InPark Magazine: Celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, Sally Corporation has seen (and practically done) it all. They have helped usher in multiple innovations in dark rides. The company got its start during the regional theme park boom of the 1970s and ‘80s. The Sally dark ride catalogue includes interactive, family rides like Scooby Doo’s Ghost Blasters, lavish scenic attractions like Challenge of Tutankhamon, and unique experiences like Nights In White Satin: The Trip (a dark ride themed to the Moody Blues hit song). And with each evolution of the product line, Sally appealed to a new segment of park fans.
2 comments:
I do not go to amusement parks often, but I do remember, for example, a difference in the sort of rides I went on when my parents took me to Disney World in elementary school and the rides I went on in the spring at Universal Studios. Before reading this article, I had never really consciously realized the transition from practical effect centric dark rides to rides featuring a combination of practical effects and CGI projection. For example, looking back, I remember the dark rides I went on as a child containing mostly black light and forced perspective effects (though I did not think, as a 9 year old, "oh that's a neat use of forced perspective"). But almost all of the dark rides at Universal contain some sort of projection-based immersion. It is interesting to look at all of the collaborative effort it takes to put together not only the practical effects and CGI projections, but also, in the case of this Six FLags ride, a gaming platform as well.
For the most part, I'm pretty tired of projection-based immersion. It tends to feel like a cop-out for me. Theme parks are where you go to experience your favorite stories and characters in real life! So why do we keep putting people in front of screens?
That said, I do think competition-based rides are extremely important. We had another InPark article last week discussing the different kinds of play people like to enjoy in a park. They ranged from adventurous to curious to competitive. I think that competitive rides are one of the best investments a theme park can make. Not only are they incredibly fun and naturally immersive, they accomplish one of the main goals of a theme park: bringing people together. They also are the one attraction in the park I will want to ride several times, guaranteed. Probably because I'm way too competitive, but also because they are fun and immersive.
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