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Controversial Alton Towers Opinions

WickerwomanH

TS Member
Favourite Ride
Wicker Man
What are your most controversial AT opinions?

Some of mine are:
  • TWoDW is a bad investment. I think over the years there's been a number of different rehauls for that area and they've always struggled to survive the test of time. I think another IP is a bad decision and won't last more than maybe 5 years before seeming out of date, not to mention that now both children's areas are IPs. Also, as a concept it just seems strange to me, to theme this area around an author and his books? I think that towers areas are much more magical and timeless when they do their own in house themeing.
  • I'm a big fan of Thirteen! I think towers absolutely missed the mark with the promo campaign and it should have been marketed as more of a somewhat spooky family ride but as an actual attraction, it's great! Nice level of themeing, tame with a few thrills and the drop still gets me. I especially like being on the front row as you can't quite sew the actual drop after the lift hill, making it much more thrilling.
  • Similarly, I liked Sub-Terra! I only went on once since I was about 11 at the time and it was actually too intense for me, but looking back I really don't think it's all that bad.
  • Finally, I don't think spinball should be integrated into cbeebies land. I think this would make cbeebies land far too big and it would be out of place. Yes, spinball is slightly odd on its own, but I think the hospitality suite next to it should be removed and moved, and some flats added in its place to make adventureland more of an actual area.
Let me know what you think of these and your own controversial opinions!
 
I find Oblivion a bit dull. I'll ride it every time but no more than once.

Wicker Man pre show isn't very good. The projection mapping looks a bit laggy.

Duel was a very good upgrade from the Haunted House and the shooter element makes it a lot more fun.
 
I find Oblivion a bit dull. I'll ride it every time but no more than once.

Wicker Man pre show isn't very good. The projection mapping looks a bit laggy.

Duel was a very good upgrade from the Haunted House and the shooter element makes it a lot more fun.

Agree for the last two! I quite like the Wicker Man pre show but I do think it can be improved and hope it will be in the next few years. I never got to ride The Haunted House but I agree that the shooter element was a needed upgrade and brought it up to date. Duel needs a massive refresh though in my opinion, many of its effects are tired or broken these days.
 
I'm a big fan of Thirteen! I think towers absolutely missed the mark with the promo campaign and it should have been marketed as more of a somewhat spooky family ride but as an actual attraction, it's great! Nice level of themeing, tame with a few thrills and the drop still gets me. I especially like being on the front row as you can't quite sew the actual drop after the lift hill, making it much more thrilling.
I'm the same, I only rode it for the first time in 2017 and absolutely loved it! I completely agree that the marketing was too much and should've been toned down. The best bit of the layout is the indoor section- the drop track gets me every time even though I know it's there, and the backwards section is fun. The whole ride is a fun family coaster, and is even better in the dark! :)
 
  • Nemesis isn’t my favourite ride at Alton Towers. Don’t get me wrong, I really like Nemesis, and it’s a ride I always enjoy riding, but it’s not my favourite ride at the park by a long shot; it currently sits as my 4th favourite of the big 7, with Wicker Man, Rita and Oblivion ahead of it, in that order. It sits at about #19 in my coaster rankings at present (out of a total 74).
  • Leading on from that, I actually really enjoy Rita. I never used to particularly like it, but I had an absolutely brilliant ride on it last year that really made it shoot up my rankings; it’s now my 2nd favourite coaster at Alton Towers behind Wicker Man, and sits at roughly #13 in my coaster rankings.
  • Wicker Man is by far my favourite ride at Alton Towers, my second favourite coaster in the UK and my overall #3; it may not be the most intense, but I just think it’s an incredible amount of fun!
  • I think the park is more fun to visit now than it has ever been.
  • I think that the Stargazing Pods were a good move for the Resort because they fill an important niche within the accommodation lineup.
 
Agreed on Wicker Man. I can't get behind Rita though! I do think Rita gets too much flack but equally I think it's a short one trick pony thats not worth the often massive queue. It's good that the park has a launch coaster, but I think an improvement is needed soon. Or at least a better queue line!
 
Wickerman is a pretty terrible coaster - there’s minimal airtime and lots of unpleasant rattle and roughness. All disguised by some decent themeing and intermittent effects.

By far the worst GCI I’ve ridden. Don’t understand the love for it at all.
 
Wickerman is a pretty terrible coaster - there’s minimal airtime and lots of unpleasant rattle and roughness. All disguised by some decent themeing and intermittent effects.

By far the worst GCI I’ve ridden. Don’t understand the love for it at all.
Fair enough! It's the only GCI I've ridden to be fair so I'm probably biased haha
 
Wickerman is a pretty terrible coaster - there’s minimal airtime and lots of unpleasant rattle and roughness. All disguised by some decent themeing and intermittent effects.

By far the worst GCI I’ve ridden. Don’t understand the love for it at all.
I think it gets praised because it turned out to be a lot better than expected.

Compared to other GCI's I'd agree it's a bit crap. Especially last season it felt noticeably slower for some reason.

Overall though I really like it. A great addition to the park.
 
It’s also the only GCI I’ve ridden, but when I last rode last July, it felt blisteringly fast and airtime-filled, and I don’t remember it being at all rough, and I have a pretty low tolerance. Mind you, that was before they did that work on it and all the roughness and rattle complaints really started, as well as the complaints of it being slow, so I might have experienced it before it “went downhill” so to speak.

Hopefully they’ve sorted out whatever issue it was having towards the end of 2020 and it’s back running at its best in 2021!
 
What are your most controversial AT opinions?

Some of mine are:
  • TWoDW is a bad investment. I think over the years there's been a number of different rehauls for that area and they've always struggled to survive the test of time. I think another IP is a bad decision and won't last more than maybe 5 years before seeming out of date, not to mention that now both children's areas are IPs. Also, as a concept it just seems strange to me, to theme this area around an author and his books? I think that towers areas are much more magical and timeless when they do their own in house themeing.
  • I'm a big fan of Thirteen! I think towers absolutely missed the mark with the promo campaign and it should have been marketed as more of a somewhat spooky family ride but as an actual attraction, it's great! Nice level of themeing, tame with a few thrills and the drop still gets me. I especially like being on the front row as you can't quite sew the actual drop after the lift hill, making it much more thrilling.
  • Similarly, I liked Sub-Terra! I only went on once since I was about 11 at the time and it was actually too intense for me, but looking back I really don't think it's all that bad.
  • Finally, I don't think spinball should be integrated into cbeebies land. I think this would make cbeebies land far too big and it would be out of place. Yes, spinball is slightly odd on its own, but I think the hospitality suite next to it should be removed and moved, and some flats added in its place to make adventureland more of an actual area.
Let me know what you think of these and your own controversial opinions!
I agree with all of these except for the first one, maybe I'll change my mind later in the year but I'm willing to give TWoDW a chance to see how it goes down. Love Thirteen also, and Sub-Terra was one of my favourite rides to be honest (it was a top 3 for me at Towers whilst it was open) and it probably still would be, although it did slip once they got rid of the scare actors.
 
I agree with all of these except for the first one, maybe I'll change my mind later in the year but I'm willing to give TWoDW a chance to see how it goes down. Love Thirteen also, and Sub-Terra was one of my favourite rides to be honest (it was a top 3 for me at Towers whilst it was open) and it probably still would be, although it did slip once they got rid of the scare actors.

Oh yeah I'll definitely give it a chance and I think in its first few years of running it'll be a popular area of the park but ultimately I think it won't stand the test of time and we'll see yet another rehaul of that area. I really think Cloud Cuckoo Land at its peak was a great kids area, probably mainly due to the fact I'm not a fan of IPs, but it wasn't looked after properly and ended up being pretty empty and in disrepair towards the end. I do think we can all agree though that the number of unused buildings in that area (not to mention Towers Street) is depressing
 
I’m also on the side of the fence that doesn’t really enjoy the smiler... If being tossed around through inversion after inversion with no sense of layout or achievement is your thing then I guess you’d like it! But give me a ride on Nemesis or Wickerman any day! At least they have layouts that take you on a journey! I’ve always thought when two airtime hills are the highlight of an inversion based coaster... then it’s not put together all that well. But each to their own when it comes to coasters for sure.
 
Going to go for a properly controversial one but would rather be on Th13teen than Nemesis. Of course, the pacing and scenery of Nemesis is unmatched but it's a pretty shaky coaster that has a fair bit of head-banging. Meanwhile, 13 is considerably smoother and has a unique ending, even once you know exactly what will happen. And of course, who doesn't enjoy the final "launch" into the station at the end.
 
I’m also on the side of the fence that doesn’t really enjoy the smiler... If being tossed around through inversion after inversion with no sense of layout or achievement is your thing then I guess you’d like it! But give me a ride on Nemesis or Wickerman any day! At least they have layouts that take you on a journey! I’ve always thought when two airtime hills are the highlight of an inversion based coaster... then it’s not put together all that well. But each to their own when it comes to coasters for sure.
As much as I’m not a huge Smiler fan, I’ll admit that I actually really like The Smiler’s layout, personally. It’s mainly the roughness that makes it less enjoyable for me; if it were smoother, I feel as though I’d rate it quite a bit higher.

Out of interest, what do you mean when you say that Nemesis and Wicker Man “take you on a journey”? Surely any ride takes you on a journey, in a sense?
 
One thing I've consistently maintained is that Th13teen's actually a solid family coaster, and fulfils that brief while still being a bit more thrilling than might be traditionally be expected of such a ride. It didn't help whatsoever that the marketing was too dark for the nature of the ride, and that's what's hurt its reputation among a number of enthusiasts. The drop tends to get me every time, even though I've done it on many occasions.
 
I think they need to fully drop Gretal from the " Freaky Five", she is a sadistic bully!
I guess she could work as a villain but I don't think it needs a villain.
 
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