Park / DisneyEarth Vancouver

29 Comments

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  Version1 Offline

  
  

  Entrance

   

  - Honestly the entrance doesn't have much grandiosity to it. Maybe that's all offscreen. Considering it's a Disney park, it just kinda... begins.

   

  Gotta slide in here and mention that Disney entrances are always very understated and small.

  posted 3 years ago

  • #21
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  Gustav Goblin Fan Offline

  Thanks for that V1. I meant to mention in my review I'm not a Disney expert so I imagine a lot of what I said is done in a proper Disney context which I just didn't understand.

  posted 3 years ago

  • #22
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  bigshootergill Offline

  Just wanted to drop a quick post... first of all congrats on the spotlight! I didn't get to toss my vote in time, but I would have voted this 85/yes, but 87% captures exactly what this park deserves. And damn dude, to put this together in 5 months time is mind blowing. Seriously can't wait to see what you do next.

   

  Love seeing a new member make such a big splash for their first release, and hats off to a new Canadian member of NE too... seems like we're a bit of a rare breed

  posted 3 years ago

  • #23
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  Terry Inferno Offline

  What you have created here is phenomenal--especially for a first release, but it would still be phenomenal for a community veteran to have created this--and though my odd "no" vote may not quite get that point across, I hope my 90 does. Everything on this map to me is in the 90 range for scoring, and your natural eye for architecture and landscaping is truly a gift. Everywhere you look on this map, this gift rings out in the same way that it does in some of the finest parks ever built. If you were to tell me that the buildings in Rhode Pier were built by robbie, Pac, or any of the other extremely talented architects in this community, I would not bat a sensory organ.

   

  Your backstage areas are also likely the best I've ever seen--it is rare that I can enjoy a backstage area almost as much as the rest of the park--and it shows you have a very strong sense of worldbuilding as well. Parking lots, warehouses and other "gritty" elements are beautiful to me in RCT2, as they accurately portray realistic aspects of our world that contrast that which is meant to be aesthetically pleasing. Only a true artist can capture something so plain and ordinary and turn it into something extraordinary, so that's yet another characteristic you share with the (other) elite builders.

   

  When it comes to rockwork, I consider myself to be an absolute stickler, but here it is largely perfect in every area. You've combined every single rock approach--including at least one that originates in another game--and made it look astounding. It may be quite a few different textures at once, but real life is full of textural convergence, so like anything, it is a strong choice when done well. The snowy mountain peak, the waterfall and the Indiana Jones mountain are the obvious standout pieces here, but even the "passive" rockwork between attractions is flawless in its composition. 

   

  When it comes to the interiors, I understand both perspectives. On one hand, the absence of cutaways should never be seen as a flaw in a domain where the map seen from above is the attraction. On the other, we are missing the vast majority of the Genie's Dream and Indiana Jones while other rides are completely enclosed, so I see where those viewers are coming from when they say that this particular park would be enhanced further if we at least had some glimpses into the inner workings of these rides. Disney's American Waterfront finds a comfortable balance in this approach. However, it is ultimately up to the builder to decide whether they want to include interiors, so if the viewers want to see what's going on inside, they can use their imagination. The craftsmanship of this park is already top-notch, so it is a given that whatever would be on the inside would match that level of quality, and thus to me the absence of it cannot be used to detract from the score.

   

  As for my strange vote, it was not one tangible aspect of this park that swayed my vote, nor was it an obvious "yes" or "no"... I did have to think this one over a little while, as something has just seemed off about this map since I first opened it, and the binary vote does not accurately reflect the spectral nature of the qualities that influenced my decision. However, I ultimately voted "no" because the macro choices are not quite there for me.

   

  I believe a Spotlight map should be breathtaking and readable from the farthest zoom level, and this is a characteristic shared by Spotlights in each tier. While not every Spotlight exemplifies this trait to the same extent, nor does every large map that does carry the Spotlight tag, I do consider it to be a necessary quality for my own "yes" vote, 90+ or not, and though this map absolutely blows me away from up close, the macro leaves much to be desired. The paths, rocks and many of the buildings in certain areas are all the same four shades of brown with foliage interspersed, so many of the natural shapes and landmarks get lost in a sea of brown and green that spans several different areas at once. 

   

  The butterfly shape below illustrates how the noteworthy features and the "passive" elements all blend together in areas that represent different corners of the globe.

  

   

  Granted, it is not the map's best angle, but rarely do I get to illustrate a point and draw a butterfly in the same outline, so I wasn't going to let the opportunity simply flutter away.

   

  The color scheme on this map is very strange to me, especially for a Disney park. Some of it I attribute to the flatness of the English palette, but you've used it masterfully in some places, while in others you could have gone much further (particularly within the butterfly). Ironically, the backstage areas use colors spectacularly, while much of the inner park seems to be a "safe" selection of earthtones with minimal contrast. Again, this affects the larger map as a whole much more than it does each individual area, as the details really bring this park to life up close, but Africa and South America in particular would benefit from some more "pop" in both the shapes and the colors even closer up. Soarin' would pop with a brighter track color (red works well, but a more dominant shade), while Sid in turn would stand out more effectively with perhaps a lighter shade of blue. Earth is one of those planets with such a vibrant array of colors (the entire visible light spectrum comes to mind), and while I appreciate the natural look you've given to these areas, there are ways to allow the brown and green pop that do not cause so much of it to blend together.

   

  This is what I mean when I say it is not one single characteristic that prevented this from being a Spotlight in my own eyes (which often look for different things than those of the community at large) but rather a series of related questionable elements that, when combined, just barely miss the mark for me. These are advanced artistic concepts that most builders overlook even after years of practice (they certainly exceed my own abilities as a builder at this time; I hope one day I can actually practice what I preach to the extent that I preach it), and I only address them in the detail that I do here because I know your abilities are already advanced enough for you to understand and incorporate them into your next masterpieces. This park, by the way, is certainly a masterpiece in itself, and I believe there is nobody in the community who would disagree with that assessment.

   

  And I believe with absolute certainty that my next vote on a pants park will be a a 90+/yes. Nobody debuts to a blue name, but you've come closer to anyone in history, so that in itself is already Legendary.

  posted 3 years ago

  • #24
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  RWE Fan Offline

  @Admins Thank you for changing my vote <3 I of course wanted to vote 'yes'. Forgive me, pants! Congrats on this awesome spotlight!

  posted 3 years ago

  • #25
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  pants Offline

  Apologies for the delayed response! I just want to reiterate what I said in the Discord; I'm so incredibly honoured and grateful for the Spotlight. Since picking the game back up last year, I've spent many hours poring over all of your work. This park is, in a way, a monument to the effort that's been put in by the community to develop and refine the 2022 meta. I'm a fan first. Hopefully I've been able to add something that pushes it forward an inch lol

   

  @gustav

   

  Really humbled by all of the time you put in to exploring the park. From what I've seen, you're such an incredible supporter of RCT as a medium and you know the ways people build inside and out. As a result, you've also unearthed a lot of my dirty work haha. I'm excited to see your work in the future, because it's clear that you know what details make things sing. 

   

  I'm gonna do a bit of justification here, but know that I agree with you on many points. Shoestringing obviously isn't one of my strong suits and I found that the effort required was muuuuch higher compared to other parts of the building process. My skimping on it was just an evaluation of cost vs. reward which, at the time of building, didn't feel worth it. That, alongside the interior work, *is* something I plan on playing around with more in the future!

   

  I started building the entrance before I decided it would be a Disney park, so realistically it *should* be a few tiles wider. I tried to alleviate that by having the exit path that passes by Soarin' and the secondary entrance at the back of the park. 

   

  The goal with Colorado Avenue was to create a main street that's immersive and provides opportunity for guests to stop, shop and eat but doesn't give reason to hunker down. The attractions are positioned further from the entrance for guest flow purposes. That's why the entrance to Soarin' is a bit removed from the entrance. The Four Directions is positioned just around the corner at the nexus of two new areas as a spot where it's, essentially, "okay" to stop at.

   

  As for Sid Kruk, you got me on the mine trains not rendering properly. In reality, the front car would probably have the train theme with the rest being the more open-air Intamin style. The back spike is there to suggest a pendulum launch, à la Pantheon, it just isn't hacked to do so. 

   

  The grey path between Blair Mines, Congo River Basin and Lost River is to essentially denote a transition area between themed lands. Because it gives a view to the mountain and waterfall, I thought it would be an appropriate "breathing point" where the area wouldn't be dictating where the guest's eye should be pointed. 

   

  As for Montreux du Nord, it isn't ideal that it's a dead end, but my thinking was that it doesn't go deep enough for it to become an issue for guests. Because it immediately opens up into a central plaza, like in Epcot, with the attractions exits facing outwards, it doesn't suggest that there's a further path to take. Though having two major attractions immediately across from one another is probably an Imagineer no-no lolll

   

  But anyways, thanks Gus, you're an absolute prince

   

  @gill

   

  Cheers! S/o to my Canadian brother! I'm in Montreal so I'm Canada Lite™ but I'm very curious to know where you're from!!

   

  @terry

   

  Appreciate the kind words and reasoning behind the vote. My justification behind the macro view is that, basically, I was focused on trying to build with the divide between guest experience and backstage in mind. From aerial views of Disney parks, it's hard to immediately identify their shapes because the backstage areas take up such a surprising amount, or jut into the park in weird ways.

   

  I hear you on the overabundance of brown. The contrast isn't where I'd like it to be. Something about the English palette is just irresistible haha. I feel like it's the palette that best replicates the spectrum of vibrance and drabness of the real world, especially in Vancouver where it's cloudy like 75% of the year. 

   

  That's all for me! I have some WIP photos stored so I might do a little breakdown of my build process sometime later, but for now I'm pretty burnt out on RCT (5 months felt like TOO long, y'all are nuts). I'm so happy to be a part of the community (and very thrilled to have that sexy lil' red name) so this definitely isn't the last you'll be seeing of me!

  posted 3 years ago

  • #26
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  tigre53 Offline

  Want to view this so bad but don’t have RCT. Any timeline on a park overview screen?

  posted 3 years ago

  • #27
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  Airtime Offline

  I’ve been wanting to give this a proper comment for weeks as it really deserves it. This park is incredible. Feels like a very modern spotlight, well deserved. I keep going back to this and I don’t think I’ve loved a park so much since SRF’s Glacier Cover.
  
  A MASSIVE debut on NE. One of my new favourites.
  
  I’d like to write more about it in future if I ever get a spare minute.

  posted 2 years ago

  • #28
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  Astroturd Offline

  Congrats on the incredible work Pants!

   

  Your park really sucked me into exploring each area to the end because I knew there would be a detail dropped in that would make it worth it.

   

  The level of planning on display is remarkable. The way the backstage stuff fits while remaining hidden from peep view really elevated this park to me. I'd love to hear the industry insiders' take on it, because it seems very realistic to me.

   

  On the shoe-stringing and tricky hacks - I'm sure you'd have plenty of people willing to help out on the next one. Sid Kruk's deserves a functioning triple-launch!

   

  Happy to hear you're planning on future parks. I look forward to exploring more.

  posted 2 years ago

  • #29
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  Turtle Offline

  I don't know how I missed this - this is one of the best parks i've seen in ages, and as others have said it's just silly that it's your first finished park. Did you used to go by another name or something?

   

  Such a great atmosphere throughout, every area was so well planned and felt totally real and natural. My favorites were the Lion King area, Tibet and the abandoned boat bit. Definitely gonna come back and view this a bunch. 

  posted 2 years ago

  • #30
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