Spider-Man Needs Refurbishing
Universal Orlando: Am I the only one that found the 3D at the Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man to be decent at best?
From Andy Milio
Posted February 19, 2011 at 6:47 PM
When I rode the Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man yesterday at IoA, I found the 3D to be decent at best. I sat on the middle row the first time, and it was hurting my eyes. The second time, I was on the front row, and the 3D was pretty bad. Do you think the ride could use some refurbishing on the 3D effects? I also think the queue could be refurbished as well. What do you think?
I think that it's unlikely they will spend money on Spiderman besides very basic upkeep when they know they will have to get rid of the marvel theme sometime in the nearish future. They aren't going to keep paying Disney for the rights forever.
That said, I would love whatever goes in there next to have the (improved) glasses-less 3D effects of Forbidden Journey - Journey does it through a combination of the way the bench moves and the way the videos are shown but it doesn't work for all people. Actually the employees aren't allowed to call it 3d so it may not have been an intended effect, but it does work for most people and any new dark ride should include some form of that imo
From James Rao
Posted February 19, 2011 at 8:49 PM
Screamscape.com recently reported rumors that Spider-Man was going to close later this year for an extended rehab to install all digital projection systems. The plan is to be all digital before the new Spider-Man film hits theaters in 2012.
And yes, eventually Spider-Man will go away entirely to be replaced by (reportedly) the Transformers.
I'll be sad to see Spider-Man (and Hulk) leave IOA, but I'll also be anxious to see what Disney does with the Marvel lineup of characters. There's no doubt they have enough money to do something spectacular, but it will be hard to top what we have today.
I think they'll just re-theme Hulk; it's such famous and fun roller coaster. As for Spiderman, I think its days are numbered. Transformers, should that replace Spiderman, sounds good, but I just can't imagine going to IoA and not seeing Spiderman shooting web from the Daily Bugle building.
There have been rumors that spiderman will be in refurb for about 8-10 months (I domt know when) to instal a new type of 3-D projector so everything will look better.
I hope they don't get rid of spidey, I mean I thought transformers was cool and all but spiderman was a FUN ride. They should figure out a way to get rid of all of speilberg's stuff because if they get rid of one of his creations he'll pull out his contracts from Uni which means bye bye to about 10 rides.
Yeah it still has what I call "Old 3D" which is the stuff that makes me sick. Recently with the new technology with 3D everything has gotten so much cleaner and easier to see. It almost seems like they discovered a new way to look at 3D. I think they need to do something to- but as everyone else has said, disney pretty much "owns" them right now so who knows how long it will be left.
It's a good thing, while this ride is wildly popular everything needs a good overhaul after a while. I hope they don't forget the ride cars, because as of last October even they had gotten rough and jerky. The fluid movement they had less then two years ago seems to have gone the way of the dinosaurs, hopefully this will be a complete rehab from the ground up.
I don't expect them to get rid of Marvel very soon, While Disney does hold the contract there was a stipulation in there for Universal parks having the Marvel's name and characters. There was another article in Orlando Sentinel about that says they keep the rights threw some insane year (2050 I want to say). So I don't expect Universal to phase out Marvel for a while yet.
http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2009-09-01/news/0908310174_1_marvel-entertainment-marvel-stock-super-hero-island
From Tim W
Posted February 20, 2011 at 7:10 PM
I have to agree with everyone. I really don't see a reason for them to keep it open anymore and not retheme it to a new spectacular Trasnsformers experience. And then the whole land into a scifi land.
From James Rao
Posted February 20, 2011 at 8:01 PM
My guess is that Universal does not like giving free advertising and merchandise sales to the competition... but I could be wrong.
Spider-Man rocks and shouldn't be taken out. Of course a nice rehab/update is always welcome and the whole Disney-owning Marvel thing does complicate things. I say leave it the way it is(after some refurbishment), it's a classic. If you want to ride Transformers go to Hollywood, it's nice to have different things on both coasts.
We rode spider man ride in 08 it was cool.. have not been back since.. have to say its more than likely time for a upgrade/referb on the ride from what i am reading..
Updating the 3D would be very cool to say the least.. maybe changing up so the the ride to reflect some the current or up coming movies material as well..
The article listed above states the agreement with universal last as long as the ride/'s are in operation.. both hulk and spiderman.. so i think they will be around at least spiderman for a while..
Universal still has the rights to the use of the Marvel characters, east of the Mississippi, for as long as they want it. I would like to see Transformers come in to one of the parks, though
ohhh, I'm pretty sad now, was really looking forward to Spidy. Haven't been since 2004! Should I skip it this time (going in 2 weeks time) to preserve the amazing memories I have of it, or risk spoiling it with a disappointing experience of a run-down ride? Is it really that bad? :-(
I think it's highly paranoid to think that Spidey or Marvel characters are leaving IOA anytime soon. Yes, we've heard reports that Universal Creative have held meetings to discuss what could go in the Island as a replacement. Yet, consider that before Potter came in that Island was the most popular, and Spidey was the crown jewel of the park. It'd be a very hefty decision to scrap it for something new. And from what I've read, Universal owns exclusivity for Marvel characters in this region of the country for as long as they want to pay their already negotiated licensing fee...You want an argument? Even if Universal dropped Marvel and Disney picked up the chance to use those characters in their theme parks, I don't think that Disney could properly utilize them in theme park rides and shows because of their approach. Universal has no issues straying into PG-13 material, while Disney takes two years DISCUSSING whether certain material is "appropriate." Let's be honest, Disney bought Marvel to integrate Pixar with their content--maybe to release a couple of live-action movies, but doing anything besides releasing a couple of costumed characters in the park is beyond them.
From James Rao
Posted March 8, 2011 at 5:13 AM
As I said before, I'm guessing Disney loves that Universal is using their characters! Free advertising and a cut of all Marvel merchandise sales from your biggest Florida competitor...those "greedy Disney shareholders" are smiling from mouse ear to mouse ear!
Which is why Universal will make the switch...eventually.
I would like to see The Amazing Adventures Of Spider-Man Referbished but I don't what it to entirely close forever I hope Universal dosen't close it forever I really like the ride you don't think they'll close it do you?
From James Rao
Posted March 15, 2011 at 6:38 PM
They may change it to something else (Transformers), but they won't get rid of it completely.
You mean they won't get rid of the Spider-man Ride?
From Don Neal
Posted March 17, 2011 at 1:30 PM
I'm with James. They will replace the branding at some point to get out from underneath Disney.
Think of it as a multi-phase project.
1) Replace projectors with newest tech that can project on the same level as the new Transformer ride. Clean up the ride system, maybe tweak the cars a little, tune up whatever else needs to be touched. This buys you 2 years of planning time and keeps the ride open through to the next Spiderman movie.
2) Spend next two years planning and designing new branding, software, ride systems, and such for newly themed islands and ride.
3) 2013 begin construction and rebranding of Super Hero Island to open 2014-2015.
Hello Transformers island! Hulk and Stormforce are easy re-brands. Stormforce could easily become Starscream and be branded with Decepticon Jets, etc... And Hulk can be turned into about anything. "Escape from Cybertron" before it explodes would be the easiest concept of course. Add in Hasbro stocked toy stores with adult shirts and souveniers and you have a cash cow not quite on par with but similar to Star Wars and Harry Potter that attracts people to conventions and such.
^I really don't think they'll have a whole land to just Transformers. I can maybe see them doing a sci-fi land, but not JUST TF
From Don Neal
Posted March 18, 2011 at 5:13 AM
Yeah, I can see it going either way. I don't really have a strong opinion either way or strong desire. BUT from a marketing standpoint, a TF island would hold water. The toyline, movies, comics, and community are alive and well and would support it. Heck they could hold an annual TF Weekend like SW does at DHS probably.
It would be cool though to see what other Sci-Fi properties they could work into it.
The Spider-Man ride is a landmark(much like Pirates of the Caribbean) and should be here for many decades to come. Replacing it would be very bad.
A refurb to the queue, new projectors, and a paint job would be nice but replacing it altogether is just not a smart idea.
I agree The Spider-man Ride is a wonderful ride.
^ I totally agree. I just found the 3D to be decent at best
From aj geez
Posted April 16, 2011 at 11:39 AM
I was a luck person who got to ride spiderman during its first 2 years of running time soooo Overall after about 5 to 10 years in activation universal usually tires to update there rides, for example the incredible hulk is getting a 3 to 4 moth paint job. in the end spiderman needs to be updated ...
From Tony Duda
Posted April 16, 2011 at 1:34 PM
I think that for someone who has never ridden Spiderman, after the first time they ride it, they will say it is the greatest ride in the world. Then they will go to WWOHP and ride Forbidden Journey and say the same thing. The jaded repeat riders will always complain that the ride used to be better when brand new. Well, that's true for just about everything.
Hey! Since my last post in this discussion I've been and come back from Florida and I must say, after being concerned for Spidey's demise, I was more than pleasantly surprised!
It was actually better than I remembered, the motion, the effects of falling, the scenery (e.g. Statue of Liberty hand)...Obviously the 3D effects aren't up-to-date, but it still left me (and the rest of my party) with an adrenaline rush. We ran straight back round for a re-ride!
I guess the only way to conclude is by saying...if you rate rides primarily by their use of ground-breaking technology then remember this is an older ride and you may be disappointed, but if you enjoy the overall immersion and experience, and can easily be swept along by 'the moment' or the storyline etc, then you'll probably still enjoy this ride. For me, it's still one of my faviourite rides in Islands.
If they do update it, it can only get better of course, but I just hope they manage to keep the gritty atmosphere of back-street NYC.
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