Correct me if I’m wrong here, but I think what
@James is trying to get at is that changes to the ride make the retrack project more marketable to folks who have never visited the park before, or folks who might be undecided on whether to return and need that extra push, or folks who won’t return unless the park put in something new.
Compared to a new ride, at least, a like-for-like retrack is an inherently difficult thing to market and sell to those groups mentioned above. Ultimately, it is those groups who the park want to market towards when making a large CAPEX investment. And if I’m talking frankly, those groups probably make up the majority of the target demographic to some extent.
Imagine that someone has visited the park before, but is feeling a bit jaded by the current offering. They won’t want to visit again until the park have put in a new ride or are offering something tangibly “new” for them to experience. Rebuilding Nemesis exactly as was and keeping everything the same would likely have them asking “I’ve done Nemesis before; if it’s exactly the same as it was, then why should I come back and experience it again just because you’ve replaced the track and given the existing scenery a lick of paint?”. If you keep the ride
exactly the same as before, making a case to this crowd to make them return for the retracked Nemesis may be tough, because nothing tangible has changed.
Making some changes, on the other hand, does give the park an excuse to sell the retracked Nemesis as a tangibly new and different experience. Theming changes are tangible changes, and while not everyone cares about theming, having a different theme and an altered backstory that revolves around Nemesis being “reborn” or “revived” or whatever, as well as new theming objects, new trains, differently coloured track and other changes does present tangible change that might make these folks want to come back and ride it a little more. The park can at least present the veneer of a “new” experience, which would be very hard if the ride were kept exactly as it was before.
Most refurbishments of this ilk like to present the veneer of a “new” experience, and I’d wager that it’s in large part for that reason. When retracking the Incredible Hulk Coaster, Universal Orlando completely changed the queue, made pretty drastic alterations to the storyline and added on-board sound amongst other new enhancements. When Merlin retracked Colossos at Heide Park, they completely changed the theme, enhanced it with various additions including a giant flaming structure, and renamed it “Colossos: Kampf der Giganten”. Even Europa Park, a park that is arguably more nostalgic and faithful to its history than most, gave Eurosat a completely new theme, including a lavish new queue, a brand new exterior and various thematic touches throughout the ride, when they retracked it.
My point is that it is very hard to market this type of refurbishment and make a case for why people should come and experience the ride in its refurbished form without offering something tangibly different, and for folks who may not visit or revisit without a “new” experience being offered, this is very important.