks need the high capacity, and if its a problem in off peak times, then they'll take a train off the track, and the problem will be solved. Rabid is spot on with what he mentioned before, attendance is up, and that's across the board, with the biggest improver being Movieworld. Since sept. 11, and the Bali Bombings, domestic tourism on the Gold Coast has gone through a slight 'boom', as the ''holiday at home" idea becomes more more and more fashionable. As for which flavor, well, I reckon its a fair bet that its not ganna be an invert, so I'm ganna put a floorless on my wishlist, having said that, I'll be happy with anything.

[thunder001 33]

ZZTopless has raised a good point about what type of elerments we would like to see in a new coaster. For myself, a cobra roll, pretzel loop, a super G helix, corkscrew and some barroll rolls would suit me. Or maybe I need to get to Viper for a ride. Ok here is another point, where to put the coaster. We have had this chat before, but let's relive it anyway. I still say that with the area behind the old mavric show building and the building itself, that a coaster could fit in there nicly. This also leaves the room behind the fake buildings in the western area for a western themed woodie. Anyone else got thoughts? AND REMEMBER to cast your vote on the poll at the top of this page.

[Ian 0]

the western area is to be opened again from boxing day starting with the old shooting gallery and the building oppisite and will expand even more next year. It will be called Intencity "and why do I know this because it will be one of my new jobs."

[zztopless 0]

Thanks for adding the Intamin option. I still think an Intamin hyper or plug-n-play woodie (although I can't see how they would theme a woodie to the Matrix ) would be pure airtime bliss. But yeah, if it is a looper, which for some reason I feel is more likely, then B&M are the bes in the business, as long as its not over-trimmed.

[thunder001 33]

OK Got some more rumors on the Matrix thing. The park has logged with the gold coast city council 3 submissions for major constructions to take place within the next 5 years as part of their long term plans. We would assume that 1 will be for the new outback show construction. One may have been for the new studios that have been built,( I have no idea when the forms were to have been submited). And the other could very well be for the proposed new coaster to be built at the park, (Matrix). Now there is still no ferm news from anywhere about this rumor but I am still looking for any proof of this ride. If anyone in the parks employ (Rabid) get anything firm, then please let us know. Personal, I'm hopeing that it will be a monster mulit looper. Anything with more than the five elerments that the LW now has would be fine.

[zztopless 0]

I've heard from a good source that the new show will be called "Matrix special effects show" and it will be housed in the old maverick building. Police Academy should stay also.

[Richard 879]

Can Movie World go on simply changing shows to satisfy the ever-growing crowds in this small park? Early this year, in about March, the park was relatively empty - no queues for anything. Yet the Superstars: Live in Concert show still managed to attract a full house (the fact that it wasn't a full house by the end of the show doesn't matter). When the park opened, they had some fantastic shows: the Wild West Action Show, a wide variety of street shows (more than a single Batman and Street parade as it is at the moment), as well as entertainers walking around everywhere - it would take a long time to get from A to B simply because of the new stuff there is in the way of entertainment to see on the way. There was also the Albert Einstein house, which had much greater appeal than the Harry Potter walkthrough that is currently there (I remember queuing for an hour plus back in Summer 1992 for the Einstein house, these days I'm sure the queue never gets much over 20 minutes). New shows are inevitably going to be needed in the future, but it has come to a point where you can't sacrifice old attractions for new ones. At the moment, thanks to their idea to only focus on the newest films, they've got less shows than they had when the park opened - the generic Wild West Action Show was the best show the park has ever had. They canned it to given them an opportunity to attract people with the Mel Gibson/Jodie Foster Maverick film. Police Academy was never my favorite of the two, but it is now easily the best show in Australia, and I'm sure it holds up by world standards. A Matrix Special Effects Show, wouldn't to me contain many more effects that Scooby-Doo. Strobe Lights could be used to make 'bullet time' (as it was called in Max Payne) work, green lights, and perhaps fog would be used to give it that green colour seen in all the in-Matrix scenes. So long as it doesn't have a soundtrack, or miming like they seem to do these days to make up for a lack of other things such as good actors, real effects among others. But back to my original point (eventually!!). The park is just going to burst unless they expand, and make use of some of the high-capacity rides available today.

[thunder001 33]

Well Put Richo, need there be more said.

[thunder001 33]

After talking to the park, it seems that there might be something to the Matrix rumors after all. Please remember that I am going on the tone of voice that the person was using during the conversation. The person semed very surprised that I would now about the matrix news but after the first shock, all i got was the normal no comment. Heres hoping.

[joz 2,043]

Just read the launched coaster rumour on Screamscape. A couple of questions that really need to be answered... 1. How credible is the rumour? 2. Intamin or S&S?

[Richard 879]

The rumour would be about as credible as all the speculation we've been toying with here. Well I don't really want a launched coaster. Of the two, I'd have to go with Intamin (you know my preferences ). The almost forgotten Premier would come in before S&S on my list (for those that don't know - I don't really appreciate S&S since the VertiGo incident at Cedar Point). Anyway, the Thrust Air from S&S is a really ugly ride. 8) Then again, I'm not really supporting the 'Matrix launched coaster' campaign, in favour of the 'Matrix hyper' campaign. In the Australian market, there is almost no room for 'duplicates'. Cyclone was booed off by many people as being a big (boring?) Sea World Corkscrew. Meanwhile, something relatively small, Scooby-Doo Spooky Coaster, gets praised as the greatest thing since sliced bread (and that's not my fault ). I feel that a hyper coaster would provide more appeal than a Rocket Coaster, or Thrust Air (not sure about the Spaghetti Bowl from Premier). Anyway, for Xcelerator's $12m pricetag, you could also buy a Superman: Ride of Steel. I know which one I want (let's face it, as much fun as TOT's launch is... it is a bit gimicky).

[zztopless 0]

I feel that a hyper coaster would provide more appeal than a Rocket Coaster, or Thrust Air (not sure about the Spaghetti Bowl from Premier). Anyway, for Xcelerator's $12m pricetag, you could also buy a Superman: Ride of Steel. I know which one I want (let's face it, as much fun as TOT's launch is... it is a bit gimicky).

Where's the option for Intamin?   From many accounts, Intamin Hypers are the best coasters around (mainly the superman coasters, Expedition G-Force, Goliath SFH and Millenium force)   I want an intamin Hyper, then I'd probably vote for a B&M flooless.

Just pointing you that my first post in this thread was an advocation of the Intamin "Airtime Machine" Hypers - In particular S:ROS at SFNE (the SFA and SFDL version would also do me aswell, so would an expedition G-Force clone 8)

[joz 2,043]

Fine, if no one else will, then I'll just fly the launched coaster flag on my own Actually, like most people, I'll be happy with anything, although something original would be nice. Its just a bit saddening that there are so few custom rides in Australia, so hopefully that can be rectified in the future. Just curious, has anyone noticed anything going on around the old Maverick building? I know its probably not the easiest place to notice things happening, but I just thought I'd ask if anything has been noticed.