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The World of David Walliams: General Discussion

pluk said:
No, it's a comparison of guest experience with guest experience. The exact same thing. The customer does not and should not care what stage of the capex cycle this comes from.

Its advertised as a new world, but it very clearly isn't. AT knew their budget but have spread it so thin it gives a bad impression to the visitor. If they'd spent what they've spent on just opening DWs GG they could have done that properly, effectively had the same thing to market, and looked to expand into a world in the future.
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Yes they could have done like Charlie and the Choc factory and made it one ride as part of cloud cuckoo land for now and then expanded the area later.
Rather than one slightly small headline ride and some repaints of existing things, but not all the existing things.
 
Capex level is irrelevant.

Sharkbait Reef: Small year, excellent quality addition.

Th13teen/DF: High year, dire quality.

Chessington is just as bad. Loose change half jobs like Rainforest one year, Wild Asia just up the path. The difference is night and day.

You shouldn't have these clashes of quality in a park.

I rode GG for the first time finally. I'll post my thoughts tomorrow.

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I just typed my review of GG but then lost it due to an issue. Now I am totally demotivated. So a much shorter version is:

The ride is fine. Kids, families will enjoy it. It's not ambitious in the way the ATR of old would have done things, but it's OK.

It has some flaws and issues. Namely:
  • The ride vehicles feel too big and cumbersome
  • The ride vehicles need a motion base to realistically make you feel the movements
  • 2D cut-out theming is fine to a degree, but when you are being chased by 2D, static Feds... it's not great.
  • The facade paint-job is appalling. Already, there are Wobble World colours coming through in various places.
  • The station is disappointingly plain.
But yeah, the ride is coherent, fun and fine. There aren't really any dead spots. But, you know. Alton can aim a bit higher than this overall and the area is pretty lousy.
 
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I actually really enjoyed the ride after experiencing it for the first time the other day (twice).

On the whole I really like the ride and is better and longer than I was expecting, although I have a few issues with it which mostly reflect what others have said:

  • For some reason every wall is themed in the queue lines apart from the one everybody looks at in the station which is blank. This makes no sense and looks like it should be behind the scenes (the corridor linking the two stations).
  • I understand the two dimensional drawings but even on Charlie the actual characters on the ride (not on screens) were in 3D, so like the queen the two guards even if just static should really have been 3D models as opposed to cut outs because it's the one effect that looks naff. If they can do the queen then they could have done the same here.
  • On the second run through one of the projectors on the chase scene was broken which ruined the effect.
On the whole a lovely new addition, I really like the queue line and the over all attraction and I feel like it is very much done well ok the whole, there's just those few areas above that could do with tweaking.
 
I quite liked the new ride - I'm enjoying the renassance in dark rides at the moment! I felt the ride used it space creatively - and the novel use of curtain screens to not only mask off action areas but also as a screen for projections.

I also felt the 2D cutouts stood out - namely because the car moves so slowly past them - and then does a 360 again showing you the full show scene,........ all very well if it's Mr toads and you're racing past scenes - but that's not the case here!

Also no bubbles - I hear they were tripping sensors in the ride.... so guess they'll never be turned on again - shame as I liked the idea of more sensory effects such as bubbles..... where other parks would try and find a solution to the problem to get the effect working again, I feel Alton will just turn off the effect like it was never there, hope to be proved wrong!

other things to like where the descent into the drains effect - simple but effective I'm guessing there might have been plans for ankle ticklers when the rats fall down and a water effect for the splash at the bottom - these would have added more delight - but ho hum!

I got strong Snorri Touring VIBES on GG - not sure which I prefer - probably ST pips it slightly. If the bubbles had been working then maybe GG would take it!
 
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With Gangsta Granny being something of a success for the park, and TWODW undoubtedly set for further expansion, what would everyone most like to see in the area? I (unsurprisingly) have a few ideas, which I'll split into two categories. I truly believe WODW and general upkeep should be a priority before any further SW attractions are added.

Low CAPEX (things that could - and should - be implemented in time for 2022)

- Bad Dad's Driving School
A simple re-theme of the existing Driving School, this could be achieved with static figures around the ride area, and a re-routing of the entrance to utilise the old car showroom area (there's space for a sizeable cattle pen here if needed). Gut the current entrance area and make that a cut through to Fountain Square.

- The Wallibum Theatre
Re-opening the existing 4D Theatre building with David Walliams themed short animations.

- Bouncy Burp Cafe
Open up the old Ice Age gift shop as a sit in dining area, and add some outdoor seating to the area

High Capex (options that would "complete" the area" and add capacity, as well as be marketable)

- Flight of the Beast
Using the same technology of the well received "Flight of the Sky Lion", guests enter a new section of TWODW , to the left of the 4D Theatre. A Walliams-ified recreation of the Victoria monument acts as a mini splash pad at the centre of a plaza area. Beyond that, guests are greeted by a facade of the majestic Buckingham Palace. On the rooftop, the Beast of Buckingham Palace is watching over the crowds. To accommodate the attraction , Flavio's Fabulous Fandango has been relocated. An additional facilities block or shop should also be added to the area.

- Grandpa's Great Escape
A brand new flat ride, this would be a heavily themed Zamperla Air Race, with Spitfire themed vehicles. The most thrilling attraction in WODW is currently FFF , but with the books being an age range of 7-12, this would be a perfect attraction for the older kids and make the whole area truly appealing to the whole family!

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Controversially, I don't think that any of Walliams books are a fantastic fit for the boat ride system in the Dungeons, so I wouldn't advocate for the area to be expanded in that direction. My preference would be for a complete rejig of the area behind Fountain Square in the future to allow for a Symbolica style attraction themed to a magical section of the castle or the Algenon characters.

What would you like to see be added ?
 
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I think the most Glaring..... is the Theatre...., It's so prominent - and looks like it should have something in their! So I think a 4D show based to one of DW stories should be next on the agenda - and relatively cheap, with the show building there - the biggest expense would be animating the actual film! also high capacity!

A themed fun house would also be great along the lines of Hotel Tartuf at Phantasialand in the old Nick outta control building!
 
emmerse2891 said:
I think the most Glaring..... is the Theatre...., It's so prominent - and looks like it should have something in their! So I think a 4D show based to one of DW stories should be next on the agenda - and relatively cheap, with the show building there - the biggest expense would be animating the actual film! also high capacity!

A themed fun house would also be great along the lines of Hotel Tartuf at Phantasialand in the old Nick outta control building!
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With the existing relationship with BBC worldwide could it be possible to see an edit of the existing adaptions made used in the theatre? I'm sure they could be knocked down to 10-12 minute stories and make meaningful use of the existing effects in the theatre.

Already made are
Billionaire Boy
The Midnight Gang
Grandpa’s Great Escape
Gangsta Granny
Mister Stink
The Boy in the Dress
 
The only thing with that idea is the the adaptations are live action, it doesn’t gel with GG or the book/illustration motif of the area
 
tayspru said:
The only thing with that idea is the the adaptations are live action, it doesn’t gel with GG or the book/illustration motif of the area
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Yeah this was my thoughts - it would have to be an animated adaptation I think, similar style to the animated segments in GG. A 10-12 min show wouldn't necessarily break the bank!
 
The nonsensical separation of this "area" needs to end ASAP otherwise it'll always remain a back street hidden behind a tiny archway and a family dark ride rethemed as a horror attraction. The picket fence doesn't fool anyone

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One thing I’ve noticed is the constant downtime this ride seems to have. Half the time when I look on ride times, or even go in to the area, the ride seems to be closed.

On Sunday the ride was down for ages, we happened to go in the area as it reopened, so joined the queue. Within 10 mins the breakdown announcement was being played, and then they cleared the queue line and it closed again.

I know the bubble machine causes major issues with the ride, and that’s often been turned off when I’ve done the ride. But there must be other issues for the ride to be constantly closed. I guess the tech doesn’t help, as if a screen is off then they’ll have to stop the ride to get it back working again. I guess also with all the doors and screens between the scenes you only need a sensor to fail and the whole ride will shut.
 
I may have said this before, but one concern of mine with the current phase 1 of Walliams World is that I feel some of the rides may be too juvenile for the audience that reads Walliams, Gangsta Granny aside. The likes of the frog hopper and carousel are more CBeebies-suited in my eyes than David Walliams-suited.

For some idea, my cousin is currently the sort of age bracket that is reading Walliams, at 8 years old (turning 9 in September). In fact, we gifted her my old Walliams books from when I was younger to read. She’s already over 1.4m tall, so has far outgrown the likes of Raj’s Bouncy Bottom Burp and the Royal Carousel. Admittedly, she’s a pretty tall girl compared to other kids her age, but I don’t reckon rides with a 1.2m height restriction would exactly be an excessive level of thrill for the target audience of Walliams’ books. Now I’m not talking about rides on the intensity level of Wicker Man or anything here, but I reckon along the same intensity lines as Spinball would work well, in my opinion. Or maybe something with a 1.1m restriction or so, as a nice bridge between RMT/CBeebies and the like and the 1.2m rides?

In fairness, though, Merlin probably didn’t have enough money to do this in the first season, and I think Flavio’s is a start, so I’m probably being unfair. Also, I guess the other rides in the area aren’t really being advertised, so I guess the area and the other rides are a bonus for families coming to ride Gangsta Granny! The project is very much a work in progress, and I’m sure we’ll get some more thrilling rides as the area progresses. It’s just a thought that I had.
 
So I experienced Gangsta Granny for the first time on Monday. Admittedly the ride is not aimed at me but here are my thoughts for what its worth. If you are planning on taking little ones on the ride I would seriously think twice if the queue is anything over 30 minutes. Now this isn't because the ride isn't any good it's ok (for it's target market) When we entered the queue, the advertised queue time was 60 mins and yes it was spot on, but my god it felt much longer, it just moves so slowly. Hopefully once Social distancing is a thing of the past and they can load the cars to capacity it will move quicker. The character interaction in the outside part of the queue was fun but they need more lines or be more spontaneous as hearing the same line regurgitated over and over again becomes very tiresome. The indoor part of the queue is already looking a little tatty with some of the vinyl bubbling, not a good sign when the ride is only a month old! As for the ride, like I said it's not aimed at me but can see it being great fun for kids under 11, it's got some nice effects and a few giggles on the way but for me, now I've ridden it I feel I won't need to again anytime soon.
 
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Matt N said:
I may have said this before, but one concern of mine with the current phase 1 of Walliams World is that I feel some of the rides may be too juvenile for the audience that reads Walliams, Gangsta Granny aside. The likes of the frog hopper and carousel are more CBeebies-suited in my eyes than David Walliams-suited.

For some idea, my cousin is currently the sort of age bracket that is reading Walliams, at 8 years old (turning 9 in September). In fact, we gifted her my old Walliams books from when I was younger to read. She’s already over 1.4m tall, so has far outgrown the likes of Raj’s Bouncy Bottom Burp and the Royal Carousel. Admittedly, she’s a pretty tall girl compared to other kids her age, but I don’t reckon rides with a 1.2m height restriction would exactly be an excessive level of thrill for the target audience of Walliams’ books. Now I’m not talking about rides on the intensity level of Wicker Man or anything here, but I reckon along the same intensity lines as Spinball would work well, in my opinion. Or maybe something with a 1.1m restriction or so, as a nice bridge between RMT/CBeebies and the like and the 1.2m rides?

In fairness, though, Merlin probably didn’t have enough money to do this in the first season, and I think Flavio’s is a start, so I’m probably being unfair. Also, I guess the other rides in the area aren’t really being advertised, so I guess the area and the other rides are a bonus for families coming to ride Gangsta Granny! The project is very much a work in progress, and I’m sure we’ll get some more thrilling rides as the area progresses. It’s just a thought that I had.
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I do mostly agree with this. Walliams books do require a certain reading level of around 7 or 8 plus. The book subject matter (such as : Spoiler Alert - Gangsta Granny dying of cancer at the end of the book) are also hardly The Hungry Caterpillar. The area does look too Juvenile in places and the Carousel doesn't fit in.

But it's hard for adults to judge this. Kids start to vary in development and maturity at this age onwards. Some can't wait to get on the thrill coasters, some not so much. You mentioned RMT, yet that's not a kids coaster as such, it's a family coaster through and through where everyone over 0.9 MTRS tall can ride. Octonaughts has the same height restriction yet you couldn't imagine many 8 - 12 year olds wanting to go on that! The same age group would mostly be tall enough for Wickerman and Thirteen but again I don't think anywhere near all of them would want to ride them.

Think of a Disney park or Paultons where most of the rides cater for this age group and the wider family perfectly.

I think Flavios fits the bill nicely. I'd also argue that Frog Hopper does too. I don't know how many other TS members have been on it but it's not as light hearted as you think. It appears to be on a more intense setting than Peter Rabbit and the same rides at Chessington and Thorpe. Hardly white knuckle of course, but it can still entertain the target age group with the right theme.

But what the area, and the park in general really needs is Whole Family rides. The kind of thing the whole family can enjoy from the little 'uns up to the grandparents. The whole family can enjoy RMT. Most 8 year olds wouldn't be caught dead seen riding Octonaughts and I don't think loads of Nan and Granddads would enjoy Wickerman. So the need to reopen the cinema and rip the Dungeons out and get a family boat ride in there is urgent in my opinion.

I also wouldn't be "fair" to Merlin for not doing a better job of the area. They had the few extra grand to open it in a half decent state even if it wasn't finished, they just chose not to spend it such are their levels of what they find acceptable.

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