Parque Warner Madrid | Gotham City Escape | Intamin Launch Coaster | 2023
- Thread starter Niles
- Start date
uwurawrus
Roller Poster
The mass-appealification of Intamin continues
I'm nowhere near as excited as I was about these projects a few years back. Now it just seems like Intamin are dialing everything down to make their rides not too-intense while still incorporating elements that you'd find on wilder coasters.
I think Toutatis looks better and I'm sure this will still be cracking but I don't think anything Intamin puts out in the future will top the likes of Taiga, Taron, or anything older than those two.
I'm nowhere near as excited as I was about these projects a few years back. Now it just seems like Intamin are dialing everything down to make their rides not too-intense while still incorporating elements that you'd find on wilder coasters.
I think Toutatis looks better and I'm sure this will still be cracking but I don't think anything Intamin puts out in the future will top the likes of Taiga, Taron, or anything older than those two.
Indy
Hyper Poster
The mass-appealification continues? When did it start? I mean, Kondaa exists.
Sometimes a park just wants something different. Not every coaster is going to be crazy intense. The park has to want a crazy intense coaster, which isn't often the case.
uwurawrus
Roller Poster
I feel like it started with VelociCoaster.
I haven't personally ridden Kondaa but I know others that definitely feel like Kondaa is way less intense than the earlier Intamins out there. Someone from Intamin even confirmed in a Coaster Studios video that they're trying to make the transitions from positive to negative gs smoother and less sudden, which is a huge minus in my books.
DelPiero
Strata Poster
Parts of that last video are exciting, the first hill after the drop as well as the twisted hill after the 2nd launch both look to be taken at decent speed.
Some of the other elements do look a little sluggish and the stall will feel too hangy imo, these stalls should not feel like Mystery Mine's finale.
Holding out hope that they reduce that holding brake a little or the actual weight of people/the warm up effect speeds it up very slightly.
Some of the other elements do look a little sluggish and the stall will feel too hangy imo, these stalls should not feel like Mystery Mine's finale.
Holding out hope that they reduce that holding brake a little or the actual weight of people/the warm up effect speeds it up very slightly.
Inverting_Thrills
Mega Poster
I actually agree with this
In previous posts I've talked about how Velocicoaster disappointed me and that was in large part do to a lack of intensity. The airtime on top of the top hat and final inversion was great but beyond that it was rather mild. I can see that in this coaster too. The drop off the top hat and first airtime hill look incredible but beyond that some of the elements seem rather tame and/or slow.
Dar
Hyper Poster
I wonder if moving away from sudden transitions is an attempt to improve reliability and reduce maintenance on the trains, rather than just dialling down the intensity?
Coastercal
Roller Poster
Call me daft, but I’m guessing this means on most double launch coasters including this one a second launch can act as a block as said launch can also be used as a break run to stop the train?
Inverting_Thrills
Mega Poster
That's absolutely one of the factors at play. It makes the coaster more appealing to the park.
I mean if you want to get technical Intamin just made a clone of Taron in 2021
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uwurawrus
Roller Poster
It's called All Speeds but none of those speeds are fast
Looks so much slower than Taron does.
Efteldingus
Mega Poster
I'm probably talking nonsense here, but could it be that it has something to do with the newer type of track Intamin uses? I know it shouldn't make any difference, it would be illogical for them to design a new track type that would be less capable. But maybe this track lends itself better to the more flowy and smooth transitions in the design stage? Just a thought 
Matt N
CF Legend
I apologise for playing devil’s advocate here, but isn’t this arguably a good thing, through the eyes of some at least?
Mass appeal is surely what a park wants when it puts in a new coaster, and I’ve seen a not insignificant subset of enthusiasts find previous Intamins like I305 and Skyrush too intense. I can imagine that is only exacerbated within the wider market. Rides with mass appeal may not be the most intense things on Earth, but they will be really popular and will appeal to a wide range of people.
With that in mind, I can definitely see why Intamin is toning down the forces slightly. Some enthusiasts may love intense rides, but that opinion is not necessarily shared by the mass market, and the mass market is ultimately who Intamin builds these rides for. Heck, I don’t like rides too intense myself; in my eyes, raw intensity isn’t everything, and fun and rerideability are far more important.
And that is before you consider the pros in terms of long-term maintenance and stress on the track and trains.
Changa
Mega Poster
Surely Intamin are customising their layout to the request of the park? Sure, they'll come up with the payouts. But the park is their client, who will be having a significant input in his the ride experience is, whether it be bullet points of feedback between revisions or designing entire layouts (eg: Velocicoaster/Formula Rossa).
Parks aren't going to Intamin with tens of millions of pounds in the hope that they'll produce something the park actually wants. They're engineers with a product tailored to their customer, not egotistical auters who's divine vision can never challenged by the feeble-minded, profit seeking park managers who dare to question the philosophical significance of sustained 3g corners.
Parks aren't going to Intamin with tens of millions of pounds in the hope that they'll produce something the park actually wants. They're engineers with a product tailored to their customer, not egotistical auters who's divine vision can never challenged by the feeble-minded, profit seeking park managers who dare to question the philosophical significance of sustained 3g corners.
I realise it's all subjective, but in my experience, Kondaa and VelociCoaster are both more intense than Taiga and Taron. The first airtime hill on Kondaa is one of the most forceful moments of ejector I've experienced. The final inversion on VelociCoaster has a real kick to it, not to mention the intense positive G as you pull out of the first inversion.
By comparison, Taiga felt sluggish everytime I rode it, and Taron only truly hits its stride at night when it's warmed up. They're still great rides but I'd take Kondaa over either of them any day. Intamin are building fantastic stuff and I'm pretty confident that both GCE and Toutatis will deliver exemplary modern coaster experiences that will please both enthusiasts and casual guests alike.
The only lamentable thing in my books is that Intamin will never build another I305. Now THAT'S a ride that showcases the insanity Intamin are capable of! But alas, many deem the ride forceful to a fault and it seems to lack wide appeal for this very reason.
By comparison, Taiga felt sluggish everytime I rode it, and Taron only truly hits its stride at night when it's warmed up. They're still great rides but I'd take Kondaa over either of them any day. Intamin are building fantastic stuff and I'm pretty confident that both GCE and Toutatis will deliver exemplary modern coaster experiences that will please both enthusiasts and casual guests alike.
The only lamentable thing in my books is that Intamin will never build another I305. Now THAT'S a ride that showcases the insanity Intamin are capable of! But alas, many deem the ride forceful to a fault and it seems to lack wide appeal for this very reason.
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Slamming Coastercore
Mega Poster
When you look at some of Intamin's most intense creations, whilst loved by enthusiasts, most parks almost always regret them.
Dragster has famously been known as Cedar Points biggest regret; i305 basically terminated Cedar Fair's relationship with Intamin and Hershey Park needed to build another hyper in Candemonium to satisfy the hyper "gap" that Skyrush failed to fill for the GP.
Like Serena says, it is gutting that Intamin will likely never build another coaster as intense as i305; but looking at any of their new coasters over the last few years that use their modern track style, they're clearly onto something. Kondaa, Pantheon, Hyperion and Velocicoaster are all phenomenal rides; and all have intense moments. There is a rawness to those older, more brutal Intamins; but now they've got a formula for balancing intensity, why would they deviate from that?
Personally, I'm just happy to see that there are two very good-looking Intamin's that are relatively quick and cheap to fly to from London. I will never not be excited for a new Intamin coaster in Europe.
Dragster has famously been known as Cedar Points biggest regret; i305 basically terminated Cedar Fair's relationship with Intamin and Hershey Park needed to build another hyper in Candemonium to satisfy the hyper "gap" that Skyrush failed to fill for the GP.
Like Serena says, it is gutting that Intamin will likely never build another coaster as intense as i305; but looking at any of their new coasters over the last few years that use their modern track style, they're clearly onto something. Kondaa, Pantheon, Hyperion and Velocicoaster are all phenomenal rides; and all have intense moments. There is a rawness to those older, more brutal Intamins; but now they've got a formula for balancing intensity, why would they deviate from that?
Personally, I'm just happy to see that there are two very good-looking Intamin's that are relatively quick and cheap to fly to from London. I will never not be excited for a new Intamin coaster in Europe.
DelPiero
Strata Poster
I agree with both @Serena and @Slamming Coastercore
Intamin's recent offerings cater to both enthusiasts and the GP because they aren't the bodily assaults that they flirted with 10 years ago. They have their moments, Taron at night is the obvious one, but generally they aren't as intense as I305, Skyrush and to a lesser extent, the Megalites.
I'm always hoping we see something crazy emerge like the above, or what B&M did with Fury, but they are few and far between. But one day it will happen, something utterly bonkers again, and when it does, I hope it's nearby
Intamin's recent offerings cater to both enthusiasts and the GP because they aren't the bodily assaults that they flirted with 10 years ago. They have their moments, Taron at night is the obvious one, but generally they aren't as intense as I305, Skyrush and to a lesser extent, the Megalites.
I'm always hoping we see something crazy emerge like the above, or what B&M did with Fury, but they are few and far between. But one day it will happen, something utterly bonkers again, and when it does, I hope it's nearby
