Busch Gardens asks fans to name its next roller coaster

So they're seeking votes for the gram. Guess this means another low to non themed ride at BGW. Big Bad Wolf would have sufficed. Glad to see they are going to incorporate another german village for the ride layout. This ride is so far off the beaten path in the Drachen Fire lot at a Cul De Sac.

@puckpilogrim - All indications are that the park actually increased the budget to theme the coaster and attempt to replicate the German village section featured on BBW. I also think the park learned from the Drachen Fire mistake by not only making this a family coaster, but also putting more in this area than just a single coaster. That's why Drachen Fire failed (in addition to its notorious roughness that led to complaints and lawsuits), because the coaster only attracted the biggest of thrill seekers and there was nothing else to do in what was a dead end (one of the many reasons why a future country (like Spain) was always rumored for this space along with another bridge to connect to Festa Italia. Panthon killed a lot of those rumors since it takes up a lot of the space along the southern bank of the river, so the only way to get rid of the feeling of a dead end would be to create an attraction that appeals to a wide array of guests and other activities for guests to do (restaurant, gift shop, performance stage, future flat ride, etc...).

I'm encouraged by what I've been hearing about this coaster, and the push from park officials to make it more than a coaster in an open field, which apparently is what the plan was when it was first given the green light.

As far as names, they're all pretty mediocre in my opinion. I think they should have just called it Grosser Boser Wolf (Big Bad Wolf in German) or some thing that integrated the classic coaster's full name, not just "wolf".

Themeing is not just buildings. It recognizable logos and icons and character names that last a lifetime.

Give me some interns a go pro and a first take attempt about making me care about Tempesto, Apollos Chariot, Invadr, etc.

There was a minecraft recreation of Universal Studios that is worth checking out. Nearly brought me to tears when they revisited Back to the Future and Jaws. BGW does not believe in preshows. How hard is it to put some production muscle behind a pre show video on an 11 minute loop that makes me groan in the moment but will last a lifetime. The Back to the Future preshow and the Brendan Frasier bits are iconic and endure.

Since BGW doesnt care what they name the ride it means there isnt some amazing campaign that is ready to be unleashed from the bolts to the track to the cast members to the ad campain to the preshow video to the stuffed animal.

It's copy pasta for whatever. They've been doing that for far too long for what are essential coal conveyors and other tools of argiculture and industry (and when they do they put a non discernible audio track on the lift hill instead of on the trains for Loch Ness... what?). Boring!!

Have you not seen the 3-part series ahead of last week's announcement? I'm not sure what you're expecting puckpilgrim, considering that this new coaster was supposed to just be running through an empty field (similar to Phoenix Rising) until park officials lobbied for a bigger budget. BGW deserves some credit for trying to give the coaster some on-ride theming while also paying homage to a beloved ride.

As far as the rest of the park's lineup, I will give them a break on Pantheon since that was opened during the Pandemic, and obviously was impacted from slashed budgets and increased construction costs. The most recent coaster opened at the park, DarKoaster, is well themed with a pre-show video and tons of props in the station. Tempesto is one of the better themed shuttle coasters in the world (far better than Tigris at BGT or Electric Eel at SWSD), and as I noted during my Media Day coverage of the coaster, its proximity to Apollo's Chariot (and now Pantheon) means that Tempesto is more like a flat ride than a traditional coaster in how guests should evaluate the attraction.

You try to make comparisons to Universal attractions, yet fail to recognize that BGW doesn't have the resources to license recognizable IP, so I think it's clever of them to leverage the park's long history in re-imagining LNM and now drawing on BBW, especially since it appears that they are upping the on-ride theming to more closely replicate the experience on the classic coaster.

i am terminally online (hence the prompt reply) and am unaware of a 3 part series. Having us name the dang thing is lazy. Mr Mason and Mr Carpenter probably have some since of direction and purpose, at least more than Mr Smith. Oh wait. Naming conventions are important.

"Having us name the dang thing is lazy."

Why? Parks (and other companies and even public agencies) do this all the time to solicit public input and make people feel a direct connection to the finished product. BGW did this before when they held regular polls during the development of InvadR, where guests were asked to physically choose elements and specific details on the coaster. All 3 choices here have "Wolf" in the name, so what is tacked on to that is pretty irrelevant (Mike Smith versus Tom Smith versus Joe Smith in my view), and regardless what the final name is, they clearly already have iconography and a story in place that is not impacted by which of the 3 names gets the most votes. If anything it's more work, because the park has to trademark all 3 names and develop digital imaging and prototype logos for all three options.

Yes, naming conventions are important, but the key here is that the most important part of the name is present in all three choices and draws upon a clear story and theme for the new coaster.

Just like a baby's name, whatever they use we will get used to it. Shout out to Ozempic Smith the Third. Naming polls are great for the first year.

Me: Hey, I chose Invadr
You: Not, I chose the Viking's Voyage.

Us (in unison): makes no bit of difference because it's got a pointy hat. I can't wait to pass this tale on down through the generations.

Make a damn goofy video. Put it on some Samsung TVs. Maybe have your character 'Olaf" give the local weather report one day in full gear. Hand out a comic on opening day discussing his adventures.

For the record these options have 3 different stories to tell. But who cares because you never tell it. (The Options were : Viking Raider, InvadR, and Battle Klash). Actually they all are kind of the same thing. Ghost with Demi Moore. Reign over me with Adam Sandler and Storm vs Cyclops featuring Haley Berry are 3 different concepts. All bad. Your cohesion started 3 years ago... not after polls close.

Wasn't Izzy for the 96 Olympics crowd funded and gofunded me too... that mess. Snapshot in time.