Whether a hyper or not, I personally think that what Thorpe currently lacks, and what I would like to see from their next coaster, is something really fun and rerideable as opposed to solely intense, with perhaps more of a focus on negative g's/floaty sensations than positive g's. Of the "big 3" UK thrill parks, I'd say that Thorpe lacks this compared to Alton and Blackpool; as someone who values fun and rerideability in a coaster over pure intensity, I'd say that Blackpool has Icon and Alton has Wicker Man to fill this void, whereas Thorpe doesn't really have anything of this ilk for me. This is also why Thorpe is the only one of the big 3 to lack a 10/10 coaster for me (Blackpool has Icon and Alton has Wicker Man, which are my #2 and #3 respectively as well as my top 2 UK coasters), but that's besides the point.
I used to say that Swarm filled this void, but I increasingly don't think it does. The big inversions don't feel as floaty as they used to (I remember these used to have some really good hangtime, but it just kind of whips you straight through them these days), the restraints are a bit of a niggle, it's less smooth than it used to be (particularly on the outer seats, although I still wouldn't call it especially rough by any means) and that low g-laden turn over the water is increasingly an element I'm not a huge fan of. Don't get me wrong, I still really like Swarm, it's still in my top 10 (albeit only #8 these days), and I still think it's a cracking coaster (the sensation of speed is epic, that first drop is awesome, and the superb negative g's in that last inline twist still get me every time!), but I don't think it quite fills that void of "intensely rerideable" for me like Icon & Wicker Man do anymore.
Using my memories from Mako 5 years ago, I do think a B&M Hyper Coaster would fill this void of being intensely fun and rerideable, as well as being a more floaty, airtime-focused coaster, extremely well, hence why I'm so keen for one to come to Thorpe!
