Warner Bros. Movie World have finally released the details their long-awaited, world class ride, DC Rivals HyperCoaster. Now that we’ve had a day to digest the announcement, let’s dive deeper with a breakdown of what’s coming and what’s already here.
The stats don’t lie, this will kick ass.
At 61.6m high, when combined with theming and final touches, this will easily be Village Roadshow’s tallest ever attraction, and indeed the tallest currently standing at Warner Bros. Movie World. Beyond the twisting first drop, you’ll be relentlessly hurdled through nearly 1.5km’s worth of track, virtually double the length of the country’s best roller-coaster, Superman Escape. Speaking of, while Superman’s big 100k/ph launch is an indeed a huge rush, it still doesn’t have the hyper-coaster beat, with Rival’s first drop’s speed coming in at a solid 115k/ph.
What this is, is a hypercoaster beast. This roller-coaster shouldn’t exist in Australia, period. As far as spending goes, Tower of Terror / Giant Drop at Dreamworld, Superman Escape at Movie World & Storm at Sea World all fall in the ballpark of 16-20 million, so when you base the price of DC Rivals off other hypercoasters in the world, the spend, which could be up and over 30 million, is a big, risky gamble, one the park and enthusiasts alike hope will pay off.
What does over 30 million get you?
A lot, seriously, 1.5km is a lot of roller-coaster to take on in one hit. It’s also worth noting that what makes a great roller-coaster memorable isn’t just crazy stats. Some of the world’s highest ranked roller-coasters aren’t the tallest or fastest, actually, they are in fact in the same realm as DC Rivals in terms of speed, height and length, and, as the proverbial goes, sometimes it’s about what you do with it, not how big it is, that makes the experience truly great.
That being said, what it does with over a kilometre and a half of track is relentlessly awesome. What’s abundantly clear is that in recent years Village Roadshow has brought in talent passionate about roller-coasters, and it shows, from start to finish, DC Rivals looks like a “greatest hits” of all the very best elements of the world’s most highly regarded rides. Let’s take a quick snapshot of what’s being built, and why it’s going to be awesome.
Let’s start with the first drop. One of the most famous first drops on any roller-coaster is Expedition Geforce’s at Holiday Park, Germany, and this looks set to mimic that same 90 degree first drop fling. Given that the roller-coaster train will have lap-bars, this will the first of many occassions where guests will feel like they’re being flung or pulled out from their seats.
From there, we hit up a huge ejector air-time hill that’s going to try and pry you from your seat, before descending into the ride’s signature element, the non-inverting loop. It’s pretty self explanatory, from all reports, this will be one of the ride’s most memorable and unique moments, the degree of twisting is insanely sharp, which should make for one hell of a moment in the sky.
Reaching the middle, we start to fly into over-banked city. Every turn, no matter how high or low to the ground, is designed to make you feel like the park should’ve opted for something more snug than just a lap-bar to hold you in. It mimics I305 at Kings Island or Maverick at Cedar Point, both of which are highly regarded by enthusiasts for its crazy fast transitions. You will feel like the ride is going too fast, and you will love it.
Last up, we’ve got a helix of death followed by a series of bunny hops. What’s a helix of death, you ask? Picture a giant 360 degree turn that drives you into the bottom of your seat, and that’s exactly what you’re getting here. Slicing through that, the aforementioned bunny-hops are going to quench any remaining thirst for airtime you may have left over before hitting the brake run.
Voila, you now know what to expect when you ride it later this year. Congrats.
What else will make this unique?
Minimal restraints & Reversed seating – as mentioned above, the trains will have elevated seats with pseudo lap-bars, similar to that of Buzzsaw at Dreamworld or Jet Rescue at Sea World but with just a slight more bulk. What will truly set DC Rivals apart though will be the last two seats which face the opposite direction of travel, resulting in a crazy experience for those who really want to live life on the edge.
Theming – Originally rumoured to be Suicide Squad themed, the idea was rumoured to be quickly canned in light of appearing insensitive to events that happened last year at Dreamworld. At the end of the day, with a roller-coaster this big, theming is really a secondary thought, not a main part of the experience. Judging by leaked documents earlier in the year, a Green Lantern level of theming (basic station that’s jazzed up a little) is going to be expected.
Location – it goes without saying, because of our tiny little population, we just don’t have the numbers to support rides as big as our overseas counterparts. The fact that we have great roller-coasters like Abyss or Superman Escape is a pretty impressive feat in itself. So the fact that we may just have one of the world’s best roller-coasters at our doorsteps is nothing short of extraordinary. If the park can pull this off, and I really hope to hell they do, then not only does this have the potential to bring in a metric ton of new tourism in to the Gold Coast, but could also potentially signal a change in the forecast ahead, one where parks like Sea World and Dreamworld continue this trend of spending big, and even, dare I say, down the line, another a park pops up.
Next Steps for Movie World
For now, the ride is still very much in construction. Pieces continue to arrive by the container-load everyday, and will probably continue to do so until July at the latest if building trends for roller-coasters of this size are anything to go by. Building a roller-coaster is very much like the world’s largest LEGO Set – every single piece of steel is designed come together in a certain place and order to create what will certainly become Movie World’s new signature attraction. I don’t know about other readers, but I for one can’t wait to ride this when it opens later this year.
(With thanks to Parkz for yesterday’s media call photos.)
