Battle for Eire

Register or Login to Hide This Ad for Free!
*Spoiler* - the 1 second roar in LNM was more exciting that this ride.

Finally got on this the few minutes we had Friday morning.

Ditto on all the issues. Red spot on my forehead all day, even after I ended up holding the goggles most of the ride, which eventually bruised. I see where motion sickness could occur. No blurring or blackouts.

Has this been mentioned? The volume was SO low I heard nothing of the "story". Only the screaming from the cheap 3D pop-up-in-your-face tactics to cover the lack of story.

We were also first in line, on the second loading first thing in the morning, at the yellow line of the entry door. It took nearly 30 minutes from there. Definitely a walk-on-only (if THAT is even possible) ride for me. Actually, we tried a second ride on the way out. The line was within sight of the carts - we walked out.

I also saw uber correlation to Curse of DarKastle's preshow design in this pre-show, which felt like Falcon's Treehouse seem to just rehash. Resolution? Simulator movement? Overall verdict - I could have had a better experience with better resolution on my VR goggles and iPhone on the couch at home.

But, my wife "liked it", with the caveat of all the same issues above. I contribute that like to it involving a dragon. She thought Addie looked evil instead of fairy-like. So, she actually only liked the dragon - which was too "kiddie" also. See where I'm having problems with her definition of "liked it"?

I had great hopes for this attraction. On the contrary, it made me commiserate Corkscrew Hill and Curse of DarKastle all the more. I'll step out and say they closed a better ride in CoD (even at half functioning status) with BoE at no comparison as a replacement.

Good things to say? So much potential that just missed the mark, nice theme (the little there actually was), and better than Europe in the Air. But the potential motion sickness this ride could generate on the right day is also better than EitA was. So not saying much for the one time we rode EitA.

Our opinion, just another notch in the mediocre to lackluster line of additions BGW seems to concentrate on now. Rather than the world-class coasters or attractions of old, we get smaller and weaker whimpers each time. IF something isn't just removed altogether. Perhaps they'll raze CoD so they can paint a Coke bottle on the ground there for lucky Mäch Tower riders.

At least we'll have a summer street party to go to this year...not. Or, lure in 20 more buses of 8th graders to make a full queue line of screaming kids at Griffon by 10:30am on a Friday. And Celtic Fyre's first show was 2:00pm? I don't think we ever left the park as early as 11:00am before. So far, they have done nothing to keep me past this new membership expiring. Which, another rant for another day, has perks and time limits that have been useless for someone from my distance.

Wow, that escalated off track quickly. Sorry.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Flyer, VACoasterFan, Mushroom and 4 others
I don't think they should ever tie BFE in with CODK. I love what the ride can be, but not so much what it is right now. Aside from the issues with VR, the CGI is what gets me. Nothing in today's time should look like that. It may have been special if it was made in 1999, but would have been outdated by 2005.

Battle for Eire uses a lot of blocky, low-polygon models with standard-resolution textures. Everything else takes major shortcuts since most scenes are literally flat, using overlapping photo texture to create a sense of depth on the ground. That is why 75% of the ride takes place in the sky or over water. That way, they can copy and paste the same objects over and over (rocks and clouds) and not require a lot of unique models.

I guess I can't blame them for the cheap CGI after Kraken Unleashed, though. They probably don't want to spend too much money on another attraction that runs the risk of not staying around for long.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Flyer, Mushroom and BGW Family
CastleOSullivan said:
...Aside from the issues with VR, the CGI is what gets me. Nothing in today's time should look like that. It may have been special if it was made in 1999, but would have been outdated by 2005.

Battle for Eire uses a lot of blocky, low-polygon models with standard-resolution textures. Everything else takes major shortcuts since most scenes are literally flat, using overlapping photo texture to create a sense of depth on the ground. That is why 75% of the ride takes place in the sky or over water. That way, they can copy and paste the same objects over and over (rocks and clouds) and not require a lot of unique models.
Click to expand...

I would have to assume this is due to the computing power required for VR? My boyfriend has a Vive, and to use it he has a ridiculously powerful computer, and even then a lot of the stuff looks dated. I'd imagine running 40(?) of them simultaneously isn't easy.

That being said, I am not a computer expert, so maybe there's a way to do it in a less costly fashion?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ziva, warfelg, SLC Headache and 2 others
All that combined with the fact that this is the first of it's kind in the industry seem like a good reason for the sub par animation. That combined with a family (and budget) friendly nature makes me think they weren't really interested in Pixar quality.
 
  • Like
Reactions: warfelg
Their method has more to do with rendering a pre-rendered video versus a CG space in real time. Also, each seat has its own computer. Basically, each computer aligns top and bottom videos (for looking up and down) and centers them based on your seat location. After that, the headset and offride sensors synchronize head movement and a certain range of motion with the video being displayed (similar to a Wii remote).

In other words, the video already exists in its full form. That means that they could have any range of video quality as long as the resolution and FPS are compatible with the headset and CPUs.

With that, plus BFE being a first, it should at least look like something from 2005-2010, aside from the resolution and framerate, which is fine. Falcons Treehouse just doesn't seem capable of anything more sophisticated. Remember, Curse of DarKastle's film was contracted to another company.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Mushroom and BGW Family
I liked the ride and I think people are being over dramatic about how terrible they think this ride is. Also not really sure why so many people are saying there's no plot, there is and it's explained, it's just a simple story. The cyclops steals the heart and we have to join the journey to help get it back to restore the land.

I had no issues with the head set or getting sick.

It's a vast improvement over that awful Europe in the air and I could definitely see myself going on it once a visit.

The line was to the entrance and it was about 25-30 mins until we got to the headsets. It's definitely a nice break from the heat as well.
 
  • Like
Reactions: CastleOSullivan
I have decided that my favorite seat is the far back, right seat. The animation and motions look and feel the best there. This is partly because most of the character action takes place on the upper left side of the main screen area. Sitting in a middle seat is the worst option, from my experience. You have to turn your head way too much in any middle seat and have to look up a bit too much in the front row.

I would like to test this one more time in the far left, back corner to see if the same is true for looking at the animations in the opposite direction. I think it's too bad that the video is rendered this way because there is more dead space on the ride than there are good places to see the VR.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Alf33, Lord Robert and SatansHockey
This ride is better than Europe in the Air, and less nauseating than Corkscrew Hill. But I still miss Questor. Also, my kid couldn't deal with the heavy VR goggles so she rode without. I think I may as well next time to compare experiences. It definitely feels like the motion simulator is set at a more gentle movement than during Corkscrew Hill days. I thought it was cute; but if I had to choose between this ride and reopening DarKastle, I'd pick Darkastle immediately.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Lord Robert, Mushroom, RollyCoaster and 3 others
Imaginique said:
[...]Also, my kid couldn't deal with the heavy VR goggles so she rode without. I think I may as well next time to compare experiences.[...]
Click to expand...

That will probably be just fine, especially in the front rows. Just be sure that you don't choose VR and later change your mind. One unfortunate aspect of having both offerings is that the main screen looks very dim after having bright LED screens right in front of your eyes. It ruins your night vision required for the projection. The standard screen is fine if your eyes are adapted to it from the beginning.

Anyway, I had an interesting experience recently in the second pre-show room. We were all told to remain standing on our circles, even after the doors opened. A maintenance person was manually checking the headsets and the audio of the leprechaun speaking and Addie continued even though we were not in the cabin, nor in the seats.

Everyone looked confused since they did not have an audio cue telling people to not put their masks on, even though we were supposed to wait. I know it might not be this simple, but they should have a pause button for this type of thing.

Twx8hLw.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: jornor, Alf33, Mushroom and 1 other person
I went to Busch Gardens yesterday and tried out Battle for Erie. All I can say is this ride has a lot of wasted potentials and to me, it is one of the big fails at Busch Gardens.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Zimmy
Will Battle for Eire be open through the summer, or will it closer early for Halloween preparations as in the past? Does anyone know?
 
gardener14 said:
Will Battle for Eire be open through the summer, or will it closer early for Halloween preparations as in the past? Does anyone know?
Click to expand...

I would be very surprised if it closed for either HOS or CT. This year especially, when it is their new, large attraction, I would expect hem to want to keep it open.
 
  • Like
Reactions: gardener14
You must log in or register to reply here.
Consider Donating to Hide This Ad