Park / The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

20 Comments

  • Comment System%s's Photo
    comment below
  • Liampie%s's Photo

    This is rather incredible, possibly your best theme park work yet.

  • bmschulz%s's Photo

    Absolutely fantastic, though I'd expect no less given the detail and creativity of your past work. I think my favorite area might be where the pumpkin carousel is, but there's so much to unpack and enjoy here.

  • Xeccah%s's Photo

    Going to repost what I said in the NE Discord:

     

    "i think this park is the one right before he actually hits it big

    the level in quality is definitely not consistent throughout and the stuff I'd presume he built was far better

    the big issue is of course composition; i think he detail work is basically already there if he cleans it up

    my advice to him is that this next time, slow down. he's got the skill now to really put something great together. he should switch his priorities into refining and finishing a consistently-great project to its completion"

     

    "I certainly disagree with the community score; i see this as cusping-parkmaker level and i'd probably go with 80."

  • Mattk48%s's Photo

    I'm a huge fan of this, its a big enough hit for me. I think the rides were super creative, loved the Askaban and Slytherin ones. I would love to visit this park in real life. I would not have been able to tell this was built quickly, so if that is the pace you enjoy building at keep it up. I wish the castle was a bit bigger and more dominating of the skyline, but its still awesome. The detail work is there, or a less cold way to say it might be the details in this park are awesome. So many fun things to find for a harry potter fan. As a member of the community I put the score at 90, I hope you get that shiny gold star. If this isn't it, I dont know what you have to do to break the "cusp" of parkmaker and be legit.

  • Lurker%s's Photo

    Fantastic and charming stuff, Readability is pretty good to me, with overall planning balanced well with the micro-detailed scenes. I also really like the zoo next to the park, a there a lot of nicely done exhibits there and it adds to the overall map.

    Also, I'm impressed with the fact that there's almost no glitching or flickering even in hardware mode, that impressed me especially with how quickly this was built.

  • FredD%s's Photo

    Man, this park blew me away. This park is full with details and full of atmosphere. As someone who has read the books and movies, it also felt super recognazible and a little nostalgia throwback to my childhood/young adulthood.

     

    Stuff I really liked:

    - Hogwarts epxress train station

    - the Pumpking carroussel and the buildings around it, such a great backdrop and so atmospheric

    - that ship, crazy!

    - The Chamber of secrets, the station and queue

    - the outskirts/zoo had some great buildings

     

    If I have to give one point of criticism, it's that the Charles Weasly coaster feels a bit weirdly placed. Bit outside of the park, I missed it on my first round of viewing the park. Other than that, really love the park. The coasters are pretty small but that's a very realistic choice to go for since the HP franchise is more aimed at kids and young adults than thrillseekers. They also allow for more immersive experiences, which is what a HP fan would appreciate more than a big ass beemer.

     

    For me, spotlight quality. Mes félications!

  • wheres_walto%s's Photo

    What a fascinating park. It has all identity of a Babar creation: excellent theming, immersive environments, fearless execution of ideas above all else. I do agree with some comments that the composition, ride design, and inconsistent quality in spots, but what comes through most is your sense of fun and endless imagination.

     

    85 was the easy part of the vote for me, I think it's plenty good and has enough scale to be considered a Spotlight contender. Voting no was more difficult, in the end I think to clear that bar it needed some combination of: Hogwarts interiors, at least one large feature coaster, more time/explanation/advertising to process the strangeness of a theme park next to an existing zoo (that decision is endlessly fascinating), and more time devoted to polish and pushing boundaries.

     

    I think your micro work may be playing against you here: the Alchemists Guild showed truly wonderful interior design, Captain and Exodus were conceptually more abstract and imaginative and thus  more captivating. By comparison, this feels more conventional both in terms of genre (themed realism) and style (it feels a bit autopilot). I kept coming back to the zoo as the thing that made this park stand out in a meaningful way. Maybe I'm playing too much of a gatekeeper here, but I wanted just a little more to get that Spotlight distinction. That being said, this is pretty clearly your best large scale work and you're beyond deserving of Parkmaker at this point. I'm really happy to see you continue to build

  • Mulpje%s's Photo

    What an absolutly amazing park you made Babar. The fact that you build this in 2-3 months with such level of detail is mind blowing to me. I love all the little scene´s you recreated from the books/movies and you added so much character to these scene's that they really feel like they come alive.
    Im also glad that there are no big flashy rides in this park, it would have killed some of the atmospehere in these scene's.
    Its clear to see that you created this park out of love for the HP franchise so good for you that you managed to finish this without getting bored or trying to rush things


    I hope you get that Spotlight you so desperetly deserve man! congratz on the release. 

  • CoasterCreator9%s's Photo

    I think if I had to pick one thing to love about this - the attention to detail and dedication toward the source material is really phenomenal - but I love the little shows dotted around the park. I think that's a great touch of life and atmosphere that elevates this for me. The park as a whole is a bit of a sea of brown, but I think that's just part of your aesthetic - I try not to make too much commentary on color, as it's more subjective than it may seem considering those who are colorblind and just personal color combination preferences - but it's always something I tend to notice.

     

    I think this is a reasonable contender for Spotlight. I could see it go either way; kinda dances the line for me personally! The park is certainly not perfection incarnate, but what's there is great stuff. Certainly Parkmaker level if not Spotlight.

  • Turtle%s's Photo

    This is an amazing park, that has me really torn honestly. I think it could easily be a spotlight, but there's a couple of little things that just come up a little short. 

     

    On the positive side, SO much to see - everything feels new and different from everything else, lots of really recognizable stuff. You've done some really clever things with objects to tell the story of what we're looking at, and it's 99% awesome. 

     

    Hogwarts is incredible - my only gripe (this is a preview of pretty much my only gripe with the whole park) is that it's so much of the same brown color on a background of the same brown color. Makes it quite difficult to focus on what's going on. 

     

    And honestly, that's pretty much my only overall negative point - from a color perspective, and also from a density perspective, it's the same throughout. That dull brown color is everywhere - buildings, paths, foliage, rooves, coasters... it makes some really cool things just bleed into each other. Not easy on the eyes. And composition-wise, I think the park has the same problem. The foliage is DENSE. It makes the park feel "full up" and packed. 

     

     

    If you can make a park of this quality but with some negative space to let the amazing things breathe, and maybe some splashes of color to make the important bits stand out, then you'll be SMASHING it. So much of this I love, I just wish it was framed a little nicer. 

  • G Force%s's Photo

    Babar, very impressive, I do enjoy the Harry Potter films so this was really fun to look through.  The Zoo was also well very done from construction level, although I do sorta question the combination of the two, no big deal.  Generally the archy is a massive highlight, you really have a nack for building in a way that is very interesting but not needing a lot of detail.  Atmosphere is top notch, I could really feel like I was there which maybe is the best comment I can give on a park in RCT.

     

    There were a few things from more of a technical level that bothered me, and perhaps it ultimately lowers my score for the park a little, I'll try to summarize them quickly.

     

    1) With a park like this that has lots of stage shows, exhibits, indoor attractions, and themed set pieces, identification is critical for a viewer.  Many times I felt myself trying to mouse over things to help me identify specifically what each show/stage/exhibit was for, generally I enjoy when this is fleshed out and clear to the viewer.  Really missed your usual map/readme here, I felt it would have elevated this tremendously and probably fixed this problem entirely.

     

    2) Foliage/Object selection; yeah this is probably more of a personal taste thing, but I wasn't into the foliage.  It works okay, but a lot of bad objects kind of bring things down, generally I think we have many better options for a lot of this stuff so that's kind of what gets me most, but again, this is a big preference things so don't expect to please everyone here.  Ultimately you were consistent which is most important. 

     

    3) Tracked rides; yeah I seem to notice a trend here, these aren't your favorite things.  Most of these were just good enough to where it didn't come out as a big negative, but amongst everything else, they stood out.  The dragon coaster especially felt like a bit of an afterthought to me, not my favorite work of yours there.

     

    So yeah, not sure I'll get a vote in time, or decide on one in general, but a very strong park, your best yet.  I love seeing the development of your style, every park thus far has felt quite cohesive yet you're definitely improving.  Regardless of the outcome here I hope you'll keep giving us more.

  • ottersalad%s's Photo

    First, congrats on another massive park Babar. Really envious of your output and how much thought and care goes in to your parkmaking. Big Harry Potter fan, so a lot of the little references and moments I loved. As always you have really cool sculptures and moments scattered throughout that are quite fun. For example, the green cauldron food stand, the big ship infront of I'm guessing a stage show, Quidditch pitch to name a few. Diagon Alley was neat. Overall the architecture was splendid.

     

    In terms of the zoo, really appreciate the zoo, but it felt lifeless. The forms, structures, architecture were all very modern and creative. The giraffe signage in a few places was really cute. Just needed music, some invisible rides, or something to add more life. One other thing that held the zoo back was the brown. The entire zoo was brown. Makes every exhibit/building blend together and lose their identity. 

     

    I agree with some of the comments by G Force. I too was mousing over a lot of parts of the park to see if I could find out what a static scene was. What are the stage shows? There also doesn't appear to be any actual food stalls in the park? Had a hard time identifying specific things in the park and zoo. 

     

    Also, I think the rides in this park hold it back. You have tracked rides, but they don't hold my attention and if anything, they detract. The rapids ride was half wooden coaster track, and the Hagrid's motor bike coaster is IMO a boring out and back. The Charles Weasley coaster was squeezed up against the map edge and sort of off in the corner and hidden from the rest of the park. And then the quidditch simulator was nowhere near the Quidditch pitch. Confused on that design choice.

     

    But anyways, sorry for the negative comments. I think I wanted to share my thought process. You have an incredible skill for creating immersive environments that peeps can walk through and enjoy. We just need to pair you with someone who gives you layouts and you'll be cranking out 95%-100% spotlights. 

  • In:Cities%s's Photo

    congratulations you beautiful boy

  • SSSammy%s's Photo

    I think that if you collaborated with other users to raise your coaster-building game, your next park is guaranteed to be a spotlight.

     

    I'm sure there are dozens of talented coaster builders queueing up to help you with coasters (myself included) 

  • Jene%s's Photo

    Congratulations Babar! Love it all around. My favourite part is the Logan Patronus. 

  • Cocoa%s's Photo

    holy cow this is impressive. so much to love here, i was not expecting an entire zoo with the incredibly nostalgic zoo tycoon theme music though hahaha. hogsmeade was by far my favorite area, you really nailed the atmosphere and composure there imo

  • Coasterbill%s's Photo

    This was absolutely fantastic. Excellent work!

  • Terry Inferno%s's Photo
    As this park was released in the middle of a vacation sandwich with Gatorland as the bun, I did not manage to get a review in when this was first released, but I love this park, and I believe you've done great justice to the Potterverse with this creation.
     
    You've done an excellent job here creating recognizable landmarks from the series - Hogwarts, the Quidditch stadium, and the Chamber of Secrets needed no introduction. Using different tree objects to demarcate the forbidden forest gave Hagrid's ride a recognizable identity of its own, and the legendary ship of Durmstrang acted as a perfect placemark for the icy castle. Perhaps most impressive of all, you presented Hogsmeade, Diagon Alley, and Knockturn Alley all differently enough so that we could tell which is which without any clickable elements. Not to say that a few staff here and there portraying characters would not enhance the scenes even further--some people less familiar with the subject matter might need a bit more context in some places--but for those of us who know, you've successfully created each iconic landmark in a way where we always know what we're looking at. And amazingly, you've done it in a way where each of them is distinctive from the furthest zoom level, but it all still fits so nicely together. 
     
    I like the zoo for what it is and how it contrasts the old British fantasy architecture of the Potter park with its unapologetically modern look. The color palette in the zoo did seem a bit "safe" at times, and finding a way to ramp up the blue and yellow motifs might have given it an even more lively appearance--the elephant arches should have been a different color, at least a darker brown--but the building designs and overall layout look great as a whole. One of the places where the interactive elements would have helped is around those two large buildings in the corner of the map... they look great, but what are they? Definitely something worth lining up for in that white building, but what exactly it is remains a mystery. 
     
    The backstage areas also deserve recognition for being beautifully gritty and realistically crunchy. The one behind Hogsmeade is fantastic, as are all of the ones around the Gringotts ride building. Very strong contrast between the storybook magic of the theme park setting and the hardscrabble reality existing around it, which is an important selling point when building Disney-esque parks with surroundings included.
     
    The comments regarding the tracked rides are fair, and though it's true that the coasters were not the focal point of this park, this is one of those settings where that's more forgivable. The closest real park to this with which I'm familiar is Universal Studios Hollywood, and in a park like that, the coasters are often more about creating an immersive experience with the scenery than being big, standalone rides that revolve around distinct layout elements - Revenge of the Mummy relies heavily on being in a dark building with some well-placed animatronics. Hagrid's ride is the only one that truly felt too short... with all that open space around the forest, he could have zipped around a few more curves if given just a bit more of a magical boost. Sirius could have also benefited from another helix or two, but for a launched coaster that is perhaps meant to appeal to a younger audience as well, the height and speed were acceptable. 
     
    A few miscellaneous technical things to bring your next large theme park to tippy-top level...
    - Low grass is a great approach to texturing grass, but use it on every quarter of every open tile, and it can start to feel like a single homogeneous grass texture. Creating shapes with open terrain patches is a great way to give the static wilderness spaces more movement, and "flat" texture objects, such as the voliere, 2x2 crunch ground texture, and even 1J water are great for adding a little extra fun to those barer patches.
    - Using the same texture for a flat roof as the path below it can cause the verticality to get lost. This happens in this park with the bus/taxi stop overhang (black CC9 path) and the brown arms of the park entrance (brown CC9 path), but is otherwise not a recurring problem anywhere else.
    - The use of grass trims on this map is excellent except for the *jonction2 parking lot, where the light grey trims create an awkward border between the tarmac and the sand filled with unnecessary right angles. A bit more curve in both the border trims and the path (and maybe painting the trims either black or brown) would create a more natural blending effect here.
    - Shops and stalls, even if invisible, are a great way to not only keep guests in your park but to allow them to interact with your buildings. In a park like this, the buildings can become more than scenery if guests can walk up to them or through them and leave carrying something they didn't walk in with (for example, a butterbeer in Hogsmeade). Sometimes it's even fun to build a little (easy) maze inside a shop just to see people walking on the other sides of the windows. Not every scene warrants this much additional movement, of course, but I just enjoy experimenting with it.
    - I think you would enjoy building dark ride interiors, even if it's just small cutscenes out of the sides of buildings. There are several indoor rides here that would be fun to peek inside, particularly Welcome to Hogwarts. 
    - Every one of the shows in this park can be taken further by adding motion and interactivity, whether it be through staff, small CTRs, or a combination of the two in addition to the set pieces you already have. This can elevate any map, but since this one has a heavy emphasis on live entertainment, it can have a particularly powerful effect. We can find out what's happening in the graveyard, watch a few broom-riding wizards chase the quaffle around, and catch a live performance from whomever is performing on the Durmstrang stage. You have a gift for capturing moments in great detail - the next step is to animate them and allow them to move with the rest of the park. 
     
    A Spotlight for me must be built at a high quality throughout, have a macro vision as strong as its micro detailing, and it must look beautiful and clear from far away just as it does from up close. With these criteria in mind, I ultimately considered it worthy. Your worldbuilding is fantastic, your object usage is so natural, and your architectural design is always such a pleasure. Since you're not a big fan of building roller coasters, a park like this that focuses more on dark rides, shows, and immersive themed areas seems like a clear path to a Babar Spotlight. With your technical abilities combined with your worldbuilding and storytelling, it would surely be among the best of its kind.
  • KingLizard%s's Photo

    The park wont open for me, something about RMCT2 cant be found?

  • 84.50%(required: 70%)  Gold
    Percentage of vote: 84.5%
    In:Cities 90% yes
    SSSammy 90% yes
    bigshootergill 85% no
    CoasterCreator9 85% no
    posix 85% no
    RWE 85% yes
    Terry Inferno 85% yes
    wheres_walto 85% no
    Xtreme97 85% no
    G Force 80% no
    ottersalad 80% no
    Scoop 80% yes
    84.50% 41.67%
  • Description

    Welcome to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, a park built and owned by Warner Bros. Built next to a zoo (bought by the WB and completely restored) and a dedicated entertainment area. The park is part of a large investment programme and intends to seriously challenge Disneyland. Like its direct rival, it’s a family park focusing on immersion.

    Adult ticket (1 day): 70€.

    Children's ticket (1 day) : €50

    Adult pass (Zoo and park) : 90€.

    Child pass (Zoo and park) : 65€.

    Parking (day): 10€.

    Where to sleep?

    Camping **** des Quatre Maisons

    B&B ** "Le Cul-Sourcier"

    The park was built on the site of "Cul-Sourcier", a hamlet in the countryside north of Paris. There’s still the Simonnet farm (still in activity) to the south-west of the park, which is holding out against Warner Bros to avoid expropriation of the land.

    The park is divided into 3 zones built around the central castle: The Magical London, Hogsmeade and a zone dedicated to the villain.

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