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Thorpe Park: What could the future hold?

Stuntman

Roller Poster
Is everyone forgetting the park recently spent a huge budget on DBGT, which completely backfired as a long term investment. The daily maintenance alone takes half a day to complete. In hindsight, the money should have been spent on a coaster. Yes the short term investments are terrible, (Going from an extreme horror maze in the summer last year to a giant bouncy castle this year) However, they did try to build a high budget attraction after the Swarm.
 

emoo

Hyper Poster
I always forget about DBGT as now I've tried it I don't care. Big part of the problem - so much was spent going in a direction I was in favor of but the result to me is little better than a short sighted/term maze or bouncy castle. The main difference is I tried the Ghost train and was a little bit crushed inside.

Having an unrecognizable park in 10ish years are promising and hopeful words, as I want them to just do it better will wait and see.
 

Furiustobaco

Mega Poster
Honestly i don't see Thorpe changing much in 10 years, the park needs so much change to it i think it might take more than 10 years to amend the damage seen to it from the past 5 years.

Anyway, let me name everything the park needs doing to make the park somewhat less terrible.
  1. Canada Creek Railway, Old Town, and Loggers Leap completely cleared. This whole area is a world of neglect and a reflection of the bad state the park is in. Loggers is currently still there full of dirt and its really sad. This thing closed years ago and its still here!
  2. Slammer dismantled for another flat ride. Slammer is gone, it has a decent sized footprint so they could replace with really any flat they want, heck some small coasters could fit there! Use that space, don't just let a ride sit there and rot! Just clear it at least.
  3. Operations given a kick up the a***. The ops at Thorpe aren't Portaventura bad but compared to Alton there is more to be desired.
  4. Colossus and the area around it re-landscaped with the drab concrete they added in this year completely removed! It looks horrible, even worse than it looked before.
  5. Gum and mess around Inferno's queueline cleaned up!
  6. Swarm's station replaced with new wood, the station needs proper maintenance to keep it looking how it did in 2012.
  7. Small and Medium investments focused on things that matter- replacing old rides, refurbing rides that need a refurb. Do we need Angry Birds Land? Do we need I'm A Celeb the maze which lasts for like 3 years? Do we need a family coaster re-themed to a horror theme? NO.
  8. Invest in a good new coaster, there is plenty of space now with Loggers freed up.
 

Benenen

Hyper Poster
According to a friend of mine, he was coming home past Thorpe Park, when he saw a Merlin Magic Making van pulling up into Thorpe Park. Any thoughts?
Do any of your posts not start with either:

'So according to someone in a Facebook group...'

'Someone in the YouTube comments said...'

'My mate told me....'

I see so many posts like this on the forum these days (not just by you Chall, you post some interesting stuff sometimes) and it always makes me roll my eyes. I'm sure it wasn't nearly as bad when I started lurking about five years ago. There's so much jumping to conclusions like when that kid got injured at Lightwater Valley and someone posted that it means they'll most likely get either a Maurer Spinner or a Raptor as that's what would fit on the site.

As for the van it could be for countless reasons, this isn't the start of speculation for a new coaster or a 2020 addition.
 

EthanEjX97

Roller Poster
Just to say, what's stopping Thorpe from going with something like Divertical at Mirabilandia? After all, there are much more expensive offerings out there, has potential for some Merlin marketing as there's nothing like it in the UK, has decent throughput, and is from a manufacturer that Merlin have worked with in the past at Thorpe. Not to mention, this sort of ride would be a great replacement for Logger's Leap, due to the nature of the ride. All we need now is a Merlin style gimmick...

As for a location? I think I remember the people at Merlin (and by extension, Thorpe) saying they would dedicate another island to their next coaster, much like The Swarm before. So I'm going to go with that.
 
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Kw6sTheater

Hyper Poster
There's so much jumping to conclusions like when that kid got injured at Lightwater Valley and someone posted that it means they'll most likely get either a Maurer Spinner or a Raptor as that's what would fit on the site.

I was that someone, and if Lightwater Valley will ever get a coaster I would predict one of those two options. No hard feelings, @Benenen; it's just quite fun to dream!
 

This is a brand new dark ride system. Just retheme it to a Ghost Train in an abandoned railway station Thorpe Junction, there is a better attraction than DBGT. Especially if Derren Brown ever distances himself from the project in the future and they have to redo it
 

Tonkso

Hyper Poster
I'd actually ride it year on year if it was a proper dark ride. DBGT has got worse year on year. The first time I did it all the headsets worked, the actors were fully staffed and did a great job, and the throughput was faster. Every time since I've seen a third of headsets out of commission, the actors didn't seem to are, and the gift shop scene didn't work at all (it was simply skipped). What a waste.

DBGT would have been better as a seasonal experience at somewhere like the O2 or Bullring with its own ticketing.
 

JoshC.

Strata Poster
Especially if Derren Brown ever distances himself from the project in the future and they have to redo it

I mean, he's pretty much distanced himself from it already.

He doesn't mention it on social media. It's not on his website. He doesn't mention it at shows in any way. Very strange for someone who apparently had a high level of involvement in the ride (if you believe the marketing)..
 
I mean, he's pretty much distanced himself from it already.

He doesn't mention it on social media. It's not on his website. He doesn't mention it at shows in any way. Very strange for someone who apparently had a high level of involvement in the ride (if you believe the marketing)..
Absolutely agree with that! Why couldn't they just remove VR, switch it round a bit and give it an original theme
 

08newmanb

Roller Poster
I have a perfect concept for a new roller coaster. A Vekoma BMRX layout (made up), called Knightmare, like the one from Camelot theme park. Mark 2, with a zero g roll on left, after the over banked turn. Give a mountain gothic theming. 2 new flat rides on either side, chance rides inverter “Doombringer”, and vekoma Waikiki super wave flip “The Rack”. The theme the new area to be called “Dark Kingdom.” This would like a Transylvanian theming, like at Heide Park Resort, with Flug Der Daemonen. And also a pub will be placed between Knightmare and The Rack, called “The Headless Monk.”
Soundtracks
Knightmare - Flug Dee Darmonen (IMAscore)
Doombringer - Trinity (James Dooley)
The Rack - Iceberg Collision/ The Sinking/ Death of Titanic (James Horner)
I think my idea is the best. Feel free to comment. Please. This will be like bringing Knightmare back from the dead, in a new home.
Please feel free to comment.
 

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Ethan

Strata Poster
I think my idea is the best. Feel free to comment. Please. This will be like bringing Knightmare back from the dead, in a new home.
Please feel free to comment.
giphy.gif
 

UKCoasterFan

Mega Poster
I think Knightmare is unsalvageable now and too old school to learn anything from going forwards. Regardless the ride experience is too similar to something like Colossus to provide anything new. I think Thorpe Park would most likely be looking at a smallish RMC or a medium sized GCI (maybe even duelling to increase capacity) for a next coaster. I'd love to see an Intamin Hyper but it's probably unlikely due to building regulation nonsense in the area and due to the cost and difficulty to maintain Stealth a big B&M would probably be more likely than Intamin.
 

Heth

Mega Poster
I have a perfect concept for a new roller coaster. A Vekoma BMRX layout (made up), called Knightmare, like the one from Camelot theme park.

I've seen you bring this up multiple times in lots of forums again and again, but I cant say I think this is a good idea. It just isn't. An old ride style may be sentimental for enthusiasts but would not bring in the general public.
 
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