BUENA PARK – Yes, it is real early in the tenure of Knott’s Berry Farm’s latest attraction, Voyage to the Iron Reef, but the reviews coming in are glowing – including one from former Disney Imagineer Bob Gurr.
This morning, the first riders were allowed to board the interactive, three-dimensional video ride: the media, annual pass holders and special guests. On the attraction, riders dive under a virtual sea to fight against the Queen of the Kraken and save Knott’s.
Gurr, who helped create the Monorail, the Haunted Mansion, the Matterhorn Bobsleds and Autopia at Disneyland, was on hand for Voyage’s opening ceremony on Wednesday and was among the first riders. The company he founded, Sequoia Creative, built Knott’s Kingdom of the Dinosaurs, which sat in the same building as Voyage.
Disney California Adventure has a ride similar to Voyage called Toy Story Midway Mania. Voyage surpasses Disney’s ride, Gurr said, because the ride car doesn’t come to a full stop in front of each screen.
“This is a big step beyond,” he said. “I’m still shaking (with) excitement from what I saw and the CGI imagery and the way the targeting works and the fact that the vehicle is moving at all times.”
Videos playing in the queue area set up the plot line of the ride: A captain was fishing off the coast of Knott’s Berry Farm when he was attacked by the Queen of the Kraken and her aquatic army, who are also devouring the park’s roller coasters. Now, it’s up to riders to help him and save the park by using “freeze rays.”
“The goal is to get completely immersed in it,” said Lara Hanneman, director of entertainment production at Knott’s.
In addition to the 3D videos, the ride is adorned with physical set pieces, such as reefs covered in barnacles and kelp, wrecked ships and a room that elicits an undersea cave the Queen pulls riders through.
Older Knott’s fans might also recognize on some screens “Easter eggs,” including a Knott’s Bear-y Tales ride car and the old Roaring 20s sign.
In video game parlance, the Queen would be considered the “boss,” the final villain who’s harder to defeat than the ones that came before. Prior to meeting her, riders will face puffer fish, eels, jellyfish, crabs and other sea creatures, some of whom require more hits to defeat than others.
Riders can determine where to aim with a colored dot on screen. What color corresponds to which gun is displayed next to the holster on the ride car. When the guns hit an object, ice crystals form, and when a creature is defeated, it shatters into ice.
Hitting the fish garners points, which are displayed on board and at the end of the ride. Scattered among the scenes are also medallions that can be hit to earn bonus points.
The ride exit also has a screen for “Best Players of the Year,” assigning the top five rankings: junior officer, lieutenant, commander, captain and admiral. On Wednesday morning, all top five scores were in the 200,000s.
Unofficial estimates have the ride costing about $10 million, though Knott’s does not divulge the cost of its rides.
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