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Which is your favorite dark ride effect?

A specific element of any dark ride that impress you the most.

From Daniel Etcheberry
Posted November 19, 2012 at 8:24 AM
Mine is the part in Tower of Terror with the star field that splits and opens.


Comments in chronological order. Most recent at the bottom. Scroll down to respond.

From Mike Gallagher
Posted November 19, 2012 at 9:22 AM
The rotating, glowing tunnel in Black Diamond at Knoebels.

The sudden horn/lights of the truck in the Haunted Mansion...at Knoebels.

The aroma of chocolate throughout the Chocolate World ride-through at HersheyPark.

Sorry, but it's been too long since my last Disney/Universal visits to remember specific effects.

From Dominick D
Posted November 19, 2012 at 11:06 AM
Pepper's Ghosts effects in Haunted Mansion... at Magic Kingdom.

From Bryce McGibeny
Posted November 19, 2012 at 12:20 PM
- Star door in Tower of Terror.
- Ceiling that lights on fire on Revenge of the Mummy.
- The "rising building" projections on your left and right on The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man.
- Ballroom ghosts on the Haunted Mansion.
- Soul-sucking Dementor on Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey.
- Falling bridge & train effect on Blazing Fury.
- Floating candle-stick on The Haunted Mansion.

From Jorge Arnoldson
Posted November 19, 2012 at 2:20 PM
I love many of the effects in Forbidden Journey, as well as the floating Pooh illusion in the Magic Kingdom, fiber optic starfields, lasers, 3D projections with distortion in the direction of the vehicle (Spidey, DarKastle, etc), and the fireplace in Curse of DarKastle.

From Daniel Etcheberry
Posted November 19, 2012 at 5:21 PM
The soul sucking effect at FJ didn't work when I rode it, so until it works with me, I will choose ToT's door effect. The Little Mermaid's water projection effect on the back of the omnimover is a close second.

From Dominick D
Posted November 19, 2012 at 5:30 PM
The dementor projection never works for me.

From Bryce McGibeny
Posted November 19, 2012 at 6:56 PM
Saturday was the first time it worked for me and it worked both times I rode it. The Whomping Wllow was also working. The only thing that wasn't was the dragon, who did spew any fire.

From Rob Pastor
Posted November 19, 2012 at 9:07 PM
The ghosts riding inside your carriage on Haunted Mansion......The starry sky on Space Ship Earth.....The Dragon's breath on Harry Potter (we were stuck there for about 10 minutes & it was great).....The Alien above you on The Great Movie Ride (although it rarely works).....The Dinosaur at the end of the Dinosaur attraction.....ET saying your name at the end of the ride....."We Want the Redhead" on Pirate's of the Caribbean.

From James Trexen
Posted November 19, 2012 at 9:39 PM
Not really an effect, but I've always found waterfalls indoors pretty fascinating on a ride.

From Anthony Murphy
Posted November 19, 2012 at 10:01 PM
The Magic Mirror in Belle's house.

From Skipper Adam
Posted November 20, 2012 at 5:32 AM
I agree with other in while the idea of the Dementors sucking my sould would be awesome, on the hundreds of times riding the ride I've never seen it work.

Until then, Madame Leaota at the Haunted Mansion.

From Kelly Muggleton
Posted November 20, 2012 at 7:32 AM
I always say 'thats so cool' when the hotel corridor changes to stars and the window floats and shatters on the DHS ToT.

From Mike Gallagher
Posted November 20, 2012 at 7:41 AM
See, this is what I hate...I thoroughly enjoyed ToT, but I only rode..I think...3X. And I barely remember those effects at all.

From Sean Huckel
Posted November 20, 2012 at 7:49 AM
-"Rising" in The Amazing Adventures of Spider-man
-Basically everything in Forbidden Journey. Dragon fire, soul sucking, flying
-Brain fire in Mummy
-Feeling the canon fire in DL's Pirates of the Caribbean

From Anthony Murphy
Posted November 20, 2012 at 6:07 PM
I will also admit that the Haunted Mansion is still pretty stunning since they have been using the same basic effects since the 60s and now pretty much anybody can do the affects at home. Of course, they never look as good!

I will admit that Spiderman really left me breathless the first time on it!

From N B
Posted November 20, 2012 at 6:30 PM
Spider-Man had the greatest effect on me the first time I rode it as well. The simulated elevator lift is a great example of suspension of disbelief.

FJ was great the first time I rode it too, but after the queue and everything that happens on that ride, it takes a few return trips to catch it all. I finally figured out how the parabolic screens appear stationary as though you stopped in front of them even though the ride never stops moving.

From Jay R.
Posted November 20, 2012 at 6:59 PM
Transformers: Flying through the building

From AJ Hummel
Posted November 20, 2012 at 7:00 PM
No one favorite but some of my favorites include:

-Haunted Mansion: There's a lot in this ride that I find really cool. The best effects are the floating candle, the hitchhiking ghosts, Madame Leota, and the entire ballroom scene, but even really simple things like the busts that follow you are impressive.

-Indiana Jones Adventure: The boulder room gets me every time, and even though I know how it works it still feels like you're actually backing up. The dart effect also feels very realistic and I'm amazed by how drastically the chamber of destiny can change depending on your destination.

-Pirates of the Caribbean: Most of the stuff in this attraction is old-school, but the newer Davy Jones mist curtain effect is really neat.

-Transformers: There is a scene in the attraction where one of the robots (I believe it was Megatron) fires a missile directly at the riders. This is accompanied by a very effective heat effect and mist blast that completely surprised me the first time I rode the ride. Although not a direct effect, I also really like how they disguised the elevators in this ride (you don't even realize they are there unless you really look for them).

-Curse of DarKastle: The sideways room. This scene probably has the best blending between a screen and the physical set of anywhere on this ride.

-The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror: This doesn't exist on the Florida version to my knowledge, but the California one has a room where the riders actually appear to vanish into the fifth dimension.

From Lauren Wood
Posted November 21, 2012 at 8:39 AM
Loved (unfortunately past-tense..) ALLLLL of the crazy, weird, trippy effects in Nights In White Satin : The Trip. R.I.P.

From Mike Gallagher
Posted November 21, 2012 at 10:41 AM
Lauren, NIWS was my favorite dark ride ever. I didn't include it above as I was concentrating on rides that still exist. Damn, I'd love to ride that again. I actually dozed off on one of my five rides..so hypnotic and relaxing.

From M. Ryan Traylor
Posted November 21, 2012 at 8:28 PM
The ball rolling room on Indy.
The disappearance of the proscenium in Mickey's Philharmagic (although not a dark ride).
The transition from Room 2 to massive show room in Poseidon's Fury.
The slow-motion moment on Transformers.
Pepper's Ghost function in Mystery Lodge. (Best use of this effect in any theme park attraction)

From Big Cohube
Posted November 21, 2012 at 8:40 PM
-Peppers Ghost on HM
-All of TOT
-Honestly, I know it's so simple, but I love the witch transformation scene in Snow White's Scary Adventures

From Mark Fairleigh
Posted November 23, 2012 at 6:38 AM
Man, Tower of Terror sounds so cool...wish I weren't deathly afraid of it. :(

The city fly-over in E.T., so simple and sublime. :)

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