For more info about the parks listed below, you can search for U.S. theme parks by state, or search for U.S. theme parks by the name of the park.
Tomb Raider: Firefall
- Paramount's Kings Dominion, Doswell, VA
- Suspended Top Spin
The core of Kings Dominion's new ride will be a Top Spin, a devilish contraption in which 38 riders will sit in a floorless, suspended cabin and get flipped and tossed unmercifully. The queue and ride area will be themed to the Lara Croft video games and films. There is a similar Tomb Raider ride at Ohio's Paramount's Kings Island. Unlike that indoor ride however, the Virginia version will be placed in an outdoor themed environment. Sorry, pouty-lipped Angelina Jolie will not be part of the themed environment.
RipTide
- Valleyfair, Shakopee, MN
- Suspended Top Spin
Valleyfair will also be introducing a Top Spin this season, but its ride will not include the elaborate themeing like the King's Dominion attraction
Fear Factor: Live
- Universal Studios Florida and Universal Studios Hollywood, CA
- Audience participation stage show
Playing on its synergy with new corporate owner NBC, the Universal Studios parks in Hollywood and Florida will be presenting stage shows based on the gross-out NBC TV show, "Fear Factor." Why anybody would want to chomp on live maggots as part of their theme park vacation is beyond me (not that maggots will be part of the show--Universal hasn't released any of the details to date), but chosen audience members will compete against one another in Fear-Factor style stunts. Fear Factor: Live will take place in the Hollywood park's Castle Theater (where the Spider-Man show most recently played) and at the stadium in the Florida park that formerly featured the Wild West show. Universal produced a slick
video to promote its new attraction. You can also see the gross stunts at the
Fear Factor: Live Photo Gallery
Nickelodeon Central
- Paramount's Carowinds, Charlotte, NC
- Young children's ride area
The park will be adding some new rides and re-themeing some existing rides to popular Nickelodeon shows such as "Dora the Explorer" and "The Fairly Odd Parents." These will be mostly off-the-shelf kiddie rides. Carowinds will be introducing a new Nickelodeon stage show as well.
maXair
- Cedar Point, Sandusky, OH
- Giant Frisbee
Ohio's Cedar Point already has bragging rights as the park with the most number of rides on the planet, but they'll be adding one more this season for good measure. And the parks' 68th ride is going to be a doozy. (Do people still use that expression? For you young'uns, "a doozy" means it's going to be rad, er mad, um sick...let's just settle on "awesome.") Called maXair (sic), the whirl-and-hurl ride's 50 seats will be arranged in a huge circle. The seats will be fashioned like those on an inverted coaster with rider's legs dangling. The spinning ride platform, attached to an enormous arm, will swing like a pendulum 140 feet into the air, reach speeds of 70 mph, and deliver some serious doses of positive and negative G's. If you're having trouble visualizing the ride, I've got a
video to show you the contraption in action.
AtmosFEAR
- Morey's Piers, Wildwood, NJ
- Drop tower
Things are looking up--way up--at Morey's Pier in Wildwood, NJ. It will be adding a new drop tower ride, AtmosFEAR (cool name!), this season. The tower will stand 140 feet tall, will reach speeds of 50 mph, and will deliver -3Gs for a few moments of heavenly free-floating weightlessness. The most famous drop tower ride is the
Twilight Zone Tower of Terror at both Florida's Disney-MGM Studios and Disney's California Adventure.
Double Shot
- Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, CA
- Drop tower
Another pier park, Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, will also be introducing a drop tower ride this year, although its tower will top off at 125 feet.
Fantasy Quest
- Enchanted Forest, Salem, OR
- Interactive dark ride
Armed with blaster guns, riders on Fantasy Quest will get to shoot targets and rack up points. Think of it as a video game come to life. Interactive dark rides, like
Men In Black Alien Attack at Universal Studios Florida have become quite popular recently.
Screamin' Swing
- Wild Adventures, Valdosta, GA
- Lake Compounce, Bristol, CT
- Kennywood, West Mifflin, PA
- Dorney Park, Allentown, PA
- Hydraulic launch swing ride
An upcharge ride at all but Wild Adventures, the Screamin' Swing will use a hydraulic launch to blast riders skyward into a swinging arc. The Georgia park will dub its ride, The Gauntlet.
