2018: Wicker Man - General Discussion - SPOILERS! - Part One

Anyone realised yet that the station building isn't the same layout as either of the stations in the planning applications? I thinks it's ended up being a hybrid between the two stations. I noticed this when I saw that the first turn of the ride is now indoors but on both planning applications it was outside. And it seems the station and maintenance area are one building again opposed to two separate buildings. Has anyone else noticed?

Poisson said:

Wickerman burning is a long line of folklore tales and Druids being Druids, not just a film

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Yes, but it's still an awful choice of theme (even without an IP) which has zero appeal.

Unless they somehow blend the wickerman folklore to tie in with Mutiny Bay pirates I can't possibly see how this could work.

I'm a weirdo, but I actually would like the Wickerman theme. Has anyone seen Rowan Morrison though?

I like the idea.

But my gripe is it is ANOTHER sinister themed Merlin product.



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1) This is incredibly small
2) Its NOT an SW ride as we know/want/expect it
3) It will be a decent family coaster, nothing else
4) Missed opportunity

As long as there are good pockets of airtime which woodies are best at, I'd be happy

Steve88 said:

As long as there are good pockets of airtime which woodies are best at, I'd be happy

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Agreed!! Yes it may not be a SW as we know it, but that doesn't mean it isn't going to be a solid ride. If you think of it now as a family coaster as opposed to an all out thrill machine, then it will be a great coaster! I am yet to see a GCI that looks anything other than a solid ride!

The main issue here will be, if towers pull a Th13teen again and market it as the most horrifically terrifyingly terrifying thing ever ever ever!! :\

Steve88 said:

As long as there are good pockets of airtime which woodies are best at, I'd be happy

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I'd be surprised if this had much airtime, unless it has some kind of launch to gain more speed I think it's too small and will be a little PMBO-ish in not traversing the hill crests fast enough to do anything. The initial drop is also fairly miniscule. Only my opinion though!

JB1985 said:

1) This is incredibly small
2) Its NOT an SW ride as we know/want/expect it
3) It will be a decent family coaster, nothing else
4) Missed opportunity

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I don't want to sound too negative about the ride, but you've summed it all up there. It will probably be a very good little family coaster like Thirteen.

I don't even take issue with a family coaster being an SW like others do, infact I think the park needs another one. It's just that for the money being spent and the impact this will have on the themed areas on either side, this coaster is so small and lacklustre looking. Good, unique, fun - just like Thirteen, I have no doubt. But is that really good enough?

As for the theme, if it's themed to pirates then it will complete Mutiny Bay rather nicely as I've always felt it's looked unfinished around there (the fences make it feel more piratey than looking at the Flume did). But being so close to the Rapids and the KC pathway, I can't see how that wouldn't ruin KC in the process. If it's African themed, then it would make KC feel massive and immersive, but would dominate Mutiny Bay and pretty much finish it off.

My prediction is that it will be themed to neither though, thus ruining both areas.

I didn't realise we had so many crystal ball experts on TS.

Have any of you actually been on a GCI? I have been on 10 and even the worst/oldest had airtime.

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AstroDan said:

I didn't realise we had so many crystal ball experts on TS.

Have any of you actually been on a GCI? I have been on 10 and even the worst/oldest had airtime.

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It's clear who has been on one, for they aren't complaining about a lack of airtime

Well one thing is for absolute certain - Blackpool Pleasure Beach are going to win 2018! They may even claw their way back to where they were pre-1994.

I find it ironic that their new ride is mostly ground-hugging, aside from a couple of high points. Seems like a coaster that would have been far better placed at Towers tbh.

I've never had the opportunity to ride a modern wooden coaster, and I'm pretty sure the majority of the British gp haven't! So even if it isn't "groundbreaking", it'l certainly be something new, fun & different!

*hopes SW9 will be a ground hugging intamin mega in the valley...

If this ride was in ADDITION to a new flume all would be good.

However it all feels like a step backwards, the park has lost an (ageing) but staple theme park ride for yet ANOTHER coaster, regardless of the material it's built from.

Asides from coasters and kiddies rides the park is offering very little else in the way of variety, I think a lot of people will be frustrated during the summer when they realise the rapids is (pretty much) the only ride to cool down on now both The Flume and Ripsaw are gone.

Literally Hex, Duel and the Rapids are the only variety rides the park offers now for adults unless you count the two knackered 80's flats.

Blizzard said:

I've never had the opportunity to ride a modern wooden coaster, and I'm pretty sure the majority of the British gp haven't! So even if it isn't "groundbreaking", it'l certainly be something new, fun & different!

*hopes SW9 will be a ground hugging intamin mega in the valley...

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They are massively different to classic woodies, most I have done have been great (ridden 3 GCIs and all are top 10) but they can also be awful (Bandit curse ye)

PeteB said:

Well one thing is for absolute certain - Blackpool Pleasure Beach are going to win 2018! They may even claw their way back to where they were pre-1994.

I find it ironic that their new ride is mostly ground-hugging, aside from a couple of high points. Seems like a coaster that would have been far better placed at Towers tbh.

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The problem you have is no one outside of three internet forums care who wins 2018, the parks didn't very much in 1994 when they last went head to head.

Also this "it isn't an SW in the way we know them" perplexes me. We have had 6 SW's and only 3 of them where designed as thrill machines.

I truely get that a cohort of people want to hate Alton Towers as they truely hate Merlin, god knows we can all see Merlin are doing their best to destroy it and I lost a lot of love for the place last year. But this constant predictive negativity before a single piece of wood has been installed, for a ride style we have begged to have for over a decade is perplexing, whether it involves losing a staple ride type or not (I really expect them to get a flume ride in the future but I don't think one is a deal breaker for a park in a temperate climate zone).

Icon will be almost certainly our choice of ride, it ticks the geek boxes (though if it was built at Towers we would moan about lack of theming and compare constantly to Helix). But there isn't some fundamental law that says only one good roller coaster can be built on the British isles in any one year!

Then again it might be a pile of **** (word omitted in fear of Sazzle ban stick) though GCI are not generally known for building bad coasters. I guess like the world over I need to stop expecting objectivity in theme park discussion

Dave said:

The problem you have is no one outside of three internet forums care who wins 2018, the parks didn't very much in 1994 when they last went head to head.

Also this "it isn't an SW in the way we know them" perplexes me. We have had 6 SW's and only 3 of them where designed as thrill machines.

I truely get that a cohort of people want to hate Alton Towers as they truely hate Merlin, god knows we can all see Merlin are doing their best to destroy it and I lost a lot of love for the place last year. But this constant predictive negativity before a single piece of wood has been installed, for a ride style we have begged to have for over a decade is perplexing, whether it involves losing a staple ride type or not (I really expect them to get a flume ride in the future but I don't think one is a deal breaker for a park in a temperate climate zone).

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For a moment there I thought you were going to join us over on the dark side, though I still sense a certain level of frustration. Don't worry, it'll come sooner or later.

* symphathy pat on the back *

Dave said:

Then again it might be a pile of **** (word omitted in fear of Sazzle ban stick)

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Even with that she still got me. Watch out.

With anyone complaining with the length of the layout when looking my picture, I was quite inaccurate so I made this picture with an accurate layout of the coaster with annotations.


Sorry no stick wickerman here.

I reckon this will be a quite good ride with some good landscaping, theming and pacing. I doubt it will be a short ride, especially when comparing it with other major rides in the park.

Dave said:

Icon will be almost certainly our choice of ride, it ticks the geek boxes (though if it was built at Towers we would moan about lack of theming and compare constantly to Helix).

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Don't forget we would also complain about the fact it's being marketed as having more interactions with other rides than any other coaster in the world! Typical Merlin marketing!