Remain Seated, Please

I love Star Tours and I believe that I will love the new Star Tours, The Adventures Continue, but can we talk about some of the rumors and some of our issues with this new incarnation?

Potential Pros:

1. Multiple Destinations: I hope with my heart of hearts that we will be able to choose a gate when approaching the launch platforms. While a slightly longer trip with multiple destinations would be fun, I would also love it to act as more of a space port offering travelers choices.
2. Glasses-less 3D: I am not a fan of 3D at all but for some reason, I am way into this.  One of the biggest problems the old ride had was the aging film projection.  Nostalgic? Absolutely.  Distracting?  You bet’cha!  This technology will probably be the most futuristic thing in Tomorrowland.
3. Seeing Rex Being Built in Queue: I haven’t seen this anywhere but with the hints that we are getting from TDA, I theorize that my favorite post-bird-animatronic droid will be working on Rex while listening to the radio and chatting it up with guests.  A boy can hope!

Potential Cons:

1. Pod Racing: with as much backlash as there has been, how were they able to justify a pod racing scene?  I can’t wait to see how they integrate this into the story.
2. No Classic Endor Moon Trips:  Now, travelers are supposed to see Endor, Bespin, and Alderaan, but I am assuming that this will be within the new (older) timeline.  I suppose I could bring my iPod and put on Rex’s old ride-through over one of the new trips, but it won’t be the same.  Perhaps there might be a loading platform for a new “prototype” Starspeeder 3000 that is testing flights to the Endor Moon?

Hazy Areas:

1. Ace or C3PO?  People seemed to be outraged that they chose a “new” pilot droid for the Starspeeder 1000 and soon after, it was revealed that C3PO would be the pilot upon takeoff.  Was this a last minute addition?  I am excited for C3PO, though — just seemed to be a weird way to announce it.
2. Updated Trips?  One of the biggest selling points for Star Tours was that new trips could be added as necessary.  It has only taken 23 years to follow up on that promise and that’s just too long. Might we see new trips every 5-or-so years?

Things I’d Like To See:

1. Adventure Thru Inner Space: I am sure that I went on it as a kid, but at best I would have been a year old.  I would love for there to be a nod at the classic attraction somewhere.  There may have been before — to be honest, I never thought to look.  But, a nod to the past in a building that hasn’t changed much would be a lot of fun.
2. Starspeeder 2000: We will have gone from the modern (yet still run down) Starspeeder 3000 to the “old” (somehow more modern and souped up) Starspeeder 1000, I wouldn’t mind seeing a Starspeeder 2000 being worked on by R2 in the queue.  Might not happen but would be a cool touch.

All-in-all, I couldn’t be more stoked for the new Star Tours.  Already, the facade is getting an awesome facelift, the ride system has been updated, and there’s glasses-less 3D.  With a potential to add trips to other Star Wars locales, I back it!

UPDATE: Robert just told me about the huge nod to Adventure Thru Inner Space in the old Star Tours.  Please keep the heckling to a minimum.  If you haven’t seen it, I suggest dodging right while avoiding a close call.