Universal Epic Universe: A Dark Universe Disappointment, Logistical Nightmares, Criticisms on my Preview and of This New Park.

Hello Reader,
Saturday April 19th, I attended Universal Epic Universe, for my passholder preview. While the lands themselves are beautiful, I must inform you all that i am appalled, flabbergasted and even disgusted by my experience at Epic Universe.

While this was considered a preview, and we knew all rides were still in technical rehearsals, I ask how dare, Universal creative open a park, when at least once every single ride was either delayed, due to technical error and how their Virtual Cue System for Harry Potter: Battle at The Ministry, doesn’t work.

My girlfriend and I went to Universal specifically for Battle at the Ministry, and unexpectedly despite using the virtual cue and only being a party of 2 were unable to retrieve a time slot to return and ride the one attraction that we wanted to ride and our soul reason for visiting the park yesterday.

Not only this but despite this being a new park I was astonished at how some of the cues especially for their family rides, have come under disrepair due to restless children tearing ropes that seemed to be broken and in need of repair and the park hasn’t even officially opened yet.

In this article I will aim to create logistical suggestions for Universal in terms of their newest park, and explain my feelings and thoughts of the attractions I paid to visit, for preview.

The Virtual Cue is A Logisitcal Nightmare: my concepts on how they could have fixed it

The first topic I wish to discuss is of course the stupid Virtual Cue(that doesn’t work) that was created for Battle at The Ministry. First of all in order to get it, Team Members suggest that guests use the UNIVERSAL wifi, an unsecured network, that doesn’t reach the entire park and drains your battery as you attempt to connect to it over and over again. When I first connected to the wifi, my battery was at 95% over a couple hours later it when the second virtual cue opened my battery was at 50% and I hadn’t used my phone since lunch(as all restaurants are mobile order table deliver, but more on that later), and when it finally reached the final cue my battery was 25% and I hadn’t touched my phone since the last virtual cue.

Not only does the Wifi drain your battery, but for any of you who don’t know Harry Potter and The Battle at the Ministry has a cue that theoretically can last 7-9 hours, which I know is surprising. If they have the capacity, why in the world would they make a virtual cue with limited capacity for this attraction. I foresee that even if Universal were to have opened the regular lines, the wait time would not have exceeded 2 hours for this attraction, as guests don’t want to wait in excess of 2 hours for a singular ride and this 2 hour wait time would have deterred guest by their own volition to go experience other attractions instead of being let down when they cannot achieve a virtual cue slot, due to technical error. This is just bad logistical planning.

Universal in fact could guarantee that guests can all experience all attractions within their land, by creating a different system, that is part of their ticket similar to the Tapu Tapu system at Volcano bay which allows them to relax, take their time and limit lines, allowing them to cash in on merchandise sales, and food sales in the down times that guests have. Similar to Disney, Universal could create an AI software like Disney Genie, but free for all guests to use(really showing disney up) where guests select all the attractions they wish to attend that day, placing all attractions in order by priority and generating them a schedule with time frames for them to attend, combined with the Tapu Tapu system from Volcano bay, they could theoretically limit time waiting and the restlessness of younger guests who were breaking rules and cues park wide.

A second way universal could have fixed this virtual cue is open the single rider line. Guests with parties two or more thus could have rode this attraction, using their virtual system, while the single riders could have just hopped in line for it. There is no logic to me as to why someone who came to the park themselves, without a party would use a virtual cue for this attraction. If they allowed single riders into the cue, many parties would split up, but similar to Hagrid's Motorbike this attraction’s single rider would have been just as long as if a person were to wait for the stand by time, or in this case virtual cue. But as previously mentioned this virtual cue was terrible and single riders would have made it that more frustrating.

A third way universal could have fixed this was a guaranteed time slot for all ticketed guest using their ticket. They could have made it so that when your ticket was purchased, a timeslot was given to you to assist in planning your day around attending this attraction, then when you arrive at the park, and get through security you can redeem “Wrist Band” digitally through the Universal App, and attend the park worry free that you will not miss out on this attraction. Since this wasn’t a free ticket, they should have guaranteed all guests in attendance had the opportunity just by purchasing their ticket.



WHY were Passholders, Visa Cards, Military and Hotel Guests all in attendance at his preview

This brings me to my second point. To be a Visa Card member, or an Annual Passholder places guests in a premium elite special club among universal guests, and for some reason Universal decided that they would have these previews for Military, and Hotel Guests in attendance as well. At this point they might as well have opened the park to the general public, as it was overcrowded despite it being only a preview date.

The reason this makes no sense is specifically that Passholders, and Visa Card Members, tend to be under the same umbrella, many Passholders are also Card members and many card members are also Passholders, and they limited Visa to 100 guests, and Passholders to 6000, but with Hotel Guests and Military stacked on top of this, they managed to overcrowd the park, and what we thought was a preview has turned into just an average park day.

Universal needs to (and I emphasize “Needs To”) change this in the future. Passholders and Visa Cards should share preview dates, but at a reduced capacity, and all other guests should be secondary or await the parks opening. Criticizing the way they managed the fact that yesterday was a preview, is hard to do, given that we felt overwhelmed. We understand Press get their own preview, and as do team members, but Universal must not forget that Passholders and Visa Card holders are both to be considered their own group, as compared to normal day guests despite us constantly blending in with them. The only difference is Passholders, and card members love Team Members and we respect the rides and cues unlike normal guests who just want to attend the park and will never return for years.

Passholders and Visa Card Members spend hundreds if not thousands of dollars a month in the Universal Parks and by flooding them with normal guests during a preview, Universal is overwhelming them and making their profit margins off merchandise and food lower as well as moral for their Team Members and visibly upsetting many guests.

If I hadn’t needed to pay for my ticket for my preview I can assure Universal I personally would have put all of that money I save as a Passholder on Merchandise or food, which is truely where Universal’s hidden profits are(or theoretically should) be made.









****Spoilers AHEAD My Thoughts on Monsters Unchained****

Monsters Unchained is a Flop: My Honest Thoughts

This brings me to the final subject of my review. I don’t normally target rides, in these articles, but I am so Unhappy with this attraction that this needs to be explained. Every single Press Preview entity mentioned that this ride was amazing, it was great, it was phenomenal. Who are these lying sheep? That is my review of all of their reviews. Monsters Unchained starts out with a story, you are entering Victoria Frankenstein’s castle to participate in an experiment “a test Subject” as you journey deeper and deeper into the cue you learn more and more about the experiment and the monsters and characters of the Dark Universe, mostly Victoria Frankenstein, and Dracula. The cue is amazing, it’s immersive, exciting and the sights and sounds are what I expected from this attraction. It wasn’t until we got on the ride that the story truly lost me.

For one it is never explained how or why Victoria has rounded up all of these monsters nor, why The Hunchback of Notre Dame or The Phantom of the Opera are included given they are less monster and more sympathetic characters, but as you get to Dracula’s cell and Dracula is released, the story brings you though the cells of all of these other monster who are being kept in the catacombs. It's very hard to follow with too many characters that I don’t understand why they were included (Especially the Creature of the Black Lagoon who is in a Well for some reason).

Before I got on Monsters Unchained I was so excited by the Cue, but somewhere in the middle of the Story, the story on the ride lost me. This could be because we got stopped in the middle of the ride when the Mummy appears, who isn’t Imhotep from the Movie it’s more like a sequel character to the Mummy ride than anything else.

The biggest problem I have is that the rides story seems to end right as it was getting good. It is unclear if Dracula was defeated as the final scene is Igor being targeted and attacked by a swarm of Bats(and the Dracula Animatronic in the final scene with Dracula, was broken for my ride through).

How would I fix this?

First of showcase each monster individually, yes Dracula is causing chaos, and releasing the monsters, but we should have been given more time with each monster. I’m not saying the Phantom and hunchback(they exist they way they do). Following the experiment Dracula should be releasing each monster or pushing guests into the location of each monster. The Wolfman pursuit is the best and most fleshed out Monster Encounter on the ride thus far.

They should build an aquarium in the catacombs, have guests pursued by the creature from the black lagoon before they actually see him instead of having a random encounter when he is in a well. A pursuit would really help this characters scene.

The mummy is featured and is sort of one offed by Victoria, when we know Imhotep is probably one of the most powerful monsters on the attraction. A greater pursuit, using the plagues, and curses from the mummy attraction itself could assist in making this monster more of a threat, and terrifying to guests.

When Igor is attacked in the finale, I was expecting a part 2, where Dracula takes over the ride, maybe bring Van Helsing in to assist Victoria and the Monster in the final act as a way to defeat Dracula, extending the ride by a few scenes where each monster is defeated by Van Helsing, Victoria and the monster in the finale rather than throughout the attraction.

This ride is a horror themed thrill attraction and it was more comical than scary. Universal, guests expected Halloween Horror Nights from you,with this attraction and you gave us something that is Not So Scary.

I guess this is why Universal has a survey after the ride but I was disappointed and Underwhelmed by this attraction, and I was so looking forward to this.

Conclusion

For the most part I enjoyed Universal’s Epic universe, it is a beautiful amazing Immersive land. Nintendo Land may be more for those who are athletic, and Berk to me is still a Family/Kids land, but Dark Universe needs work(despite the food being amazing), and the New Ministry of Magic area of The Wizarding World needs to get rid of that god awful virtual cue.

What do you think? Do you have any concepts or recommendations for Universal? Are you excited for Universal? Leave your comments below.