Ug Land / Rita 2010

[Joe Koopa]

To be honest, the whole race-car theme for Rita never matched the surroundings in UG Land anyway. It was all covered with forest around it, not the ideal place for a race-track. It's hardly going to be hard given it a quick re-themed and re-brand. Maybe just simply call it Queen Of Speed, and remove Thunder Rock Rally and give it an overgrown abandoned race-track feel like occasionally the radio cuts in before dieing it. Would be quite simple and the park could trick the GP into thinking it's a new coaster, it worked with them tricking it going from 0-100 mph, which it dosen't. Then they could also maybe give it a speed-boost if it's possible, maybe to become faster than Stealth. So in marketing they could use-

1 Spine-Tingling New Area
2 Terrifying Roller-Coasters
Queen Of Speed Now Even Faster!
Plus, (SW6 description there)

Would work in my opinion!

[Matt.C]

If they gave it a speed boost, wouldn't some of the corners become a little too intense? I like the idea but I think they're probably gonna have to change it some other way other than a speed boost.

[towers freak]

[quote=""Koopa-Troopa""] it worked with them tricking it going from 0-100 mph, which it dosen't. [/quote]

Rita was never marketed as going 0-100 MPH. Alton chose there words very carefully and only marketed it as going 0-100. They didn't mention the unit of speed in the Advertising campaign for Rita, the public would automatically think they meant MPH as its the commonly used unit of speed in this country.

[Dormiens-Dave]

Post subject: Re: Ug Land 2010




Let me explain, this is how I would like it to be laid out;

The yellow area is obviously CCL and the blue area would be the new UG Land obviously as a different theme, probably around a race track.

The Centre area would be the new Towers area consisting of HEX and SW6, maybe you could but a small flat ride were king 6 bungee is. Rita chicken an ribs would also be re-themed. The only problem I could see would be the Sky-ride station being in the way and access to SW6.

Unlikely to happen as we already know the entrance to SW6 is down where Ug swinger used to be

[Jon]

[quote=""jipalu""]

Let me explain, this is how I would like it to be laid out;

The yellow area is obviously CCL and the blue area would be the new UG Land obviously as a different theme, probably around a race track.

The Centre area would be the new Towers area consisting of HEX and SW6, maybe you could but a small flat ride were king 6 bungee is. Rita chicken an ribs would also be re-themed. The only problem I could see would be the Sky-ride station being in the way and access to SW6.[/quote]
That's all very well, but short of constructing a wall that blocks Rita from the view of SW6, there is no way you are going to separate them from a guest's perspective. Two entirely different, major rides with some of the closet proximity seen in the park - its not going to work so successfully.

It wouldn't surprise me if they left Rita as it is, but it really would be a crying shame. While a retheme might somewhat throw guests that know Rita as a fun and fast ride, it is better in the long term if the ride is rethemed as it will allow their new and focal attraction to have more emphasis and it will make the area more coherent. In any case, Rita isn't going anywhere. Even if they changed the ride's name, I don't think there would be any problem.

In a sense, it may even help the park if they changed Rita's name and theme completely.

"Hey you know Rita, that ride that goes from 0 - 10000 mph in 1 second, it's called something different now. And they've got a ride ride next to it."
"Oh really. I think I might just spread the word."

[Mankey]

The thing is, if they rename/retheme Rita, I can only see them marketing it as a "new" coaster haha! Its been done before!

Alton would be silly to not retheme Rita though... perhaps not for 2010, but maybe for 2011. But to just leave it as it is? I dunno i think it would be a pretty stupid move!

[Mi-Nigle]

If they re-themed Rita to match with SW6, the name 'Rita' would no longer make sense. 'Rita' is meant to be the name of the hotrod racer, which is difficult to tie in with what we think SW6 will be based on. They would have to re-theme and re-name it. Alton Towers would have to create a whole new marketing campaign for Rita with it's new name.
From their point of view, its pointless because Rita is still making them profits so it would be an unnecessary expense. The themes will clash but when has that ever stopped Alton Towers?

Instead of them taking a part of the budget to re-theme Rita, and do half a job on SW6, I would much prefer they spent their whole budget on SW6 to make it breathtaking, so good that Rita's theme goes unnoticed.

Oh and maybe a little money aside to replace those dreadful Ugland food stalls!

[Oblivion_]

[quote=""Mi-Nigle""]If they re-themed Rita to match with SW6, the name 'Rita' would no longer make sense. 'Rita' is meant to be the name of the hotrod racer[/quote]

I thought it was Alton Towers Intamin Rocket backwards. I kinda see what you mean, though...

[Rob L]

[quote=""Mi-Nigle""]
From their point of view, its pointless because Rita is still making them profits so it would be an unnecessary expense. The themes will clash but when has that ever stopped Alton Towers?
[/quote]

I disagree with both of those points. Yes Rita is doing well and making them profits, but just think what would happen if it was re-themed and given a new name, Alton could claim that it's a new ride like they've done with the Skyride this year and attract even more people to go and ride it. Secondly, it is true that Alton do have a habit of not really bothering about theming clashes, but that was before Merlin took over really. They clearly do not want clashes on their new areas now, Mutiny Bay has a great and consistent theme, and Alton are Claiming that The Flume is in Katanga Canyon to avoid a theme clash is one of their new areas. Also Cloud Cuckoo Land has been a huge success in terms of the theme, everything has been made to fit in very well.

As I said before, I'm sure Alton will want this project to be as good as it possibly can be, and the only way that this can be achieved is by re-theming the whole of Ug Land. Alton Towers is a theme park, theming is very important. And anyway it won't even be that hard to re-theme Rita as it's got hardly any theming as it is now, there really are no excuses in my opinion.

[Johno]

I like the idea that the Dark Forest / SW6 theme could be encorporated in that it was a raceway plonked near an area of land that was undeveloped etc.

So make the 'raceway' bit seem a bit deserted, boarded up 'raceway' diners etc. with vines and ivy trailing up Rita's supports, and add paint making it look crumbling etc.

Potholes every now and then etc.

[jam&lob]

Its not Rita's theme thats bringing the guests to the park, its the ride. So I don't think that there will be any loss in them retheming Rita. If they call it something ...Queen Of Speed then people will know that its still the same ride thats just been updated and they might think that its been made better and will want to come and ride it as well as SW6.

[Joe Koopa]

Also, since when have Alton made a big deal that Rita's a fun ride in there two adverts, they only seem to focus on the launch, maybe they could somply put it as Queen Of Speed. Most people are bound to be tricked if they get a new area, incoporate Hex into it and you'll have-
*A brand new area
*A mysterious dark-ride
*Two newly-updated heart-pounding Coasters.

Would work well in my opinion.

[jammat]

They won't rename Rita, can you see them throwing away a whole load of merchandise and spending a fortune on rebranding it when its already one of the most popular rides in the park? No, that would be flushing money doen the toilet.

What I expect is a repaint, a retheme of the area, and a speedway / rally track somewhere in the middle of the forest. After all, rally driving often happens in forests. What's the problem?

Doesn't the original concept art already show Rita in a Dark Forest (along with the robo arms and an unknown coaster in a crypt falling down some kind of broken track)?

[Jon]

Shawn said that Rita would be painted green by the end of this season. Unless he got muddled up with his words, this would be a great thing to see for two reasons.

- It will help ease guests into the retheme of Rita, allowing word to spread a little better than doing it carte blanche.

- That in itself is a great bit of teaser marketing for SW6. If they are going to pay to repaint the whole track anyway, why not do it at a time when guests can see it and wonder what is going on?

If it isn't going to result in *too* much downtime, I'm all for that idea.

Edit: Omg nerdy idea I've just had, they could paint a little of the track green each evening and set up a timelapse camera showing Rita get "taken over" by the forest.

[AstroDan]

Could they not do it from the end of the 6 week school holidays and re-open it for Scarefest...?

Although it would surely look hideousely ugly with the current theme/cars and green track!

[Tom M]

[quote=""jammat""]They won't rename Rita, can you see them throwing away a whole load of merchandise[/quote]
Aparrantley the retail department haven't recieved any new Rita merchandise this season.

[Vik]

Also, painting straight on to the red track wouldn't be the best idea, which is the cheap easy option I'm pretty much certain Alton will go for.

Once the paint starts peeling away, will be left with lots of red patches anywhere. Look at Infusion at Blackpool, and how quickly the blue was worn off, or, a worse example, when Corky had its repaint, which had faded away back to the rusty lookin less than a season.

I'm guessing a proper repaint, which will involve removing the current paint, priming and repainting will be out of the question.

[AstroDan]

There is none. I haven't seen any on park at all.

Initially I felt like the Rita brand would be too big to take away from Alton Towers. But if they get it right, re-name it and are bold about it - then the new name will be just as marketable.

It's all if's and but's. I would miss Rita though

[Liam]

Looking back at it now, naming it Rita was a mistake. It worked well in the short term, but like so many recent additions it fails in the long term. It is at odds with the rest of the Alton Towers portfolio that was made up during the 'Magic Years'. Nemesis, Oblivion, Air, Hex... etc work because they are simple yet mystifying, and each sums up the experience very well. Rita does nothing and sounds like the publicity stunt that it actually was.

A rename, repaint and a retheme would be very welcome from my point of view. Bring some intriguing, exciting and rich atmosphere to this area of the park.

[Skumfidus]

I honestly think Alton Towers will not re-theme or rename Rita, instead stripping it of any fantasy regarding races and clearly displaying it as a rollercoaster.

As with Thunderlooper in the Forbidden Valley, the coaster is something from the world of Alton Towers that is part of the backdrop to something they've found in the forest.

Alton Towers only actually have one ride which is a rollercoaster posing as something else, and that's Rita posing as a racetrack....think about it ->

- Nemesis (the rollercoaster) is explained as the steel used to pin Nemesis down, and it is now ridden by the public...as a rollercoaster (Compare with Black Mamba - A snake)

- Oblivion is a rollercoaster, and the queueline suggest nothing other then the fact that that's all it is....of course, the fear and theme come in with the psycological side of things...the real story is all about the feelings you feel and how the ride and videos manipulate that...it's not a machine, it's not a black hole, it's not a monster.....it is a rollercoaster. (Compare with Sheikra - Riding on the back of an eagle)

- Air has no story, it's unashamedly a rollercoaster that makes you feel like your flying...they haven't themed it to look like an eagle, they haven't themed it to look like a plane, it's a rollercoaster. (Compare with Manta - Flying under a ray)

That's where Alton Towers excel, they don't hide their rides under a veneer, there's always an explanation for a coaster being at the heart of their attraction but it isn't the story-teller, it's the environment it's in or the things it does that tells the story.

Which makes it easy for them to carry on this practice by using Rita as a rollercoaster in it's own right, meaning that SW6 is merely a discovery in the woods. Make Rita look run down, get rid of all references to UG Land, call the area Thunder Rock Rally, and have SW6's queueline and station in the semi-deconstructed remains of Corkscrew.

It just all helps in grounding SW6 to real life, especially if it's going to be based on some sort of legend or myth.