The Crowd-Pleaser: Track-Based Dark Rides 

Track-based dark rides blur the lines between motion simulator and indoor coaster by utilizing a mix of screen-based sections, practical effects, and a ride vehicle moving through a track to tell the story. Just about everyone’s favorite track-based dark ride is The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man, found at Universal parks. This attraction follows Spider-Man through “the most dangerous night of [his] life…and yours,” and features villains like Doc Oc, the Green Goblin, and more, not only bringing comic books to life, but placing the rider on the pages. 

These rides can be easily confused with motion simulators by the unknowing eye, but their practical effects and ride vehicle movement is a dead ringer. These rides can vary in intensity, and many are quite quaint. Examples of more gentle track-based dark rides include The Great Movie Ride, E.T. Adventure, and Living With the Land. More intense track-based dark rides can be Indiana Jones and the aforementioned Escape from Gringotts.

The Nostalgic Pick: Shooting Dark Rides

Toy Story Mania. Men in Black Aliens Attack. Justice League: Alien Invasion.

It’s the dark ride that requires no introduction: the shooting dark ride. 

Just about every park—whether it’s your hometown boardwalk or a Disney park—has a shooting dark ride. These rides, while track-based and offering a mix of screens and practical effects, differ from track-based dark rides in their competitive edge. Though they are more mellow ride experiences, shooting dark rides can feature intense spinning sections, triggered by riders scoring points.

Miscellaneous Dark Rides

Because the definition of dark ride is so broad, the category is continuously expanding and one-upping itself. Attractions like Rise of the Resistance, which utilizes a state-of-the-art trackless ride system and groundbreaking animatronics and practical effects, have caught the public eye as of late. Or look at a ride like Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. This attraction, which opened with the new Harry Potter-themed Wizarding World in 2010, utilizes KUKA arms, similar to the robotic arms used to construct cars, in lieu of a more traditional flying theater or track-based model.

These miscellaneous rides have asked: what if? And thus, a new breed of dark ride is rising, one that knows no limits and shows no signs of stopping.

Dark rides allow parks to tell stories in exactly the way they want, to think bigger and work harder to the guest experience. Though some parks (such as Universal Studios Orlando) have been criticized by their over-saturation of dark rides and screen-based attractions, dark rides remain the best way to tell a story through a ride. These rides are more frequently found at theme parks over amusement parks, so you may not see one of each of these dark ride subcategories at your standard Cedar Fair or Six Flags park (theme park hub Cedar Point doesn’t even flaunt a dark ride in their massive park), but you can use this guide to see where your park’s gap is. 

As technology expands and guests become more hungry for thrills that tell a story, dark rides will only gain popularity and strength in the theme park landscape.

What’s your favorite dark ride?