Am I missing something here? Where is Oblivion's 'brand' being used?
Let me start by saying that I don't agree with what Merlin is doing at Gardaland. Lets clear that up right away.
But can we just look at what Garda have here that will make a massive difference in the long term? First of all what exactly is Oblivion's 'brand'? Ignoring the O symbol, there is the colour orange. Those are the only solid links here, and I assure you that this is not the first ride since 1998 to have the colour orange in it.
Aside from the poster and video we have little to go on. Yes, the O is a big part of Oblivion's look, but as of yet we have no idea how prominent this will be in the finished product. At the moment it seems like it's become a logo for a news channel.
On the subject of the video, which is probably the biggest indication of theming and story we have yet, there is barely any Oblivion connection (News logo aside). They are going for some sort of disturbed being or entity, with what looks like a volcano thrown in for good measure. If anything the connections being made are much closer to Nemesis, Inferno, and The Swarm all in one!
You use Nemesis Inferno as a comparison. Again, another poorly executed attraction, and one I have no care for whatsoever. Name aside there is no real link to its predecessor at all. I always get the feeling that this is the reason so many enthusiasts detest the ride and slate it so much. It has no need to make the blatant link to its Staffordshire counterpart, and it was clearly used for nothing but to create a national buzz and give those further afield a reason to visit Thorpe.
Drop the Nemesis name and simply call it Inferno and I think there would be far less hate thrown at it. It wouldn't make it a
good ride. The layout isn't much to write home about in my book. But it would remove that expectation which the name created, and remove the obvious link to a superior attraction which it simple cannot match.
Fast-forward to now and as far as I can see is Italy getting an attraction which has some small resemblance to a UK one at this point. However, we know already that the ride is going to be pretty different. For starters it's going to be white. From that alone Oblivion and this new attraction will be drastically different when complete. It's going to give off a totally different vibe and feel.
With Ninferno they copied a name. The most obvious form of link there is. Here, aside from a logo that we know little about, and an accent colour there is less connection. They have instead created two products which have some likenesses, but are ultimately each their own.
Look at Milka and Cadbury. Both owned by the same company, and both having similarities. They're both purple, they both involve a white, milk splash style logo. But they are not the same (Well, not just yet, but Mondelez is working on that one!). If you didn't see the two side by side and knew they share a parent company you probably wouldn't think anything of it.
Until Garda reveals a solid, firm link which we know is here to stay (Oblivisimo anybody?
), I would not say they have stolen a 'brand'. It's still early days. There's time yet for us to be proven wrong, and perhaps in a couple of years when the hype and marketing has died down we will hardly even notice any connection.
As I said at the start of this post, I really dislike what they are doing here, and I do agree that it is cheap in some respects. But I don't think that they are exactly destroying Oblivion in doing so. At the end of the day if they do try and rip Oblivion off and the new ride isn't up to scratch it will be Garda which suffers, not Alton.
