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Thread: Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey

  1. #1
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    Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey

    With so many rumours surrounding this new attraction I thought it might be interesting to try to pull together some of the more credible ones. Coupled with some facts and a bit of imagination we might even be able to piece together what this ride/attraction might be like? Perhaps? Maybe?

    Enjoy ...

    http://www.orlandovillas.com/florida...and-facts.aspx
    Steve



  2. #2
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    Steve there is a very detailed guide somewhere which el;imiates guesswork , will see if I can find. Have been to Universal today and taken some pics of the bits of the castle you can see.
    Babblin Boo


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    Super Moderator DaveL's Avatar
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    There is a big announcement this Thursday at Universal (25th March) when all will be revealed including the actual 'official' opening date. However expect to see soft opening periods once the Easter crowds have gone.

    Dave
    Dave Lewis


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    There is Steph - but the details of the Forbidden Journey are still very, very sketchy ... unless there is a new guide. Rumour is that Universal will release more details about it this Thursday when they announce the official opening date of TWWOHP. The announcement is scheduled for 12pm ET.

    Dave - I did hear a rumour, albeit a very sketchy one, that the Forbidden Journey might not be ready for the opening of the rest of TWWOHP. If that were true it would really shape how Universal approach the soft opening, as the rest of the attraction is basically shops plus the re-themed Duelling Dragons and Flight of the Unicorn.
    Steve



  5. #5
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    What is or was the Sum of all Thrills ride at Epcot I don't think I have seen that one?

    Julie


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    The latest report I have seen states the opening date as June 18th

    http://abcnews.go.com/Travel/wireStory?id=10195753
    Keith


  7. #7
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    The Universal Orlando website also has that date (June 18th) for the grand opening - the day after we leave! - almost funny...


  8. #8
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    Universal have also said that there will be soft openings in the run up to the official full public opening, so if you are up at IOA maybe do a bit of loitering near the attraction ... you never know.

    Julie - The Sum of all Thrills is a bit like the old ride from DisneyQuest where you got to design your own rollercoaster and then got to ride it in those spinning dinnerplate things. It was kind of OK, but the motion side wasn't great as the spinning things couldn't really deliver much g. The Sum of all Thrills uses a huge big robotic arm to jiggle you about while the landscape and environment are projected onto a very close canopy.

    With the ability to have your legs dangle in mid air while you are on it, it would be great for simulating a broomstick ride. [msnwink]

    There are a few more details starting to emerge. It's not easy to seperate fact from rumour, but here goes ...

    The queue will indeed, it seems, go via recreations of some of the iconic places of Hogwarts Castle.

    It starts down in the dungeons and then heads upwards through the Hogwarts' greenhouses (allegedly complete with Mandrake Root plants. Further up is the entrance to Albus Dumbledore's office where Dumbledore himself (in extremely realistic holographic form) greets you, welcomes you to Hogwarts, and gives you some advice about what is to follow.

    Deeper into the castle is the classroom for Defence Against the Dark Arts. Here you meet Harry, Hermione and Ron. They are planning to escape Professor Binns' rather boring lecture and invite you to meet them in the Room of Requirement.

    The Portrait Gallery (complete with talking and moving portraits) and the Gryffindor Common Room are two more places you visit on your way through the castle to meet up with Harry, Hermione and Ron,

    There is an option to exit before the ride. Apparently the theming and scenery within the castle are that good that Universal expect many visitors to simply want to go through this experience without riding the ride itself.

    As for the ride itself. It's being described that riders will sit on 'enchanted benches'. The visuals also show a Quidditch match. The Sorting Hat gives the final warning about riders with physical conditions and safety aspects. Rumour is that riders will be dropped, spun, twisted, pulled, pushed and 'otherwise'.

    Universal are touting Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey as "a 360 degree filmatic experience" and are also claiming it has the biggest special effects of all the rides in the park. For these read effects like fire (from the Mummy Returns) and wind (from Twister), etc.

    The effects are being bigged up to the point where they are so immersive that riders will have a hard time distinguising between what is real and what isn't, whether they are inside or whether they are outside, etc.

    More rumours are that the ride includes Dementors, the Whomping Willow and transportation via the Floo Network.


    A lot of news is likely to break very very quickly today about The Wizarding World of Harry Potter so you might well get to it before me. Drop the snippets in here if you find/hear/see them, and I'll try to do the same.

    It sounds like it's going to be absolutely fantastic. And we're there are the end of July too. Yippppeeeeee. [msnsmile2]
    Steve



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    Super Moderator CERICROWLEY's Avatar
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    Due to open June 18th
    CERI



  10. #10
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    Universal still seem to be staying mostly tight lipped about the details of the technology employed in the Forbidden Journey ride. They are letting one or two snippets slip out through their press releases. It does now seem like a done deal that the ride utilises the robotic arms. According to the press release ...

    "the attraction's newly created ride system envelops guests in filmed action scenes and moves those scenes with them as they travel through the ride, allowing more time in the center of the adventure and with their favorite characters. This fusion of robotic technology and filmed scenes has never been achieved until now."

    If you want an idea of the kind of movement these robotic arms are capable of, check out this clip taken at Universal Studios Hollywood. The quality isn't great but it works well as an example of the range of motion that Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey could employ.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v...er_%20embedded

    Couple this with what Universal are continually referring to as "immersive" filming and the end result should be breathtaking.

    And if that isn't enough there are the special effects layered on top.

    Imagine feeling the heat from the real flames of a dragon's breath, or shivering as the cold icy chill runs up your spine as the dementors try to suck out your soul.
    Steve



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