Any chance Tidal Wave will be replaced with a themed boat ride?
Tidal Wave used to be a scenic cruise called the African Queen Boat Ride, and I'm imagining BGT turning it back into that, but with a new layout and story. One of the project names BGT released was "Tigris", referring to the Tigris River in the Middle East, and the most significant thing about that river is that it was mentioned in the Bible as one of the rivers that flowed through the Garden of Eden. And in Christianity, the Garden of Eden is where man and animals were first created.
I'm pretty sure SWP&E wants to make attractions that can re-emphasize its conservation efforts, since many in the public have the wrong idea about the company right now. So the Tigris River might be a way for them to do that, as the basis for a narrative about man's relationship with animals throughout history.
It could turn out to be an educational boat ride, showing with life-size, stationary models (NOT animatronics, as those are too expensive) scenes of humans with animals in different civilizations, in different time periods, like elephants being used as transportation for kings and sultans, or tigers being chained up in palaces as royal pets. And there could be a voice on speakers narrating these scenes with some background music and sound fx (kinda like a children's storybook on audiocassette). The theme could be that man understood very little about animals back then, but our knowledge of them has increased over time, and the ride could end with a present-day scene, of people standing in the bed of a safari truck feeding a giraffe.
A ride like that would not only be great for BGT's image, but also SWP&E. Maintenance on it would be simple since there'd be no splashdowns; just audio and detailed models to tell its story. And it would be educational, which for sure would attract more families to the park and boost its attendance.
Or... it could just be a Skyrocket. Who knows?