JoshC.

Real shame this. The organisation and communication was great on Friday. Obviously things go wrong and rides can break down / have issues at the last minute, but the way they handled and communicated it yesterday is just poor. It highlights a bigger issue of "MAPs don't need compensation" too. It's a pretty narrow view that if you have a MAP, you can just return whenever, so don't need compensating. Even a free drink voucher would be something to make it feel like you're not getting kicked in the teeth.

She dead:

So if I don't write my review tonight, I probably won't at all. Equally, I am very tired and have an early start tomorrow, so forgive me if this is patchy or brief. I'll preface this with my usual press night statement: I know some people will say "oh, you're opinions are biased, you have a vested interest to be positive" or "you're a Thorpe goon, of course you'll only say positive things. My review will be as honest and truthful as positive, based on my experiences. I've been at pretty much every Thorpe press event since Swarm's back in 2012. In the past, I've told managers to their faces when I think something is rubbish. I've congratulated people for successes. I've said when something has disappointed me, surprised me or just 'not been my cup of tea'. I was able to get 3 rides during the course of this evening. All of them were back row, and one of them was a night ride. I wanted to mix it up a bit - especially to get a front row experience - but it's just the way it worked. I will say I found the evening a bit frustrating, with the initial opening being a bit chaotic, although I appreciated the effort for an opening ceremony. I'm sure tomorrow will be smoother, as the set up and organisation is a bit different, but tonight was a bit clunky. So anyways, the ride. The lift hill is quick, especially in comparison to Big One. But it still feels like an eternity going up. And seeing the park beside you and how you tower over it, is really something. And when you're stood very close to it, you realise: this is tall. The drop. My god the drop. It feels like you're being thrown out to the ground at the top. You stay out of your seat during the twist, which adds to the feeling you're just going to die frankly. The non-inverting Immelmann is fab, giving a nice pop of airtime. The outerbank dive is fab. You are genuinely out of your seat the whole time, as you slowly twist upside down. Such a weird sensation, but so very cool. Quickly going into the stall, you're again left hanging (literally). The water splash effect does have trims which does notably slow you down, but it doesn't slow you down so that you feel like you're going significantly slower. Think of it as a "gentle press on a car's brake" type of trim, rather than a "harsh car brake" trim. Towards the back, if you stick your hands out, you get a bit wet. The outer banked airtime afterwards offers some surprising ejector. After my first ride, this was actually a highlight, for how surprising it was. After multiple rides, it's not the highlight, but still definitely a highlight. The airtime into the brakes is fine. Maybe not the strongest ended, but still a nice pop The brakes roll the train into the station very slowly For me, this is my favourite UK coaster I think. I still need time to digest, and I'd like to ride it in other rows too. I also hear the front row is a completely different beast (a lot "floatier" rather than "intense / aggressive"). But yeah, this is a fantastic ride. It doesn't feel too short, as it packs a lot in, and hitting the brakes is that sort of "omg" moment, as you process it all. Could it have had another element after the water splash, perhaps to negate the need for a trim altogether? Possibly, but it doesn't harm the ride. I didn't notice a "Mack rattle" during my rides. However, I do think it has the potential to do so, and could end up riding rough in the future. That will come down to how this type of Mack ages, and what Thorpe do to look after it. There is a neat little dispatch sequence as the train leaves the station: https://twitter.com/ThorpeParkMania/status/1793709598886822387 Other bits: Mack employees are naturally very happy with the result, and generally and genuinely all love it The ride warms up a lot during the day. During testing phases, it could be take 42 seconds to complete the circuit in the morning, and then drop down to 31 seconds by the afternoon / evening Operations are good on two trains. They removed one to help alleviate pressure on engineering for tomorrow. There were a few shutdowns this evening, partially due to some issues with gates, and also due to someone flying a drone around the ride. Operation on one train is slow. The plaza looks quite nice. It needs some polishing off, but it's good. The ride area, however, is definitely unfinished. It needs tidying up, planting to go in, etc. But in any case, it was always going to be a couple of years before this really looked nice. There will be an opening ceremony / shows for the first few days as a minimum. It's a nice little thing There's some boards around the ride area telling the story of Hyperia, sort of. They're nice, but the backs of them are plain and easy to see around the area, and stick out like a sore thumb https://twitter.com/ThorpeParkMania/status/1793701505725530465 Overall, Hyperia is a fantastic addition for Thorpe Park, and for the UK. It's exactly what the park needed. I really enjoyed it, and it's a "Top 10%" coaster for me. I'll leave you with my first ORP (me on the left):

And a new thread, for discussion of the ride, and any 'spoilers' of the station interior, is set up here:

Hyperia officially opens tomorrow, ending a 12 year drought of new coasters at Thorpe. Tonight is the press launch, which means there will be plenty of reviews about. As such, for anyone who doesn't want the station interior spoiled - or doesn't want to hear people's views - we'll have this thread here. We'll keep the other thread for construction / archiving. I'll post my views on Hyperia here tonight, and look forward to reading plenty more tomorrow!

TPM are here! We'll be posting throughout the evening on Twitter: https://x.com/ThorpeParkMania?t=XyD6ImOMwqzukHS-ClsM8w&s=09 I'll try and post an honest review on here tonight too. Will probably set up a new thread

I think they'll make more than enough through merch and food sales anyways in those first few days. But yeah, a surprise that they've removed those hoops to get the Fastrack. Even if they're confident with the operations and everything, and even if they're limiting the numbers, it just makes sense to have as few Fastrack as physically possible, surely? Also, they're not planning to run the front row queue from opening, so it shows they do know how to make operational decisions which could have reasoning behind them. My biggest surprise is that no date is currently sold out. With Friday and Saturday apparently having a reduced capacity, and it being half term, I'd have thought one day would be sold out by now.

I feel like there must have been a bet on how many times they could say "scan" in a video.

I rode Ghost Train yesterday for the first time this season. Interestingly, there was no Fake Shop scene, but there was an additional actor in the Crypt (in the form of a wraith / hooded creature). The Fake Shop only requires one actor, so this appears to more be a creative decision. The finale was cool, especially for first-timers, but definitely loses its appeal quickly. And with the Ghost Train shop no longer existing, I wonder if they're contemplating something different for the finale, or just scrapping it altogether.

There was also a teaser for 2026: No indication what it could be or where, although with the park planning on redeveloping the Cobra-side of the park, it could end up there. There was an animation of that version of the park's logo inverting too, so some are speculating it could be an inverting coaster.

On Friday, Hyperia took its first non-Mack riders: Yesterday, significantly more staff were given training on how to evacuate Hyperia. This is the state of play of the plaza as of yesterday: The water effect tested for the first time today: Everything is coming together and, whilst the area might not be the most glamorous-looking, and might need time to bed-in with foliage needing to grow, everything seems on track to open THIS FRIDAY.

Here's a look at area today:

We have an info video about opening: Basically there won't be any sort of rope drop; there will be a very controlled pathway to the entrance, with there being a 'holding queue' for the ride alongside the old Saw Alive pathway when the main ride queue is full.

Contender for best theme park photo ever?

They usually have a 30 second and 15 second TV advert, so more likely a shorter one.

I like the advert, it feels reminiscent of the Colossus and Inferno adverts specifically too. I still find it odd they're not shouting more about it being the tallest UK coaster. That feels like something that would grab people's attention much more. But heyho, they're going a different direction with it and making that a more sideline fact. Hopefully it all works out.

Thanks, very informative 👌

Let's take stock for a moment. -The park have said on a number of occasions they will remove Slammer. The most recent suggestion was they would remove Slammer this upcoming closed season. Frankly, I won't believe it until I see it. -Whilst I admit Skybound fits in with Hyperia, there's no reason to believe it definitely will be. At the same time, the removal of queue line and such is interesting. It's also worth noting that there has been some removal of the interior of Black Mirror too. It could easily be space for Fright Nights, and the possible removal of Slammer ends up just opening the area up for picnic area / shop / restaurant. But, it certainly makes sense to replace that area with a new attraction, especially since it increases support around the brand the new ride. Assuming it is a new ride, and it is for 2025, it needs to be something that can be constructed reasonably quickly. Removal of Slammer plus construction of a new ride (to open no later than May, say) means we likely won't see an indoor ride or a more complicated ride. Some sort of Star Flyer or similar tower-based ride might work pretty well to be fair. Equally, if they choose to wait until 2026, they could build something a bit more in depth. So yeah. Cause for optimism, but cautious optimism for now.

The video in all its glory... Video is fine enough, but I agree with the mish-mash of directions. That backstory fits a themed ride area. A mountainous-looking station, being a cave that Hyperia took refuge in, would be a start, for example. Thing is, there seems to be a lot of want online for a backstory and a theme. There seems to be a common opinion these days, especially with younger enthusiasts and more casual fans, that "theming + story = better", and so they are necessary for a good ride. Of course, those things are good, but they need to be done correctly and in a worthwhile manner. Feels like Thorpe saw it as a box to check, and came up with something. We'll see how it all comes together. I'm not against either approach (light on the theme and just make it look nice vs theme and story), but it feels like they've tried to get the best from both and risk not hitting either.

The Burger King and toilets have been refurbed. All other Canada Creek buildings were demolished. I agree that there should be a wider, more cohesive, 'area', but everything has been touched.

Hyperia doesn't need theming, or a story or anything like that. Granted, the station exterior isn't the best looking. And it will take a while for the landscaping to bed in and grow. And things like the queue line fencing (and queue design in general) are bland. But at the end of the day, this is a 236ft tall monster of a coaster. The 'Find your Fearless' tag suits. The atmosphere will be upbeat. That's all it needs. Would theming be nice and add to it? Yes. Does theming not being present take away from it? I don't think so. Do agree with Benin that they need to stick with a direction.

Wonder how much someone could claim if that went wrong... Unsure. We can see during the human rider video that there's still one train on the track. But that doesn't mean they haven't switched and cycled out. I believe the park said on their passholder group that the tops just came loose; these things happen. Equally, it is also just a great way to empty them haha

It will be interesting to see what happens. I think a new modern water ride is needed at the park. A proper dark ride would be good too. But also, coasters are what work for the park, so who knows. Maybe they should sack off doing anything else and just stick in a bunch of coasters?

Looks good tho

Train looks lovely. Sleek, simple, all it needed to be. Hopefully testing starts very soon.