Marc Posted August 17, 2016 Author Report Share Posted August 17, 2016 Quote I rode back at the media evening and thought it was dreadful, if you have any knowledge of VR or have experienced how powerful VR can be in the gaming industry you will know that this attraction is light years behind where it could and should be. If you have experienced universal/disney dark rides you will understand the importance of a cohesive story and you will see how disjointed and wooly the story is for this ride. Important details are brushed over and everything is too rushed to be fully understood. I think when reviewing these rides its important to step back and look at who they are aimed at - IE the general public. It isnt as good as some of the Disney / Universal rides (which had 10 x more budget) - The every day thorpe guest is unlikely to have ridden / know about these rides and will enjoy Ghost train. Quote A huge part of the budget has been used on themeing which cannot be appreciated due to induced panic and the fact you have a VR headset on for 80% of the ride. I dread to think how much money was spent on making the train move from one station to another and then slightly tilt at the end. If you want a similar experience buy or borrow a gaming VR headset, download a VR horror game, sit on your sofa and get a family member to touch your leg occasionally. This thing is basically a glorified 4D cinema where you have to get up halfway through to experience 30 seconds of live action (which involves some lights on a stick in a tunnel) and then sit back for the second half of the film. Literally pointless. The ending is dreadful, there is no climax it just ends to a chorus of 'is that it?' I see your point regarding the theming - but I disagree it cant be appreciated - the only part of the theming blocked by the VR headset is on-board the train its self - which looks like a tube train - its done well but theres plenty more theming to take in at the start of the ride during the pre-show / entering the floating carriage and the middle section. the amount of people you see running out of the way of the "lights on a stick in a tunnel" prove its quite effective. Agree the ending could be better mind. Quote Ive been told that a few effects weren't working for the media day. Leg ticklers, smoke machines, air jets in the seats, basic 3D cinema concepts that dont work. How can these simple concepts not work?? No idea on the leg ticklers / air jets but i've seen the smoke machines working on the trains. Quote The multiple stories are a myth. There are two endings that both have the exact same mechanics and simulation just slightly different VR imagery. There are also a number of different characters that lead the first section. Therefore the different stories are just the different combinations of the above and have been completely miss sold by Thorpe. Whilst the story's are not different - the different characters certainly get people talking. "Questioning what you saw" maybe? Have heard plenty of groups talking about "the guy on the first train" for somone else to say what are you on about - i had a old woman etc. I agree the story's all stay the same but it gets people questioning what they saw and talking about it. Quote Its marketed completely the wrong way too, it separates the brave from the easily scared because its marketed very well as being a scary ride. Its really not a scary ride at all. Therefore the people brave enough to ride it that want to be scared end up disappointed whilst the people that were too scared (who would have likely appreciated it more) are too intimidated to ride it at all. I was actually lucky enough to ride it with out the VR during the media evening - watching middle aged aduts cowering into their seats as a deamon appears out of no where suggests to me it does scare people - but its like all rides - I can go on Stealth no problem where as others will be scared, this is no different. Quote Add the experience with the dreadful throughput, the staggering amount of staffing and actors this thing requires, the ongoing maintenance issues, the overheating inside the building, the fact Derren doesn't want to be associated with it I'd say Merlin can walk away with their tails firmly between their legs. If this is deemed as innovative then I dont want any more innovation. If it continues to get overflowing queues of people im sure the park wont mind the staffing costs - the maintenance issues will of course improve over time like alot of new rides. Whilst I appreciate its not for everyone - everyone does have different opinions on rides - would be boring if everyone liked the same thing! Also - Welcome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyMoo Posted August 17, 2016 Report Share Posted August 17, 2016 4 minutes ago, Chriso said: Thanks MattyMoo, I've heard it from several sources close to the parka and involved in the project. As for the themeing thats one thing I can appreciate. The standard was excellent through out I just wish there was time to really take it in and appreciate it! Yes I wanted to hang around on the platform a bit longer to take it all in - which obviously doesn't fit the story Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyMoo Posted August 17, 2016 Report Share Posted August 17, 2016 4 minutes ago, Marc said: If it continues to get overflowing queues of people I'm sure the park wont mind the staffing costs - the maintenance issues will of course improve over time like alot of new rides. Those queues probably aren't helped by the breakdowns though to be fair Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cian Posted August 17, 2016 Report Share Posted August 17, 2016 Therefore, they made a few average segments to put in the ride for now, hopefully while they work on getting the other stuff they wanted. I'd ask for proof, but I know you don't have any. If you're referring to the time when the project manager told us that they could add something to the filler section, that does not mean that we're getting a whole new selection of VR scenarios soon. If the "VR isn't really there yet", that simply explains the reason why the VR isn't that good; because the project was too ambitious. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L7123456 Posted August 17, 2016 Report Share Posted August 17, 2016 25 minutes ago, cianjs said: I'd ask for proof, but I know you don't have any. If you're referring to the time when the project manager told us that they could add something to the filler section, that does not mean that we're getting a whole new selection of VR scenarios soon. If the "VR isn't really there yet", that simply explains the reason why the VR isn't that good; because the project was too ambitious. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk No, I was referring to another high up member of staff when I was there a few weeks back who clearly a very important member who has been working on the Ghost Train. I also said in one of my previous posts how the founder of Figment, who created the VR, stated that the tech wasn't quite there yet and that when the technology advances it can free up companies like them to deliver what they've been tasked with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chriso Posted August 17, 2016 Report Share Posted August 17, 2016 Thank you for the detailed reply Marc! I'm struggling with the quoting system so this post may look a little unorthodox but hopefully it makes sense... 18 minutes ago, Marc said: I think when reviewing these rides its important to step back and look at who they are aimed at - IE the general public. It isnt as good as some of the Disney / Universal rides (which had 10 x more budget) - The every day thorpe guest is unlikely to have ridden / know about these rides and will enjoy Ghost train. See I dont see the target audience as being an excuse for mediocrity. Whilst I appreciate you are right there are people that have been to both and will undoubtedly compare. Merlin, one of the themepark industry leaders should not be building poor attractions because they know they can get away with it. The problem is the monopoly Merlin have over the themepark industry in the UK but I'll get onto that another day... 23 minutes ago, Marc said: I see your point regarding the theming - but I disagree it cant be appreciated - the only part of the theming blocked by the VR headset is on-board the train its self - which looks like a tube train - its done well but theres plenty more theming to take in at the start of the ride during the pre-show / entering the floating carriage and the middle section. the amount of people you see running out of the way of the "lights on a stick in a tunnel" prove its quite effective. Agree the ending could be better mind. I dunno even the suspended train cant be appreciated. All of the marketing material shows the train from underneath with Derren stood underneath it. I appreciate because of the illusion this cant be done but I just wanted to have a good look at it rather than be shoved into the train. Not sure about it being effective as the only person I saw run out of the way was Charlotte Crosby who was paid to be over dramatic for PR purposes, no one on my batch really acknowledged it. Its too predictable to just collect people by the tunnel entrance ready for the jump scare. 28 minutes ago, Marc said: Whilst the story's are not different - the different characters certainly get people talking. "Questioning what you saw" maybe? Have heard plenty of groups talking about "the guy on the first train" for somone else to say what are you on about - I had a old woman etc. I agree the story's all stay the same but it gets people questioning what they saw and talking about it. Thats correct however this was more of a dig at the marketing. People are genuinely expecting a completely different experience afterall one of the main USP's was the fact it was re-ridable because of the different experiences. When in reality this different experiences are only minor changeable elements in a poor story. Theres no connection to these characters that change. They aren't involved in the story so other than to tell you a bit of background info so what does it matter if its a man or a woman telling you? I can understand if they were involved in the second section but they aren't. 32 minutes ago, Marc said: I was actually lucky enough to ride it with out the VR during the media evening - watching middle aged aduts cowering into their seats as a deamon appears out of no where suggests to me it does scare people - but its like all rides - I can go on Stealth no problem where as others will be scared, this is no different. Very true. Good point! I do think some of the adults were cowering as form of showing off their mates. Playing up to the experience and making themselves known. I sat opposite the cast from love island / TOWIE and they just laughed the whole way through! 34 minutes ago, Marc said: If it continues to get overflowing queues of people I'm sure the park wont mind the staffing costs - the maintenance issues will of course improve over time like alot of new rides. Whilst I appreciate its not for everyone - everyone does have different opinions on rides - would be boring if everyone liked the same thing! Also - Welcome! See I'd say the overflowing queues are just down to the poor capacity. I'd also be interested to see if the gate figures show an increase as thats the most important factor not the queue of an individual ride. I really hope it works for Thorpe. The last thing I want to see is the park slump and for future investment to slow because of IMO a poor attraction. But at the same time I want Merlin to acknowledge the flaws and learn from this when it comes to other major investments. Thorpe are very much struggling to paste over the cracks that are showing on social media. Facebook comments are nearly all negative. People are rightly angry about the throughput and overall reliability of the ride. The google reviews for the ride average out at 3/5 stars. Mer and pluk 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluk Posted August 17, 2016 Report Share Posted August 17, 2016 1 hour ago, Ryan said: Agreed, but saying "rose tinted specs" is quite silly when a lot of non-enthusiasts enjoy this ride. Facebook comments suggest otherwise. Even once you've picked out all of those complaining that it isn't actually open and find some who have managed to get on it, the response seems to be resoundingly negative. Mer and MattyMoo 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyMoo Posted August 17, 2016 Report Share Posted August 17, 2016 Before someone says "people only go on social media to complain" - I don't think that's true with theme park rides (or "experiences") - if something is awesome, they'll tag people saying "OMG we gotta ride dis again" or use it to say they've been on it and was good just for point-scoring to show they've done something new to their m8s (Social media is shallow innit). Chriso, pluk and Mer 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan Posted August 17, 2016 Report Share Posted August 17, 2016 7 minutes ago, pluk said: Facebook comments suggest otherwise. Even once you've picked out all of those complaining that it isn't actually open and find some who have managed to get on it, the response seems to be resoundingly negative. People complain online more than they praise, if you use comments on social media to judge it then you don't get the full picture. Having ridden it a few times, the majority of the train have been screaming laughing and enjoying it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluk Posted August 17, 2016 Report Share Posted August 17, 2016 Just now, Ryan said: People complain online more than they praise, if you use comments on social media to judge it then you don't get the full picture. Having ridden it a few times, the majority of the train have been screaming laughing and enjoying it. I can't really agree with that, especially when those who have ridden have some level of 'exclusivity' about having having had the experience and would be gloating about who good it is and how others are missing out. Due to lack of dark rides it's hard to look at any direct comparison, but s one of the only other decent sized investments this year find me a pile of negative comments about Lost Kingdom or Paultons in general? It won't be to some tastes, some will have a bad day for one reason or the other, but the consensus will generally reflect reality. If you do good things, you get praise. MattyMoo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyMoo Posted August 17, 2016 Report Share Posted August 17, 2016 Whatever happens - I think it's safe to say DBGT needs to be running "as intended" and to full capacity 2 months from now or the social media and guest relations team will be kept very busy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
400400 Posted August 18, 2016 Report Share Posted August 18, 2016 When was the last time the ghost train has been open ???? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPJames Posted August 18, 2016 Report Share Posted August 18, 2016 On 16 August 2016 at 7:27 PM, jonathan currington said: I have to agree with the heat it was warm on the second train but not sure it was part of it when I went on I think it will still be good when it opens After the car explosions and the train(on your VR headset) starts to fill with green smoke and stays like that for about 5-10 mins, the staff members start running around and touching your legs while they heat up the transit massively. I don't know why during this particular moment the staff started hitting our legs as this was completely irrelevant with the scene and also the heating of the room was very uncomfortable indeed. On 16 August 2016 at 1:02 PM, pluk said: The Thorpe facebook ads of DBGT are inescapable at the mo, the comments on which make for equally hilarious and depressing reading. It's fair to say it is not going down well. Anyway, in an ad yesterday which I can not now find someone had tagged a person in suggesting they look at the comments, that person replied something like 'all the complaining is about it being closed, that's got nothing to do with our work'. That persons facebook profile stated he was a Simworx engineer. This would seem consistent with the rides problem being with the VR aspect and not the transit system itself. It's always very interesting to wonder if the ride had been completely transit and actor based if the ride would have been delayed at all or whether it would be suffering from any major issues at all like it is at the moment. Obviously it's completely irrelevant but its an interesting "what if" scenario. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 It's having new technology in an environment completely new for it (and it arguably wasn't designed for, though that's another topic entirely)... Strange design choices in order to get that "unique selling point" as if just having a new ride isn't enough of one... Means we scrape the bottom of the barrel with things like I'm a Celeb and the world's first rollercoaster FULLY dedicated to VR... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L7123456 Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 12 hours ago, jonny9403 said: When was the last time the ghost train has been open ???? Last week I think. However long it's been it's been too long! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 6 hours ago, Benin said: It's having new technology in an environment completely new for it (and it arguably wasn't designed for, though that's another topic entirely)... Strange design choices in order to get that "unique selling point" as if just having a new ride isn't enough of one... Means we scrape the bottom of the barrel with things like I'm a Celeb and the world's first rollercoaster FULLY dedicated to VR... It must be so tough being a manager of Thorpe. To think there biggest attendance achievement in the last five years was Storm Surge. The Swarm was a genuinely good ride with a great theme and it fell on its backside, Angry Birds Land was a non event, I'm a Celeb is just a throughput nightmare and Derren Brown's Ghost Train doesn't work properly. They didn't know when they were better off did they, the park is completely adrift in its ambitions right now. MattyMoo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt 236 Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 Thorpe lately is been having so many problems. DBGT downtime, constant ride breakdowns, fastrack not to mention most of the park looks like a rundown sea side town currently. Whilst number one may be unavoidable, something certainly needs to change as the same problems have reoccurred most years and the park can't properly improve until these are resolved. Think it says a lot when the last good attendance year was 2011. Can't say I'm tempted to go back until Fright Nights. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted August 19, 2016 Author Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 16 minutes ago, Matt Creek said: Can't say I'm tempted to go back until Fright Nights. The fact your planning to visit in less than a month would suggest the problems are not all that huge! The downtime on Ghost Train is unfortunate but its not really un-expected. As for the other rides i dont think its been a particularly bad year - apart from Stealth which is obviously a fairly major issue for it to close so long! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 It has been a pretty bad year in my opinion, I enjoyed my visits just before the summer holidays but apart from that there's been a lot of rides closed, low capacity on the rides, a major water ride out of action for the year and Derren Brown's Ghost Train causing all sorts of issues. Stealth is obviously an unavoidable issue, but that still doesn't make it any less frustrating to have it closed for the summer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 7 hours ago, Coaster Jamie said: It has been a pretty bad year in my opinion, I enjoyed my visits just before the summer holidays but apart from that there's been a lot of rides closed, low capacity on the rides, a major water ride out of action for the year and Derren Brown's Ghost Train causing all sorts of issues. Stealth is obviously an unavoidable issue, but that still doesn't make it any less frustrating to have it closed for the summer. Which rides have you experienced on low capacity out of interest? When I've been there, major coasters have opened on full capacity all but one time. X is the main offender with its 2 trains for so long, but that's on 3 now, which is seemingly the mot we get now. And any other multi-car rides have been on high / full capacity for me. Also, to be fair to the park, until recently, the only ride which was suffering any sort of problems / closures was Ghost Train. Everything else was going good. But then Stealth died and things seemed to go downhill and the worst possible time. It's all very frustrating and unfortunate, but the park have handled it very well in terms of compensating people. Handing out free tickets to return this season might not always be the answer, but people are very happy to get that it seems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 21 minutes ago, BaronC. said: Which rides have you experienced on low capacity out of interest? When I've been there, major coasters have opened on full capacity all but one time. X is the main offender with its 2 trains for so long, but that's on 3 now, which is seemingly the mot we get now. And any other multi-car rides have been on high / full capacity for me. Also, to be fair to the park, until recently, the only ride which was suffering any sort of problems / closures was Ghost Train. Everything else was going good. But then Stealth died and things seemed to go downhill and the worst possible time. It's all very frustrating and unfortunate, but the park have handled it very well in terms of compensating people. Handing out free tickets to return this season might not always be the answer, but people are very happy to get that it seems. Some of the coasters were on low capacity on my visits nearer the start of the season, though this has improved which is good. X has been on two trains for all of my visits this year, and I remember Tidal Wave being on low capacity at some stage. Ghost Train also had a lot of seats left free on my last visit, not sure why but possibly due to issues with the headsets? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cian Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 Ghost Train closed once again today..anyone aware of the precise number of days it's been shut for now? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted August 19, 2016 Author Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 I think it went down last Saturday so a week now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted August 20, 2016 Report Share Posted August 20, 2016 13 hours ago, Coaster Jamie said: It has been a pretty bad year in my opinion, I enjoyed my visits just before the summer holidays but apart from that there's been a lot of rides closed, low capacity on the rides, a major water ride out of action for the year and Derren Brown's Ghost Train causing all sorts of issues. Stealth is obviously an unavoidable issue, but that still doesn't make it any less frustrating to have it closed for the summer. Are you ever going to stop listing Loggers Leap as closed for the year? Although I have doubts that it will return next year, it currently lies in the same bracket as rides such as Big Thunder Mountain and Star Tours at Disneyland Paris, I.e. closed for refurbishment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluk Posted August 20, 2016 Report Share Posted August 20, 2016 5 hours ago, Mark9 said: Are you ever going to stop listing Loggers Leap as closed for the year? Although I have doubts that it will return next year, it currently lies in the same bracket as rides such as Big Thunder Mountain and Star Tours at Disneyland Paris, I.e. closed for refurbishment. Which is a nonsense and should never be the case in a seasonal park. Islander 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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