Coaster Posted February 24, 2014 Report Share Posted February 24, 2014 A preshow? Urgh, can't stand them! Especially not Merlin ones, as they are never done well. It makes Zufari un-reridable, plus they'd be spending money on that rather than caves! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Styles Posted February 24, 2014 Report Share Posted February 24, 2014 Let's relive the good old days <3 once you been on the mine train at towers you won't have to think of the good old days from chess Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rollercoasterfan Posted February 24, 2014 Report Share Posted February 24, 2014 Sounds like it has excellent theming and I think it's a job well done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GladiatorFanKyle Posted February 25, 2014 Report Share Posted February 25, 2014 R.I.P runaway train 1987-2012. You will be sadly missed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
insider9150 Posted February 25, 2014 Report Share Posted February 25, 2014 Everyone get over it, RMT needed an overhaul, as long as it looks good and is running this year must be a good thing. Marc, jon81uk and Inferno 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coaster Posted February 25, 2014 Report Share Posted February 25, 2014 Everyone get over it, RMT needed an overhaul, as long as it looks good and is running this year must be a good thing. An overhaul means replacing the theming, not ripping it out and replacing it with a tiny scorpion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveJ Posted February 25, 2014 Report Share Posted February 25, 2014 Everyone get over it, RMT needed an overhaul, as long as it looks good and is running this year must be a good thing. You are right, but won't have much hope convincing people that on an internet forum! I will always prefer the original design simply because it was infinitely more substantial than whatever is being created now. It seemed back then that even the simplest rides could become extravagant and charming without all the limitations imposed by marketing and budgeting that cause so many ideas to struggle in UK theme parks today. The Runaway (Mine)Train always was a boring figure-of-eight Mack powered coaster with a commonplace theme, and I can't forget how aesthetically shocking it had looked for the last decade. However, with its clever scenic queueline taking you around the whole of Calamity Canyon and the rocky tunnels disguising the actual size of the coaster, it showed a genuine will to make sure the rider had as much fun as possible. (I'm not sure squirting water in riders faces does not show the same kind of showmanship!) MattyMoo, Inferno and Merry-go-girl 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted February 25, 2014 Report Share Posted February 25, 2014 Just have to look at how Efteling refurbed Dreamflight to see how such a ride should be worked upon... Using new techniques to provide an improved experience that continues the original version's charm and look... So far, this doesn't even look anywhere near as good as the original version... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 Everyone get over it, RMT needed an overhaul, as long as it looks good and is running this year must be a good thing. That should be Chessingtons tagline, it's certainly the way the park seems to operate currently. Benin and Inferno 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoshC. Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 Everyone get over it, RMT needed an overhaul, as long as it looks good and is running this year must be a good thing. Why should we get over it? Regardless how it may come across with all the whining, pretty much everyone on here actually wants Chessington to go well, to create great rides, with great themes. We want to see why Merlin are only second best to Disney, and we want to see that they can push to be Number 1. This, so far, isn't giving us what we, what everyone, wants! We want a park's major attraction to be special. So far, this doesn't seem special. The way it's looking, I'd much rather take a Disney ride that has 3 months till opening than the completed Scorpion Express. That doesn't express, to me, this high level of competition and standard which Merlin apparently set. You say that as long as it looks good, it's a good thing. That's the trouble though - people are afraid it won't look good! Think of other major projects at Merlin parks a month before opening. Most of them looked pretty darn good at that stage. What does this look like though? Surely you can see where the concerns are about all of this, and why people are worried and whining and such. Of course, we should wait till the ride opens before making full judgement. But as it stands, I'm worried my full judgement won't exactly be a positive one... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 An overhaul means replacing the theming, not ripping it out and replacing it with a tiny scorpion. To be fair I can see why theyve gone down the route of changing the theme instead of putting it back to how it was, how do you market a ride with new theming which is the same as before? It dont look fantastic right now but we still have just under a month till the season starts, I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt until we see the final product. OldFarmerDean 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 Why do you have to have something 'marketable' is the main question? Think that's the issue, Merlin don't like risks, everything must be able to be marketed to the nth degree, however poorly they might do it (Thirteen)... And hence we end up with an extremely high level of removal occuring on one of the best themed coasters in the UK (at the time of opening, and even before half the rockwork fell off)... All this should have been, was a simple "let's get this attraction back to it's original glory, maybe add some stuff to it like effects whilst we're at it", not leaving it looking like Flying Fish with a giant non-sensical scorpian plonked down RCT style... Merlin are seemingly too obsessed with being 'marketable' that they're missing the point of having a quality theme park, in that if you're actually good at being a theme park, you don't NEED to market a ride refurb, or anything beyond whatever's new, but even then other parks don't feel a need to obsess over being the first at anything... What's wrong with making something of high quality from the world's 2nd largest theme park operator? Hell, they could've added fire effects to the original version (Add a mine-shaft that 'explodes' mid-ride), and it would make thematical sense... Instead we have a new cattlepen queueline, a (probably) 2D backdrop, and a giant scorpian... And that somehow makes the ride more marketable when very little has actually changed? Coaster 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merry-go-girl Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 In my dictionary an overhaul is where you completely rebuild something making it bigger and better. I mean, if someone knocked down your floor damaged home but only rebuilt the skeleton and just hung some paintings to hide the exposed interior walls you'd hardly call that an overhaul. pluk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldFarmerDean Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 They clearly didn't want to refurb it, but had no choice as it was left in such a bad state which they realised with rattlesnake too and gave it some work last year before it was too late... In no way am I sticking up for Merlin, but at least they are doing something with it rather than removing the ride for it not to be replaced by anything or just leaving it bare like flying fish, none of us will be happy if we compare scorpion express to the mine train, but at least some effort is being put in! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 How about the company that lauds themselves at being number 2 worldwide put in the effort that should be related to being such a high number or even a challenger to Disney? This is what Disney are doing with their Mine Train... Is it wrong to want to see at least some enough to be put in to look like a knock-off version of that? Rather than a 2D backdrop like they used to cover up the site from Jumbos? Inferno 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 For the purposes of this post I'm not defending Merlin in anyway. As is said time and time again, Merlin only see themselves competing with Disney in terms of size. Merlin would never even consider spending 80 million pounds on a Vekoma family roller coaster for example, Expedition Everest would be far too ambitious for a company like Merlin that likes to spend money very carefully on safe attractions. No, it's nothing to do with Disney this. It's everything to do with Merlin and its lack of interest in its own parks. Back in 1986 when Runaway Train was first constructed, it was probably built on far less of a budget and in far less time then Merlin have had with this Scorpion attraction. In my eyes they have truly squandered an opportunity to give new life to Runaway. Where's the proper refurbishment such as a new train with individual lap bars like Flying Fish had? Where's the actual theming? That water effect and fire effect will last a week knowing Merlin's track record. So then what. I want to be enthusiastic about it I really do. Runaway was my first real ride so I have very nostalgic views on it. And I want it to be excellent. But Chessington don't seem to want to take that extra step, to even attempt to compete with European parks or even places like Paultons or Drayton. SteveJ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TraX Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 Everyone get over it, RMT needed an overhaul, as long as it looks good and is running this year must be a good thing. That should be Chessingtons tagline, it's certainly the way the park seems to operate currently. You can bet your life that's the route marketing will go down this year, to try rebuild faith.. 'ALL RIDES ARE OPEN!! ALL RIDES ARE OPEN!!' I think this whole thing depends on the crooked town facade that will cover the staff road - but even then - as 3D as they can make it, it's never going to be like going in and out of the caves, which lets face it, made the whole thing, and made RMT much better than it was. What we'll see now is a brown Flying Fish with building facade and flat queueline. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstroDan Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 I was under the impression that the entire mountain was going to be rebuilt... They did a great job on Mammut at Gardaland... Bah. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merry-go-girl Posted February 26, 2014 Report Share Posted February 26, 2014 I just don't see why it's too much to ask that the rock work be replaced by....rock work? No one would suggest they leave the old rock work up if it were close to becoming hazardous, that would make us mental. But we also seem to be mental to expect what's taken away to be replaced. I really don't get why that's such a crazy notion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pickles Posted February 27, 2014 Report Share Posted February 27, 2014 Hello there guys. It's obviously not completed yet so give it time, have patience? I know it's something the majority of you struggle with. This topic has become slate Chessie and Scorpion filled instead of an actual discussion with positives. Yes there was positive posts but over 3 pages that I read I saw about 3. None of you have even considered the process of how a business goes about doing something like this, it's just they must not care. Now then if Merlin did not care then Flying Fish wouldn't have been put back in, Swarm wouldn't of been built, Scorpion Express wouldn't be getting re-themed, same with all the new stuff at Alton. What you guys are failing to see is that it's not all about you. It's not all about what you want. It's about what everyone wants and what they are able to do. Now there's the main point. What they are able to do. No one has considered that they may not have been able to put the rocks back? Or that this is the only way of doing things right now? Or the fact that maybe they can't actually afford all of the sh!t that you guys want doing to it. Now then to cover the fact it's an old ride, yes the nostalgia will be there, you will ride it and think, this theming used to be there etc. But at the end of the day you will have to look at it as a new ride because it's a new ride experience as they put it. You will be experiencing the ride differently compared to what you used to. I too will miss the old ride BUT I look forward to riding it again with these changes to see what this NEW experience will be like. People on here are ashamed of defending Merlin, I don't see why. They are a business and when you run a business you have to make decisions, not everyone will like the decisions and not everyone will want to do them but if you were to just turn around and go 'well let's not do it then' you would go bust in seconds. You wouldn't have a business to run, This is the tough world of business and economics at the moment. We notice it more here because it's on a larger scale. Look at your local town and note down all the small businesses that have shut down in the past 5-6 years. Small things that you don't notice. If it was larger businesses you would notice. Tl:dr: In the nicest way possible, go run a business for a few years then come back and tell us all about how Merlin run theirs. Adam P 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark9 Posted February 27, 2014 Report Share Posted February 27, 2014 I'll try and be as polite as possible Holly. Suffice to say I don't have to go and run a business before I have a viewpoint on how Merlin operates. I won't even need to compare with Disney to prove my point either. None of you have even considered the process of how a business goes about doing something like this, it's just they must not care. Oh, so you mean the process of letting a rides theming getting so beyond repair that the only option is to tear it all down, replace it with the bare minimum and then stick small cactuses around it. If that's how a business works, I'm surprised my Waitrose hasn't just torn all the light fittings down, hired convicts and let them do the work. Who needs to look presentable when a cactus and a bog standard, brown repaint will do. What you guys are failing to see is that it's not all about you. It's not all about what you want. It's about what everyone wants and what they are able to do. Now there's the main point. What they are able to do. No one has considered that they may not have been able to put the rocks back? Or that this is the only way of doing things right now? Or the fact that maybe they can't actually afford all of the sh!t that you guys want doing to it. Oh okay. Well considering the majority of us want Chessington to be a successful theme park with rides that fit their surroundings, rides that are looked after and maintained to a high quality as well as worthwhile additions maybe we are expecting too much. I'll tell you what though, if a multi million pound company like Merlin cannot afford to give Runaway Train a decent look then maybe we really are in trouble. I suppose we'll have to make do with several new Legolands in Asia to compensate. Yeah.. that sounds great. You will be experiencing the ride differently compared to what you used to. I too will miss the old ride BUT I look forward to riding it again with these changes to see what this NEW experience will be like. It's a brown Flying Fish with a scorpion that shoots water at you. It's not that hard to imagine what that experience will be like. Look at your local town and note down all the small businesses that have shut down in the past 5-6 years. Yeah, most of that is because the small businesses are not able to compete with the larger businesses that are dominating the market. Large businesses like Morrisons are down on profit because they are not adapting fast enough to an increasingly changing online market. Places like Woolworths closed down because of the size of the business being too big for the lack of profit the stores were bringing in. Tl:dr: In the nicest way possible, go run a business for a few years then come back and tell us all about how Merlin run theirs. Go and run Paultons or Drayton and come back and tell me why they have been able to remain successful despite a biting recession and the hand of Merlin dominating the theme park market in the UK. Ricky, pluk, Altitude and 4 others 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deleted Users Posted February 27, 2014 Report Share Posted February 27, 2014 It's really shortsighted. Parks are realising that more than ever, people will spend more if they are in a nice setting and believe to buying high quality products. Carsland, New Fantasyland and Potter all show this. High costs sure but higher return. Shocker. JoshC. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benin Posted February 27, 2014 Report Share Posted February 27, 2014 Efteling are spending €2 million on a refurb atm... A restaurant refurb... We're lucky if we get that spent on a park in a designated 'small investment year'... As Turtle said, put more quality into your product, and people will be more than happy to spend/return/rave about it... Nothing about Scorpian Express at the current time screams of quality (The Market Sqaure refurb on the other hand, is what I want to see from Chessie)... N.B. I did try and find how much they spent on refurbing Dreamflight, but cannot find it... Mergh... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt 236 Posted February 27, 2014 Report Share Posted February 27, 2014 Do I love a like Chessington? Yes Am I impressed with most recent changes? No, Chessington has so much potential to become an amazing park if the place was invested with new exciting rides and immersive theming, in addition to more shows and better operations, the park could almost be on the standards of places like Disney, something that is likely to happen for a while if ever. 2013, only saw a few progressive changes, one of which had a premature end and went up in flames. In 2014, a ride retheme, which could've been remarkable, currently looks a bitter disapointment. Would the ride have seen the return of the rocks but still gained the scorpion and other interactive elements, Scorpion Express would been an excellent overhaul and thre steps forward IMO. But without them and these random theming placements, it's a two step back progression. Market Square looks a lot more promising than Scorpion Express so far as the area looks a lot more open and in a way grand and once the centre piece is build could be an excellent area of the park. That being said, I think it does need a bit of shrubbery in places. Amazu looks ok and the hotel, it's early days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pluk Posted February 27, 2014 Report Share Posted February 27, 2014 Tl:dr: In the nicest way possible, go run a business for a few years then come back and tell us all about how Merlin run theirs. Lol. After a somewhat patronising post of your opinions, you discount everyone elses opinions as they haven't run a business for a few years. Run many businesses have you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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