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Did Th13teen disappoint you?

Were you disappointed?

  • Yes

    Votes: 32 32.3%

  • No

    Votes: 67 67.7%
  • Total voters
    99
I was disapointed when I knew the coaster type, I was more disapointed when I rode it, I was even more disapointed when I rode it again with death trims added to the first drop.

The drop track and the backwards launch is a whole lot of fun, but that doesn't excuse the outdoor section being an absolutely crap kiddie coaster and the indoor section being devoid of theatrics that could make that sequence really special.

It's cheap, it's lazy and for me it was the true start of the 'that'll do' attitude that has beset Merlin ever since.
 
When it opened - no. Now - yes.

Biggest disappointment was the first not being very dark! Quite the opposite. It’s a good ride for kids, but I rarely go on it these days.
 
I like it more these days, but I was definitely disappointed, bar the first drop and turn.

Had a similar experience with my son, who loved the first drop and hated the crypt effects and didn't ride again for years.

The best ride I had on 13 was with my sister, as she didn't know about the dark section. That was because of her reaction though nothing else.
 
We all love a hypothetical re-theme, right?

Is there a world in which 13 could be slightly softened thematically and changes made to the hardware so the height requirement drops 10cm and it becomes a really really good kids ride?
 
BSwiss said:
We all love a hypothetical re-theme, right?

Is there a world in which 13 could be slightly softened thematically and changes made to the hardware so the height requirement drops 10cm and it becomes a really really good kids ride?
Click to expand...
The only way to do that really is removing the only unique feature of the drop.

Better option would do have built the ride with the outdoor section twice as long.
 
I think 13 disappointed a lot of people due to the marketing which made it sound something it wasn't. If it had been marketed as a family ride I think it'd have had a much more positive response. It's actually a good ride but when you're advertising Nemesis and you get a mine train it was going to disappoint.
 
As someone who more likely rides as a single rider one of my favourite things about riding Th13teen is seeing people’s reactions. I’ve seen fully grown rugby player lads absolutely bricking it over the drop section. For me, that is something that brings joy to this perhaps somewhat disappointing ride.

As the years I have gone by I think I seen it more for what perhaps Wardley originally intended it to be before the Angove treatment on the marketing- just sheer family fun! I think the ride could’ve been a whole lot different with a lighter theme- maybe a magical forest rather than dark?

However though, perhaps the ride did buck the trend of even younger markets being appealed to darker themes. I think younger children these days are exposed to some quite dark themes - maybe Th13teen was simply ahead of its time?
 
Yeah, the ride clearly still surprises people who are unaware. Even now, on my last trip earlier this year, I was sat in front of a young couple.

Their words as we entered the drop building? Well I'm glad we didn't queue for that, what a waste of time. Oh my god aaaaggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh ...

It's a good ride, but it's main appeal is not knowing what's coming so it does lose some impact once you've done it I feel.
 
Dissapointed me, made it sound like it would be way worse than it actually was didn't they claim there was an age restriction for it? The drop is quite a good laugh if you take someone on and their not expecting it lol. Other than that I don't really like the ride that much so I'll skip it on busier days. I know some people really love it but I just find it fairly underwhelming.
 
When Thirteen was first announced and we saw its gothic theme my first thought that we were going to have something of a sequel to Hex given their close proximity, though given what we got in the end in making the area look worse than before, you have to wonder why couldn't they have kept the dinosaur theme in the first place and with hindsight and I've said this God knows how many times before, they should've built Thirteen I'm Gloomy Wood that would have not only expanded that area but would prevent a clashing of two similar spooky woodland themes on the park and honestly plonking Thirteen, with a different layout ofc, would have been cheaper and safe the effort of retheming Ug Land into Dark Forest and I haven't gotten into the marketing and ride yet.

Marketing was a mistake as I have no clue what they were thinking unless ride designers and marketing were utterly not on the same page which you have to question who is to blame for that and while the drop section and indoor section are fun, the outdoor area is utterly pants, not helped by the trim and if any ride on the park needs not just a mere retrack but new layout entirely then it is Thirteen without shadow of a doubt, some will say Smiler but honestly you get more with that ride at least compared to Thirteen.

Had the outdoor layout had more to it say the first drop going into a wee tunnel, pops of airtime, scenery interaction and just a little bit of a longer ride in general then I'd be more forgiven to it and even without the stupid marketing, it's just a bad ride in general.

And another thing, I HATE that scaffolding theming with the fury of a thousand Merlin cuts, changing that into a completely the rest of the crypt theming on the building would be an improvement for sure but yes, Thirteen isn't one of my favourites for sure.
 
I was underwhelmed, but not necessary 'disappointed', per se, because I wasn't expecting much from it to begin with (hence why I never made a dedicated trip to visit it when it first opened, and have only ever ridden it once).

Granted: the 'big surprise' element had already been ruined for me thanks to Midlands Today (I think), so maybe I would have felt differently if it had caught me by surprise (as intended).

Also: now that it has a single-rider queue, perhaps I may give it another go (until now, I couldn't justify queueing up for it when I could simply go on another ride such as The Smiler instead!).
 
I think secret weapon has nailed it on the head. The queue time never justify's it.

Was I disappointed on the first go. Slightly. I learned a lesson with Thirteen. Which was keep away from spoilers. Plus, we rode it on a beautiful sunny day in may for the first time. Had Id have done it on dark and dingy or scarefest night. I would have had a better impression of it.

Ideally, it should have been built going in and around a mock up of the towers ruins. For me anyway.
 
After waiting 5 years for a coaster, I’d say for us enthusiasts it was a disappointing edition. The need for a world’s first ate into the budget for the rest of the ride, meaning we ended up with that below par outdoor section. We rightly had high expectations for it, considering the additions of Spinball and Rita which were done on the relative cheap when compared to what had come before in Air and Oblivion. I still find it a fun little ride though, the outdoor section is bland as hell but I still love that drop and the backwards section.

For the majority of the ticket going public, who still loves a gimmick I’d still consider it a success on that front. It still gets queues, it’s still clearly popular and it’s one of those rides that gets talked about amongst my non enthusiast friends.

I actually quite liked the early marketing for this with the short blipverts, and the full TV ad was excellent too (love a ITHOTMK remix). Sadly, the Morwenna obsession with cheap marketing tactics to get column inches in the tabloids detracted away from it, and bigged up the ride experience to set thrill seekers up for disappointment. Alex Reid, liability waivers, age requirements, “psychoaster” and Brendan Walker. Let’s not forget GMTV giving it all away by showing the whole ride in a live POV before the damn thing opened. Then ITV news went and showed it again later in the day with an even clearer view. The fume on TTF that day was…memorable to say the least!
 
As I'm from the South East I don't get up to Alton as much as I'd like, so I knew all about it before my first ride.

I'd say it was as expected based on my knowledge of it at the time. I do think it could be a lot better than it is though as I tend to like coasters that run close to the ground surrounded by trees etc. it seems like a bit of a wasted opportunity for AT.
 
It's a good ride. Let's not take anything away from it. It's clearly a victim of its own gimmick. In a similar way to Air, it's a technical exercise to showcase what can be done. In another park with less build restrictions and bigger budgets. You are looking at one of best coasters in the country, I feel. I've said before, that first part is missing some drama. it just needs some scenery. To either go through or make the corners feel tighter. The idea of woods closing in is all over the queue line and station, just not around the track itself. Which is a shame.

I understand why people will feel disappointed. Out of all the SW's it's the tamest. But it's still worthy of the name Secret weapon.

Dare I say this. It had the best add campaign of the lot.
 
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