Paul123 Posted September 15, 2016 Report Share Posted September 15, 2016 I have tryed 4 trips this season to get a ride on the ghost train and every time it's been closed,today was my 5th attempt and finally I was able to get a ride, I only managed to experience it once but I am happy to have finally experienced it I would like another ride or two to really get a good feel for the ride, but overall, I thought it was ok but it's way overhyped still and could have been better. Love the themeing, I think it's done well, so many nice touches to detail here and there.pre show quite good, and quite clever too ride experience overall was good,first part of VR was actually ok, it worked well, everything flowed well, and all effects flowed well to the experience. The evacuation of the train experience was clever(how did they create the experience you came out of a tube train into a station??) tunnel effect worked well with the fake train down the tunnel, and then good interaction getting you back on the train to evacuate now the second part Is where the ride failed a bit, terrible graphics, no effects worked well to the movement of the train, my headset decided to glitch and not work properly and then was left with a blank screen for a little while, and seriously the ending felt weak, no clever effects in there compared to first part, I was waiting for something else to happen only for them to say that's it, get off etc so yeah it's ok but wow it's been massively overhyped, I was expecting more from this and while I enjoyed it to a certain extent, I really hope Thorpe improve it in some way and improve the reliability as well because yet again the same old stories surfaced today, basically the ride opened late at 11am,luckily we passed the ride at 11am,saw lots of activity and risked waiting for a while and managed the first ride of the day so we didn't queue long, queue reached a a max of 45 mins but it was on and off a lot today as we heard announcements it kept braking down when we passed the entrance a few times and we were not even allowed in the queue for another go when we wanted too, plus near the end of the day,they evacuated people from the ride and then it never reopened for the rest of the day. overall though a great day at Thorpe,I rarely get an opportunity to visit Thorpe on a weekday and it was a great day and we have great weather too(no rain at all despite threats of a thunderstorm), managed to ride all coasters at least once, and queues were not that long, longest wait was stealth at 45 mins but queue times were short elsewhere so we didn't really mind one reasonably long wait, all major coasters one train but that's to be expected on an off peak day. Staff were brilliant all over the park, and for the first time in a long time, I really enjoyed my day today pluk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisgeorgiou46 Posted September 16, 2016 Report Share Posted September 16, 2016 On 1 July 2016 at 10:04 PM, Benin said: Sounds like reviews for pretty much any ride though, however we won't get true opinions until the newness and whole "I rode it first" thing wears off and we actually see the thing in full flow... I went on it today, we only waited 20 minutes. Actually 95% of queues were 0-5 minutes today, it was great! The most we had to wait was 25 minutes for front seat of Nemesis Inferno. My friend was initially not that interested but he enjoyed it, and people on the train seemed to enjoy it. There was a slight issue with the second train, when the bit where the creature's head pops through the mist kept looping, but it was very continuous and uninterrupted, so people on the train continued to be scared and shouting out. I think the movement on the trains was incredible, I'd like to know how that works. The opening with Derren was very cool, and the live action bit with the train invoked a great reaction. The crowd was all at the front and suddenly they parted like the red sea and someone even held his arm up to protect his girlfriend. I do agree that the second VR bit is a shame. People were scared/having fun, but it seems like something from a 4d theme park adventure from the 90s. The first VR bit properly scared me, the buildup was so good, it felt like that video game Outlast which is terrifying, the atmosphere was all there. Then it all drastically drops in quality. I think it would be easier for them to just redo it (I know they won't), maybe have infected people just flood onto the train carriage and sniff you out through the smoke and once they realise you're there it ends. I liked it, but some kid behind me on the bus was reading my mind and speaking all of my concerns. Why is derren brown there in the first place?? I'm willing to open my mind to digging poisoning people and creating infected. that is a cool idea. it extends to the train nearly crashing too. but the monsters coming out at the end...that is just out of nowhere. They look like the creatures from the Scooby Doo live action film at that fictional spooky island theme park resort island. lots of parallels lol. I feel like they found three completely different horror concepts and mashed them together: Derren Brown, Zombies and Monsters. I don't know how they managed to spend that amount of money on that ride. I felt really weird during the live action bits because I know lots of actors who are looking for work and I was thinking, "these poor guys, they want to be on Broadway, not Derren Brown's Ghost Train. Even Coronation Street would be less embarrassing." But obviously only someone like me would think that. If they wanted to incorporate VR into a dark ride, they could have reimagined X and have the loading station being a tube station and you go through it backwards being chased by creatures. Everytime it stops you're at another tube stop and they catch up but then you start moving again. The attraction could age well if they change that last bit which depreciates the quality a lot. pluk and SteveJ 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Project LC Posted September 17, 2016 Report Share Posted September 17, 2016 It costs so much because of the overcomplicated technology. The VR costs a fortune, the animation costs a fortune, the trains cost a fortune. I'm not sure if the trains are AGR or track but I would assume they are tracked but if it's AGR then that is a huge amount down the drain for nothing. You then have the loss of money from involving 9 million different companies and I'm sure Derren Brown didn't come cheap. I would certainly not say this attraction was value for money and I'm amazed anyone comes off the ride thinking it was good to be honest. To me it's just one massive Merlin disappointment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian-S Posted September 17, 2016 Report Share Posted September 17, 2016 Perhaps now Merlin will learn and stick to tried and tested attractions, they could have had two Smiler's for the same cost, yes? Oh and Archive, you really need to consider a username change to Annoyed, not that I disagree with anything you've said, just it would be more relevant Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveJ Posted September 17, 2016 Report Share Posted September 17, 2016 11 hours ago, Project LC said: It costs so much because of the overcomplicated technology. The VR costs a fortune, the animation costs a fortune, the trains cost a fortune. I'm not sure if the trains are AGR or track but I would assume they are tracked but if it's AGR then that is a huge amount down the drain for nothing. You then have the loss of money from involving 9 million different companies and I'm sure Derren Brown didn't come cheap. Hm as much as I don't think the budget was handled properly at all, I believe the situation was more complex than you judge it The animations and visual FX are very simple in the big scheme of things. The train crash, while quite effective (when the lighting behaves itself and doesn't show it up!), is actually a fairly solid, standard animation. Its the kind of thing that would have been quite comfortably in the budget. In fact I was disappointed there was only one big animation in the entire ride really. Universal were opening rides with about 20 of these big animations 25 years ago - even in the UK we've had much better animations than these some 10-20 years ago. The Peppers ghost was alrightish, but probably the least impressive application of this effect I've seen, this wouldn't have cost a lot either. The VR is extensive and expensive, and will certainly cost a fortune for the park to maintain (which Thorpe will be laboured with, not Merlin Magic Making), but should also have been comfortably within the big budget. The (tracked) train transit engineering would have been a massive blow to the budget, obviously a major part of the "illusion" is supposed to be mind tricks on how the train has changed, how it ends up in different places, etc. It was a way over the top idea even on paper, and they're probably realising that throwing millions of pounds at a highly ambitious idea was not a good plan. Especially when 90% guests hardly even notice that the train has changed/moved because the experience is so rushed with no theatrical presentation... The amount of subcontractors used I believe is pretty standard for such a large project. Why this was turned into an advertising trope was odd - "over 1000 specialists" means very little good or bad. The more elements they have to subcontract out, the more fragmented the final thing becomes. MMM always advertise as doing everything "in house" but really they are just a big team of ex-marketing managers who want to impress Nick Varney or rather contrived designers who think of themselves "Imagineers". So.. yes, was the final product worth all that money? Bearing in mind it did go way over the already-high advertised budget too, which would have already been inflated by including peoples salaries over 3 years, the marketing campaigns, etc. Maybe details will come clear in time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted September 18, 2016 Report Share Posted September 18, 2016 Queueline and interior audio was working today. Shame the headsets were still glitchy though, and we were looking at the green screen for about 10 minutes! So many people had taken the headsets off the staff had to tell everyone it was about to restart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted September 18, 2016 Report Share Posted September 18, 2016 The Fastrack queue for Ghost Train was in use today when it first opened, I'm not sure if it was an organised event or whether they sold Fastrack tickets because I was under the impression that it wouldn't be used until next year? The batching was in favour of Fastrack and as a result, the main queue moved at a snail's pace for the first hour of the ride being open, causing the line to build up to the ride entrance which wouldn't have otherwise happened! It took us 40 minutes from just before the last straight section of the queueline. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B&MFTW Posted September 18, 2016 Report Share Posted September 18, 2016 I was lucky in the fact that I got to the ghost train when it opened today so only queued 30mins for it. I enjoyed it, but felt it was massively over hyped and didn't feel like the bit in between the trains flowed with the story line, it had the potential to be very good though! I also feel the second halves animation needs re doing as felt like it was badly done and the "mist" section went on for about 4mins making me think my headset was broken when in fact it was just part of the ride.Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted September 18, 2016 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2016 1 hour ago, Coaster Jamie said: The Fastrack queue for Ghost Train was in use today when it first opened, I'm not sure if it was an organised event or whether they sold Fastrack tickets because I was under the impression that it wouldn't be used until next year? The batching was in favour of Fastrack and as a result, the main queue moved at a snail's pace for the first hour of the ride being open, causing the line to build up to the ride entrance which wouldn't have otherwise happened! It took us 40 minutes from just before the last straight section of the queueline. Theyve never said fastrack won't be sold this year - they said it wasn't sold at the moment and never said when it would be! Coaster 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted September 18, 2016 Report Share Posted September 18, 2016 Fastrack isn't currently been sold on Ghost Train. The Fastrack queue line is being used for anyone who was given a Priority Pass for use on Ghost Train though (they are only ever handed when someone is evacuated from the ride or queue though I believe). Coaster 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted September 18, 2016 Report Share Posted September 18, 2016 11 minutes ago, Marc said: Theyve never said fastrack won't be sold this year - they said it wasn't sold at the moment and never said when it would be! Fair enough, must have remembered it wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian-S Posted September 18, 2016 Report Share Posted September 18, 2016 They really have got a problem if it was glitching today, glitching is a symptom of overheating, and today wasn't exactly hot, infact it was so cold and a lack of sun that my greenhouse turned itself off for the first time since March, and all it needs is an hour of sun a day to recharge the lipo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveJ Posted September 18, 2016 Report Share Posted September 18, 2016 Conditions inside an unvented working ride vehicle AV compartment is very different to your greenhouse Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted September 19, 2016 Author Report Share Posted September 19, 2016 8 hours ago, Ian-S said: They really have got a problem if it was glitching today, glitching is a symptom of overheating, and today wasn't exactly hot, infact it was so cold and a lack of sun that my greenhouse turned itself off for the first time since March, and all it needs is an hour of sun a day to recharge the lipo. I dont think the glitches it has are heat related - the 10 minutes of the holding scene (green smoke) would have been due to a (lengthy!) delay on the train ahead for what ever reason. The other glitches ive had on it are when the vives seem to lose connection to the lighthouses (Small black boxes attached to the ceiling of the trains) so it dont quite know where you are - most of the time this is just for seconds but ive had it an entire train before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cal Posted September 19, 2016 Report Share Posted September 19, 2016 Had the same problem on Friday - had the green smoke for around 10 minutes. I really think they need to do something when these delays happens as it leaves a bad impression of the ride, and seems to happen a lot. Other than that last train journey, it was the best ride I had on the ghost train. Staff on our train were proper going for it and made the evacuation seem really real. The train crash part was also really good due to the actors, chasing people and made everyone run. Apart from a 15 minute break down just before we were going on the ride ran all day from 12 which was good, and was also the first time I've seen it with literally no queue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian-S Posted September 19, 2016 Report Share Posted September 19, 2016 Sorry I thought he meant glitches in the vr video while it was running. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rach666 Posted September 20, 2016 Report Share Posted September 20, 2016 On 18/09/2016 at 9:43 PM, BaronC. said: Fastrack isn't currently been sold on Ghost Train. The Fastrack queue line is being used for anyone who was given a Priority Pass for use on Ghost Train though (they are only ever handed when someone is evacuated from the ride or queue though I believe). You also get a "1-shot" FT on DBGT when you buy Ultimate Fastrack for the day Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jessica2 Posted September 21, 2016 Report Share Posted September 21, 2016 I was originally quite excited for DBGT doing the minds wanted thing and keeping up with all the news on it, but after reading several non spoiler reviews I'm now very much feeling 'meh' about the whole thing! Though I will definitely go in it when I go in a few weeks time, I have no desire to queue for hours for it. I'm going to go in with low expectations and hope to be pleasantly surprised... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Han30 Posted September 21, 2016 Report Share Posted September 21, 2016 1 hour ago, jessica2 said: I was originally quite excited for DBGT doing the minds wanted thing and keeping up with all the news on it, but after reading several non spoiler reviews I'm now very much feeling 'meh' about the whole thing! Though I will definitely go in it when I go in a few weeks time, I have no desire to queue for hours for it. I'm going to go in with low expectations and hope to be pleasantly surprised... I was exactly the same and wasn't expecting much so was pleasantly surprised jessica2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyMoo Posted September 21, 2016 Report Share Posted September 21, 2016 Random DBGT question - the "This Money Tastes Funny" tag line/T-shirt design - where is the tie in for that exactly? Is that a reference to fracking being "dirty money"? Just remembered it and it seems quite odd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Han30 Posted September 21, 2016 Report Share Posted September 21, 2016 1 hour ago, MattyMoo said: Random DBGT question - the "This Money Tastes Funny" tag line/T-shirt design - where is the tie in for that exactly? Is that a reference to fracking being "dirty money"? Just remembered it and it seems quite odd No idea but the hoodies with that on it (plus the no drill no spill ones) are discounted in the mega store....I'm still a tad confused by it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuntman707 Posted September 21, 2016 Report Share Posted September 21, 2016 The story line is so weak. I heard several people saying the same thing. They would have been happy with the ride if they had left through the tunnel in the live bit and never did the second VR section as the effects were poor and it made no sense to them. Reliability really needs improving though, it is unacceptable how unreliable it is. Coaster 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jessica2 Posted September 23, 2016 Report Share Posted September 23, 2016 On 21/09/2016 at 6:33 PM, Stuntman707 said: The story line is so weak. I heard several people saying the same thing. They would have been happy with the ride if they had left through the tunnel in the live bit and never did the second VR section as the effects were poor and it made no sense to them. Reliability really needs improving though, it is unacceptable how unreliable it is. does it usually manage to open first thing? was trying to decide the best time of the day to queue for it, was thinking going there at park opening was our best bet but don't want to waste time if we get there to find its not open yet. Their twitter is often full of people angry that it keeps breaking down! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Project LC Posted September 23, 2016 Report Share Posted September 23, 2016 Just now, jessica2 said: does it usually manage to open first thing? was trying to decide the best time of the day to queue for it, was thinking going there at park opening was our best bet but don't want to waste time if we get there to find its not open yet. Their twitter is often full of people angry that it keeps breaking down! I don't think it has managed one day to open on time. The breakdowns will keep happening until they fix the fundamental problems with the ride. However seeing as they didn't include the solution to heat in the design they are going to struggle to fix it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted September 23, 2016 Author Report Share Posted September 23, 2016 Its running significantly better now after its closure than it was before, was there earlier this week it open around 15 minutes late, only saw it go down once and was back up in 10 minutes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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