Oblivion

[soundwave96]

I have started this topic so that people can post their thoughts and feelings about Oblivion.

Oblivion is my favourite ride in the park because of the buzz you get off the ride and and the drop is just exhilarating especially when the mist hits your face.

please post your reviews, would love to read them.

 

[BowMan]

It scares me like hell! I still haven't been on it. I was going to go on it on my last visit but it was broken the whole day.

 

[soundwave96]

You should go on it because it is a great ride and you get a great buzz off of it, but when you are at the top of the drop you think what am i doing on this? But once you have been on it you will keep going on it, and you will love it.

 

[JamesDLD]

I used to love this ride so much, but it soon became predictable and dare I say it, boring

I much prefer Apocalypse over Blivvy these days.

 

[Alastair]

I fear that Oblivion is only in a downward spiral from now on. It's looking rather poor and reliability issues seem to be increasing as time passes - especially with the brake run.

Hopefully with SW7's imminence something can be done about the paintwork at least, if not the performance issues.

 

[Rick]

I used to love this ride so much, but it soon became predictable and dare I say it, boring

Wonderful ride. Always was, always will be. One trick pony rides like that don't tend to get better or worse, it's the attitude of people that changes.

All round great rides (like Nemesis) are much more enduring in people's affections.

 

[SLC]

The most intimidating ride I've ever been on. It has a lot of suspense on the long crawl up the lift hill, but I get such a buzz after coming of it. Better than SheiKra and presumably Griffon.

 

[Danielle]

My favourite ride. It's the only one that still 'thrills' me every time I'm on it! I love seeing/hearing the reactions of others before, during and after, too. I'm beaming on every ride photo (sad, but true).

 

[BigAl]

Just back from Alton Towers and I have to say, the state of Oblivion is beyond a joke now.

As our shuttle pulled up to the station before we got off, I noticed the covering on the station that's meant to look like stone has all ripped off and it's revealed the wood beneath it and it's just disgusting. The track and supports are just dire and the whole place is filthy dirty.

For such a world-class ride that's iconic, it's just atrocious. If Oblivion and the rest of X-Sector isn't salvaged come SW7's opening, I believe it will remain as it is until Merlin are either gone or when Oblivion's time has come.

 

[Dave]

Yeah Oblivion looks terrible, the faux metal archways are covered in moss too and the Tower in the queue with SW4 engraved on it is bubbling.

.. And don't get me started on Nemesis they have just cut a piece of theming off it was so rotten

 

[Jono]

I used to love this ride so much, but it soon became predictable and dare I say it, boring

Put your hands up? When I do it I feel like I'm free falling!

It's well fun!

 

[CoasterCrazyChris]

.. And don't get me started on Nemesis they have just cut a piece of theming off it was so rotten

Really? What was it?



As for Oblivion, it's practically beyond salvage now. I will always hold a special affection for the ride, as an early childhood memory and the sheer terror of the first ride plus I can appreciate what it did for the UK theme park industry back in the day; but it doesn't do much for me anymore.

I would actually go as far as saying that for me anyway, the best part of the 'Oblivion experience' nowadays is watching the shuttles dissappear down the hole! With the advent of Stealth, SAW and The Swarm I think Oblivion has been diminished. SAW seems to be the ride on every teenagers lips these days. Nevertheless, Oblivion remains the best spectator coaster in the UK (and Europe?) with Nemesis and Stealth just a little way behind. Not to mention an icon for Alton Towers.

Looking torwards 2013 and SW7, I can see a short-term popularity boost for Oblivion but I think the long-term outlook is bleaker. Could it become the next Corkscrew? Overshadowed by a new (and better?) ride in close proximity? Time will tell.

 

[Olii]

Only ride at Alton that still manages to intimidate me, well, apart from Sub-Terra, but even after riding it well over 40 times, it still gives me the jitters
I just love the sort of mini high feeling that lasts until the end of the brake run every time

 

[Dave]

Chris it was the tentical that ran over the track between the station and lift hill

 

[Martin]

That's depressing. I just... urgh... Jesus, Alton...

As for Oblivion, you can only ride it for the first time once, you'll never experience that level of terror again, but it doesn't mean I never get a surge of adrenaline when the track disappears from view, and the drop will never not give me a massive kick. There's nothing that can come to close to the thrill or the bang-per-buck that Oblivion gives. Plus it's by far the best themed ride in the country, it may not be the boldest or most obvious, but everything about it is designed to add to the effect, you have to admire the vision and craft that went in to creating something with such level of detail.

It's in a seriously bad state, it needs repainting, cleaning and a lot of TLC, it's pathetic the state it's now in. I've no idea why they've allowed the two most famous rides in the park, if not the country alongside PMBO, get in to such a bad state, but it needs fixing fast, and the longer they leave it, they worse the rides will look and function, the more it will cost to put right and the more money they will lose from guests being dissatisfied.

We all thought the vote thing and Sub Terra would see Nemesis get fixed, but we were wrong (I see they've given up on colouring the water now), all they did was repaint the gun thing, so I've no hopes SW7 will result in any improvements to the X Sector area at all.

 

[Benzin]

We all thought the vote thing and Sub Terra would see Nemesis get fixed, but we were wrong (I see they've given up on colouring the water now)

That's cos of the ride area flooding earlier in the year and the colourant blocking up the piping... Rather than sheer laziness/cost saving...

Every park in the UK could do with repainting their rides, but we just don't, and never have... It's silly really as everyone else in the world seems to know that presentation is everything, yet we rarely can be arsed to repaint a ride (although granted, Nemesis is pretty tricky to get to in parts, but this is an overall comment) and when we do, we seem to give up about halfway up the 10th support with a "sod that" approach (great example is Fury, looks so silly half pink half red) unless someone's thrown enough money at the ride (Sonic)...

Maybe it's costs? I dunno how much it would cost the parks to employ suitably trained persons in addition to the numerous pots of paint required to paint up any ride... That might be the issue more than anything, finding people to a decently trained degree sufficient for those bods over at H&S...

Either way, it seems ingrained in most UK parks not to regularly repaint rides after opening...

 

[Kurtis Rogers]

i would love blivvy to have random drop times if possible so you would not know when you were going to drop

 

[BigAl]

i would love blivvy to have random drop times if possible so you would not know when you were going to drop

It does. Sometimes it holds you for a split second before dropping and others it hangs for a few seconds. Can't remember if it has ever held cars for a little longer than what it does now though.

 

[Anonymous]

I'm sure Ive been on a car before and it hasn't held at all and just went straight down. I have to say that's been my most intense experience on Oblivion as I was expecting to be held longer.

 

[Dave]

It does. Sometimes it holds you for a split second before dropping and others it hangs for a few seconds. Can't remember if it has ever held cars for a little longer than what it does now though.

That's not intentional, its a fault with some of the cars, it should hold for 3 seconds.