Menu
What's new
By:
Filters

Thorpe Park: What could the future hold?

I know people want to be optimistic about the park they love / live near, but being realistic, I dont even feel like its realistic to expect them to do anything decent with existing indoor space.

Since 2012, the park has closed (and left SBNO) more rides than it has opened. Last year they considered an escape room (Jungle Escape) and a bouncy castle to be '2019 additions' and even they were not permanent.

This year I would realistically expect, at most, some kind of event rather than an attraction or maybe a mild retheme of something. That's it. I expect similar levels for a few years to come.

I'm sure a new coaster will eventually open there, but I don't expect that to start a pattern of development. I just can't get my hopes up for a park which can barely keep its existing rides open.
 
Towers had a great boost with WickerMan, Chessington is having to evolve and invest to keep up with the competition from Paultons Park. Sadly it seems as though Thorpe doesn't have an obvious reason to make a major investment right now. Especially when Merlin can make investments in other areas (midway for example) or markets (Asia) where they are way more likely to get a higher return on their investments.
 
Tonkso said:
My most optimistic self believes their saving up for a Hypercoaster, but that optimism is starting to wane. It would explain the small investments at least.
Click to expand...

I hate to say it but I really can't see that being the case. I don't think the Hypercoaster was ever anything more than speculation. Unfortunately, I can't see any coasters coming to Thorpe for a reasonable number of years. It's underperforming and they're not going to want to invest in the park if their past two major investments didn't make a decent return.
 
Yeah, I'm gonna jump on the 'not-much' bandwagon too.
'Word on the street', as it were, is that Thorpe Park simply haven't got any money. The coffers are empty. Nothing. Not a bean. And their current status is simply 'No significant investments planned for the foreseeable future'.
I'd love for that to be wrong but... it's just not, is it? Let's face it, Paulton's will be on their next project before Thorpe are even in the running again.
 
silenthillXD said:
I hate to say it but I really can't see that being the case. I don't think the Hypercoaster was ever anything more than speculation. Unfortunately, I can't see any coasters coming to Thorpe for a reasonable number of years. It's underperforming and they're not going to want to invest in the park if their past two major investments didn't make a decent return.
Click to expand...

This. Both The Swarm (as good as it is) and DBGT didn't increase guest numbers in their opening years, and therefore there's little incentive for them to invest in more big rides after two failed investments.
 
Matt N said:
Could it be that they're working on smellpods for a new attraction of some sort at Thorpe Park?
Click to expand...
The way it's marketed, it seems like the smell pods would be the most notable thing about the attraction entirely. I expect some sort of maze, escape room or other stuff built with tarps and simple carpeting in an existing building, meant to last for a season or two if even that.
 
Black Mirror is a very good shout. Well played, Sir.

But based on Walking Dead the Ride, I'd be keeping any valuable IP far, far away from Thorpe Park. WDTR is miserable.
 
Nitefly said:
Black Mirror is a very good shout. Well played, Sir.

But based on Walking Dead the Ride, I'd be keeping any valuable IP far, far away from Thorpe Park. WDTR is miserable.
Click to expand...

I must admit that I actually rather enjoy The Walking Dead: The Ride. Retheming X, a family coaster, to a horror ride was a poor decision, but the actual result I actually enjoy more than X. I genuinely enjoy riding it more Sore: The Ride and Colossus despite it being an odd theming decision.
 
Heth said:
I must admit that I actually rather enjoy The Walking Dead: The Ride. Retheming X, a family coaster, to a horror ride was a poor decision, but the actual result I actually enjoy more than X. I genuinely enjoy riding it more Sore: The Ride and Colossus despite it being an odd theming decision.
Click to expand...
What lies, for surely you must equally dislike the ride!

I remember when it first came out and it was the park's big thrill ride. I can just imagine the board meeting.

"We need a good ride... but we don't want to spend a lot of money. How can we make a naff ride scarier?"
"......"
"......"
".... DARKNESS!!"
"YES!! PITCH BLACK!!" *jots down 'ride in the dark'*
"AND BACKARDS!!"
".... what?"
"The ride can go backwards instead of forwards."
"... that's surely not going to be very comfortable or fun...? It should go forwards." *jots down 'goes forwards'*
".... no, backwards." *scribbles out 'forwards' and writes 'backwards'*
".... no, forwards."
".... no, backwards!!!!"
*both grab piece of paper and start tugging it*
"FORWARDS"
"BACKWARDS"
"FORWARDS"
"BACKWARDS"
"...."
"...."
"OH MY GOD!!"
"ARE YOU THINKING WHAT I'M THINKING!!"

*Ride opens with unique element of jerking around on the spot like two people squabbling over a **** idea'*

Fast forward to 2018:

"... OK, so X still sucks the big one."
"Agreed. Not even disco can save it. And people LOVE disco."
".... do they, though? Do they?"
"...."
".... right, so it needs something... fresh."
"Yes. Something that people feel... they haven't been overly exposed to over the last few years."
"Mmm... but it should still be scary."
"What's scary and people seemingly don't get bored of no matter how much they get of it."
"...."
"...."
"OH MY GOD!!"
"ARE YOU THINKING WHAT I'M THINKING!!"

*Ride opens with zombies*

"So fresh!"
"So fresh!"
 
Just watched Jack Silkstone's latest winter construction vlog. He said he can hear some stuff going on but I've no idea if the camcorder picked it up. Can anyone help and see if they can here anything going on?
 
What I'd like to see would be;

For next year - fill in the beaches, and install a gravity group woody, similar to wood express/roar o saurus, and replace flying pish with a gerstlauer junior.

year 2 - Remove storm surge, replace with a top quality food hall/court

year 3- souped up rapids

year 4- 1 or 2 flat rides where slammer was, and a family dark ride in the Im a celebrity building

Following year - replace collosus with a hyper coaster (may need removing/relocating zodiac, rush etc...- probably rush is the only one of those worth keeping.

surely not too much to ask for?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top