50 Years Later: How Disney Can Launch Space Mountain into the Future
With the full announcement of the D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event schedule, “now is the time, now is the best time” to start speculating about what the future holds at the House of Mouse.
For Disney Parks fans, the Horizons panel, which will take place at the Honda Center August 15th, is one of the most anticipated events of the convention. The panel celebrates the future of Disney Experiences around the world, including Disney Parks and Disney Cruise Line. Just ahead of the announcement of this schedule, a major Disney Parks rumor began launching around the community regarding one of Disney's most iconic attractions.
The original Space Mountain opened at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom in 1975 and began thrilling guests with high-speed adventures through the stars. The roller coaster, which was manufactured by Arrow Dynamics, is a relatively controversial attraction at the resort, often being referred to as "Space Matterhorn" because of its inline seating and relatively jerky ride experience. Space Mountain in Florida is the largest of the Space Mountains, towering at 183 feet tall, and is the only version to include two separate tracks, again, similar to Matterhorn.
At over 50 years old, the attraction also represents a huge piece of Disney (and roller coaster) history as the roller coaster that inspired Walt Disney Imagineer Bill Watkins to design the heartline. This innovation involves designing turns and other maneuvers on a roller coaster by placing the center of motion at the heart, providing smoother transitions throughout coaster layouts. Space Mountain at Disneyland, which opened two years later, utilized this tech at a much broader scale, which is inarguably a smoother roller coaster experience. The comparison between the two versions has been a massive debate in the community for decades, but it looks like that fight may come to an end.
Expected to be announced at D23’s Horizons panel, the original Space Mountain may be receiving a massive overhaul. Rumors range from a retrack/refresh of the experience, a la Big Thunder Mountain at Magic Kingdom or Disneyland's 2005 refurbishment, all the way to a complete replacement and modernization of the attraction.
Fans are currently divided on which option they hope to see happen. Some fear a retrack will actually detract from Space Mountain, expecting the experience will lose its classic coaster charm. Disney is likely to work with Vekoma on this project, which recently built TRON Lightcycle/Run, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, and retracked Big Thunder Mountain. The latter has garnered criticism as being so smooth that it no longer feels like “the wildest ride in the wilderness." Others fear that Disney building yet another space-themed roller coaster will make the original Space Mountain feel redundant in a sea of freshly opened “roller coaster-type rides in the dark.”
It’s looking likely that Disney is leaning away from a more conservative approach towards stripping the entire mountain of its innards, replacing the coaster with a new launched single-track version of Space Mountain. Walt Disney World has debuted three family launch coasters since 2018, and with TRON standing right next door, how will Space Mountain remain a unique ride experience at the resort?
A good place to start is heading over to Japan, where Space Mountain in Tokyo is currently being rebuilt from the ground up. Expected to open next year, the attraction will be a multi-launch, potentially spinning, coaster built by Intamin. While the rebuild was allegedly inspired by Cosmic Rewind, the experience has one unique element that I hope will find its way to Magic Kingdom: a tilt track. From what we know about the experience, guests will be tilted upwards into the launch track before speeding into space. There are plenty of other different types of “trick tracks” that can be integrated here, see Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure’s quick switch tracks and drop tracks for example. I’d love to see Disney go all in on unique elements here, going beyond just a new layout.
Disney should also consider replicating the ride experience of the original Space Mountain. While a family coaster, Space Mountain’s legacy rides off quick changes in direction, like “sharp turns, sudden drops, and stops!” This contradicts many of the current coasters that have opened over the past few decades, which have leaned into gentler ride experiences. Even TRON and Cosmic Rewind lack high-force intensity, gracefully flowing through large swooping turns. Space Mountain is the only coaster in the resort with pops of ejector airtime, and I would love to see Disney embrace that.
Beyond just the coaster, Disney needs to tap into the core of what made the classic Space Mountain so special. While Disney has rethemed many attractions over the years, all of those have used existing ride systems to tell a new story. On the contrary, this is the first time Disney has replaced a ride system to tell the same story in a new way. Even Tokyo’s is a completely new build. In contradiction to much of Disney’s modern attractions, Space Mountain allows its concept and your experience to be the story. It's not about embarking on some convoluted mission with Disney’s wide-range of characters, but more so about experiencing the excitement and possibility of space travel, no pre-show needed. The passive “show don’t tell” storytelling needs to remain.
As for the queue, Space Mountain remains beloved for its use of kitschy theming, like ball pits, peppers ghost effects, and an unforgettable soundtrack that has maintained status as some fans' favorite area music in the entire Disney Parks scope. The immersive elaborate design far surpasses any other variation of the attraction. I think Disney needs to find a balance of incorporating these when designing the new experience. What fans should see and hear should be familiar, yet modernized.
Nothing is confirmed as of yet, but if the future really does bring us a completely new Space Mountain, Walt Disney Imagineering has their work cut out for them. Let’s not forget the past as we head towards the future.
Read More Walt Disney World:
- A New Collection Of Disney Princess Figures Just Arrived At Epcot
- Pandora Expands Their Presence in Popular EPCOT Retail Location
- Photos: Germany Pavilion Restroom Closed for Refurbishment at EPCOT