I'm glad we have some permits and some slight confirmation that they are going to continue development. I knew we would get Epic eventually, but the circumstances it was in was scary nonetheless.
The Pokemon storm was actually really fun to read through as both sides had some good points. But
@Legacy probably sums it up the most when he stated that most guest's want to just watch shows, eat food, and enjoy some attractions, and this statement right here is something I really thought hard about, and realized that "Yeah, that's accurate."
Which to me is sad as I want to feel FULLY immersed in an experience, and mimic things that characters from that Universe would do, and I'm not just talking about Pokemon, I mean all media being spun into a park. I want to be fully immersed in a world, which rides do fine but the formula get's repetitive, especially Universal's constant addition of screens. I hope eventually we strive for interactivity being a strong piece of theme park design. (BTW, I think Potter does a good job at this and Mario's looks alright too.)
I think after we find out some of the statistics of SNW's interactivity we can really get a good idea where we are gonna stand and the future of small or eventually big interactive theming.
Also, a Harry Potter broom stick ride for me is too similar to the Forbidden Journey. I know it would be more immersive and definitely a great experience, but to me as a non Potter fan it just stinks of "Haven't we done this before?". The addition of features for the ride would not help it either, it would still be The Forbidden Journey 2.0 in my eyes.
Monsters is what I am foaming at the mouth for. But I have a sad state of mind about it. I don't know how this was even a contender, they could pick up any IP in the arsenal and I would think it would do better than what Monsters as franchise is. It helps that those characters are highly recognizable and everyone knows at least who Dracula, Frankenstein, and Creature are, but they are in a boat that says "No longer relevant" plastered on them. Look at all the new attractions recently they've added to their parks, all of them have standing in todays generation, Harry Potter, Mario, and even Fast and the Furious are huge and still relevant. I just can't help the thought of people thinking that the monsters are very old, and definitely not modern, which would be one of the main reasons that side of the park would be desolate, just because what has really come out recently involving their iconic looks back in the day is literally nothing, there are none. There is no accurate depiction of there original looks which hurts there brand a lot, consistency in franchise's are important (Hotel Transylvania does not count, don't @ me). I think this has been a problem with some parks using old IP's and trying to make them successful rides, but, take Tower of Terror for an example, old franchise, but widely popular ride, usually reaches at least 60-75 minute wait times when I go to Hollywood Studios. This data helps, as we know that the rides the Monsters have to be involved in need to be absolute bangers, and highly re-rideable.
Do I think they can work? yes, but they will have to work hard for the GP to appreciate them again. I know Horror fans like me will come visit them, but it simply is not enough. Monsters has out shine everything with their attractions and overall experience, since many people would rather go to HP and SNW then step foot inside Monsters.
Also, it does not help that many parents might not take their children inside because they are assuming it is going to be too scary to go inside with their kids, which is what most guests are, kids.
I hope I am proven wrong, no, I WANT to be proven wrong about Monsters because these guys deserve so much more than a house at HHN every or every other year.