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The Disney Star Wars Hotel, a postmortem by Jenny Nicholson

Started by Ratman_tf, May 29, 2024, 12:32:15 AM

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Ratman_tf

May 29, 2024, 12:32:15 AM

Ok, it's worth the watch just because Jenny is a fun theme park reviewer.

But also, I find the concept of a luxury liner that's supposed to have existed through all the major Star Wars eras intriguing. Like, a ship that theoretically could have hosted, been visited by, or encountered by all the major Star Wars characters at one point or another.
The notion of an exclusionary and hostile RPG community is a fever dream of zealots who view all social dynamics through a narrow keyhole of structural oppression.
-Haffrung

Lurkndog

#1
May 29, 2024, 12:44:50 PM Last Edit: May 29, 2024, 12:59:56 PM by Lurkndog
Four hours is way too long for a youtube video, but I think I got the gist of it by skipping to the conclusion.

I do want to go to see Galaxy's Edge before it goes away.

Unfortunately family issues ruined my vacation plans for this year.

As for Galactic Starcruiser, it was just way, way too expensive to even consider. Unless I got to spend an hour hanging out with Mark Hamill and George Lucas.

Ratman_tf

#2
May 29, 2024, 03:18:08 PM
Quote from: Lurkndog on May 29, 2024, 12:44:50 PMFour hours is way too long for a youtube video, but I think I got the gist of it by skipping to the conclusion.

I do want to go to see Galaxy's Edge before it goes away.

Unfortunately family issues ruined my vacation plans for this year.

As for Galactic Starcruiser, it was just way, way too expensive to even consider. Unless I got to spend an hour hanging out with Mark Hamill and George Lucas.

Oh yeah. I haven't gone, I doubt many have, but I think it's yet more evidence that Disney has completely bungled the Star Wars IP.
Her point that the more ambitious and "cool" ideas were put behind the physical paywall of the Galactic Starcruiser seems very likely to me.
The notion of an exclusionary and hostile RPG community is a fever dream of zealots who view all social dynamics through a narrow keyhole of structural oppression.
-Haffrung

yosemitemike

#3
May 29, 2024, 06:15:45 PM
The basic reason is simple.  It cost $6,000 or more for a family to stay there for a two day stay that isn't even all-inclusive.  That's way too much for a two day stay at a theme hotel.   
"I am certain, however, that nothing has done so much to destroy the juridical safeguards of individual freedom as the striving after this mirage of social justice."― Friedrich Hayek
Another former RPGnet member permanently banned for calling out the staff there on their abdication of their responsibilities as moderators and admins and their abject surrender to the whims of the shrillest and most self-righteous members of the community.

Lurkndog

#4
May 29, 2024, 08:08:10 PM
Having watched a bit more of the video, it seems like one of the fundamental issues that they did not solve was the need to have different experiences for different types of visitors.

  • You need to have something for the little ones, something not too scary where they can run around a little.
  • You need to have something for the older kids who want something more like an adventure or wish fulfilment.
  • You need something for the kids' parents, some of whom won't even know what Star Wars is, but want their kids to have a great time, and to have some fun along with them.
  • You need something for the older Star Wars fans, who want some kind of immersion and unique stuff you can't get from a mall.

There's also the person who wants to go to Star Wars Westworld. They're not going to get that at a Disney park, and you should be clear and up front about that.

Instead, it seems like all you got from Galactic Starcruiser was an experience for somebody else's kids, at an exorbitant rate.

Lurkndog

#5
May 29, 2024, 08:33:09 PM
Things they could have done, most of these would be Galaxy's Edge and not just the Starcruiser:

  • A high quality Star Wars themed kids' playground, where you can meet C3PO, R2D2, and maybe some other child-friendly characters.
  • For the teenage boys, the best Star Wars themed laser tag ever made.
  • For the teenage girls, a Star Wars Princess Leia experience, maybe? Or just a nice cosplay area and shop.
  • For Mom & Dad, have photo ops and decent food, which from what I have heard, they pretty much did.
  • For the older Star Wars fans, the build-a-droid/saber shops are good, but they could also have some museum-type stuff, maybe a place where you can have a behind-the-scenes experience with an ILM staffer.

jeff37923

#6
May 29, 2024, 09:09:52 PM
Disney's largest mistake was concentrating on the theme hotel and theme park being extensions of the sequel trilogy, which the majority don't really care about. The overpricing of both Galaxy's Edge and Galactic Starcruiser is just the completion of the concept that woke Disney made some shitty movies that didn't bring in the money like they wanted and the theme parks will make up for it.
"Meh."

Ratman_tf

#7
May 29, 2024, 09:35:43 PM
Quote from: jeff37923 on May 29, 2024, 09:09:52 PMDisney's largest mistake was concentrating on the theme hotel and theme park being extensions of the sequel trilogy, which the majority don't really care about. The overpricing of both Galaxy's Edge and Galactic Starcruiser is just the completion of the concept that woke Disney made some shitty movies that didn't bring in the money like they wanted and the theme parks will make up for it.

I hate to keep beating that dead horse, but yeah. If I was given a all expenses paid free pass, I'd skip it just because it's set in the sequels.
I wouldn't even want to go to mock it, and every time I saw an iStormtrooper, I'd be a little depressed.
The notion of an exclusionary and hostile RPG community is a fever dream of zealots who view all social dynamics through a narrow keyhole of structural oppression.
-Haffrung

Omega

#8
May 30, 2024, 05:03:14 AM
Quote from: yosemitemike on May 29, 2024, 06:15:45 PMThe basic reason is simple.  It cost $6,000 or more for a family to stay there for a two day stay that isn't even all-inclusive.  That's way too much for a two day stay at a theme hotel.   

It was more than a theme hotel.

It was a hotel combined with a (poorly thought out) LARP.

Omega

#9
May 30, 2024, 05:09:43 AM
Disney got on one of the LARP forums and asked alot of questions about LARPing and we answered as best we could.

We called it that they were planning some manner of interactive park. And not long after the interview Disney filed a patent on some LARP-like tech. And sure enough a few years later and SW: Galaxies is announced.

I wanted to go see it and the starship but alas that was never to be.

Take note in the review how she had so many problems with things going awry.

Omega

#10
May 30, 2024, 05:12:00 AM
On a related note. The overly ambitious Evermore fantasy theme park/LARP closed down after years of decline.

I hope they return all the REAL gravestones from other countries they bought as props.

The train is for sale for like 200k apparently.

jeff37923

#11
May 30, 2024, 02:10:12 PM
Quote from: Omega on May 30, 2024, 05:09:43 AMDisney got on one of the LARP forums and asked alot of questions about LARPing and we answered as best we could.

We called it that they were planning some manner of interactive park. And not long after the interview Disney filed a patent on some LARP-like tech. And sure enough a few years later and SW: Galaxies is announced.

I wanted to go see it and the starship but alas that was never to be.

Take note in the review how she had so many problems with things going awry.

They could have made it work. Star Tours ran as a semi-interactive ride for decades.
"Meh."

HappyDaze

#12
May 30, 2024, 03:11:09 PM
Quote from: jeff37923 on May 30, 2024, 02:10:12 PM
Quote from: Omega on May 30, 2024, 05:09:43 AMDisney got on one of the LARP forums and asked alot of questions about LARPing and we answered as best we could.

We called it that they were planning some manner of interactive park. And not long after the interview Disney filed a patent on some LARP-like tech. And sure enough a few years later and SW: Galaxies is announced.

I wanted to go see it and the starship but alas that was never to be.

Take note in the review how she had so many problems with things going awry.

They could have made it work. Star Tours ran as a semi-interactive ride for decades.
There's a huge difference between a single contained ride where all the employees had to do was load you into/out of theatre boxes where you watch one of a handful of slightly interactive films vs dozens of employees pulling off multiple lines of extended LARPing.

Omega

#13
May 30, 2024, 08:51:19 PM
Quote from: jeff37923 on May 30, 2024, 02:10:12 PMThey could have made it work. Star Tours ran as a semi-interactive ride for decades.

Star Trek TNG had a thing in Vegas very similar but on a smaller scale. No game-like elements though.

And of course the failed plan to make a LARP style Dream Park experience. With game elements. There was an article in Scry on it back in the 90s.

It can be done. But according to someone who worked on construction of the project the Execs kept trying to push for a deadline without enough of a safety buffer. This is the end result.

Omega

#14
May 30, 2024, 09:07:23 PM
Quote from: HappyDaze on May 30, 2024, 03:11:09 PM
Quote from: jeff37923 on May 30, 2024, 02:10:12 PM
Quote from: Omega on May 30, 2024, 05:09:43 AMDisney got on one of the LARP forums and asked alot of questions about LARPing and we answered as best we could.

We called it that they were planning some manner of interactive park. And not long after the interview Disney filed a patent on some LARP-like tech. And sure enough a few years later and SW: Galaxies is announced.

I wanted to go see it and the starship but alas that was never to be.

Take note in the review how she had so many problems with things going awry.

They could have made it work. Star Tours ran as a semi-interactive ride for decades.
There's a huge difference between a single contained ride where all the employees had to do was load you into/out of theatre boxes where you watch one of a handful of slightly interactive films vs dozens of employees pulling off multiple lines of extended LARPing.

The hotel's adventure structure was not fully freeform. If you did not hit the cues at the right time you could easily miss out on things. Or even nigh everything.

The actors must have had alot of pressure on them as they had to both know their beats AND be able to improvise. Like LARP NPCs. Just more rigid it seems.

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