Skull Island: Reign of Kong - General Discussion

[SandiestPirate]

In my opinion it's less scary than Alien Encounter.

Which is now stitches not so scary encounter. But that ride was terrifying

 

[epcyclopedia]

To note, now IOA has two temples built for gods that we unwittingly wander into and find ourselves witness to a power struggle.

 

[Mr. EPCOT]

I haven't seen a single review that claims it's the best ride at the resort; even the favorable reviews seem to say it's good, but not a top-3/top-5, etc.

Which raises the question why none of the fans are walking away from this during previews spouting superlatives.

For my money, UC hasn't equaled FJ in terms of ambition and execution -- so I'm a little disheartened to hear that even the audience that's predisposed to love a new UNI attraction can't muster the enthusiasm to say "better than Gringotts" or "better than FJ."

And if the front rows really present bad viewing angles, that's a pretty damning flaw.

I will absolutely say this is much better than Gringott's

 

[devinp267]

Ok...honestly I don't believe that kong was ever supposed to be the "topper" of spidey Harry Potter or Gringotts, they took an old attraction and revamped ×100 imo. This does not have to be the best ride in the park when you already have the top 2 there, but it is very impressive and is a success for what it is and it fits right into universal perfectly to me. Whoever blatantly bashes this ride from top to bottom is insane!:shrug:

 

[Mad Dog]

On the other thread....Seth Kubersky (Touring Plans, Universal Orlando Guide books) just said the ride was better than he expected. Crisper screens than Gringotts. 360 screen works better than Hollywood. He also mentioned the 360 screen perspective is better from the vehicles being shorter than the Hollywood trams....And Seth is often a tough critic. His initial Gringotts review did not sparkle.

 

[s8film40]

This is how I would rank top 5 UO attractions.

1. Gringotts
2. Kong
3. Spiderman
4. Transformers
5. FJ

 

[Floridaguy34]

Do you guys think they planned on having softs today or do you guys think the higher ups forced them to soft open the ride today

 

[shiekra38]

This is how I would rank top 5 UO attractions.

1. Gringotts
2. Kong
3. Spiderman
4. Transformers
5. FJ

Better than Spiderman?? Now you've crossed the line

 

[Brian G.]

Do you guys think they planned on having softs today or do you guys think the higher ups forced them to soft open the ride today

They planned on Softs on Monday, but didn't like what they saw with TM Previews. So they took a couple days to iron out the kinks, and here we are.

 

[Viator]

Do you guys think they planned on having softs today or do you guys think the higher ups forced them to soft open the ride today

Soft Openings are unexpected and can change at the last possible second. Its happened before with Diagon, and I wouldn't be surprised to see it eventually happen again as the Media Day looms closer and closer.

 

[s8film40]

Better than Spiderman?? Now you've crossed the line

To me what sets Kong apart is the scale of it. Entering the large building and being outside in the real world for a bit gives it an element that the other attractions don't have.

 

[Mad Dog]

Ok...honestly I don't believe that kong was ever supposed to be the "topper" of spidey Harry Potter or Gringotts, they took an old attraction and revamped ×100 imo. This does not have to be the best ride in the park when you already have the top 2 there, but it is very impressive and is a success for what it is and it fits right into universal perfectly to me. Whoever blatantly bashes this ride from top to bottom is insane!:shrug:

I agree. Universal has many of the most awesome attractions in the theme park world. We can't expect every new attraction to be better than FJ. As long as it fits in the top 5, I'm happy................ And, on another note, as I've said so many times, in my opinion, the totality of the attraction is the queue & the ride. Universal, with their queues that are alone better than some other E tickets, has really created a new basis for attractions, namely queue/ride. I rank, in my personal rankings, according to that basis.

 

[SandiestPirate]

Anyone else going to try to head over tomorrow?

 

[epcyclopedia]

They planned on Softs on Monday, but didn't like what they saw with TM Previews. So they took a couple days to iron out the kinks, and here we are.

I think they saw that if they put paying guests through what TMs went through on Sunday it would reflect very poorly for them in reviews. (Hours delay, no AC, many things off or wonky, no outside portion.)

 

[captainmoch]

PICK A SIDE!

JK

Not but really, I wanna address this to hopefully try to steer convo into a more positive/respective tone.

I agree about the Dis vs Uni thing. It just seems whenever something new comes out, the knuckleheads come out from both sides, whether it be on a forum or social media. Not gonna defend EVERYONE, but that defensive mentality can bridge over. I know there are some people from each side where a park may piss out gold and call it terrible, and it just sucks because they belittle the people that may like it.

From the opposite side of the coin, whenever there may be constructive criticism - it's written-off as favoritism to "the other guys". It's a vicious cycle that sucks. I just wish everyone can learn to let everyone be - the "you do you" mentality.

For screen...I understand both sides of the coin. I personally don't care as long as it's a fine attraction, but doesn't make me any less of a legit gripe for some when they bring it up.

However, whether you hope Universal moves on from their screen reliance or not; we should judge the merits of the attraction as it stands. To start the whole "Oh wow, look screens" review for Kong is kinda silly since we've known for quite some time - and discussed - it was gonna mix a lot of elements, including some screen-use.

If you don't like it, you don't like; but don't automatically dismiss it because it is screen-based. I also advise you to not take the YouTube video as any indication of what the experience was like. The video can't catch the vibe/feel of the 360 video or entering the temple. Just.. be open-minded.

Very well said.

 

[Journey_On]

Saw OU's tweets and headed over to UOR as planned.

When we were heading to the parking garage, I saw OU's tweet: "HEY GUYS! KONG HAS SOFT OPENED!" Got so excited but tried to be realistic, too, as I understood the ride could be done with softs at any point once they've started.

Power-walked it over to Kong, and by the time we got there, TMs were saying that they were done with technical rehearsals for the day. You could tell they were really sure they were done with softs for the day. Darn - but we tried.

We hung around the immediate area for a while, and I tried to soak it all in, as this was our first time seeing it with the walls down. Saw quite a few ride vehicles cycle through. Took a picture in front of the Skull Island sign. Asked a group of guys if they were from OU.....and they weren't - oops!

Hopefully we'll try again tomorrow evening.

 

[Mad Dog]

I think they saw that if they put paying guests through what TMs went through on Sunday it would reflect very poorly for them in reviews. (Hours delay, no AC, many things off or wonky, no outside portion.)

Good point. Like with Gringotts, a guest that has to stand in a long hot line and experience a ride that has significant issues, will most likely give a review that reflects the misery they experienced.

 

[SandiestPirate]

I wouldnt rank gringots that high but in terms of theming and technology it is truly unparalleled. I feel FJ deserves that top spot for mix of practically every piece of tech they could use bar 3d glasses.

 

[SandiestPirate]

Saw OU's tweets and headed over to UOR as planned.

When we were heading to the parking garage, I saw OU's tweet: "HEY GUYS! KONG HAS SOFT OPENED!" Got so excited but tried to be realistic, too, as I understood the ride could be done with softs at any point once they've started.

Power-walked it over to Kong, and by the time we got there, TMs were saying that they were done with technical rehearsals for the day. You could tell they were really sure they were done with softs for the day. Darn - but we tried.

We hung around the immediate area for a while, and I tried to soak it all in, as this was our first time seeing it with the walls down. Saw quite a few ride vehicles cycle through. Took a picture in front of the Skull Island sign. Asked a group of guys if they were from OU.....and they weren't - oops!

Hopefully we'll try again tomorrow evening.

Next time its full sprint mode! Straight thru the fountains at city walk! And a couple high jumps over kids in toon lagoon. Haha

 

[DanB89]

Forgot to ask, does anyone on the taller side have any feedback on the seating? I am on the taller side (just a shade over six feet), and after seeing just how cramped the legroom is on those benches I'm honestly worried I wont't fit!