2018: General Discussion

[Dave]

So it's official blackpool pleasure beach has the best UK rollercoaster!! (Source TPW blog on icon vip pass event) the wicker man honeymoon period is over.

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Although i expect icon to be fantastic every new ride TPW go on is “the best ever”.

Rating coasters is such a subjective thing, that really doesn’t matter. All I want is as many fantastic coasters on my doorstop as humanly possible, I don’t really care which park they are in.

Also don’t think anyone thought Wickerman was the best rollercoaster in the UK. It just exceeded expectations.

 

[themeparkfan]

Well at least BPB let some of us common folk get a bit of action £25 to get this icon pass wasn't too badly priced a few hundred bought apparently and operations spot on no celebrity only treatment like at AT. They also seem to have done their homework with ops and no restraints issues

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[Dave]

Well at least BPB let some of us common folk get a bit of action £25 to get this icon pass wasn't too badly priced a few hundred bought apparently and operations spot on no celebrity only treatment like at AT. They also seem to have done their homework with ops and no restraints issues

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That’s one perspective, the other is they are ripping off enthusiasts and the rich celebs will be getting a free go on the media day....

Mack mega coasters are fantastic machines, I would be shocked if they where having any major mechanical problems at this point. Although GCI make good woodies they do have a reputation for requiring some bedding in.

 

[themeparkfan]

And only allowing FT by getting gold or platinum FT packages isn't ripping you off? mmmmmmm . Mandy does have to make some money back on her investment after all. She doesn't have the money of the mighty merlin who are second only to Disney and switch off the special emersive effects off after 4 weeks to save money.

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[Dave]

And only allowing FT by getting gold or platinum FT packages isn't ripping you off? mmmmmmm . Mandy does have to make some money back on her investment after all. She doesn't have the money of the mighty merlin who are second only to Disney and switch off the special emersive effects off after 4 weeks to save money.

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1) Who said Merlin don’t rip you off, this forum is the temple of Merlin haters.

2) The fire effects were not switched off to save money, they are having some serious problems with them. I’m sure by 2020 they will be switched off to save money though.

3) You really think Amanda Thompson is so short of cash that she has to pull £25 off a few geeks to keep the park going....,

 

[MakoMania]

Give it a couple of months and the Icon honeymoon phase will be over. People will be complaining there's not enough airtime, the launches aren't strong enough, it could have done with a couple of extra inversions, that it's just not as good as Helix or Blue Fire... Everything everyone has sort of thought in the back of their heads for almost a year now, but has been too afraid to tell themselves the truth.

Prophecy, I'm afraid your prophecy is wrong in this instance. The Icon honeymoon is permanent, we finally have a high class ride in the UK!

 

[themeparkfan]

Well regarding the fire effects of WM I thought that was the usp of the ride? What is it without them? Errrrr a typical wooden coaster and mandy has 3 of them.

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[delta79]

And only allowing FT by getting gold or platinum FT packages isn't ripping you off? mmmmmmm . Mandy does have to make some money back on her investment after all. She doesn't have the money of the mighty merlin who are second only to Disney and switch off the special emersive effects off after 4 weeks to save money.

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They are a business, as such have to balance income with customer experience.

Looking at only the high end FT package getting FT to a new ride, is a good move in the way they cut delays in the main queue by using financial disincentive to keep the FT queue low.

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[Matt N]

Prophecy, I'm afraid your prophecy is wrong in this instance. The Icon honeymoon is permanent, we finally have a high class ride in the UK!

I don't think WM's high reviews are because of a honeymoon phase, either; I personally think that it is genuinely as good as the reviews suggest, and a stunning overall experience!

 

[themeparkfan]

With no fire effects?

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[Prophecy]

I mean, Wicker Man is, frankly, a poor ride that enthusiasts only enjoy because it's not as poor as they expected. If it doesn't bed in and improve over the next season or two, people will loathe it as the stench of missed opportunity it wreaks.

 

[Brad97]

In your opinion, sure. Fire effects or not, It's still a very good ride, that won't change.

 

[Error]

Overall WM craps all over Icon as a whole experience, lets be honest here.

 

[Dave]

Well regarding the fire effects of WM I thought that was the usp of the ride? What is it without them? Errrrr a typical wooden coaster and mandy has 3 of them.

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One of the great mysteries of geek life, two roller coasters get built in two different parks and instead of thinking “nice we have two new coasters to enjoy” the teenage fanboys spend time arguing about them.

As said the fire is off for technical reasons and the suppliers have been asked to sort the problem.

Icon I’m sure will be a great coaster but we have had world class coasters before and will continue to get world class rollercoasters in this country. I am not buying the hyperbole being marched out by the Youtube generation as I am old enough to remember 1994’s openings when we surprise surprise got two world class rollercoasters.

 

[themeparkfan]

Mmmmmm you can't really compare wickerman to the big one or nemesis really it's a good ride maybe but doesn't make the same impact memory wise

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[Rick]

And only allowing FT by getting gold or platinum FT packages isn't ripping you off? mmmmmmm.

Oh please. It makes Fastrack more of a premium product which can only be a good thing if people are concerned about volumes.

Having a bunch of one shots available isn't helpful for your headline ride.

 

[Matt N]

In my opinion, it's great that we have two fantastic coasters to enjoy! Both look to be absolutely fantastic coasters for their respective parks (well, I've ridden WM and it's currently my #9 out of the 42 coasters I've ridden and my 3rd favourite coaster at Alton, but I haven't experienced Icon yet) In my opinion, they both look like fantastic coasters, but I think they look to win the battle in different ways to one another. Icon looks to win in the physical ride hardware stakes, but Wicker Man looks to triumph where theming and overall experience are concerned, even without fire effects. So it's a win win situation for everybody!

Anyway, back on-topic; is anyone at Alton today? If so, what are queues and operations like?

 

[Dave]

Mmmmmm you can't really compare wickerman to the big one or nemesis really it's a good ride maybe but doesn't make the same impact memory wise

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When you read a body of text, a paragraph is used to denote discrete points within longer prose. Paragraph one of my post dealt with the Wickerman. paragraph two dealt with your obsession with the fire effects, paragraph three was focused on the argument about world class standard in U.K. theme parks.

I don’t think wickerman is an overtly world class rollercoaster. It’s a well rounded experience which maybe edges the ride in that direction but track and train is very average.

But Icon is not the first world class ride in the U.K. but I am glad that we have got a new one to add to the list.

 

[Rojo]

Great to see some entertainers at the front of the wickerman. Great atmosphere on the park too. No matter what you think about wickerman as a ride, it does seem to have put a spring back in parks step. Hopefully this momentum is continued.

Sad notes: I've still yet to see flames on the wickerman and Nemesis on one train is poor when the park is busy. (Assumed this due to the hour long queue)

 

[Benzin]

Hate seeing the term "finally getting a high class coaster", makes it sound like all we've had for 20/30 years are SLCs or Tivolis...

Stuff like that isn't helping the hyperbole whatsoever, because a few people don't like Nemesis (for example) for... Well whatever reason...