Top 10 'Universal Orlando Resort' Screen Rides!
Universal Studios (Orlando) and Universal’s Islands of Adventure are two of the most beloved theme parks in Florida, if not the country. While there are many reasons to love these adjacent parks, and certainly many things that each park does extremely well, there are also some recurrent criticisms that Universal has yet to adequately address. One such criticism is that the two parks are overly reliant on motion simulators - more colloquially known as ‘screen rides’.
The aptly-named motion simulator ride will create a sense of immersion for the rider by combining subtle and controlled movement of the ride vehicle with a large (or small) screen projection, often further enhancing the experience with 3D glasses and/or wind and water effects. These rides are typically thought of as a cost-effective alternative to the extensive use of animatronics or the creation of a linear roller coaster layout; since the rider remains mostly stationary and the degree of immersion relies wholly on what is happening in a pre-rendered video directly in front of that rider, the ride developer need not contend with such usual headaches as industrial engineering, structural integrity or physical scene creation….or, at least, not to the same degree.
While we agree that Universal has a surplus of these screen rides between the two properties in Orlando, FL, we also have to admit that the overwhelming majority of these rides are crazy fun! Today, we’re ranking the screen rides at Universal Orlando on the bases of fun, thrill, immersion and theming!
Note: For our purposes here today, we’re not counting the Hogwarts Express as a screen-based attraction.
Image Credit: Universal Orlando Resort
10. Fast & Furious: Supercharged™
After a pre-show featuring FF characters ‘Tej’ and ‘Mia’, guests are loaded onto an open-air party bus and driven through an extended tunnel of screens featuring tentpole characters ‘Dom’, ‘Hobbs’ and ‘Shaw’ in a high-speed chase. The simulator itself is convincing enough, although there are virtually zero physical sets throughout the whole experience - but we lose major points for the entertainment value here. Don’t get us wrong, we enjoy the movies. The problem is, the ride is upsettingly far-removed from the movies. Fans of the FF franchise will be disappointed to see the major characters delivering phoned-in performances tied together by a hollow script. The fact that Dom is half the proportional size of the helicopter he dangles from also doesn’t help to sell the illusion very well.
Image Credit: Universal Orlando Resort
9. Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon™
Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon™ is a largely static attraction with minimal movement. Guests are escorted into a massive stadium seating theatre complex and buckled into what looks like an standard theatre chair. However, the scale of the screen and the convincing perception of the show helps the minimal movement of the stadium rows to go a very long way. This ride is pretty immersive, as immersion goes, and is one of the top offenders when it comes to screen-based motion sickness. That said, it is one of the more family-friendly offerings on our list, and with a comparatively lower wait time on most operating days, it’s a superb way to get out of the Florida heat for a spell.
Image Credit: Orlando Informer
8. Shrek 4-D
Likely the most static ‘ride’ on this list, Shrek 4D is a short animated feature which stakes its immersion on the effectiveness of the 3D glasses that the riders will be wearing and the expulsion of water, smoke and smell effects that will no doubt remind Florida locals of the neighboring Disney Hollywood Studios’ Muppet*Vision 3D. There is some subtle movement to force perspective as Shrek, Fiona and Donkey tumble through their mid-franchise adventure, but at the end of the day, this attraction didn’t claim the #8 slot on our list because of its depth of immersion or thrill of engagement. In point of fact, we feel that the attraction is one of the better representations of an IP (intellectual property) and offers fun, laughs and a solid story that puts the Jimmy Fallon and Fast & Furious attractions to shame. Plus, the pre-show and the indoor queue areas are some of the best-themed of any contenders on this list!
Image Credit: Trip Savvy
7. Despicable Me Minion Mayhem™
Something you’ll no doubt have begun to notice by now is that many of the bottom rungs of our ranking ladder have been occupied by a number of attractions geared towards families or towards younger children. The placement of ‘Despicable Me Minion Mayhem™’ as our number seven (7) pick continues that trend, as adults will not find this attraction anywhere near as engaging as their children might. However, it’s still an effective and immersive simulator, and gets due credit from us for utilizing newer and more immersive technology to create the illusion of rapid movement. As opposed to rows of stadium seating and/or long tunnels of screen action, this ride utilizes smaller ‘pods’ of seats (4 to a row) that are individually rocked, throttled and bucked to give you a more personalized experience as you follow along with the screen action. It’s far from perfect, but it’s a step towards the bigger, more thrilling screen-based experiences that we’ll see as the list goes on.
Image Credit: Inside Universal
6. The Simpsons Ride™
‘The Simpsons’ is traditionally seen as adult entertainment, though for thirty years it has successfully been able to straddle the line between TV-PG and TV-14 and drawn viewership from both old and young watchers. The ride is similar, and features a fun family adventure with a wee dose of dark humor - namely, Sideshow Bob’s pension for murdering Bart Simpson in cold blood. It’s tough to immerse oneself in a story or even a world that is so ridiculous and unrealistic as that of the Simpsons’, but the ride still manages to be quite fun for what it is. This simulator has more wild and reactive movements than previous entires on our list and has been known to cause more intense symptoms of motion sickness in the more susceptible of riders - but for those with stronger stomachs, it is one of the more enjoyable ride experiences in the Universal Studios park.
Image Credit: USA Today
5. Skull Island: Reign of Kong™
We know what you’re thinking - with so many similarities between ‘Skull Island: Reign of Kong™’ and ‘Fast & Furious: Supercharged™’, why is the latter at the absolute bottom of our list and the former towards the top half? Well, while ‘Kong’ does have some very similar elements - the majority of the ride experience created by a long dark tunnel of screen action being the key similarity - there is no contest between the two when it comes to immersion. For starters, ‘Kong’ is a ride that is littered throughout with physical scene elements and impressive animatronics, beginning with a spooky shaman animatronic that interacts with guests in the ride queue and ending with a MASSIVE King Kong animatronic that glares and growls at riders on their way back to the load/unload platform. But the screen elements themselves are also more impressive. Not only are the story and the rendered elements more convincing and on-brand for the IP, but the interactions between the screen elements and the riders are much more impressive, with unique parallel action taking place on both sides of the ride vehicle and a platform underneath the vehicle giving riders an unsettling rock, shake or drop as the situation calls for it. ‘Kong’ is probably not a ride that you’d want to wait an hour or more to hop on, but it’s certainly one of the more impressive attractions on this list by nearly all of our qualifying terms.
4. TRANSFORMERS: The Ride-3D
It is at this point that we get into the neck-and-neck competitors within our top 10 rankings! Although an outrageous majority of ‘TRANSFORMERS: The Ride-3D’ is screen action, this attraction is one arguably of the most immersive screen rides on the Universal Orlando Resort property. The screen component is highly engaging and beautifully rendered, and if you’ve seen any of the ‘Transformers’ live-action films of the past decade, you’ll no doubt feel (for better or for worse) that this attraction effectively delivers yet another Transformers film of the same quality; the difference being, you’re in this one! Unlike previous entries on our list, the motion of your ‘Transformers’ vehicle is far from static, with the vehicle moving along a track layout filled with multiple screens and forcing your in-story character to spin, dive and speed through a series of near misses and physical set effects that truly have to be seen in order to believed. There’s even a full-scale (defeated) Megatron animatronic towards the end of the experience that rivals the size and intimidation of ‘Kong’ himself. Put simply, this ride is ridiculously fun; and for that reason, if no other, it soared quickly to the top of our list!
3. The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man
When it comes to sorting ‘The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man’ and ‘Transformers: The Ride’ in a ranked list, it’s a tough call - like, Harry being sorted into Slytherin or Gryffindor level tough! These rides utilize the exact same ride system and a very similar ride layout, down to the same effects being utilized for the perception of drops, jumps, swings and spins. As a result, the rides are pretty much equally as fun, drawing the same type of guest and with wait times that are comparable if not identical between the two parks. However, where the rubber really meets the road is with physical set elements. Spider-Man is able to pull ahead here due to the remarkable hydrotechnics, pyrotechnics and electricity effects that go hand in hand with the story of the ride experience, creating - in the guest’s mind - an extra layer of danger for their adventure. It’s one thing to have an on-screen experience wherein Hydro Man forces you backwards with a tidal wave, or to have Hobgoblin try to detonate a pumpkin bomb on your vehicle. It’s quite another to feel the water droplets flung at you and to have your vehicle shudder at the impact as an explosion above your head lets loose and seems to singe the hair on your arm. It’s close, but your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man takes the gold!
2. Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts™
If you’ve heard of Universal Studios or Universal’s Island of Adventure, then you’ve heard of the magnificence of the Harry Potter-themed lands therein. That said, there’s an extent to which you might not even know that Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts™ was there - because that’s how well-hidden this little gem actually is, and how immersive the queue itself can be! Although the ride is physically above ground in a well-hidden show building, the objective of the queue is to convince riders that they’re going deep, deep underground into the tunnels of a goblin bank. The ride’s story is woven into a segment from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Part 1) and features the Potter gang as represented on screen. As a rider, you’re attacked and chased by Voldemort and Bellatrix Lestrange and the screen action follows you throughout the mines as you try to outpace the dark wizards. What makes this screen ride stand out, you ask? Well, immersion aside - which already puts it among the top three - this ride is an actual, honest-to-God roller coaster with screen story components! Although you still need the provided 3D glasses in order to make the most of the experience, the ride itself would be fun with your eyes closed throughout as you dip, dive, tilt and turn through a maze of steel track complimented by the story of Harry and his friends escaping the bank side by side with you. What more could a theme park groupie want in a ride?
1. Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey™
As if there could be any doubt about what our number one (1) might be! Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey™ has it all, from immersive animatronics - death eaters, dragon heads, etc. - to floating candle illusions, to a queue full of talking portraits, to a unique, one-of-a-kind ride system that has yet to be fully replicated by any competing theme park anywhere else in the world! Riders are nested four to a row in a small ‘pod’ that replicates the sensation of having a broom between one’s legs. Behind the scenes, these pods are actually at the end of a massive, articulative steel arm which can move the pod up, down, side to side or around in a circle on a programmed course. The screen component is just as unique, with your pod occasionally being dipped inside a concave dome where Harry and Draco are neck-and-neck in a dangerous Quidditch race, and you’re right on their heels! The best part? Apart from the ‘Hogwarts Express’ transitional attraction (not included on this list), this is the one screen ride across both Universal Orlando parks that does not require the rider to wear 3D glasses. Although it may not be our favorite ride across the two parks, we have absolutely no hesitation in saying that this is certainly the single most unique and immersive and story-driven screen ride on property.
So there you have it - our top ten (10) best screen rides at Universal Orlando, in order! Do you agree with our list? What would you change, if anything? Do you think that Orlando’s upcoming expansion, Epic Universe, will be as reliant on screens as the existing parks are? Write us a comment to let us know what your thoughts are; we’d love to hear from you! Keep an eye on our YouTube channel over at Timandkt, and we’ll look forward to our next trip to Universal Orlando Resort to form our next batch of comprehensive lists!
