Alton Vs Thorpe Roller Coaster Themeing

General discussion regarding the UK's No.1 Theme Park. Talk about anything and everything Alton Towers here.
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delboy_c
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Hey TTF,

I just done the dirty and have been reading from Thorpe Park forum. During this read one member rants about Thorpe having far superior rollercoaster themeing than AT.

It did get me thinking as Thorpe has, SAW, Colossus, & soon LC12.

You cant compare the themeing of AT Nemesis to Thorps Inferno, however the themeing is still good when the Volcano works.

Is there a decent discussion here?
AstroDan

Oblivion, Nemesis and Thirteen are well themed. RMT reasonably themed. Air, Rita and Spinball poorly themed.

Nothing at Thorpe is poorly themed but Nemesis Inferno and Saw, together with Colossus are well done in certain places... but not all encompassing...

I would say on balance it is equal.

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Wes
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I would say that the surroundings and landscaping of AT blow Thorpe out of it water that it floats on.


One thing I really miss from both parks is 'real themeing'.
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Pennywise
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In my opinion (and by good I mean good for the UK, certainly nothing on Disney / Universal levels).

Alton:-
Good- RMT, Th13teen, Nemesis & Oblivion
Average- Air
Poor - Sonic Spinball, Rita

Thorpe:-
Good- SAW
Average- Inferno, Colossus & X:/
Poor- Flying Fish & Stealth


So overall I'd say Alton's coasters have better theming, by a reasonable distance. :)



Oh... and isn't this thread better suited to "Merlin Attractions"?
Anthony

X-Sector circa 1998 blows anything at Thorpe out of the water.

It's the lack of space at Thorpe that ruins the theming on individual rides. It all seems too cluttered because there isn't the space where you can have that clear distinction from the previous area that makes Alton's themes work so well.

Thorpe certainly has its moments, though. I think Nemesis Inferno does well to involve the queuer with the tropical volcano environment. SAW's queue and station does well but after the dark ride section it is all but lost. I don't like racing themes so I don't like Stealth just as I didn't like Rita before the revamp.
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CoasterCrazyChris
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I don't think Colossus is getting the recognition it deserves in terms of theming and landscaping. Whilst the coaster itself may not be particularly unique, the way the paths go under the track, the amazing soundtrack, the supports rising out of the water and the fountain face create a very special atmnosphere.

I think now all the lush greenery has grown it really enhances the area, however it has caused problems -the track is mouldy and rusty and the amazing Aztec designs under the water are now lost under deep, dirty water and pond weed. Inferno has fared a lot better over the years in comparison.

Considering they opened the same year, Colossus's theming blows Air's out of the water.


:)
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PeteB
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Alton Towers

Good: Oblivion, Nemesis, Th13teen, RMT (was good but most of the theming is overgrown), Black Hole
Fair: Spinball
Poor: Air, Rita


Thorpe
Good: Saw, Inferno, LC12 (according to plans)
Fair: Colossus, X:/
Poor: Everything else...


Alton definately have the better theming, although a lot of it has gone to rot, but I think there is hope to revive this given the efforts of Th13teen. Though I'm only counting the station/drop building, I think Dark Forest is extremely poor.
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CoasterCrazyChris
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^You rate Colossus as good as X and Spinball... :x
fredward

If you go back to each rides opening, the theming of both parks main rollercoasters are probably equal.

If you take into acount the atmosphere of the Towers and gardens Alton Towers is far superiour.

If you also take into account the upkeep of the theming Alton Towers again is far superiour.

I mean painting over gum in the X:// queue is just laziness, Colossus's theming does seem unloved and neglected, but I suppose it sort of fits in with the theme. And the general atmosphere of the dome and other areas of the park has gone very commercial and generally crap since the addition of chav as the target audience.

So overall Alton Towers is better theming wise... but there was a time where they were both equal.
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PeteB
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[quote=""CoasterCrazyChris""]^You rate Colossus as good as X and Spinball... :x[/quote]

Yeah. Because the theming is poor, but not totally non-existant. I can't understand why anyone would rate it higher, I mean, the queue weaves through the ride and there are a couple of water features. Wow, that's immersive theming eh! :roll:
Blaze

Nemesis, Oblivion are superbly themed. Thirteen is mostly and RMT is fantastic. Rita though was terrible and is now simply acceptable, and Spinball is fairly non-existant. Air doesn't really have much of a theme but everything is crafted to the central concept, and it's gorgeous, so that's very good.

Collosus is underrated in terms of landscape and theming, but it's not amazing and needs attention. Inferno is good apart from the shed sticking out the volcano, Saw is fine but Stealth is bad. X is weird but OK and Flying Fish is poor.

Alton are miles ahead in my opinion. As well as basic theming, Alton thrash Thorpe when it comes to landscaping, and I'm not just talking about the fact Alton's on a valley. Nemesis' crater, Air and the way X-Sector is built so that the hole is at the lowest point, things like that. Thorpe is at a disadvantage being built on a lake in a quarry, which means it has less scope to do landscaping and will never have the atmosphere Alton's natural landscaping gives it. Trees make a huge difference. Alton uses foliage to enhance the theming of pretty much all their coasters. Thorpe is by no means bad, but it's not as good as Alton.

Thorpe has it's moments and LC12 will hopefully almost be up there with Nemesis, but it's let down by it's location and things like Inferno's shed. Things like that don't happen at Alton, with the exception of Rita.
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Dylan
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I think if we are talking about actual coaster theming the parks are pretty much on a par.

I think Thorpe Park have some excellent areas of theming, particularly area theming around their newer rides. The Stealth and Saw plaza's are great in my opinion, even though the coaster sections are a little lacking in theming. Colossus and Inferno's landscaping is great.

Alton Towers, again when creating new areas for their coasters have done a great job. Nemesis (Forbidden Valley) and Oblivion (X Sector) are excellent and immersive with great landscaping on Nemesis. Air I feel is completely lazy. There really is no theming, just landscaping. RMT is great around the station and entrance.

I hope to see both parks improve in the future, extending theming elements around the whole ride area, rather than just focusing on the station and entrance features.
I think Chessington have probably done the best job in theming their rides in all the UK Merlin parks.
fredward

I enjoy Stealths theming... to bad there is barely any of it. I like the detail the've put in to the random '50's diner like buildings. for example the "now in technicolour" on the ride photo booth. And is superiour to the original Rita: Queen of Speed, the problem is that the theming is crammed against the ride control building and photo booth. So is pretty much non existant in the fact that there is the bare minimum.

Rita in it's current state is superiour to Stealth because of the Dark Forest. Although the ride it self isn't directly themed, I find Rita better, because the it travels around a fairly well themed area.

Nemesis Inferno, is fairly well themed but is nothing compared to our loveable beast.

Saw's theming is very good, but the queue is pretty awfull because is just a flat cattle pen on a dusty terrain, the buildings shape is a basic square... but I suppose it is supposed to be a warehouse.

I've already discussed colossus.

And why does everyone keep accusing Air of having no theming? It's theming is the ride and the terrain! it has all of those forbiddon valley monolithic rocks everywhere, the station/shop although modern and quite different to forbiddon valley is an amazing looking piece of architecture.

If air had as much theming as any of the other rides, it would distract you from the experience which in itself is the theming.
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Dylan
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[quote=""fredward""]
Saw's theming is very good, but the queue is pretty awfull because is just a flat cattle pen on a dusty terrain, the buildings shape is a basic square... but I suppose it is supposed to be a warehouse.

And why does everyone keep accusing Air of having no theming? It's theming is the ride and the terrain! it has all of those forbiddon valley monolithic rocks everywhere, the station/shop although modern and quite different to forbiddon valley is an amazing looking piece of architecture.
[/quote]

I see Air's monolithic rocks as an extension of the general Forbidden Valley theme, rather than a specific Air theme. Air station / shop, as you say, is a nice piece of architecture. I just see it as a nice modern building though, rather than a themed station. Air has a very sleek and modern feel to it, but I would still say that 'theming' is practically non existant.

Saw's queue line (the high fenced section) is pretty good in my opinion. It adds to the character of the area, it's meant to make you feel closed in and claustrophobic. I notice that Raptor at Gardaland has pretty much identical queueline fencing to Saw, yet nobody has mentioned this is a bad thing, and only complimented the general area theme.
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Mitch
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I'd say theming efforts of the coasters are roughly on par with each other.

Stealth, Rita and Spinball are all pretty pants when it comes to theming. There are some sporadic pieces around but it doesn't look like a complete theme at all. Rita can almost be excused I suppose seeing as it's not plonked on a piece of concrete and looks a bit more integrated into the Dark Forest. (Even that is pretty tacky though.)

Colossus doesn't really have good theming but the landscaping is excellent and even though some elements of it are decaying, it sort of adds to the ride and makes it look even more ancient. Air's landscaping is often overlooked, probably due to the fact its next to the best landscaped ride in the country but there's no real theme to it. The station is cool but it doesn't quite fit Forbidden Valley.

Oblivion I feel seems rather generic. Okay, the station building is peculiar but it doesn't scream out "futuristic research centre" to me, it reminds me more of a glorified garage. Actually it could do with some sprucing up really, if anything it looks like something from the 80s than from the future. Nevertheless it does a better job than X whose theming job could only be considered good if it was deliberately themed to a cesspit.

Flying Fish used to be lovely... and then Stealth happened...

I'd honestly say Saw was the best themed coaster out of the two parks, the queueline achieves a very claustrophobic feel and the station and pre-lift section are excellent. (The exit stairs have plenty of props I feel I should add as well.) So the outdoor-section has nothing true, but that's no different to most of the coasters at Thorpe/Alton whose level of theming (not landscaping) disappear the second the train leaves the station.

Thirteen is decent, but to me it looks half-finished. Like Saw, there's nothing in the outdoor section and even in the crypt all there is are some wraiths (which don't do anything) and some atmospheric lighting. There isn't really anything else to it.

Nemesis undoubtedly is the best landscaped coaster of the lot and its done so well it can get away with a little amount of theming. (Only the bus and the station exterior spring to mind as the real pieces of theming there.) The thing which bugs me most is that it's obvious the interior of the station is just a tin shed. The theme would pretty much be perfect if elements were introduced to the station interior. Inferno suffers the same tin shed look and although the volcano is a decent effort it just about does the job.

Overall, both parks don't really have a coaster which is really REALLY well themed. I'd say Saw was the best for actual theming and Nemesis would win for landscaping.


Although saying that Rattlesnake, Vampire and Runaway Mine Train at Chessington beat both parks when it comes to theming their coasters. All they need, is a new one. :roll:
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