PHOTOS - Star Wars hotel construction at Walt Disney World

_caleb1 day ago

I mean, I'm really glad they don't, but they could easily charge for the pirate scavenger hunt. Charge a nominal fee, and you get to keep the treasure map and win a prize for completion. I know the set pieces cost some money, but I think those are literally run by one CM. But you make a good point about how the wands at WWoHP can sometimes create traffic issues for those not participating. In my opinion, they need to add more wand-interactive things so there isn't a queue to do each of the few. It's not as fun to just take a turn making the thing do what you just watched others kids do a dozen times in a row. Also, many of those require CM babysitting. Yes, I think this sort of thing would be great--a secret room/lounge/booth at Oga's or a basement where rebels/resistance meet. I was actually thinking that catwalks, balconies, and rooftops of SW:GE would be perfect for this (I know, they weren't designed for guest access). But if they were, the premium-access interactive experience could have that shared resource of energy, movement, and set pieces.

MrPromey1 day ago

I can understand that trying to do certain things in public mixed space might be difficult, especially with characters, since regular guests would be drawn to it but they could have converted a supply closet* in the park into some secret place you have to find - maybe that could have been what the QR code scanning got you, like an access code or "digital key" that let you have a surprise encounter. Something really simple like that would have made the time in the park really tie into what was going on in the ship and even enhanced the "adventure" side of things by making it feel like more was actually going on around all these "clueless tourists". I could see there being red tape for this - was the Starcruiser part of parks or resorts? If resorts, would they have had to lease a space from parks to allow this (?) - that sort of stuff but as a guest, nobody cares about the self-imposed issues Disney might create for themselves with organizational structure. What you're describing seems like a more elaborate version of what Universal has (sort of) been trying with the themed escape rooms. In this case, a 6-8 hour experience including the dining would be really cool and would lend itself to a lot more things they could do. Obviously, the fishbowl nature of it being a space ship made the idea of the Starcruiser an easier overnight thing to pull off than most stories but by ditching the stay they would: • Elimiate scheduling challenges for the actors • Eliminate the whole issue with rooms (so many headaches solved here) • Be able to bring the price down, opening it to a much wider pool of guests (but still be able to attach premium pricing) • Making it an easier sell for people not wanting to comit to two and a half days of something they're not sure they'll enjoy • Be able to cycle a lot more guests through** • Offer a much wider range of experiences with more than one running next to each other at the same facility • Be able to swap out themes a lot more easially I mean, hindsight is always clear but it's really hard to guess what they were doing with this from the start - creating something they couldn't duplicate, having something they (allegedly) knew wouldn't be profitable - like what was their end-game with it other than it being something flashy to show the world they were still capable of "innovating"? If that last part was it, the closer casts a shadow over that effort. It would be interesting if they could learn the lesson from this and do something like you're suggesting though. Something like that could be duplicated across all resorts worldwide, maybe even on cruise ships and in other tourst areas they don't have a full theme park presence in. *or whatever - just a little spot behind a door somewhere. **With a staggered start time, they might even be able to overlap groups depending on how it's setup.

MrPromey1 day ago

Wow, talk about, how did you put it? Oh, "birds of a feather"! Your hypocrisy really does provide some unintended humor around here. 🤣 You ready to get back to the "content" now or do we want to keep talking about why you watched the video and then wanted to keep pretending weren't going to in both threads? Personally, I'm ready to move on but if you're enjoying this, we can continue.

flynnibus1 day ago

I can see why someone would argue why going to sw:ge would be a ‘no brainer’ part of the experience… but honestly when that portion was revealed I was actually disappointed. It was too easy of a crutch and I thought it would be a significant break in the continuity of the environment being spun up for the experience. And then when the actual unique elements were weak… it was a 1-2 punch. When the concept was initially briefed to you… you could see this as s kind of experience you could have put anywhere… it didn’t need wdw next door. But what they did ultimately almost set themselves up for all the wrong guest expectations of it being a star wars hotel…, and forever were trying to get back out of the hole they dug themselves. They fumbled the attempt at going full time experience… but i think many would agree they’ve been pretty successful with the few hour side adventure. Let’s hope they don’t give up and maybe find some happy inbetween. Imagine being about to replace the part of someone’s vacation they spend now doing minigolf or a tour… with some awesome 8hr immersion experience.

flynnibus1 day ago

Here’s a thought… instead of trying to personally attack someone… stick to the content and you won’t have that problem.

flynnibus1 day ago

I think what describe is a bit more line uni has done with the wands. Which imo has gotten to the point of distracting… but clearly it’s very successful for what it is and the target demo loves it. I was thinking more along the lines of how do you get such investment of resources sustained… without trying to walmart the experience to pump thousands through? And that’s why i was thinking more along the lines of reuse of resources. Where for certain hours of the week a space is used differently… or staff run a different more personalized experience for a finite group, etc. how to scale down, but still be worthy, etc. How tours are done is another parallel to this concept… obviously an interactive experience is not nearly as passive as a tour… but it’s an interesting concept to play with and think through what kinds of gaps or spaces could be used in this way…. Verse building a full separate facility you want to run full time.

rio1 day ago

You might want to learn about something called a subathon. Basically, viewers on Twitch will keep donating to a streamer to make them stay live. True people pop in and out of the stream, but there's a rather fanatical fanbase devoted to watching extended portions of them. Most of the viewers are Millenials/Gen Z, but Gen Z probably makes the majority. Ludwig's made the NYT for going for 31 days https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/18/style/ludwig-ahgren-twitch-livestream.html.

cjkeating1 day ago

I honestly don't understand how she ended up in that booth for dinner. a) those two booths (the one she was in and then the booth on the other side) are the worst seats in the house so likely were kept empty unless the ship was full b) the booths are designed for a group, I'd guess 6 people and she was travelling in a 2 so not the matching table to party size c) there was likely space on the main floor if they wanted to, my cruise was sold out and there was still plenty of space between tables, it wasn't a Disney Wish dining room situation Honestly it feels like something I'd do to an annoying customer in some of the front line jobs I've had for my own personal amusement.

MrPromey2 days ago

I really don't understand why they didn't do that with this from the start. Maybe they thought they kind of were by dumping people in the park for a few hours as part of their stay but from the looks of it, there wasn't much exclusive hapening in the parks other than the qr code scanning and the ILL passes.

MrPromey2 days ago

Sorry, being as how you hadn't yet updated your stance on not watching and were still whining about how you can't stand her, I mistakenly took that to mean you were still not watching and were instead, quoting from other posters since that is still what you were stuck on talking about. After all, it's not like she's never come up on these forums before. Sorry my mind reading wasn't up to your standards. I realize you would be happier if she had stated "in my opinion" before everything she said that was an opinion (which was nearly all of it) but it's not like you do that much here, either so as for that "birds of a feather comment". 🤷‍♂️ Also, I never said anything about her "brand". You're confusing me with someone else, completely. And the reason I mistakenly got the impression you hadn't watched it still was mainly due to this in your post I was replying to: So maybe instead of trying to pull a "gotcha" on me, try writing more clearly and/or honestly... :rolleyes:

_caleb2 days ago

Yes, I like the way you put that-- shared resources. In another thread (I think) I mentioned how much I like the Pirate Adventure scavenger hunt not only for its fun gameplay, but because if the ambience/kinetic energy its interactive set pieces bring to the land. Even those who aren't playing can appreciate those scenes, sounds, and effects. Honestly, I could see this being a good way to get Starcruiser-like premium (paid) interactivity into SW:GE. People playing the game could run around on in-story missions, while everyone else enjoys watching them and/or the effects of their gameplay and interaction The Millennium Falcon's engines, droids moving through the land, audio cues, etc. And the whole thing would also serve as an advertisement for the game.

flynnibus2 days ago

maybe the future should be something like shared resources. Take for instance the dive experience at the living seas. This would never be feasible as a stand alone experience... but because it's something that can intercut with other assets... it's something that has lived on for decades while only a tiny fraction of WDW guests could ever actually experience it. Imagine if there were a way to run starcruiser like events or sequences using shared infrastructure... but the special event elements brought a bunch of additional things that are exclusive to the event. The tradeoff is always about opportunity cost of the shared infrastructure or asset... but maybe is a strategy to make more baby steps (almost a hybrid or extension of some of the prior playtests) vs trying a full stand-alone experience. One thing we can count on... low volume or more exclusive = higher price. And people will pay if its something they want...

_caleb2 days ago

Right. I'm not talking about the aspects of the Starcruiser that are typically part of the theme park experience. I'm a regular parks visitor and participant on a WDW discussion board– you think I don't know what's typical to the theme park experience? I'm talking about the elements of the Starcruiser that aren't typically part of the theme park experience, like the degree of gamification, interactivity, role-playing, etc. Surely you can recognize that there was something novel about what Disney did here. Much of it was indeed rumored to have initially been planned for inclusion in Galaxy's Edge. I, for one, would like to see them follow through with that and implement them in the parks. Specifically, the "reputation score," some actual gamification, being sent on "missions" (beyond crate scanning) by characters, etc. Are they? Do tell! LOL. I'm aware of (and have experienced) some of these: mystery dinners, escape rooms, Medieval Times, MagiQuest, etc. Some that have lasted many years don't seem to be much better than this was in terms of quality. Perhaps lower pricing = lower expectations. Oh, they've learned a whole lot more than that! If you watched Jenny's video, you'll know that she pointed to things like Phineas and Ferb's Showcase Adventure (2012), Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom (2012), A Pirate's Adventures: The Treasures of the Seven Seas (2013), and the Legends of Frontierland (2014) interactive games as being playtests for the Starcruiser. These were all included in park admission, but added a level of interactivity that was pretty innovative at the time. Those playtests must have revealed strong and broad appeal and high enough guest satisfaction that Disney thought they could charge a premium for an exclusive (and two-night) version themed to Star Wars. But you'll notice the Starcruiser didn't include animated set pieces like those games featured. Seems like another strike against the Starcruiser. For many decades the theme parks have had people meet characters, and explore stories in various intimate ways, including moments like Olivanders and building a light saber with great success. Yes, the lightsaber build/ritual at Savi's workshop is one of the few interactive things that did make it into SW:GE, and it's a pretty big upcharge at $250! When I was a kid, we were regulars at Knott's Berry Farm. Despite being the ugliest, least-convincing dummy I'd ever seen, Old Sad-Eye Joe in the ghost town jail somehow always knew my name. And that made a lasting memory! In my opinion, the Starcruiser was a pretty big innovation in the same vein. It included a degree of complexity (technological, logistic, and storytelling) that hasn't really been done before on this scale and for general audiences. Maybe it was just ahead of its time, or maybe there just isn't the market for it. But I think Disney was on to something, and I'd like to see more of it down the road (at a lower cost, that is).

celluloid2 days ago

Well. There. There it is. It is not you, it is just...everyone else.