Park / Disney's Forgotten Kingdom

Park_39 Disney's Forgotten Kingdom

41 Comments

  • iris%s's Photo
    Who else is tired of Nate's dominance at New Element? Starting off by winning the second Spotlight ever with Disney's Beautiful World. He went on to create Land of the Villain, a coaster-packed mega park that went from Runner-Up to Spotlight in the 2003 NE Awards. Then Nate goes and wins our first ever coaster contest, the Legends Challenge. Following all this, he releases his best park to date, Disney's Discovery Island, which jumps to #1 on the List, grabs him the 2002 Parkmaker of the Year spot, and his third spotlight. Where do we go from here? How bout Spotlight number four, the first to ever do that, with yet another Disney creation, Disney's Forgotten Kingdom.
  • Corkscrewed%s's Photo
    Geez, Nate. This is your best single map ever, and for that, it gets #4 on my CHART (for the time being), right behind DDI, TH, and SWA.

    The theming is brilliant, as usual, but the ride ideas are what really makes this park. Your take on the Tower of Terror was brilliant, and I can't believe no one had ever though of it before. Atlantis is beautiful, and the park as a whole rocks. You really need to look at the park up close, because from afar, it just looks like brown wilderness. Explore it, though, and you'll see that it's simply amazing.

    Brilliant work, Nate! You're going to run out of room on your accolade sheet under your name in the forums.
  • Tony%s's Photo
    It's the same as his last two parks... It's nice to look at, but it's.. I don't know. Do something different, Nate. It gets boring looking at the same park everytime you win the Spotlight.
  • guljam%s's Photo
    WOw.. Hidden Track..

    How to Hidden track? How amazing...

    Other themes looks good~
  • Micool%s's Photo
    Hmm....I just don't know what to say.

    I like it and respect it. How could anyone not? It is solid work from a very consistent (with OZONE/WME-like quickness :p) parkmaker. But I have always subconciously judged parks by saying to myself, "could I do that?" or "could I have thought of that?" The problem with this park is that I find myself thinking "I could have done that." Or "I could have thought of that." Or even worse: "I'm sick of seeing that." I was dissapointed by the sculputures, for one thing. The plane was sad in my opinion; it looked nothing like a plane really. The ship was shaped well but lazy and ineffective. I think it could have been a bit more colored, detailed, or something else to spice it up a bit. In my very humble opinion, I've done better ships then that! (No, really. No, really! :D) Another Atlantis ride? Ugh. Stuff like Tarzan's Tree Top Flyer that we've seen now more then thrice just gets old. Most of the architecture failed to put me in awe - usually that happens to me when the atmosphere is really good or the architecture is really cool - I just go, "wow, cool!" But DFK really didn't have that effect on me. On a final negative note: lazy lazy lazy. I hate to have to keep using that word, it isn't like you filled half the map with water like I do, but I got bored looking at this park. I felt a lot of it was sloppy, I guess. Like around Expedition: Agrabah (which was another one of those completely outdated ideas; I've seen Excavation and SandStorm Rally, E:A was nicely done but just a hybrid) the theming was incredibly boring and this area was a total dissapointment. I hate how there's no effort whatsoever to 'blend' the sand-rocks into the grass.

    And one more thing - I know the 'walls' around each attraction are done for realism, and that there probably would be a roof above each, they are a big turn-off for me. I think they ruin the connection with the park and really stop it from flowing.

    Not that the whole park sucked. On to the good parts!

    Both the riverboat rides were RCT heaven. Pirates of Treasure Island was too cool and very quaint. It too features an average sculpture but this one fits nicely into it's surroundings. I appriciate how hard landscaping like that is in such a small space, and the area on the whole was easy on the eyes. But Temple of Sheer Khan was twice as good! It was very nice. I don't know what else to say, though. It was impressive looking but nothing really special to notice.

    Phantom Manor is my favorite ride in the park. It's a wonderful little adventure and I like the haunted house and the green goo. The little scenery really adds a lot.

    Ursula's Dungeon/Jumpin' Jellyfish were extremely cool little rides. In fact, this whole area was super, other then it containing another atlantis ride. That's your choice though - the ride itself was cool, I just wouldn't have named it that. I think if the whole park had been as good as this area, it would have deserved a #7 list spot. I just don't think it's that good though. Maybe I was just expecting too much after DDI, which really impressed me atmosphere wise especially, but this park really didn't have that much punch to it.

    Still solid, but only second best Nate-wise.
  • Coaster Ed%s's Photo
    This is the first Natelox park that I really enjoyed whole heartedly (well and the High Rollers entry too). In the past I've always liked aspects of your parks but there were also some theming decisions I didn't particularly agree with. Somehow you've managed to refine and improve upon your style in all the right places without sacrificing that uniqueness which makes every Natelox park recognizeable. I wouldn't mind seeing another ten parks from you like this, but I know you'll find new ways to improve your style anyway because you always have.

    First off, nice custom music. It was enjoyable and upbeat and adds to the excitement of opening the park. Secondly, your new style of architecture seen on that church building is really wonderful. One of the best new ideas I've seen in awhile. Obviously you know more about architecture than I ever will but I'd like to experiment with this style myself even if it won't be as good as anything you do with it. Anything which opens up new possibilities for parkmaking is a great accomplishment I think.

    One thing I really like about your parks, especially the newer ones, is how beautiful your landscaping is. I tend to build landscapes in a completely different way than you do, but I like how spaced out your style is. When you place flowers you fill up a whole square. Your rocky land is much more spread out and much more sparsely covered. This creates a perfect sense of atmosphere. Just enough detail to make each area unique without making it look cluttered. This is something I should work on myself. You have some areas in this park which are the best example I could give for what naturalistic theming is. I try to acheive the kind of balance you have here but I often get carried away and muck it up with too many bushes. I'm glad you have more restraint in that regard than I do.

    On to the sections themselves. The Adventureland theme is one you've done before so there isn't a lot to say here. Your tree selection is more consistent in this park than in your previous ones which benefits this section a lot in comparison. The Indiana Jones ride had some clever ideas in it but it seemed like it wasn't quite there. Just a little too empty maybe, not enough excitement. I think one area of the park that could stand to use a bit more detail is the theming of indoor rides. More on that later. The Log Ride is one of the best looking water rides I've seen. It really tucks into the landscaping and enhances the theme of the whole area. Nice little custom flatride too even if it isn't something totally new.

    The middle island is a bit empty, but it does have a nice looking volcano. Disneyland is the only Disney park I'm familiar with and you'll notice that all of their main thrill attractions are built into mountains of some kind. When looking at fantasy Disney park rides I always look for these mountains because they just shout 'Disney' to me. The mine train was interesting but ran a bit too slow through parts. Big Thunder Mtn is exciting because it's fast. I'd also like to see more of the ride above ground where it can interact with the landscaping. Still a fun ride though. The Pirates ride has just the right amount of theming, I wish there was this much on the Indy ride. I guess it's tougher for that because there aren't theming objects to fit it. Pirates of Treasure Island is as simple as a water ride gets but you get bonus points for managing to fit a ship of some kind in such a small area.

    The Empire area is like the heart and soul of this park. Wonderful landscaping everywhere and a perfect balance of trees and flowers. Very restrained and natural looking. The church of course is brilliant even if it isn't the first time I've seen this architecture style from you. The smaller buildings in this area are really too simple I think but I guess that's the way you like 'em. The Phantom Manor car ride also has the right amount of theming. You've done some nice detail work around the queue line here (and over by Indiana Jones too) with backlot areas which I think really enhance a realistic park like this. Very nice. The Tower ride is very well done for this type of ride. I've seen a similar ride in another park under construction and I've seen whoah belly cars on coaster track before but you've put all of the elements together to create a unique and memorable ride. And of course I do love those buckets.

    On to the Atlantis area which houses the big showstopper attractions and theming peices. Triton's Temple uses a style others have experimented with before (most notably NeVis in ALE) but you manage to do it better than anyone else. Aquatopia has sort of an annoying glitch associated with it but it's nice enough. I guess it's one of those rides where the enjoyment comes from imagining yourself in one of those inner tubes in a beautiful pond floating around, getting wet, and having fun. There's only so much enjoyment I can get from a plain old ghost train like Triton's Kingdom (not much) but the building that houses it is very nice anyway. And then there's Escape From Atlantis which was the park's biggest attraction for me. I do have a question for you though. Do you intentionally leave the max wait time to 60 seconds so that it hangs suspended for a minute before releasing? Is that to build up tension so nobody knows when it will fall? I'm not that patient. I'd suggest setting it at least to 30 maybe lower than that so I don't have to wait all day (or set it lower myself). That's up to you though, just a suggestion. Again underground coasters don't do as much for me as the above ground types, perhaps because the track doesn't look as good hanging there without any supports. You have some nice elements in there, but still not very exciting. What I did really like that you did differently was that you used monorail track at the beginning. This was kinda cool because glancing over the area I didn't know it was a coaster and it blends in well with the theming. The ride gets elevated a bit because the theming in this whole area is very nice. It's a unique Natelox take on the Atlantis theme and it makes me curious what a Natelox take on another theme would look like. Again, very nice custom flatride too. It's effect is subtle but it does definately have an effect.

    Last is the Arabian area which I suppose is another Natelox twist on a common theme. This one doesn't far quite so well. You have a great balance between detail and simplicity running throughout the park and this section gives up a bit too much detail I think. Most of it is just yellow flowers and tan rocks seperating paths. A few more buildings would have been nice. Maybe a nice temple instead of the double carousel. Oh yeah and by the way, who first came up with the idea of the curved wooden track over the pathways? I hate to be another bandwagon jumper, but I'd at least like to know who I'm shamelessly copying before I do it. Anyway, this section is really all about the Expedition Agrabah ride and I think in this one ride you have an indicator of what people will think of the whole park. I say this because the theming for the ride is very sparse and pretty uniform throughout. Now some will call this boring but I think this is what naturalism is. You have to be consistent and you have to be willing to leave empty space. I tend to muck my theming up with details but I don't think Natelox's lack of detail makes the theming any worse. It's actually more impressive to me because it captures the atmosphere with as little effort as possible. When I refer to Schuessler parks as having a "Zenlike" quality this is what I mean. Natelox can join him in the Zen temple (if he wants to that is). I would like the ride itself a bit more if you hadn't used the floorless trains. They're a bit glitchey and the logic of how they propel themselves puts me off a little (yeah I know there are wheels on the bottom but I can't see them). After all that blabbering about Zen and whatnot, I do actually think a bit more detail would have given the ride more personality. Not in the landscaping (well maybe you could do with a few less rocks) but maybe another small building or some kind of scenery peice. Most Disney themed rides have a climax of some kind and this ride is lacking one.

    All in all this was an enjoyable park. Everything I liked about DDI and then some! I've never been a big fan of hotels anyway (alright I think they're a total waste of space. there, I said it). There were a few suggestions I made throughout but those are all minor comments. You have a great style and you've really improved everything I didn't like about your parks in the past. I'm going to be studying this park big-time as I get things moving on my Project Green Thumb because the atmosphere here and devotion to naturalism is really astonishing at times. Wonderful work Natelox.

    After reading Micool's comments there was one thing I wanted to add. I can understand all of the criticisms he listed. Even the laziness comment seems appropriate to make about this park, even if turns out it isn't true. What I like about the park has nothing to do with all of the little RCT parkmaking skills I comment on and nitpick so frequently here at NE. This park to me had an impressive sense of atmosphere and devotion to a style of parkmaking that it ranks up there with IOA Hollywood as a deceptively simple park that is more than the sum of its parts. Like that park, not much in here will really blow anybody away. It's much more of a subtle appretiation that just builds and builds to outright admiration. I can't explain it but it's just a feeling I have. It's like looking at an oak tree in a grassy field and thinking "this is the most beautiful thing I have seen in a long time" even though you may have walked by it many times before. It's tranquility. It's beauty and grace through lack of effort and instinct. All of these things are what I call Zen and I think it's something that will only find you when you stop trying so hard to impress people or do something new or make something good and just commit to doing what you do. I only hope that one day I can do that myself. And micool or anyone else, it's alright that you don't like it, I don't think less of you because of that. I guess I get a little kooky sometimes.
  • bokti%s's Photo
    Certainly your best work, from my perspective. I never really liked any of your parks, until this one. And I think it's very very good. Etc, etc.
  • Scarface%s's Photo
    Well done Natelox.
    Once again proving yourself to be one of the best around, the best IMO.
    It has jumped into my top 5 parks.

    Onto the park.

    Entrance - Very simple but it had a lovely atmosphere.

    Agrabah - My least favourite area of the park. It seemed a little bare with all the rocks, maybe a few more buildings would have made this area better. Expedition Agrabah was a nice ride though.

    Atlantis - My favourite area of the park. I loved your bridge near tritons castle, that was very nice indeed. Escape from Atlantis was a great ride with some good hacks, and as Ed said, the wait time could have been lowered a little. Everything in this area was brilliant apart from the glitch in Aquatopia, but you can't prevent that.

    Empire - This area contains one of my favourite ever hacks. This was in the "Emperous Hotel". It is about time someone made a ride like tower of terror and this one was pulled off perfectly, the hotel was nice but the ride made it better. Good job. I loved Kuzco's Mad Tea Party, that thing was well thought out (good thinking ED). The phantom manor was nice and the whole area had a good atmosphere. The church topped this area off, the word wonderful comes to mind.

    Manjali Village - Lovely. Temple of Sheer Kahn was a good water ride with some nice ideas put into it while the Indiana Jones rides were ok. I did like the mine train merged with the steel coaster though.

    Treasure Island - As Iris said, its like something from a RRP park. Lovely architecture and the use of the brown path overhangs on top of the buildings is always appealing. Lost mines of fire mountain was a nice mine train although pretty bare while Pirates of treasure island was a simple water ride although it had some amazing theming inside the building.

    can anybody say Parkmaker of the Year again?


    I think we can
  • Marshy%s's Photo
    The volcano was erm...brilliant!! When it exploded i thought there was something wrong with the park, then i realised.

    I loved the Expedition Agrabah, loved the bones, but i agree with scarface, bit plain.

    I loved the park...but i felt as though it needed another coaster.
  • sircursealot%s's Photo
    Great park Nate, and congratulations on your forth spotlight!

    However, being a great park is as far as it goes. This seemed like a huge step down from DDI. DFK didn't "take me away" like DDI did. I found it quite boring, there was nothing jaw-dropping and some of the themes that could be executed marvelously didn't impress. Oh well.

    Wasn't the new EverQuest park submitted this round? Does that have another round left? Cause I was really looking forward to it...
  • i c ded pplz%s's Photo
    Hell Ed, You wrote a Novel... :0
  • Corkscrewed%s's Photo
    Speaking of the church, why did you add minnarets, Nate? You do realize that those are Muslim, and that a church is Christian, and that if it was Muslim it'd be called a mosque... ;)

    Actually, I just think you really just went on off on the Hagia Sophia. It's pretty obvious, and if that wasn't the source, then I dunno what to think. :D
  • natelox%s's Photo
    corkscrewed got it, and not trying to be mean, but I was thinking he was gonna be the only one to get it. Thanx for all the comments, they are great to read (well, not comments, but a book in CoasterEd's case).

    and killtony, it's your opinion to think that, i have no problem with your thoughts, just remember that when you see the next park by Fatha'.
    Speaking of fatha, iris was kind enough to explain what your 'tower of terror' style ride was like, and i thought mine was quite different, so i didn't see any 'copyright infrigment'.

    All who liked the church, that's just the begining :)
    Thanx for taking time to look at the park!


    BTW, I LOVE THE LOGO! I think corkscrewed did it, thanx so much!
  • KaiBueno%s's Photo
    I haven't looked at it yet, but congrats anyway!

    4 time winner? Someone needs their custom member title updated, and boy isn't that going to be the longest one here yet. Long enough it'd almost win an award for "longest member title", which you could then list to make it even longer. We should just stop now and list it as "My NE accomplishments take too long to list..."

    I'll look at it and comment if I can, but it seems so far that it is getting good reviews, which should make for an interesting visit.

    Congrats on #4....most here haven't won #&*%!

    Kai :et:
  • posix%s's Photo
    Jesus Christ, this park was pure brilliance!
    I love it. Just like Ed said: "whole-heartedly".
    Well, what can I write. The ride ideas and their design were just awesome. I could never ever think of that.
    They were all interesting to look at and had a realistic touch like the Fast-Pass thing and stuff. Lovely.
    The only thing I missed was one true, simple coaster. All of them could've been considered adventure rides, more or less.
    But whatever.
    Really fun to look at and doesn't loose my interest even if it's another Natelox Disney park.
    Natelox is one of the few left parkmakers who manage to make their parks look like actual theme-parks. I would call this park very realistic and that's what I look for in a park... blablabla.
    Just why can't you do a proper loop to your custom music?
    And why do you have to put grass under your trees?
    Anyway. Can't wait for your next stuff, Natelox.
  • Turtleman%s's Photo

    And why do you have to put grass under your trees?


    Beleive it or not but trees grow on grass!

    Anyway, I liked the park. It was pretty cool.

    Turtleman 8)
  • posix%s's Photo

    Beleive it or not but trees grow on grass!

    Outside maybe but not in theme parks where they were just planted and meant to be where they are.
  • Butterfinger%s's Photo
    I must take the attitude sircursealot and KillTony took on this park. I found it incredibly cliche', and rather the same as DDI (in general), exept that THIS one lost all the Disney feel that DDI had. The rides were much better, but still didnt make up for the themeing.



    Sorry I dont feel much like typing a full scale review right now, but still congrats and stuff, ect, ect.........
  • Fatha'%s's Photo
    Oh damn, you released yours before PoC now the Tower of Terror idea is yours, Darn. havnt had time to look at it yet, but I assure you when i do I'll let you know how I feel. But from the overhead view, look stunning and I like your Tower of Terror look.

    And also, 'copyright infringement'? Even IF my Tower of Terror had been the same as yours, you would in now way have copyrights to it because A: My Tower of Terror was in concept (And I had proved it to work on other maps that I tested rides on) back in March or so (Point is, I couldn't have copied it before you because I believe I built it first), and B: How on Earth could it be a copyright infringement if i had never seen your park before? I mean, you never advertised the thing.

    Sorry if I'm being rude maybe im misreading, I havnt had a great day. But anyway great looking park I'll open it later.
  • natelox%s's Photo
    i was commenting on the fact that yes, yours was first, but i released mine because it sounds VERY different than yours, as if there wouldn't be a problem.