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Curse of DarKastleSimulator rideMinimum height to ride: 42 inches DescriptionFrom the time your “Golden Sleigh” departs the loading platform until King Ludwig bids you his final farewell, riders are constantly bombarded with color, music, and motion that will keep you wondering, “What else could they possibly do?” Yes, the ride is reminiscent of The Amazing Adventures of Spiderman at Islands of Adventure, but The Curse of DarKastle offers a complete experience that extends for nearly three and a half minutes through eleven different rooms. Let’s get to the ride’s specifics… The building itself takes up a whopping 40,000 square feet, about the size of an entire football field. From the initial planning stages until its debut, the attraction spent nearly four years in development and construction. The ride is housed inside a building that is themed on the outside to look like a Bavarian castle, complete with spires, nicely landscaped courtyard, and exterior wall. The exterior work was done mostly in stucco by The Nassal Company of Orlando, Florida, and while dark and dreary looking, the attraction is eerily inviting for those in search of a good scare. With a staff of 12 primary artists and a number of local craftsman, Nassal was able to create an exterior that is incredibly realistic, and visually interesting, but one that still fits with the theming throughout the rest of the park. Nassal also did some of the interior work, along with the primary attraction designer, Falcon’s Treehouse of Windermere, Florida. The interior theme is more warm and inviting with an intricately themed pre-show area, featuring detailed paintings on the wall, and a unique video screen where the pre-show is displayed. The loading area is reminiscent of a grand hallway with columns and arches drawing guests to their ride vehicles. Inside the actual ride, the standing artwork and props are limited to a couple of creepy trees, some windows and lenticular paintings, a fireplace, and some really creepy stalactites and stalagmites. So what do you see in the ride, you ask? About 90% of what riders see in the attraction is 3-D computer generated projections on giant screens. This is where DarKastle sets itself apart from Spiderman. Spiderman is somewhere around 60-40 video to standing props and effects, but DarKastle is almost completely reliant upon the projected images. When you have an attraction that is so reliant upon 3-D projected video, there are a lot of opportunities for error. However, Super 78, a Hollywood, California computer generated graphics company, really hits the mark with some of the most stunning and incredible 3-D computer generated images that I’ve seen on a theme park attraction. Working with stereoscopic producer Chuck Comisky, of Terminator 2 3-D fame, Super 78 has created 3-D images that currently have no equal. Most of Spiderman’s 3-D imaging focuses on a single character on a screen at a time, or simple 3-D backgrounds. Many of DarKastle’s most powerful scenes involve numerous characters all moving at the same time with near-perfect clarity, and 3-D effects that whisk projectiles past your head, and characters into your lap. With projection and audio systems from Electrosonic of Orlando, Florida, the images are brought to life in bright and vivid color, with seamless projection to create the in-your-seat 3-D experience. The ride system, provided by Oceaneering of Orlando, Florida, takes advantage of track-based motion simulators that provide smooth transitions between scenes, and sensations that far exceed anything created on Spiderman. From backing up a long and winding staircase to floating over a mysterious dance floor to dropping into a subterranean cavern, the ride vehicles work in perfect concert with the projected video to complete the fully immersive simulation. The system can accommodate 8 guests into a total of 15 vehicles running in the ride at the same time, giving the attraction a theoretical capacity of 1,450 guests per hour. Once in the doors, the elaborate pre-show room will immediately peak guests’ curiosity with a decorative chandelier, wall paintings, and a beautifully designed screen. Guests are introduced to the story of King Ludwig, and his mysterious encounter in the woods that led to his downfall. We learn of his motive for drawing us into his castle, and some hints of what to expect in the attraction. After being encouraged to enter “If you dare,” guests are lead to the loading area, where guests pick up their 3-D “goggles” (just plain black framed 3-D glasses), and then are directed into a row to load into their “Golden Sleighs.” The sleighs have doors that extend above the heads of seated guests, which keeps riders focused on what’s in front of them. The restraints are simple T-bars, and it appears that loose articles will be permitted on the attraction (there were no bins or lockers at the entrance, since there are separate loading and unloading areas for the ride). Once locked in, the ride vehicle moves forward, and begins the experience from the woods just outside the castle, all the way through a number of passageways and rooms throughout the inside of the castle, culminating with the drop into a cavern beneath the castle, and finishing outside the outer wall of the castle. Floating, falling, rising, climbing, and spinning, the movements are nearly perfect, but not so violent that the younger members of the family cannot enjoy the attraction. There are a number of scary images that may startle some young children, but the movements are not too intense for those who can brave the creepy visuals. After a frozen King Ludwig is shattered before your very eyes, releasing you from his clutches, and splattering you with a small amount of water, the vehicle makes its way to the unload area. Video: Preshow | Ride POV -- Last edited by Russell Meyer Photos
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Readers' Opinions
On the park map from what it said I thought it was a drop ride but this was still good=) - Dan Rosenberg We were glad we got to this early as the line built up to immense proportions as the day went on. The wait was not long at all the you are provided with a movie to describe the history and events of the count and the castle. The ride itself was a classic 4d ride with some very thrilling animation. A must do. - Philip Lupo Awesome ride. Great 3D effects, but the wait can be long. - Christy Shuman Great dark ride, truly among the best. Just a half-notch below my current all-time favorite, though, Spiderman. Don't miss it! May cause motion sickness, my wife was a little green after riding. - Leon Pfeiffer Incredible. The theming on this one would make Walt Disney cry in shame. - Adam Imbruglio |
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