JoshuaA

Yeah the exiting corridors where the actors are in the maze are fairly dark and the actor probably didn't notice that the guest was injured- when you're seeing hundreds of guests walk through it can be hard to judge what is scared and what is injured. I think its a possibility that the actor might of been trying to help but when you see a face full of zombie makeup that could of been misinterpreted.. I think the darkness of the corridors towards the end are fairly suspenseful! Sure there is no scare afterwards so it kinda ends on a anti-climax but I'm not sure what they else they could of done with them.. They are quite narrow after all..

That is certainly odd.. Air Races have been around for a while now and are pretty popular so if it is the ride itself then that is going to be a lot of Air-Races getting work done or standing SBNO.. Definitely is tragic though about it causing a injury, I have ridden Air-Race at Brighton a ton of times so this has kinda shook me. I don't know why the major tabloids seem more focused on Shockwave having a evacuation than a actual incident like this.. EDIT: Nevermind, just saw some tabloids on this. But it doesn't seem as covered as Shockwave was..

I don't think we're seeing a new coaster for a while tbh. Swarm was a great addition but as others have said it was a failure for attendance but obviously there was a lot of others factors in 2012 which play a role to why they suffered a slight drop. DBGT is probably the biggest thing since and look how that panned out- a massive and expensive liability of a attraction.. I think when we do eventually get a coaster hopefully it'll be on the same level as Wickerman or Smiler, but for now I honestly see Alton and Chessington being much higher up on the pecking order than Thorpe. Remember when Thorpe used to get coasters every few years? I think those days are over..

I'm Visting like a day after opening (pretty lucky) so looking forward to seeing the new area. I think its cool that we're getting a new dark ride later this year as the Scandanavia area always felt a little bare when it comes to rides.. I like how its a dark ride too, Europa must have like a record now or something? I have to say that Pirates in Batvia V2 looks sexy as hell, god-damn..

I still enjoy Thorpe Park to a extent but its crystal clear the park currently lacks a direction or much of a image. I still have a bit of fun when I visit the park- Inferno has aged well, Swarm and Stealth are fun, but when you have so much crap being added into the park you start to feel like the place you once used to love is losing all its charm and character. When I visit the park presently its bitter-sweet, sure the rides are great, but all the little touches and details such as Swarm's station or Inferno's station feel like they are slowly peeling away and its depressing. Its also sad that the last solid investment was 2013, and that was X..

So I guess this means they are going to continue to try and pump out a bunch of mazes/zones this year like they did last year.. I really do hope they put enough attention and make all the attractions presentable but obviously there is a little doubt considering how bad last year looked.. Saw Alive has certainly ran its course so if it does get removed I honestly don't care too much. I am just going to hope that they bring Big Top back, build a whole new unhooded maze in IAC, build a new maze on Amity, and combine Blair and Dead Creek. I am not void of hope as 2016/2017 was IMO fairly good year for FN. 2015 and 2018 were massive fu**ups so hopefully the team go back to making quality and enjoyable mazes like they have been doing since 2002.

The bankrupt statement was really more of a exaggeration and a joke than anything.. Like Merlin is going to ever go bankrupt? How anyone would take the time to analyse that and respond to like I'm being 100% serious.. If Merlin did go bankrupt they have a million expendable attractions before Thorpe would get the cut. The comment was made because of the current hopeless hole our industry is lying in.. Majority of Merlin Parks are a punchline, you just have to visit Thorpe once to understand that. The main part I was actually being kinda semi-serious was BPB and Paultons becoming more prominent to give Merlin competition and somewhat knock them off owning the Monopoly.. No shi* sherlock. Merlin's parks make money, nobody is debating that. They also are a large reason for people buying MAPS, we know.

My Thorpe Park would be the following.. 2020: Merlin goes bankrupt, Paultons and BPB become the main parks in the UK and the Merlin Parks change ownership.

Bar Icon and Wickerman this is probably the most excited I have been for a UK project in ages! Paulton have marketed this in such a fun and charming way- it really makes me hopeful that the industry over here isn't completely dominated by Merlin and we have some non-merlin investments going around. I'm really interested to see what coaster we get, but as long as its not a second hand pinfari I'm fine. If its a Mack then I think Paultons will be a must do next year. The area looks very charming nevertheless.

Colossus and Swarm I think both looked awful today, Swarm's Station looked worse in person.. Ughh.. The dome wasn't as bad in person but I do feel the dome now has lost some of the charm the Alantis-ish theming and style gave to it, like maybe it'll grow on me, but I'm not a fan of the current dome as of my first visit. As others have said the new signs that give directions must be really useful for anyone who doesn't know the park (why did it take them so long to add these?) so kudos to the park for finally adding them.

I honestly think they should just keep it to blue badges- doctors notes can be tampered with (I know people who have done this) and its very easy just to fake documentation (isn't like they the staff are gonna know any different)..

Portaventura looks fab, has fab rides, and is in a hot location. But the operations IMO are probably hands down the worst I ever seen- the place is run so badly it makes me appreciate the Merlin Parks. ^^ The park is currently a mess full of half baked areas and shoved in IP's, some new music on the bridge might be neat but it certainly is just a small plaster on a stab wound..

Surprised there is not a thread for Carowinds (not exactly a small park..) Copperhead Strike looks like the perfect coaster to round out the parks top 4, looks like quite a lot of fun.

I would buy it. Sure a bit expensive but if you drink a lot it'll be worth it. The re-using discount also I think would make it more than worth it if you visit more than once. I hope this works out, this is something I would certainly try out.

I could see why you wouldn't want to visit in the current Merlin Monopoly.. If I was closer to Paultons or BPB I would honestly just live there, Merlin Parks are either starting to lose their magic or have lost their magic (Thorpe Park).. There has been glimmers of hope like Icon and Wickerman, but overall I do feel when I visit Thorpe Park these days the park has no immersion or magic at all. There is no soul, there is no immersion. Alton Towers I would say is probably the the park with the most soul but The Dungeons certainly re-affirms Alton is still a Merlin Park.. Oh well, at least we're not in Spain. Merlin Parks are run like crap but I would take Merlin's crap over Portaventura's any day of the damn week.

Yeah it sounds super farfetched. I'm guessing they are taking some inspiration from Merlin on marketing (the more bullsh** the better)..

Congrats to Thorpe for making the Colossus area look like the Margate seafront.. (Minus the sea..) At least the run down pits used to blend into the area a little, they could of least done something more than just throw a bunch of concrete at it, looks horrendous.

Yeah I remember across the exit they had a decent amount of teasers for new "journeys", its a shame they didn't really deliver on that.. I'm glad its gone, VR I think just doesn't work at theme parks though Galactica wasn't quite as bad as DBGT though.. Hopefully the VR mess at Thorpe is next.. I was two years off but close enough ?

So Fjord is getting some TLC after the fire, looks fab. Fjord was brilliant in itself, they could of just rebuilt the damage and it would of been great, but somehow they managed to make it look even better. *Found this on our enthusiast god TPW's FB*

Happening: Chessington Thorpe Legoland Europa Maybe: SF Great 'murica Cedar Point Probably a longshot: BPB Alton Paultons

Its not exactly a unique attraction though, isn't it? London, Blackpool, Edinburgh, Warwick, the dungeons as a whole are pretty repetitive and the fact that we're getting this when the park has no supporting lineup just shows how driven Merlin are to make a quick buck. Furthermore, there is not much this can do to not be a awful cash grab that just highlights the lack of supporting rides at the park. When you have the other bigger dungeons that have similar content whats the point in having a smaller one at a park that is desperate need of flat rides (besides money)..

So I visited yesterday and overall operations were kinda meh. Ride ops on Scorpion and Dragons were pretty slow with Scorpion dispatching every 3 hours. The winds didn't help either, a lot of the coasters were down (all 4 were at one point) so that didn't help the queues. Not bad though for the first day,, Vampire was running surprisingly good today, the staff really seemed eager to load the trains which meant the stacking wasn't as bad as usual. Room On The Broom was closed for technical issues everytime I went over there so didn't get to experience it sadly.

I think its all about just going out and doing it. Its really good fun being with a bunch of fellow enthusiasts (they sure as hell isn't a shortage to talk about) and just not overthinking it. You'll meet some awesome people, they don't bite. Just don't turn up like 30 minutes late like I did ?

Nice to see Seaworld working with RMC. Knowing RMC we will probably have a smaller one pop up at a Six Flags Park next year alongside Zadra and this. I think this could be Steel Vengeance tier with a good layout, I really need to get my lazy a** down to Florida.

Eh, I wouldn't say its original. I just find it funny how we got the whole fire and wood thing going on again. I guess props to Heide for actually refurbing and reopening the ride, I just don't think we needed any extra bells and whistles, the ride is probably the best coaster there so it reopening really is enough. Also give it a few years and that fire effect will be running every blue moon ?