Niles: Universal shows how less can be more with new Epic Universe
How many attractions does a theme park need to be a success? For one of the biggest companies in the industry, the answer seems to be, “not as many as you might think.”
Last weekend, I attended the press preview of the new Universal Epic Universe theme park at the Universal Orlando Resort in Florida. Epic is Universal’s third theme park in Orlando — fourth if you count the Volcano Bay water park. It offers five themed lands but just 13 attractions. For comparison, Disneyland offers more than 40.
Yet I found Epic a strong challenger to Disneyland for consideration as the nation’s best theme park. That’s because Epic’s top four attractions are as good as any in the world.
Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry takes visitors into a jaw-dropping recreation of the Ministry of Magic from the Harry Potter films. The ride mixes animatronics on moving platforms within practical sets enhanced by Pepper’s Ghost projections, all presented in front of motion-base vehicles that recreate the Ministry’s omnidirectional lifts from the films.
Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment is a Kuka robot-arm dark ride, like Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey at Universal Studios Hollywood. But this attraction offers a far more comfortable experience, trading video domes for open rooms filled with the most technically impressive animatronics that Universal has produced. Imagine a Halloween Horror Nights house as a dark ride with an unlimited budget.
The Untrainable Dragon is a 20-minute indoor stage show that features massive dragon puppets alongside live actors, singers and dancers — including a life-sized Toothless, from the How to Train Your Dragon series, that soars over the audience. Even Epic’s top coaster ranks among the world’s best. Stardust Racers is a handsomely decorated Mack Rides launched racing coaster that features more ejector airtime hills that I have felt before on any coaster.
Beyond its baker’s dozen attractions, Universal has filled Epic with interactive experiences that require souvenir devices sold in the park, such as Power-Up Band games in Super Nintendo World and next-generation magic wands tasks in its 1920s Paris-themed Wizarding World of Harry Potter. It’s the latest extension of the industry trend to emphasize revenue-generating opportunities over an expanded ride count. Why add a bunch of supporting attractions to help spread the crowd and keep wait times low when you can sell people front-of-line passes if they want to skip long waits, instead?
Ultimately, for fans, the real question is not quantity versus quality of attractions — it’s whether the park delivers value for the price you pay. Epic Universe looks like it will do that, even if you pay $100-plus on top of the ticket price for a Power-Up Band and Harry Potter wand. Its top attractions and experiences are that good.
But a park with dozens of well-maintained but average coasters and flat rides, operated by a friendly team of efficient operators, can be a joy, too. Theme parks can follow very different forms, but all great parks find their own way to deliver great value to their guests.