Levis, 5dave, Fisch, Ge-Ride, Xenon and MiFuNe.

NE proudly presents RCT Majesty’s latest collabo, Majestic Paradise, a commendable group effort from Fisch, Ge-Ride, 5Dave, MiFuNe, Levis, and Ultratycoon (Xenon). All six of the guys who worked on this have proved, if there was any doubt previously, that they deserve to be viewed as exciting and improving up-and-coming names. Well, no need for more small talk, let’s get down to the park.

Your tour begins in Fisch’s charming and impeccably “welcoming” entrance area, Majestic Plaza, a section with pretty nice foliage and some very cheery villagelike theming, marred perhaps only by a tendency towards first-floor poles that makes the buildings look a tad unstable. Still, this in no way damages the appeal of The Highlander, a wooden coaster that not only boasts a solid layout unto itself and a superb station building but also perfectly frames the surrounding portion of the Plaza. Although the carousel might have done better with a more central location, this section comprises a great introduction to the rest of the park.

For a complete change of pace, you can either make your way around Highlander’s far turnaround or hug the map edge – there is no fence to protect you from the edge, so step carefully so as not to plummet into the next dimension, although by the looks of this area are you already have – to Ge-Ride’s section. Remember when the guy was posting shots of horrible coaster track ice cream cones and the like? Now his theming has evolved into something not only decent, but actually pretty awesome, in a unique and gaudy sort of way. Genetic Institution of Technology – The Urban Jungle is a total visual headtrip, with theming and colors that JKay’s old parks look tame and yet still make an impressive architectural sort of sense. A nice invert entitled Monkeying Around bathes in the no-holds-barred theming and swoops about with good pacing. While the concentration towards architecture is too absolute and the section would have improved with more landscaping and foliage – e.g. Gymkid’s Aquazone, perhaps – it is still quite something to look at. And it has a completely insane underlying narrative to go along.

Here’s an area that, if expanded in size a bit more and given perhaps another major ride (perhaps a good water ride) as well as some tweaks to the present coaster, could definitely pose for a solid quarter of a Top 20 all-time park. The vivid detail that brings the African village theming to life in 5Dave’s The Cradle, and with it a snapshot of a scene that could very well have existed somewhere in past Africa, is something you have to see for yourself. The landscaping and foliage are spot-on. The coaster, a B&M flyer named Symbiosis, is good – not great. It’s rough in spots and perhaps a bit lacking in creativity, given the effort dedicated to evocation of a theme all around it. But hell, waiting in line for the thing might make up for the rough spots, what with one of the best station buildings I’ve ever seen, an architectural gem that gives the massive hotel on the opposite side of the park a run for its money as the park’s best building. And yes, the fact that young Europeans like Dave make areas themed to the evolution of man in computer simulators while full-grown adults in Kentucky open Genesis museums showing humans riding dinosaurs on saddles is a bit ironic, and a bit sad.

MiFuNe’s area, Artemis Harbour, is kind of squeezed into the back of the park, but remains a solid effort. The entrance area might lack an excellently themed carousel, but one can be found here in Zeus, tucked beside the station of the main coaster, Artemis. Unfortunately this sprawling B&M seems to exemplify something that’s seen a lot in RCT2 – great support work holding up a layout that struggles to merit it. MiFuNe has an awesome cart, but he needs to make sure that the horse is pulling it first. The ideas behind the layout are very strong, and with perhaps a better relative use of different drop types – that big 25-foot flattening-out piece really seems to get to people – MiFuNe’s layouts could assume their full potential to be great rides. With that out of the way, he’ll be a force to reckon with.

I’m glad this guy’s in the Pro Tour. The legendary entrance area to Sea World Atlanta has nothing on Levis’ take on Pirates of the Caribbean, one of the most entertaining areas I’ve seen in a long time. If you think the dark village theming looks good by eternal RCT day – and it does, pretty much indisputably – just imagine how immersive it would be by night. The bridge from the entrance area is one of the best I’ve ever seen, and the pirate ship next to it is superbly done. Jack Sparrow is a great log flume that winds in and around the buildings, the care towards making a solid ride layout evident in the way the boats finish slowing down from splashdowns right before entering turns, not after, and not with sleep-inducing straight sections in between. And those who have never heard of Roomie’s experiments with the shoestring coaster, or think they were some sort of parkmaking dead end that is impractical in a mainstream RCT2 park, are advised to find the underground station to Will and Elisabeth and watch it run. And watch. And watch. And keep watching. Because this shoestring coaster runs 9,722 feet and in the meantime manages to look almost as good as Keira Knightley.

For tired park guests – you know what, screw that, every park guide seems to begin the hotel section by saying that. If you feel like looking at a pretty sweet building, check out the Shyerai, Ultratycoon (Xenon)’s architectural quasi-masterpiece of a hotel over in the corner. The foliage may not find too many fans and the colors are a bit gaudy, but in shape and form this one has few rivals. Touches such as the outdoor walkways, the rooftop swimming pools, and the fans atop the main tower command respect. I’d stay at this place anytime.

Overall this is a wonderful RCT2 park and another great group effort from Majesty. Levis’ and 5Dave’s areas might perhaps garner the lion’s share of the attention, but the entire thing is a commendable parkmaking accomplishment. All of Majesty’s members are up-and-coming and it will be exciting to see how far they can advance in solo and collaborative efforts in the near future.