H2H3 / WEEK 10: Flying Germans vs IIIcons

Congrats all four of you - two very nice parks. I'm sure this has given people food for thought and maybe we'll see a bit of a switch-up next season.

This is another case of two very good parks going against each other. If they had been in seperate rounds we'd be praising each of them, but instead we've got to choose one over the other.

Disastrous Paradise did not look like a tired rehash of old ideas to me. For one thing, the architecture is the best I've seen in the game, for my tastes. Tastes change over time, but this kind of subtle variations on a theme routine with the elements and textures used here really works for me. The problem I have with repetitive architecture is not that it reuses the same elements but that it reuses them in the same way. Like virginia reel balconies on every building or something in LL with color being the only variation. I don't see that here. Every building looks unique to me and yet they maintain the thematic consistency. The architecture in this park alone is worthy of much admiration I think. I also thought the water ride was very well done in the way it was integrated into the landscape. And the mine ride, while not jaw dropping, was effective and fast.

There were really only two glaring problems with this park I think. One is the oil rig in the middle which looks almost exactly like the one X-Sector made in LL. It's better of course, thanks to better scenery options, but it has none of the impact of the original because we've seen it before. I don't think it was necessarily out of place here. You've got some natural disasters and manmade ones. It's an interesting sort of concept. But for a contest where the wow factor is really the most important, I think it was a mistake. As a parkmaker though, I can see why X would do it. To retry it in RCT2, and I think it was definately a success on that account.

The other glaring problem, and this has more to do with the way I plan and organize parks than anything else I guess, is that the park really needs a primary ride. As someone else already said, water rides are mostly support rides (unless they do something phenomenal or unusual, but this doesn't) and the mine ride you have is also a support type ride. You need some big ride to tie it all together. Maybe a coaster, maybe something else. Rides draw your attention and focus it. As people watch it do whatever it does, you take them on a little tour of the park. You didn't have anything like that to tie it all together and I think that's the one thing that really would have made it gel.

Oh yeah, and those volcanoes were very well done. I wanna use those 1/4 tile landscaping blocks damnit! They're just too good. Oh and these is me just going off on a tangent here, but I can envision this being inside the crater of a volcano. If you changed all the water to lava, and maybe took out that oil rig or made it into some kind of elaborate lava power source for the village, it'd be a cool imaginary volcano village. And make that wave lava too and then it would make a lot of sense when the whole thing blows up! That's similar to an idea I was developing with Phatage a little while ago, but I can easily see this working as something like that. With some kind of main ride added too of course.

Alright, on to Outpost Prehistorica, which is what I ended up voting for (though it didn't matter cause someone had ended the voting already - I guess it wasn't close or anything). First of all, I have to applaud you guys for your innovative architecture. It didn't impress me as much as the detail in Disastrous Paradise, but I love seeing something new especially when it's executed so well. So more of it would be nice, but it's a small map, so you couldn't really go crazy. And the focus here was more on the landscaping which was well done, so it's hard to complain. I knew the duelers were an Evil WME creation right away. The precision timing is really a trademark of yours. Heh, I think I just made a pun. Anyway, terrific coasters and I also like how they aren't hiding underneath trees or other clutter. You put them out there in the open, and that's where they belong. The cobra roll through the waterfall was especially nice.

While DP's main strength was the precsion of it's execution and detail, the main strength here is personality. Which is pretty vague, but basically I meant the feeling that there's a surprise around every corner. The little things that make you smile. The kind of thing that's made me like Kumba's parks so much. The monorail layout seemed a little random, but that tunnel structure was gorgeous. None of it was picture perfect, which seems to be what everyone loves around here, but it was iconic. It greats impressions that I'll remember for awhile.

For weaknesses, well I think the suspended coaster in the corner was pretty predictable for a theme like this and didn't really do anything to justify taking up so much space. I really would have liked to see something else there. Also, the sabertooth tiger cage I liked, but it also seemed a lot bigger than it needed to be. This park felt really cramped on such a small map because the cool ideas were busting out of it. So it would have been nice if those spaces were utilized a little more...effectively I guess.

Anyway, great job all of you. Thanks for making this round such a special one.

The problem I have with repetitive architecture is not that it reuses the same elements but that it reuses them in the same way. Like virginia reel balconies on every building or something in LL with color being the only variation. I don't see that here.

FINALLY someone other than me says it!

And LOL at how you go on to discuss a modified version of your original H2H park idea with Phatage (before redraft).

Oh forget Ed's volcano park with Phatage, what if Ed and Blitz ever do what they had planned....

Thanks ed for the review

To be honest I had doubts this park would win and looking at them both I enjoyed the IIIcons park alot more than mine. The idea of the park was nothing to do with me it was all jon's idea and I just started it. Ed funny thing about turning the water to lava and such as I did think about that as I was finishing the park off.

Oh forget Ed's volcano park with Phatage, what if Ed and Blitz ever do what they had planned....

the universe would END.

You guys had this idea before the re-draft? Funny that. So did I but nothing ever materialised. I even started a solo themed to it but cancelled.

X actually did most of the park but I did do the mine-ride. Perhaps I should explain it. I felt that with things like the oil rig and two huge volcanoes, I felt that a large coaster would clutter the park and make it seem like too much crammed into one park. So, hence my reason for building a small coaster.

But it's nice to get a win for my team.

But, I'd love to see what Ed and Blitz could do.

Oh forget Ed's volcano park with Phatage, what if Ed and Blitz ever do what they had planned....

Holy shit!Q

I nearly forgot about how orgasmic those plans were.

Oh forget Ed's volcano park with Phatage, what if Ed and Blitz ever do what they had planned....

I can only imagine...

*drools*

ride6

Well I don't know if we'll ever make the park, but it may become a feature film. More on that at a later date.

at least release the ideas to the public so they can drool all over them.

NEVER MIND.

Sorry Artist