At the end of every football, basketball, baseball, hockey, and soccer season, some sportswriter will get the off-season going with a "too early" ranking of the teams for the next season. It's all guesswork, of course, as teams will change their rosters while some of the players that remain get injured while others work themselves into better shape.
That's why it's "too early" to say with any certainty while NFL teams, say, will be making a deep run for the Super Bowl next season. But it's fun for fans and provides an excuse to keep taking while no one is playing.
Here, on the theme park beat, park line-ups remain much less changed from season to season than pro and college teams' do. But we do have an all-new theme park about to debut here in the United States - Universal Orlando's Epic Universe. So in the spirit of speculation, here is my too-early top 10 ranking of the attractions at Epic Universe - attractions that, of course, have not opened yet and won't officially until May 22.
Next-up contender: Dragon Racer's Rally. This Gerstlauer Sky Fly in How to Train Your Dragon - Isle of Berk is going to divide fans, mark my words. Those who like it will love it, while others will rip it as the next generation of vomitron.
For more on all the attractions and restaurants at Universal Orlando's new theme park, please check out our Visitors Guide to Universal Epic Universe.
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For assistance in planning a complete Universal Orlando vacation, including discounts on bundled Epic Universe tickets and on-site hotel stays, please contact our travel agent for a free, no-obligation vacation quote.
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Robert, I think you're right in saying that the Sky Fly will be divisive. I've been on the installation at Mall of America and, much like the late Luigi's Flying Tires, one has to understand physics in order to make it work. I eventually got the hang of it and was able to get quite a few mid-air rotations. But that was after I waited 5 minutes for it, not 45+.
Anyway, since I've already been on Mario Kart at Hollywood, here's where my ranking would be:
1. Monsters Unchained
2. Battle at the Ministry
3. Mine-Cart Madness
4. Hiccup's Wing Gliders
5. Untrainable
6. Yoshi's Adventure
7. Le Cirque Arcanus
8. Curse of the Werewolf
9. Stardust Racers
10. Fyre Drill
Very telling absence of Mario Kart on your list James.
I know it says top ten, but since Epic Universe will only have a total of sixteen attractions I'll just go ahead and rank them all based on how I feel about them at this moment...
1. Monsters Unchained: I love the Kuka robot arm as a ride system and the fact that this is going to be mostly practical sets has me really hyped for the attraction.
2. Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry: This one is really more of a 1b, but there are just a few too many unknowns surrounding it to put it at the top of the list.
3. Stardust Racers: From the testing footage, this one appears to be a very solid dueling coaster, but it is just an open air coaster in a park where everything else is a highly immersive experience.
4. The Untrainable Dragon: Shows are hit or miss for me, but this looks like one of the best theme park productions out there.
5. Hiccup's Wing Gliders: This appears to be Hagrid's-lite, so I expect it to be a fantastic family coaster experience on par with the best found right down the road in Lake Buena Vista.
6. Mario Kart: I've ridden this one in Hollywood and Japan, and while an enjoyable ride it's really more of a D-ticket than the E-ticket Nintendo deserves.
7. Curse of the Werewolf: The hardest ride on the list to place because it's something that appears low in quantity but high in quality.
8. Mine Cart Madness: This looks like something more appealing to watch from the ground than to ride, but perhaps it's better in person than the videos make it out to be.
9. Dragon Racer's Rally: I've done this model of attraction at several other parks and it's a fantastic flat ride even if Universal doesn't dress it up too much.
10. Fyre Drill: Another difficult one to place, but could rank a bit higher if themed really well.
11. Le Cirque Arcanus: The idea behind this show doesn't grab me, but it could be cool if they have some really neat effects inside.
12. Yoshi's Adventure: I rode the Japanese version of this one and it was pretty disappointing unfortunately.
13. Constellation Carousel: It looks like a pretty neat carousel, but it's still just a fancy version of a common carousel.
14. Viking Training Camp: Even as an adult, it could be cool to just walk through this area and check out the design of it all.
15. Darkmoor Monster Makeup Experience: Not really my thing, especially as it will likely be a significant upcharge.
16. Astronomica: Really not my thing.
if you couldn't tell by my name, I am so excited for this park I can't breathe. one thing I will note, is that everyone is listing Monsters Unchained as top spot, even though from what I know(its not a lot) about Ministry is that its better than anything we have seen before, including the famed forbidden journey. Also stardust (starfall was better) is supposed to be better than Velocicoaster. when its dueling. the rest of the rides just seem like filling in empty space with high quality rides we have all seen before in an immersive environment. anyways without further ado here is my list. (I'm also doing 16)
1 Battle at the Ministry
2 Stardust Racers
3 Monsters Unchained
4 Mario Kart
5 Hiccups Wing Gliders/Minecart Madness(i couldn't decide:/)
6 Hiccups Wing Gliders/Minecart Madness
7 Circus Arcanus
8 Dragon Racers Rally
9 Curse of the Werewolf
10 The Untrainable Dragon
11 Fyre Drill
12 Constellation Carousel
13 Yoshi's Adventure
14 Viking Training Camp
15 Monster Makeup Experience
16 Astronomica
also, why does everyone put curse of the werewolf so highly, its a short swinging coaster with a tiny barn, whats the big deal?
I thought I made it clear Mario Kart wasn't ranked since I've already done it, but since a comment was made, I'd put it between Untrainable and Yoshi's Adventure.
In the order I will be riding.
1. Battle of Ministry
2. Startdust Track #1
3. Stardust Track #2
4. Curse of the Werewolf
5. Hiccups Wingliders
6. Monsters Unleashed (Forbidden Journey is all Queue and a Lackluster Ride)
7. Minecart
8. Harry Potter Show
9. Train your Dragon Show
10. Mario Kart
don't compare monsters to forbidden journey I didn't like it either. (this is supposed to be all queue AND an amazing ride, did you not see the animatronics?!)
don't compare monsters to forbidden journey I didn't like it either. (this is supposed to be all queue AND an amazing ride, did you not see the animatronics?!)
don't compare monsters to forbidden journey I didn't like it either. (this is supposed to be all queue AND an amazing ride, did you not see the animatronics?!)
While I really like the idea of another Kuka arm-based ride, especially one that's going to be heavy on practical sets and animatronics, I'm most interested in Battle of the Ministry, because that attraction is utilizing a completely new ride system that we've never seen before. This could be Universal's answer to RotR.
The word leaking about Stardust Racers is that Mack went a bit too hard on the design, and they're having to add trims and adjust the experience to make it tolerable for guests (reminds me of past Intamin blunders with I-305 and Maverick). I think some here are underrating the potential of on-board audio and how that may impact the overall experience, even if it's tamed down. I think Stardust Racers could be a solid top tier coaster, especially since the other coaster experiences in Epic Universe are more geared towards families.
I think both big shows could be massive hits (Untrainable and LeCirque Arcanus), but while Untrainable has a solid pedigree, I'm really intrigued by the HP show. Universal has done a great job with the shows in both Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade, but this new land will give Universal the opportunity to produce a full-sized stage production that could rival Cirque de Soleil shows that people spend hundreds of dollars to see with their family. Even if the show is only 30-40 minutes, it would be amazing to see something akin to Drawn to Life as part of a standard theme park admission. If Universal is able to nail this show and integrate it into the Wizarding World, it could one of the best theme park shows in the world.
Think you're overstating how they've had to tone it down, Russell – only one trim has been added on each track to slow the train ever so slightly on the descent from the top hat. This was done because the extreme ejector (negative G's) on the crest of the hill transitioned too quickly to strong positive G's on the pull-out. This ElToroRyan video explains it well and expresses optimism that the ride experience won't be too affected: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1M_MjnhDwk
Taking into account the strong layout, the on-board audio you astutely mentioned, and the dueling element, Stardust Racers has a chance to surpass Velocicoaster as Orlando's best and rank as one of the very best coasters in the world. For that reason, it stands at the top of my list.
I dont recall if Forbidden Journey has any animatronics but i feel like your local podunk haunted hay ride was a higher caliber ride. Hell if they just took me through the queue on a kookaarm that would have been 10 times better and let me watch (or not watch a video of the chase on the way out). Bottom tier ride.
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There's no way the top three is anything other than Monsters Unchained, Battle for the Ministry, and Stardust Racers in some order. Mario Kart looks fun enough but not quite what I'd look for out of a Mario Kart attraction (Nintendo and UC seem to have chosen gameplay over thrills, which I understand, but I can't get over how slow it is), and I can't imagine any stage show being better than these three heavyweight headliners. I haven't really considered shows, but my anticipation for the rides is as follows:
1. Stardust Racers
2. Battle for the Ministry
3. Monsters Unchained
4. Mario Kart
5. Hiccup's Wing Gliders
6. Donkey Kong Mine Cart Madness
7. Curse of the Werewolf
8. Dragon Racer's Rally
9. Yoshi's Adventure
10. Fyre Drill
11. Constellation Carousel