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Crazy Bats VR Coaster - Phantasialand

^Its not the first time people have claimed or suggested VR for it as well. Off Season boredom leads to pretty much everything having been discussed online at one point or another. (RMC Temple anyone?)

Only difference now is that Looopings have reported it (although as I wrote previously I question what their source was); and that seemingly some sort of work might actually be happening inside building given its unusual closure on the corporate buy out days (additionally there have been some rumours about changes coming this year; particularly surrounding the station).

If for example the station is actually being rebuilt that would fit the VR rumour. But it could also just be a concidence and this is simply just the first step of a theming project (it doesn't feel right to use the term retheme in this context). After all as seen with Black Mamba and River Quest those refurbishment projects are done in phases each off season over a few years.

Nevertheless we'll find out soon enough if something is happening inside whether VR, new theming, or nothing at all and these rumours are just more hot air. There's another corporate buy out day for Netto tomorrow and then the new season starts this Monday - presumably Temple will be open then as there hasn't been any word yet to the contrary.


Phantasialand have shared this look at a new hand carved dragon arriving in Klugheim. Looking at the background it seems they are adding new themed roofs/shelters to the extension cattlepen queue of Taron.
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Now you mention the plant wall... What actually is the purpose of it? Obviously it's to continue the sound barrier, but why not just continue the basalt rock walls? I remember them saying it wasn't permanent, so does this mean they'll be an extension to Klugheim here? Or did the budget/time restraints prevent it from being finished before the 2016 opening?

Unless it was an issue with scheduling? Actually wait, never mind.
 
Ethan said:
Now you mention the plant wall... What actually is the purpose of it? Obviously it's to continue the sound barrier, but why not just continue the basalt rock walls? I remember them saying it wasn't permanent, so does this mean they'll be an extension to Klugheim here? Or did the budget/time restraints prevent it from being finished before the 2016 opening?

Unless it was an issue with scheduling? Actually wait, never mind.
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oh no. not the S word... :eek:

Yeah the park have said that the plant wall is only a temporary measure, rather than invest in expensive UR rockwork only to eventually tear it down.
They own a strip of land behind it which runs along the back of Kaiserplatz (the Berlin square). So it will undoubtedly make way for future development one day.
20180816_103100.png
 
Praying that this is a day-early April fools prank and not the beginning of Phantasialand's decline </3
Also if you scroll down on that tweet, it seems the characters in that poster are from a 2017 film called 'Monster Family', isn't it weird that they would use an external IP? Hmm
 
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^As there's no reference to Happy Family on the poster I think it must just be the animation/art style used by Mack Media, who also produced Happy Family.

So its actually happening well ****...

Its a surprising apparent U-turn from the park having previously said they are not fans of VR preferring to immersive and impress guests with real themed experiences. Either they've changed their minds/have since been convinced by it.
Or this is just a one off unique situation - they still are not in favour of using it in any way for major new additions but Temple is a different story.

There's years worth of fan speculation, rumours and theories about the "Temple situation" (does the building need significant investment to renovate it and bring it up to modern fire safety regulations? would theming meet today's clearance standards? could the structure take the weight of any significant theming? (Europa had this problem with the Eurosat Can Can Coaster project)
If there's any truth in any of those maybe there really is not much that can be done with the coaster.

Or maybe simply just the capital needed to transform it and the building is not available yet with other projects taking priority. And rather than leave it in its current state until something else can happen with it (be it major refurbishment, or eventual removal if the issue of the Fantissima theatre in the same building is sorted) they've now decided to go for this. Additionally its a "new experience" to offer and market without taking up any additional space in a park where space a precious commodity. Also depending on how long this has been planned for perhaps its also a way of having something new to promote for the summer in the absence of Rookburgh. Otherwise this would be the longest gap without a "new attraction" in the park's history.

While I'm really, really not a fan of VR I can see why Temple is a good candidate for it. It has a high throughput and short queues. VR won't take away from the existing ride experience because aside from the music its non-existent. Its a pretty much a blank slate with a long ride time for telling/showing a story.

Well we'll see how it turns out, and how successful is it with guests. Obviously Alton Towers, Sea World and Gardaland are high profile examples of VR not lasting very long. But then there's Europa, Tivoli Gardens, Bobbejaanland and many other parks who still offer it. So hopefully PHL has carefully studied those to figure out the best possible way to implement it.
 
I can acknowledge the curfuffle the park has gotten into by being behind schedule in Rookburgh and their own unwillingness of renewing only the Temple while leaving the rest of Fantasy be due to angry neighbours.

That's all there is to say really.
 
If they theme the outside of the building, the queue and the station, I won't hate this as much. I know they want a filler because of the delayed Rookburgh but this just doesn't feel right.
 
I would 100% believe this is a april fools joke...
Sorry, but the announcement is made with word and Paint, not uo to style of Phantasialand.
The only thing that has my doubting is the poster at the wall, but that's also an easy removal on the 2nd of april.
 
But will the ride stay open for the coming week(s) or will they immediately close it for retheming? (If it even will be rethemed)
 
Crazy Bats has now been registered as a trademark by the park.
https://register.dpma.de/DPMAregister/marke/registerhabm?AKZ=018039646

Ethan said:
If they theme the outside of the building, the queue and the station, I won't hate this as much. I know they want a filler because of the delayed Rookburgh but this just doesn't feel right.
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I wouldn't expect the outside of the building to change much. Over the past two weeks they've been cleaning and repainting parts of it. However I think the station and queue will change. There was a rumour that the entire station has been stripped out for rebuilding.

Yoris Kerkhoff said:
But will the ride stay open for the coming week(s) or will they immediately close it for retheming? (If it even will be rethemed)
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Yeah I was wondering this too. The announcement wasn't exactly clear. Presumably it will be closed for the retheming work and testing; "Temple of the Night Hawk" has totally been removed from the park website and app.
 
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Would the VR overlay allow them to do some work on the ride even in the operating season? Obviously not while the ride is open, of course, but after hours. They could tear down old theming or internal walls, re-route plumbing and electricity, maybe even put up markers for new construction, and just have the ride running through the construction site during the day. As long as the emergency lighting and evacuation routes are all clear, they could gradually strip off the old theming and maybe even replace some of it without any of the guests ever noticing, as they would be wearing VR headsets.
 
Pokemaniac said:
Would the VR overlay allow them to do some work on the ride even in the operating season? Obviously not while the ride is open, of course, but after hours. They could tear down old theming or internal walls, re-route plumbing and electricity, maybe even put up markers for new construction, and just have the ride running through the construction site during the day. As long as the emergency lighting and evacuation routes are all clear, they could gradually strip off the old theming and maybe even replace some of it without any of the guests ever noticing, as they would be wearing VR headsets.
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Lmao, imagine after a few months of vr the VR is discontinued and suddenly there's immersive Wuze theming a la taron. If only...
I don't think they'd do this seeing as VR is very likely optional.
 
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