Dreamworld's newest attraction gets the big thumbs up!

Humanity just loves to unify everything, from relativity theory and quantum physics right down to peanut butter and jelly. This obsession humans have with unifying things leaves no exception to movies and theme parks. No movie could be a better example than Alien vs. Predator. Now despite being panned by most critics, Alien vs. Predator is one of my favourite movies. With Aliens and the first Predator being two of my favourite movies ever, it's really a no brainer as to why I like AVP. Now another thing I love is laser tag, especially the dark indoor maze ones that you usually find at places like Timezone or Zone 3. Now when I heard that Dreamworld were going to be combining two things I love dearly into a new attraction at the park, my original reactions were mixed; how could they pull something this awesome off -- especially since the park has suffered some dilapidation in most areas, coupled with disappointing new attractions in the past couple of years. This has almost made me lose my faith in Dreamworld completely. However, after yesterday's media launch, I can safely say that they pulled it off and have created an exciting, fun and non-up-chargeable attraction.

The media launch of the attraction was really well done, giving us media folk more of an extended experience to the attraction itself rather than being something official. Upon registering our names to the Dreamworld, or in this case, Weyland Industries staff, everyone was issued an envelope along with each group leader given a rucksack filled with necessary items for our upcoming mission. After receiving orders from military personnel who wielded laser weapons and Arnold Schwarzenegger accents, we were then escorted to the attraction complete with a Hummer and an army people carrier. It was there where the CEO of Dreamworld and Lynton V. Harris would not only present the new attraction but also take part in the action with the rest of us. We were ordered to fuel ourselves with the food offered from the park and being taunted by the Schwarzy guys to “eat more bananas!” Once the taunting stopped, we were then addressed to start the mission.

When upon entering the building, the first thing I noticed about this new attraction was how they treated the movie licence. The plot and setting followed extremely close to the first AVP movie: a temple which seems to have been architecturally influenced by Egyptian, Aztec and Cambodian cultures has been discovered deep underneath Antarctica and you with a team of others must go down to investigate. The setting is complete with the drill hole down to the temple, the sacrificial chamber and even the room where the Queen Alien is help captive. Unfortunately it doesn't mean you get to battle any Aliens yourself. Instead, you battle each other by shooting at the people who have been infected with an alien spawn, which is indicated when the lights on the vest shine yellow (we played a custom game where everyone was infected and thus created a “free-for-all” type game). Your laser is also equipped with a little LCD display of your progress with a shield bar and point system. The shield bar plays an important role in this game. If it gets too low your weapon will deactivate and you will have to wait 10 seconds for it to reload in order to get back in the game. The point system in the game is simple too -- you shoot infected people, you get points and a satisfying trumpet noise comes from your laser. You don't lose any points if you get hit yourself either, although not being hit ensures you can get the highest score. Unfortunately, the first time we played the game I got left with a dud laser and so I didn't get any points and was just a moving target for 15-odd minutes. However the second time I had much better luck, coming out with the highest score and winning the game (try and beat 5,100 points). The park is still planning to add more to the experience by making the Alien Queen animatronic, along with other features. Personally, I was hoping that they would have had live actors dressed up as Aliens and Predators, and you had to defend yourself against them. But on second thought, that would only work effectively for something along the lines of the MIB ride at Universal Studios. Still, the attraction itself is a great addition to the park and provides a really unique experience to a day at Dreamworld.

So overall, my experience at the media launch was a thoroughly positive one. The magic of Dreamworld I once knew of has come back and made me forget about the somewhat mediocre years the park has suffered from recently... almost. Aliens vs. Predator vs. You is a fantastic addition to the park and easily the best addition to Dreamworld in the last three years. The fact that AVPX has adapted to the movie so well and that it provides such sheer entertainment makes it one of the most unique attractions at Dreamworld. And the updates that are to be expected for the attraction will only enhance the experience of what is already a great interactive game. I hope that the new attraction and changes in CEO will spell the dawn of a new era for Dreamworld. Now, if they just get a Eurofighter...

Photo: Ashley Irvine