Flight of Fear
- Thread starter Ludwig II
- Start date
Easiest/cheapest solution would be to put some thick vegetation and themed signage directly in front of the hanger and ride entrance to actually make it seem like it's hidden deep within the jungle.
Replacing the asphalt midway with stamped/themed concrete like the first phase of Jungle X-pedition has would be a plus as well. I imagine (or at least hope) they'll do something to the Intimidator 305 plaza checked flag paver pattern anyways this offseason.
Also, it's going to be interesting to see what they do with the Intimidator 305 tunnel with next year's retheme, but it could be reworked to tie into both attractions' plazas as well. A themed old "research" helicopter on top of the tunnel with a helipad in the FOF plaza, similar to the old plane and runway at the entrance to Jungle X-Pedition, would be neat. There actually used to be a "helipad" painted on FOF's asphalt midway until Intimidator 305 opened in 2010:
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Got to check out the KI version, nice seeing the full queue (fortunately not fully used) with screens running etc. I think the KD refresh would be a lot better if they fixed the lightning on the engraved round plastic thing in the round room, always loved the way that looks. Looked like they fixed it at KI but actually it's just a greenish LED strip shoved behind the left bottom side of it! Works for me.
Sounded like someone dug some old sound files up. Walked in to a Area 51 decontamination sound clip, and when the ride was over the sound clip was "Thank you for riding, now we know what human endurance is like when pressed to-"
You trying to knock out your teeth? Besides, P305 would be better.
VB06Hokie
Mostly wit & sarcasm, but contributes occasionally
I don’t know what blacking out backwards would feel like but I’m curious.
Yep. Get some of those country boys from the area to show up with some rattle cans to camo spray paint the building a bit and you can do it on the cheap. Combine that with the hanging of some camo netting, fake vines, extra vegetation, and maybe an audio track or two, and they could turn it into a hidden govt. base in almost no time. I honestly think that with some thought and planning that they might be able to integrate this totally off-brand ride into the JungleX theme quite well, all things considered.
I know a soon-to-be-rethemed (probably) ride that might have an extra helicopter laying around...
Did the park yesterday and I have to say I was impressed. Flight of Fear was thrilling as usual. Good theme addition to add the ALIEN MASTER spiel inside the loading station. The ride operator told me that it dates back to the Paramount days. This made the ride experience a little more enjoyable, rather than just listening to the usual rumble from the flying saucer. This ride clearly needs some additional theme to match the Jungle X-Pedition theme. Keeping aliens would sure fit the whole cryptic encounter atmosphere that Jungle X-Pedition uses.
The ride needs some sort of alien encounter. Maybe some sort of Reptilian creature would fit this ride very well.
The ride needs some sort of alien encounter. Maybe some sort of Reptilian creature would fit this ride very well.
I disagree with you on that. The spaghetti bowl area has been empty since 1996, with the same neon floor lights. Its time to add some alien theme to it. There's so much potential for a great ride experience if some sort of prop were to activate at the top of the ride. Other than that, your strobe lights would be great replacement for the neon floor lights. Why not add some fog on the floor during the last turns before the corkscrew.
The lore to the ride could be revamped too. Jungle X-Pedition's Whey Foundation uncovering a mysterious base would fit. Make the queue area dark again, and add some cool special effects near the flying saucer.
I had this whole thought process on why that doesn't make sense for them to do it almost fully written out... But then thought of something else:
If they added a few cheap scrims over the ride envelope with photo-eye triggered dynamic lighting, they could effectively and cheaply create some dramatic near-miss moments. If these ever break down and stop working/the park abandons them, it's not a huge loss as the ride would be practically the same as it is today before such additions were made - still fun and somewhat disorienting while thrilling for a majority of guests who ride.
If they added a few cheap scrims over the ride envelope with photo-eye triggered dynamic lighting, they could effectively and cheaply create some dramatic near-miss moments. If these ever break down and stop working/the park abandons them, it's not a huge loss as the ride would be practically the same as it is today before such additions were made - still fun and somewhat disorienting while thrilling for a majority of guests who ride.
I was actually thinking of the downfall of VB in my post.
See, there wasn't any previous non-themed experience in that show building, and it was designed so that the sets and effects were a large part of the ride experience along with a few forceful turns - it needed the proper sets and lighting to block the view of the rest of the track in the building - thus it became obvious when these were not properly maintained or outright abandoned.
However, FoF's main experience has always been the disorientation of the spaghetti bowl layout - it adds to the experience to know there's a whole lot of track twisted in on itself in the relatively dark building. There never had been large sets or props in the show building to my knowledge (feel free to correct me with evidence if any exists, would be fascinating to know), so adding a few scrims that light up as the train passes to create near-miss moments only adds to the thrill. And if those scrims got removed or the lights stop working, it's not like it'll be that obvious except to those expecting them during their ride... But because of the craziness of the spaghetti bowl, I highly doubt it'd be that big a letdown unlike VB's decline.
The ride builds up anticipation when your in line listening to the radio show and then seeing the flying saucer inside the hanger. But once on the ride there are no aliens. As mentioned; the park has brought back the old spiel where the aliens talk to you in the station. The show building could still have a few pop out effects and maybe some fog to make the experience a lot better. The neon floor lights should be strobe lights. I feel, being able to see the floor takes away from the experience. The upper-platform needs a couple of reptilian aliens that either growl or attempt to grab the train as it slows down and passes by. The lower floor area where you enter the final turns is where the fog should be. Have a small scene where spec-ops are laying on the floor and maybe a few reptilian manikins are standing overtop of them.
Eh, that's where I don't think it'd work well - you're going too fast in too dim a light for most of those props and scenes to be particularly effective. And though they come and go/get swapped for humans, the aliens do exist in the tubes on the ride ops side of the load platform. You have to remember, this isn't Universal and they're certainly not going to be paying for that level of immersion.
Additionally, the catwalk was installed for evacuations after it kept stalling there around it's opening year (there's a Dale Brumfield article on it that explains it in a bit more detail), so I don't think it's appropriate to put props or scenery on it even if it doesn't get used much if at all.
And for the fog - it's really expensive to consistently ensure the effect stays near the floor and doesn't interfere with the safety of the ride while the ride vehicles produce decent amounts of airflow when passing by at speed. Even if they did it for a special event, I don't see them keeping it long term.
Perhaps a way to frame it is: for what they could afford to add without compromising safety or ride reliability, how much worse would the experience be from the current experience if they either abandoned or removed each piece you've proposed?
Additionally, the catwalk was installed for evacuations after it kept stalling there around it's opening year (there's a Dale Brumfield article on it that explains it in a bit more detail), so I don't think it's appropriate to put props or scenery on it even if it doesn't get used much if at all.
And for the fog - it's really expensive to consistently ensure the effect stays near the floor and doesn't interfere with the safety of the ride while the ride vehicles produce decent amounts of airflow when passing by at speed. Even if they did it for a special event, I don't see them keeping it long term.
Perhaps a way to frame it is: for what they could afford to add without compromising safety or ride reliability, how much worse would the experience be from the current experience if they either abandoned or removed each piece you've proposed?
Something I think they can do to enhance fofs experience without breaking the bank or doing too much would be to add fog that sprays in the launch tunnel during loading and before it launches so you can’t see where you’re going and to add a timer/sensor to the lights in the spaghetti bowl part so that they don’t come on until the train shoots up the first element and I think they could add like a breathing effect to them so that they dim to completely dark and then slowly brighten and it repeats that effect during the course of the ride.
