Video Games and the Disney Parks

Long before Nintendo introduced the Nintendo Entertainment System to the home market, Disneyland was providing interactive experiences that transported people to far-off lands full of adventure and intrigue. Not many people realize that modern video games actually owe a lot to Disneyland. The similarities may not be obvious at first, but they become more apparent as you think about them. Immersive environments? Check. Memorable characters and stories? Check. People controlling an experience created by someone else? Check. Disneyland Park is, in a sense, a giant video game, so it makes sense that it has both inspired and directly influenced modern gaming.

The first time that a Disney Park was featured in a game was 1990's Adventures in the Magic Kingdom for the NES. This was an adventure game developed by Capcom that featured the player exploring a Disneyland/Magic Kingdom amalgam to retrieve six silver keys so that the castle gates could be unlocked in time for the afternoon parade. It had five mini-games based on famous Disney attractions- Space Mountain, Autopia, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, The Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean- and a series of Disney Trivia questions that the player must answer to earn a key. It's a fun game that features the first digital interactive recreation of a Disney Park.

The Walt Disney World Explorer was a computer program released in 1996 for both Macs and PCs. On the surface, it seems like a glorified interactive map of the World, but it's actually much more than that. This program has a page for each attraction and some include behind-the-scenes videos, while others have mini-games like a Foley Stage at the Monster Sound Show and an interactive coral reef in The Living Seas Pavilion. There are also some Hidden Mickeys throughout the game, and finding 10 of them treats you to a Mickey Mouse retrospective Walt Disney recorded for an episode of the Wonderful World of Disney. Other features include a trivia game and guided tours of attractions throughout the parks by category. Overall, it's a cool time capsule featuring attractions that are long gone and well worth tracking down for any Disney Parks fans.

Walt Disney World Quest: Magical Racing Tour was released in 2000 for the Sony Playstation. It's a version of Mario Kart starring Chip and Dale in their rescue rangers clothes racing a variety of new characters around racetracks inspired by various WDW attractions. The plot of the game is simple: Chip and Dale accidentally destroyed the fireworks machine, and are racing around WDW to find the missing parts so the fireworks can go on as scheduled. This game is fun, but in my opinion it would benefit greatly from more responsive controls and more lenient AI for the other racers.

Virtual Magic Kingdom was an online multiplayer game released in 2005 to promote Disneyland's 50th anniversary. Players could not only roam the virtual park in search of pins and other mini-games and treasures, but they could also create their own room with various artifacts from attractions past and present. The game sadly shut down in 2008, but it still has a strong following online with at least two separate attempts to recreate the game. The game was key to the plot of Ridley Pearson's The Kingdom Keepers:Disney After Dark, but the version in the book was based off of a beta version of the game, so it featured some ideas, like being able to pick up items like a soda can, that didn't make the final cut.

Kinect Disneyland Adventures is the first official digital recreation of Disneyland Park. It was created to show off the features of Microsoft's Kinect device for the Xbox 360, but Disney fans bought it so that they could visit the park anytime from the comfort of their own living rooms. Various attractions are featured as mini-games, but the coolest part is just walking around the park and taking in the sights. My only complaint is that they were unable to secure the rights to Roger Rabbit, Star Wars and Indiana Jones, so those attractions are just unmarked buildings in-game. On the other hand, this features the video game debut of the characters from Song of the South, so it can't really be that bad. Overall, this game is the closest we'll ever get to a visit to Disneyland from our own homes.

Individual attractions and movie franchises have had games based on them released as well. The Haunted Mansion was released in 2003 as a tie-in to the movie, but it was based more on the ride's mythology than the film. Pirates of the Caribbean has had numerous games made, including an MMO that recently shut down. Games like the Epic Mickey series and Kingdom Hearts III feature elements based on the parks, with EM's Wasteland being a twisted version of Disneyland and KH3 featuring ride vehicles that are apparently used during boss battles.

As proven by these and other games, Disneyland's mythology is richer than people give it credit for. There are so many original characters and stories that are ripe for adaptation, and video games seem to have been the go-to medium for these types of adaptations. Here's hoping for another great Disneyland-inspired game soon.

Top Five Disney Park Songs

The Disney Parks would be nothing without their music. Just try to imagine the Haunted Mansion without "Grim Grinning Ghosts" or the Enchanted Tiki Room without its eponymous theme song- it's just not possible! The parks have given us some of the most beloved Disney songs of all time. So, in the words of José the Parrot, "Ole! Ole! It's Showtime!"

5. Grim Grinning Ghosts

This song used to scare me as a child. Like, really scare me- I couldn't watch this song on the Disneyland Fun Sing-Along Songs video without having nightmares for about three days afterwards. Now that I've grown older, I see just how amazing this song is. It's extremely versatile, so much so that it's actually the only song you hear in the Mansion. It's the same song, just morphed into a different song style. Another testament to the songwriting talent of X. Atencio and Buddy Baker is the fact that it doesn't really have a beginning or an end, so that guests can pick the song up at any time in the ride. 

4. The Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Room

Ah, the Tiki Room. You either love it (me) or can't stand the thought of sitting through it again (my dad). Much of that opinion depends on whether or not you enjoy the show's theme song, written by the Sherman Brothers of Mary Poppins fame. It's actually one of the first songs written exclusively for the parks, debuting with the show in 1963. This song is extremely catchy, often worming its way into your head on an endless loop that ends somewhere in Fantasyland- but I'm not going to dwell on that OTHER song. It also works extremely well as a map of sorts. Just in case you're confused of where you are, just ask the nearest Cast Member who will most likely tell you that you are in the Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Room.

3. The Great Outdoors

Here's another song from my almost worn-through Disneyland Fun video. It was the theme song to the Country Bear Vacation Hoedown, a summer camp-themed seasonal variation on the Country Bear Jamboree. This song has all the makings of a great camp song- a simple structure, witty lyrics and great harmonies. In fact, I think that if the Jamboree ever returns to the Disneyland Resort *cough* areyoulisteningDisneylandmanagement *cough*, this song should be put into the setlist, even if the Vacation Hoedown isn't the current show. This song makes it easy for anyone in the audience to "clap your hands and stomp your feet and try to keep right with 'em" at the good old Country Bear Jamboree.

2. One Little Spark

This song is the first one on the list that didn't originate at Disneyland. One Little Spark was written for the Journey Into Imagination ride at EPCOT by the Sherman Brothers. In it, the Dreamfinder creates that lovable purple dragon, Figment, all while introducing the audience to the abstract concept that is the human imagination. The instrumentation in this song is awesome, featuring instruments like a toy piano to create a child-like sound, furthering the idea of childhood imagination being a tool that anyone can use. It'll also be stuck in your head for weeks. The Shermans seem to be good at writing songs like that...

1. There's A Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow

In my humble opinion, no other song captures the spirit of Walt Disney better than this one. The Sherman Brothers wrote it as the theme song for the Carousel of Progress at the 1964 World's Fair. There's no way you can frown while listening to this song. It's eternal optimism can bring up even the most depressed of people. In fact, I think that it should be used to treat people suffering from depression- it'll work, trust me! Always remember: there's a great big beautiful tomorrow, just a dream away!

Well, that's it. My top five all-time favorite Disney Parks songs. They're all available on the official albums of the various parks- I'd recommend A Musical History of Disneyland. It's a six-CD set that's well worth tracking down. Chime in with your favorite songs in the comments!

Kingdom Keepers VI- Dark Passage Review

When we last saw the Keepers, two of them were jumping off the edge of the Disney Fantasy cruise ship into the ocean, unsure of what was going to happen next. This is how I felt reading the penultimate book in Ridley Pearson's Kingdom Keepers Series. There is a lot of tension between the Keepers over the course of this adventure, building up to a rather violent climax that feels completely different than anything seen before in the series. This is the first time that the Keepers have a major adventure without the safety net of the parks to back them up- they are truly on their own in this book, with just one another and a few friends who've stowed away on the ship helping them defeat the Overtakers before they reach their ultimate destination: Disneyland. KKVI is just as action-packed as the rest of the series, but to me the payoff just wasn't worth the buildup. I liked where Pearson was going up until the very end of the novel, where a few spoilerish events happened that will definitely have repercussions in the final book in the series (which can be read partly at www.kingdomkeepersinsider.com). The series has grown up along with its audience, becoming more mature and violent with every installment. Hopefully, KKVII's Disneyland setting will imbue some much-needed happiness into the series' finale. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed Dark Passage, but not as much as other entries in the series.

3.5 out of 5 Stars

Note: in the spirit of full disclosure, A copy of this book was not provided for free by the publisher. I bought it myself, and this price in no way affected my review.

Walt Disney World- Blizzard Beach

When Blizzard Beach first opened, it had a mascot named the Ice Gator that Disney used heavily to market their new water park. The Gator made stops at all the on-property hotels, and the cast members who appeared with him told the kids about the fun they could have with him down at Blizzard Beach. The Ice Gator costume was designed so that he could not only be a walkaround character, but he could also cavort around in the pool with guests due to the suit being made of watertight rubber. Now, this seems like a great idea on paper, but it was soon discovered that the person in the suit had a hard time controlling the tail and not fainting due to the being in a rubber suit in the central Florida summer heat. Needless to say, the Ice Gator walkaround soon went the way of Dreamfinder and Roger Rabbit.

The Avengers- Review

Ok. I know that the movie has been out for over a week here in the USA. I've waited to post this so that the spoiler police won't get nearly as mad when I say that Agent Coulson di--- lives happily ever after. Or that a certain purple intergalactic warlord with a mighty chin appears in the mid-credits scene. Seriously, though, I'm so glad that I chose to see the Avengers unspoiled. It made what is easily the best comic book movie ever made even more enjoyable. Now, before all of the Dark Knight fanboys out there get angry, TDK is not a comic book movie. It's a crime drama with comic characters. The Avengers is the first truly great movie that looks and feels like a living, breathing comic book, with grown men (and a woman) in spandex laying a beat-down on an alien race while keeping the sarcasm rolling. Joss Wheadon's ability to keep all of the egos and simmering dislike that each team member has for each other in lie is astounding. What truly makes the movie isn't the complete destruction of Cleveland disguised as New York, but the humanity of the characters. That, and it's amazing sense of humor. Nobody takes themselves too seriously, and Mark Ruffalo's Hulk gets the two biggest laughs of the whole movie. Marvel has truly done the impossible. They've made a movie so good that it (Hulk) smashed the record for all time best opening weekend. Bravo.
Five out of five stars.

My Top Five Attraction Tributes

One of the sad but inevitable parts of getting a new Disney attraction is having to give up an old favorite. Winnie the Pooh seems to be a master negotiator, having evicted both Mr. Toad and the Country Bears in separate parks. Star Tours replaced Adventure through Inner Space. 20,000 Leagues is being replaced by about seven new things at the Magic Kingdom. While these attractions will be sorely missed, Disney Imagineers almost always put tributes to what came before, if you know where to look. And if you want to know more about attractions that have become part of history, make sure to check out Werner Weiss' amazing website, Yesterland.com. So, without further ado, my top five tributes to attractions that exist no longer:

5. Indiana Jones Adventure
Ok, so technically Indy wasn't built on the site of a former attraction. Not many people who went to Disneyland will have fond memories of the Eeyore parking lot that it was built on. But apparently someone in Imagineering had a soft spot for the lot Indy replaced, so if you look into the rafters in the projection room of the queue, you can see a sign from the lot. If you can't find it, a cast member is usually on hand who will point it out to you.

4. Journey Into Imagination
The much-maligned redo of this ride was not very popular with Epcot guests, who wondered what happened to the lovable Dreamfinder and Figment characters that were the center of the ride previously known as Journey Into Your Imagination. When the Imagineers redid the redo, they brought Figment back front and center, but the only mention of Dreamfinder is in the queue line on a door labeled 'Dean Finder'. Kinda flimsy in my opinion, but I guess that something's always better than nothing...

3. Star Tours
Adventure Through Inner Space, created in cooperation with chemical giant Monsanto, was a favorite of many guests. The enclosed, dark spaces were very popular on Grad Nights and other special events. This ride was shut down in the mid-80's and replaced with Star Tours. The new ride featured two references to ATIS. The queue line featured one of the 'miniaturized' Atomobiles, while the Mighty Microscope itself appeared in the ride film when you first escape the launch bay.

2. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
The Disneyland BTM resides on a plot of land formerly occupied by the Mine Train Thru Nature's Wonderland. You departed from the lovely town of Rainbow Ridge, went through the desert, past Rainbow Caverns, and under a fossilized T Rex before the ride was over. BTM has kept a lot of props from the MTTNW, including the dinosaur skeleton and all of Rainbow Ridge. Keep your eyes peeled while holdin' on to them hats and glasses on the wildest ride in the wilderness.

1. Mr. Toad's Wild Ride
If you surveyed people about which Disney attraction they want to see return, the answer would be either the subs or Toad. His enduring popularity is odd, considering that the ride is based on a rather obscure package film and literally sent riders to Hell. Fun for the whole family, no doubt. Toad was so loved that he got three- count 'em, three- tributes at the Magic Kingdom. Two are located in the Pooh ride, which I'll get to in a moment, but my favorite tribute to him is a gravestone shaped like Toad in the Haunted Mansion's pet cemetery. Oddly fitting, and I hope that Toad made it to heaven after sending so many happy guests to the depths of the earth for almost 30 years. The other two tributes are pictures of Toad and Owl inside Owl's house and one of Moley and Pooh in Pooh's home. You'll see many Disney fanatics (the ones with more than one pin lanyard around their neck most of the time) looking wistfully at the ground, fondly remembering that Toadi Acceleratio Semper Absurda.

Hollywood Boulevard- Disney's Hollywood Studios

The plaza in front of the Great Movie Ride used to be one of the coolest Hidden Mickeys ever planted by the Imagineers. It was complete until Sunset Boulevard was built in 1994, destroying one of the ears. The face and Echo Lake ear remained until the giant Sorcerer's Hat was placed in 2001. If you look closely on a map, you can still see Mickey's eyes and the lake ear. Or you can enjoy the Hidden Mickey in its original glory by scrolling down.

Kingdom Keepers V: Shell Game

The Kingdom Keepers series is one of the few book series that will be repeatedly referenced on this blog, partly because of the obvious Disney Parks connection, but mostly because the series is REALLY good. The general premise of the series is that five Orlando teenagers have been chosen by the Imagineers to help protect the Disney Parks from the Disney Villains, who are known as the Overtakers. These thrillers are written for a teen audience, but can be enjoyed by anyone of any age. Ridley Pearson painstakingly researches (read: gets to go to the empty parks and look around for ideas) each book, and the Disney Park nerd in me really appreciates the rich detail of the novels. Until Shell Game, my favorite book in the series was the first one, Disney After Dark. The three that have come out since then are great books, but haven't captured my imagination like the original did. After packing the last few books with exposition, Pearson is finally able to hit the ground running with this book. Out of all the books so far, Shell Game is easily the darkest. It's a war book. The Keepers are drugged, attacked, and driven apart by the Overtakers nefarious plot to take over the Disney Dream on its inaugural voyage from WDW to DLR. I won't give away the plot, but I was surprised who was on the OT's side in this story, and can't wait until the next book is released. If you hate cliffhangers, don't read Shell Game until the next book is released, because this is one the first time that a cliffhanger has made me mad due to the story being so good. I can't wait for KK6. Five out of Five Stars.

Note: in the spirit of full disclosure, A copy of this book was not provided for free by the publisher. I bought it myself, and this price in no way affected my review.

Main Street, USA- Disneyland

Main Street will always be one of my favorite lands of Disneyland. One can truly feel Walt's presence when strolling down this romanticized recreation of his hometown, Marceline, Missouri. The windows act as the opening credits for the park, giving the talented artists , designers and managers of Disneyland the credit that they truly deserve. My personal favorite window is the one belonging to Dick Nunis, former head of Disney Parks and Resorts. It says that he specializes in wave machines, which is an uncharacteristically snarky reference to Nunis' failed attempt at having a wave machine put on the bottom of the Seven Seas Lagoon in Florida to create real, surf able waves for the guests. It failed, and the rusted parts remain to this day. While each of the windows allude to the person's contribution to Disney parks, none of the windows are nearly as funny as Mr. Nunis'. And I have no sarcastic comment for that. Darn.

New Orleans Square- Disneyland

Pirates of the Caribbean. For many park guests, those four words conjure up joyful memories of cursed treasure, burning Spanish ports, and startlingly lifelike Johnny Depp animatronics. Pirates was the first attraction to come 'full circle' by inspiring a film franchise and then having the films inspire new attraction elements. This was planned for the Haunted Mansion after the Eddie Murphy movie was released, but thankfully Disney didn't follow through with that particular idea. Anyways, back to Pirates. The cursed treasure chest and tattered dress worn by Keira Knightly aren't the only props from a Disney movie based on pirates found in the attraction. When you are going up the waterfall at the end of your adventure, pay close attention to the portrait in the sack that the pirate is trying to pull up. It's from the 1968 Disney movie Blackbeard's Ghost starring Dean Jones! Unfortunately, the movie is not as well known as its more recent counterparts, but the painting is still a great thing to point out to that one person in your party that seems to know everything about Pirates. Then enjoy the dumbstruck expression on their face.

Critter Country- Disneyland

While it's common knowledge that Splash Mountain pays tribute to America Sings by using almost all of its animatronics, not many people know that this ride also features subtle tributes to the ultimate unbuilt Disney attraction, the Western River Expedition. Just like WRE, Splash has a huge drop to draw people in, exquisitely detailed show scenes and a lift that goes past a hooting owl. You see, WRE was going to be narrated by this owl, so Tony Baxter put it on the ride to pay tribute to the genius of Marc Davis. And, yes, the Florida version has a gopher that shouts "FSU!"

Frontierland- Disneyland

While the first all Audio-Animatronic attraction was the Enchanted Tiki Room, the Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland featured crude robotic animals for about a year before the Tiki Room opened. WED knew they had something that was decently realistic on their hands, because the "animals" would be attacked by predators almost daily, requiring lots of maintenance on their part. While crude, they did represent one of the stepping stones to what is without a doubt one of WED's finest creations.

Adventureland- Disneyland

Adventureland was, for the longest time, the awkward person who sat in the corner not really doing anything. Until the Indiana Jones Adventure's opening in the mid-1990's, the Enchanted Tiki Room boasted the title of newest experience in this exotic paradise. It opened in 1963. So, to celebrate the first new attraction in 30 years Disneyland Management opened up just the immersive queue before the ride was even finished! The guests loved the taste of what would turn out to be one of the best themed attractions ever built, and Ops got a new "attraction" that barely needed to be staffed! Gotta love those Imagineers for coming up with that sorta thing, huh?

Toontown- Disneyland

I was seven, about to turn eight during my first visit to Disneyland and, for me, the highlight of the whole trip was Toontown, with the AMAZING Car Toon Spin and the chance to meet my personal favorite character, Sorcerer Mickey. Imagine my shock when I returned for the first time in almost a decade to find the Tree House's ball pit gone, the slide closed off, Goofy's house no longer bouncy and Roger Rabbit being refurbished! Toontown is a shadow of its former self, as children these days are apparently not as resilient as those of us who actually remember the show that Gadget's Go-Coaster is from. Disneyland management doesn't trust us anymore, and while it was a bit like the play place at your local McFranchise fast food joint, Toontown captured the imagination of at least one seven year old. Isn't that what the Disney Parks are all about?

Fantasyland- Disneyland

Captain Hook's Pirate Ship, originally located just beyond where King Arthur's Carousel now stands, was on the list of things to be saved during the 1983 Fantasyland remodel. When the Imagineers tried to move the ship to it's planned new dock in the Small World Promenade, it fell apart due to the rotten wood from sitting in a pool of water for so many years. Regrettably, this Peter Pan Fan will never get to experience the beloved Tuna Boat and Skull Rock in person. The only remainder of the restaurant is a lantern hanging from the Captain's hook right before disembarking from Peter Pan's Flight. Thankfully, the smell of tuna has long since dissipated.

Tomorrowland- Disneyland

The original Rocket Jets were created from an actual World War II-used German Artillery cannon that was painted red and retrofitted into a ride base! -insert 'that ride was the bomb' joke here-