Can Disney Outplay Epic Universe? DISNEY'S BOLD PLAN REVEALED! 

I can’t explain it for everyone but for me it’s simple, I’m not very interested in many of the themes and IPs that are picked, I physically don’t enjoy thrill rides and I’m very much into the aesthetics of Disney parks and from what I have seen it never seemed appealing to me, but as stated in this video the new park has peaked my interest, so it was never to prove a point other then they didn’t speak to me as a customer

@@HeyBrickey its worth visiting alone to see the lands, they are very intricate and have plenty of hidden details, walkways, and surprises. edit: referring to islands of adventure

@@a_cowwithlegs - Everyone I know who has been to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure only went because of the Wizarding World, and did both parks in a day. There is not much to do there, and they all hated the original gate aside from Diagon Alley.

@@ChienaAvtzon I live in SoCal. I grew up visiting both Disney and universal, when my family wanted to visit Orlando we stayed at disneyworld. Nobody in my family has interest in Harry Potter at all and my parents threw on islands of adventure on the trip. We didn’t do studios because we all felt it looked too similar to what we had in Hollywood. That day at islands of adventure was the most memorable and enjoyable day of our entire trip. This was also in 2018 before velocicoaster and hagrids which would have probably solidified it even higher if they had been open at the time. We also didn’t know what IPs the park had, and I didn’t really grow up with any of the IPs at the park. The lands and rides are just so well designed it doesn’t matter.

@@a_cowwithlegs - 2018 was also before Universal left huge chunks of Islands of Adventure to rot and deteriorate.

Well… that and the Hiccup residing in Berk 🥁

"Hiccup" 😂

😂

Agreed. It actually makes me lose respect for both of them for being cocky idiots who enjoy design but aren’t willing to explore outside of Disney. It’s sad honestly.

Dallin and Brickey doing a Universal trip together, must-see TV for sure!

Yep. Take the step together @offhanddisney

@@johnshoemakerpbc yeah. i think islands of adventure is the 2nd best park in america, only behind the original disneyland.

I enjoy islands, but there's only a handful of rides that I like, I'm also not a harry potter fan, so that's a huge chunk of universal's theming that's lost on me. I miss classic universal when there was more of a focus on movie making and the use of movie sets, practical effects, and live actors on ride. Jaws was one of the best rides universal has ever done.

I'll take a Disney Cruise over either WDW or UO all week long.

Same here

I know I do.

@@AdamConus Me too, lol

It is so commonplace to eat off of garbage cans at Disney parks. Grossss.

Most of those Imagineers ended up leaving Universal because they have really thwarted their creative. Also Disney was not against spending on Harry Potter - they did not want to pay royalties to both WB and JK Rowling. Disney was unwilling to work with WB and license their designs - they wanted to work with Rowling directly and avoid film tie ins. This made Universal beholden to WB designers and is one of the reason why most of the former WDI employees ended up leaving Universal. BTW, many Imagineers also helped with IoA after Animal Kingdom got cut back. Many of the ideas of Lost Continent came from those that had worked on the Beastly Kingdomme for AK. However Universal was not willing to spend on building an original coaster concept, so they used a standard B&M inverted design instead on Dueling Dragons. They have done a similar thing with Epic outside of DK - which has been having issues launching in Japan due to design flaws. Universal is requiring a 3 day package to enter Epic at first and will not allow annual passholder or single day tickets to start. They did the same thing with IoA and it caused it to launch poorly. So that is true - no single day passes, but they have done this before and it backfired. The biggest issue with Universal is they just don't get the details. Both Velocicoaster and Hagrid's have major flaws in their queue and load design because UC does not listen to operations - so the capacity of Hagrid's hovers near 1100 an hour instead of 1700, as it should. It's because the load is inefficient because they felt the conveyer load was a good idea instead of traditional stations. They also have not learned. I have heard Operations does not want Epic open until late next year or delayed until 2026 because there are so many issues with the rides that need to be worked out. Even now, Mario Kart closes A LOT every day in Japan and Hollywood. The animatronics for Monsters Unleashed fail frequently and there isn't really a B show for when they fail - which likely will be at least 50% of the time. Universal is cutting budget ahead of Epic's launch because they now feel it will not meet expectations, so the other parks will pay for it with decreased operational hours and less staff. Honestly, the stuff I hear is not good for Epic Universe. I have a feeling the park won't hit its stride until 2027 and will endure 2 years of bad press as the Universal Parks bleed attendance.

@@MrMac1138the ticket info for epic is all rumor. No one knows anything about ticketing outside of universal.

@@johnshoemakerpbc Comes from good sources and I have heard it as well. The entire point of Epic Universe is to get an extra day at Universal parks from people visiting. The problem is surveys Universal has been running indicate there's little interest in that - that people will just do IoA and Studios on one day and Epic on another - or not visit either legacy park. This thwarts the entire purpose of the park. There is actually a contingent inside Universal that advised against building Epic Universe and instead wanted to put Nintendo into Studios and just enhance the current parks before considering a third gate. If Epic Universe fails to increase overall Universal attendance by at least 50%, it is quite likely the management that advocated to build it will be removed and a new strategy formulated. The issue is NBC-Universal is not going to want to invest another $1B+ to fix the parks. Do not be surprised if they label Epic Universe as a premium park and expect at least $200 per day there and require a separate annual pass that will cost $1000 just for Epic Universe. That is the current discussion to try to make up for the expected revenue shortfall against expectations.

@@MrMac1138 - I heard that no matter when Epic Universe opens, it is unlikely the Battle at the Ministry will be ready. That is how complex the ride system is. Which is insane, because that is supposed to be the crown jewel of Epic Universe’s attractions.

@@MrMac1138 There’s so much bullshit in your post

That is true, but there is still only enough room for one more portal. Apart from the Ministry of Magic, the expansion pads of the other lands are quite small.

@@ChienaAvtzon great coasters can still be constructed on small plots of land.

@@goorange20 - Epic Universe has at least five roller coasters already. The expansion pad in Dark Universe is for a boat ride, which is something the park needs. Super Nintendo World is for whatever Nintendo develops, as it is a licensed area. Isles of Berk does not have an expansion pad, because it has the most rides and a theater. Which leaves the massive expansion pad in the Wizarding World section behind the facade of the French Ministry, which is unlikely to be wasted on a roller coaster. As for the extra portal, do not expect Universal to use that for an IP they do not actually own. Only the Wizarding World is worth that type of investment for them, as it is a proven commodity.

@@ChienaAvtzon only room for one whole new land? when was the last time Disney did that without taking away. I don't think its ever been done. I'd say villains would be the first, but RIP Frontierland. Universal also has room to expand several of their popular lands too. and rumors are, they will start on at least one of them immediately after opening. Also the area in between Nintendo and Monsters is bigger than it looks. there is also more room behind Monsters for a ride there. both plots are several acres. 1 acres ~ 40,000 sq ft.

I thought i saw that they had another 50% that they just purchased.

Only Japan’s park has the rights to “Pokemon”. It is not coming to America anytime soon.

@@ChienaAvtzon Give us a link to this false claim of yours. There’s nowhere on the internet that says Nintendo won’t allow this to happen in America too

@@ChienaAvtzon It's very heavily rumored to replace the Simpson's since Disney owns Fox now. their contract is until like 2029 I think but they may end it early.

@@ChienaAvtzon universal is big friends with Nintendo, universal made the Mario movie and it was a huge success. Pokemon will come to orlando.

Totally agree, especially with Universal Progress with drones and light shows, plus the edition of Zelda and Pokémon

@@RaginViper8718 💯 this

Universal hasn’t been fixing the existing parks. All the focus has been on epic. Studios in particular has been grossly neglected

@@metallicnole4514 Maybe do a little research. 2019 Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure 2020 The Bourne Stuntacular 2021 Jurassic World Velocicoaster 2023 Minonsland 2024 Dream works land This is all while they are building Epic.

@@RaginViper8718 Hagrid's, velocicoaster and bourne are solid. The rest just seem cheap. Studios is filled with too many lame screen based rides. Epic is really gonna highlight the weaknesses of the other 2 parks.

@@MattSeabolt 💯

Disneyland and Magic Kingdom never had non-IP attractions. Even Tom Sawyer Island is an IP, as it is a novel.

@@ChienaAvtzon incredibly untrue. Look at Epcot. Living with the land, Soarin’, Maelstrom, Spaceship Earth, Horizons, Mission: Space, Test Track, The Living Seas , I’ll just say Etc. If you’d like me to list attractions in other parks, just let me know. Creative and unique experiences were what, at one time, set Disney apart. Imagine the freedom of the dreamers, those first Imagineers. Lastly, I’m unsure what agreement Walt made with the Mark Twain foundation regarding licensing the Tom Sawyer “ip”. That said, it did fall into public domain not long after the island was brought to Disneyland. I’ll do some research and let you know!

​@@ChienaAvtzonPirates was a non-IP ride before the movies. So was Haunted Mansion. Other non-IP rides are Small World, Expedition Everest, Big Thunder, Space Mountain and many more. All built before 2007.

@@juanitajones6900 - Most of EPCOT is corporate sponsorships.

The American parks do not have the rights to “Pokemon”. That licensing deal was exclusive to Japan.

@@ChienaAvtzon That’s false information. There’s nowhere that says Nintendo have limited them to Japan only. It only means ‘so far’ Japan Universal has rights with them for Pokeman. Nintendo have a solid and proactive relationship with Universal ala Donkey Kong and Mario so far in America. Both companies will want to continue that great link up going forwards

Except, Universal does not have any plans post-Epic Universe for the foreseeable future. They blew the entire budget on that park. Which is why Dreamworks Land was built on the cheap, and used the excuse that it was for children. Guess what? Children deserve better than that.

@@ChienaAvtzon oh wow where did you see their budget plans post Epic. I’d love to read it too. can you post a link? … or did you just make it up :)

@@ChienaAvtzon are you a member of their board of directors or something?

After the opening of epic, they really need to update the other 2 parks. It's gonna be sad how much weaker the other 2 parks are when compared to epic when it opens.

@@ChienaAvtzon did you see universal just grabbed another 1,200 acres in orlando? They have a llot in the pipeline.

I love Hollywood Studios. I'll watch beauty and the beast every time I go until the end of time. keep Muppet Vision, definitely one of my favorites

Right. People dont acknowledge SeaWorld enough

Much of the immersion in the current parks are in wizarding world. If you're not a harry potter fan (like myself), much of that theming is lost.

Also, competition is good for the consumer. Meaning both Disney and Universal have to continue to be as innovative as possible.

It's great to hear the creative employees in Orlando get along! However, there is a long history of Universal and Disney battling it out from their HQs, from the dueling studio parks in Orlando to the scuttled Burbank Backlot Project. Former Imagineer Jim Shull recently discussed how he and colleagues used to ride Universal attractions over and over hoping the ride would break down, work lights would come on, and they could get behind-the-scenes how-are-they-doing-it? photos. So when fans of either company discus the competition, it's fueled by that real history. But, again, very nice that employees have respect for each other and can come together as a professional community. It's like in sports, always great to see athletes shake hands before and after a game.

I don’t think Disney can rely on nostalgia and IP that heavily anymore. 1. they have/want to destroy nostalgic parts of the park (rivers of america, splash mountain) for older generations 2. Millennials are the demographic that’s emotionally attached to the classic Disney renaissance movies but older or younger demographics don’t care as much (from my experience) 3. Don’t underestimate the nostalgia around Nintendo and the Wizarding World I think in this day and age Universal has more relevant IPs or at least competitive IPs.

I really hope disney moves fast on these expansions. I know they haven't had the best track record on moving quickly over the past few years, but I hope they can with these. I would hate to wait until 2030 for the villains land.

Universal has much nostalgia as well. Dare I say, more often than not, Universal IPs are more successful than Disney IPs.

Pokemon and Zelda are “blue sky” ideas at this point at best

Discovery Cove is great

Legoland and Busch Gardens are not in Orlando

I say this as a Brit who only gets to go to the parks once ever 5 years

A parade? To combat an entire world-class theme park opening? What a joke

It’s funny to see universal fans supporting this move. But if Disney did something like that, they’d be outraged

Yes, Anastia: a failed movie at boxoffice and a big bug disappointed in Broadway

@javiercortes5232 Sooo that's why they're performing her music at concerts & making merch for her, because it's a failure got it smh.

@jemariochaney8589 personally, I didn't liked it. Just my taste but the Broadway show was canceled in a short period of time.

I must admit I have zero interest in HP and have always held a grudge against it as they took Jaws away to accommodate it hehe but Diagon Alley is amazing, I had to ask my girlfriend what everything was as we walked through it but from a non HP fan I was very impressed with it

Dark Universe is not actually horror-themed, though. It is more akin to the Haunted Mansion and Tower of Terror, both of which were designed for children.

@@ChienaAvtzon The land overall is meant to be balanced, but I expect will still be relatively spooky, especially compared to Disney. The main ride of the area is expressly designed to be scary, though - something people brag about riding on. Almost like an HHN maze, but as a year-round ride. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-mNKsDvsiM9Q.html

@@神河精神 - Considering the scariest ride Universal designed up until now, was Forbidden Journey, the threshold is how that high. While Monsters Unchained will probably be an amazing ride, I do not anticipate it to as scary as Universal claims. It is likely to be akin to the Tower of Terror.

@@ChienaAvtzon I have high hopes that Monsters Unchained will be more thrilling than expected and differentiate itself as a uniquely scary experience. But I’m also hopeful for Disney’s Villain Kingdom. I’ve mulled over the idea of a “Dark Forest” area on the edge of Fantasyland for quite some time that would house attractions featuring characters on the fringes of Disney’s fairytale world, such as a Rapunzel tower drop, the Beast’s castle, and Maleficent’s Forbidden Mountain. The Forbidden Mountain does seem to be the cornerstone of Disney’s concept art for that area, so that’s pretty exciting.

@@神河精神 - Hopefully you are correct about both Monsters Unchained and the Villains Land.

random tidbits: Hollywood rip ride rocket closing for a new coaster and the expansion plots in Epic Universe (Gillman boat ride, Lord of the rings land)

Rio is beautiful

@@gibdub I physically can’t ride thrill rides so Disney is way more speed. And honestly I’m way more into the architecture, design and urban planning than I am the rides. Just not my thing.

@@HeyBrickey I totally get that. In that case, I think you’d love the vibe of Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley at Universal. I’m not even a Harry Potter fan, but the theming in those lands is amazing. As a designer, I think you’d be amazed at the detailing. Love your videos by the way. I really enjoy your take on Disney through the eyes of a designer. I’ve always considered myself a Disney know-it-all, but I’ve learned a lot of new things from so many of your videos. Keep doing what you’re doing!

Yeah, it seems like Disney is straying from immersive theming. The only things animal-related in Encanto are that Luisa was picking up a lot of donkeys and that Antonio’s gift was that he can speak to animals. So his door leads to a rainforest. Nothing really to do with conservation, education, or the environment. Do you think Disney needs to rebrand Animal Kingdom like how they’re rebranding Hollywood Studios in France? Something like “Animal Kingdom Adventure Park” or something?

@@kylokev it would especially make sense to rebrand Hollywood Studios, but I don’t think it’s absolutely necessary. Most theme parks between Disney and Universal have gradually lost their theme. I think if it reaches the point though that they put a big hero six ride in Animal Kingdom, or replace mission space in EPCOT with a Star Wars ride And living with the land with a Moana ride, there’s reason for a rename though.

The expansion of Universal was covered in this video we agree more than we disagree but it’s 15 minutes and focused on what we know for now not what might happen in the future.

The opening of Epic Universe will put Universal 5 years ahead

@@kaleb7636facts it will blow away any theme park in Orlando by far. Once they update a few more things in Universal and Islands even those parks will be more popular than Disney.

Interesting

Epic Universe will beat MK

@@scottroe5008 haha. I hear ya man. Tiana’s was a vanity project, these projects are tier to competition. They built two SWGE and a massive parking garage in inside of 4 years. When they spend the money they can get the job done.

*tied