Rollercoaster Tycoon

            Hints and Tips - General Ride Design

Tip Number One
Build footpaths close to the ride, or even better, a bridge across
the ride at an exciting point. This allows guests walking around
the park to see the ride in action at close quarters, which may
entice them onto the ride. If you let a log flume drop under a
footbridge, this allows the guests to see the action, and also
adds to the excitement of the ride as riders dive under the
footbridge.

Tip Number Two
Use tunnels to make drops more exciting. A steep drop into a
narrow tunnel can be much more thrilling than the same drop out in
the open air. This doesn't just apply to roller coasters - you can
also make a log flume drop straight into a tunnel.


Tip Number Three
With some roller coaster types, careful use of the 'head-chopper'
illusion can be used to spice up a ride. You can build rides so
that you have a car on a single-rail roller coaster diving down
under a monorail track - there's plenty of clearance, but it
doesn't seem that way to the little guests rushing down the slope,
all of which adds to the excitement.

Tip Number Four
Careful use of water can add interest and excitement to a ride. An
inverted roller coaster train can round a bend over water at
speed, with the riders' legs very close to the water surface.

Tip Number Five
Try to surprise the riders, so they never quite know what to
expect next. Try a wild-mouse style roller coaster where the mine
truck cars emerge from the dark tunnel at speed, round a
180-degree bend in the bright sunlight, then plunge back into the
darkness again.


Tip Number Six
Carefully combining two or more rides into the same area of land
adds excitement to both the rides. You could build a river rapids
ride winding through a mine train roller coaster track, in a
landscape themed to resemble an abandoned mine.

Tip Number Seven
Clever use of theming and scenery can make even the most mundane
of rides a fun and exciting experience. Even a simple car ride can
be enhanced by the use of scenery, theming, variation in height,
and tunnels.

Tip Number Eight
What about another example of adding excitement to the first drop
of a roller coaster. If a roller coaster is built so that the
trains drop at speed into a tunnel, the excitement can be enhanced
further by the use of scenery.


Tip Number Nine
Let the guests see other rides while they are riding a particular
ride. You could build a log flume going through the vertical loop
of a roller coaster - Imagine the log flume riders' surprise when
the roller coaster train roars through the loop and over their
heads!

Tip Number Ten
Use the gentle rides like monorail and miniature railway to allow
people to see the best bits of the park. This will make the ride
more exciting, and will also entice them onto the more thrilling
rides later. You could build a ride so that the riders on a
monorail train pass near the vertical loop of a steel roller
coaster.





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