Re X:\No Way Out...
-It was always a 1.4m height restriction until the new, forward-facing trains were introduced in 2013. There have been some accounts that it was at one point a 1.2m restriction, but I can't find anything to back that up.
-The original walkthrough was basically just light and sound effects. I walked through it a few times when I was young, so only have a vague memory of it. It's nothing that was overly impressive or groundbreaking, but I guess it would have been unnerving for some, and intriguing for others. In any case, it added a bit of a 'WTF factor' to the experience.
-I think one of the early concepts for the experience was for the walkthrough queue line to be a proper series of pre shows, with things happening, etc etc, as opposed to being what it was. Money and practicality were reasons it were scaled back.
[I can't find the source right now, but I remember reading someone that one original idea was for the indoor queue line to effectively be a series of interactive tasks, almost like a modern day escape room, and have the overall experience of the attraction, entrance to exit of building, be 30+minutes or something stupid]
-When the ride originally opened, there were fake lifts prior to the station/boarding area. They were hexagonal in shape. I can't remember if the shape has been retained for Walking Dead (my gut says no), but they were effectively were the current indoor batching point is now.
These lifts were intended to be your standard fake lift, simulating movement, etc. Their other purpose was to hide the fact that the trains went backwards (to those who were unaware). I think this was a reason why the operator booth is based at the "back" of the station (whereas most coasters have op booths at the front of the station), to further add to this trickery. Basically guests would be greeted with a station filled with an empty train, not knowing where they were going or what would happen next.
Re family rides / direction at Thorpe...
Thorpe were more or less pushed to the thrill market from the early 2000s, and went through with that until 2014. That was when they switched to the 'Island Like No Other' branding, and went for a more family-focused marketing push, along with the addition of Angry Birds Land.
This was mainly for two reasons:
-Big drop in visitor numbers over the previous 2 years.
-Realising families spent more than young adults.
By capitalising on that, it could have turned Thorpe's fortunes round.
The trouble was that the 2016 investment was in the works at that point, and it was again another dark, scary, young-adult focused thrill ride (on paper). And it's fine for a family park to to invest in such things, if they're established as family parks and have a good balance. Thorpe did not at the time.
That led to this confusing situation where Thorpe had tried to welcome families back for 2 years, before switching to aggressively focusing on young adults exclusively again. Unsurprisingly, it did not work.
Around the time Ghost Train opened, new senior management took over Thorpe. And the decision there was to refocus on young adults and the thrill market, whilst acknowledging that families will still visit. This is why Timber Tug Boat and Lumber Jump (two rides which were going free within Merlin) were bought in, whilst the park continued to focus on the young adult stuff.
The trouble is, the focus on the young adult / thrill market did not work (or, perhaps more accurately, was not given the chance to work). That led to the hasty change back to a more broad family market, which we have seen develop today. The trouble is, with minimal investment since that change in direction, we don't know what this means for new additions.
I'd be surprised if we saw mild rides added in, with minimal / no height restrictions. As much as Thorpe could do with a slow boat ride / similar attraction, it still doesn't feel like something suited to Thorpe right now. I could see more additions with a 1.1/1.2m height restriction in the coming years, but it depends on if the park settle on their target market.
Re Thorpe under RMC...
I can't give much first-hand experience about what Thorpe was like under RMC (I was 4 when it was sold to Tussauds). But I think what others have said more or less encapsulates what the situation was like. RMC transformed the park from a water leisure / museum style entertainment centre into a small regional park, with some classic theme park rides (log flume, rapids, small roller coaster, arena show, twister, dark ride, slow rides, etc), before ultimately taking the next big step with the risky X:\NWO investment.
Ultimately the investment in X:\NWO was what truly grabbed the attention of Tussauds and really triggered the series of events that led to the park being what it is today. Who knows what the park would be like if such a deal didn't happen. But I think, simply put, RMC did a good job and created a suitable, era-appropriate, well-received park with the budget they had.
NB
@Matt N (and anyone else interested), if you're not already aware:
Memories of Thorpe Park, and even the archives on
Thorpe Park Mania, have solid accounts of the older Thorpe Park, which may also give some good insight for you
