Reviews • Eric Esty

Orion's only weakness is its length. If it had a couple more elements it would be a contendor for my favorite coaster, but Fury's final hills eek it o...

Orion's only weakness is its length. If it had a couple more elements it would be a contendor for my favorite coaster, but Fury's final hills eek it out. Orion is an outstanding coaster. Ride in the front row near the end of the day and you'll see what I mean. The speed is incredible, the airtime is excellent, and every element brings something unique. The scale of the ride is enormous and every element feels huge. And it has the huge benefit of being a B&M hyper model, with its high capacity and very comfortable restraints. The giga speed and size make this one absolutely world class and somehow my new favorite coaster at Kings Island, beating out the truly incredible Beast, Diamondback, and Mystic Timbers in dramatic fashion and becoming my second favorite Giga, somehow beating out Millennium Force and 305 somewhat effortlessly.

The only good thing about this coaster is the needlessly gorgeous landscape, and its status as the first proper flying coaster. The line moves slow, t...

The only good thing about this coaster is the needlessly gorgeous landscape, and its status as the first proper flying coaster. The line moves slow, the loading is slow, the capacity sucks, and it's the most uncomfortable I've ever been on a coaster. Crappy ride.

Great layout. Unfortunately this park already has a good floorless coaster so this ride won't get converted. I can't handle the power of early B&M whi...

Great layout. Unfortunately this park already has a good floorless coaster so this ride won't get converted. I can't handle the power of early B&M while standing up on a coaster this long after the long walk to the back of the park. Arduous and not for me.

I don't remember this ride being enjoyable. It banged my head and legs around, the transitions were jarring, and the sound wasn't working. But at leas...

I don't remember this ride being enjoyable. It banged my head and legs around, the transitions were jarring, and the sound wasn't working. But at least the flame effects and the station music was cool.

Janky and odd, but not excessively so. No OSTRs to hit your head on. You might get decent airtime or positives out of this ride, and the coaster is de...

Janky and odd, but not excessively so. No OSTRs to hit your head on. You might get decent airtime or positives out of this ride, and the coaster is definitely better than an empty plot of land where Windstorm used to be. Definitely fits better here than it did at Wild Adventures.

Vortex died in vain, because this is Cedar Fair's worst Arrow looper. Why does such a big ride only have four inversions? Why is there no awesome drop...

Vortex died in vain, because this is Cedar Fair's worst Arrow looper. Why does such a big ride only have four inversions? Why is there no awesome drop? Why is so much potential energy wasted on the worst designed turns in the history of American steel coasters? Why does the midcourse hit so hard? Where's the final helix? Now it's not all bad, because the inversions are quite good, and the location is excellent, but that's about it. Anaconda is such an anomaly, and this enormous land plot over the water is way better suited for a kickass Mack launched coaster.

While I love Kumba from riding it in my formative years in its glory days there's something I can no longer deny; Kumba is rough. It rattles, it shake...

While I love Kumba from riding it in my formative years in its glory days there's something I can no longer deny; Kumba is rough. It rattles, it shakes, and the strong sustained g-forces hurt my head. Both me and Kumba are getting old. I love this ride but with it being far in the back of the park and Florida always being hot nowadays, I tend to skip it more often than I used to. Still, the revolutionary layout it pioneered remains legendary.

This version of Goliath is an RMC, and it is the definition of short but sweet. Sustained ejector airtime, a rare RMC dive loop, the worlds first mind...

This version of Goliath is an RMC, and it is the definition of short but sweet. Sustained ejector airtime, a rare RMC dive loop, the worlds first mind blowing Zero-G Stall, excellent overbanks, awesome tunnels, consistent pacing, and an excellent first drop. Plus, it's smooth and comfortable. This one is hard to skip on a visit to SF Great America.

Definition of hang n bang. Will not miss this ride when it's gone. I hope it's replaced by something good, but an empty lot would still be an improvem...

Definition of hang n bang. Will not miss this ride when it's gone. I hope it's replaced by something good, but an empty lot would still be an improvement.

This is a nothing coaster. It's not smooth, has an awkward drop which banks left the whole time while not turning, and a helix that smacks you around....

This is a nothing coaster. It's not smooth, has an awkward drop which banks left the whole time while not turning, and a helix that smacks you around. The train and theme is cute but that's it. Go to this zoo for the wonderful animals, their great shoot the chutes Roaring Springs, and to grab this free credit and never ride again.

My feelings for pipeline are pretty mixed but generally positive. I dislike the lack of theming beyond some surface level stuff. The queue isn't even ...

My feelings for pipeline are pretty mixed but generally positive. I dislike the lack of theming beyond some surface level stuff. The queue isn't even fully covered. The moving seats don't solve the issue of how uncomfortable positive gs are while standing up. If anything they make it worse by forcing you to squat. However, the fun factor of literal standing up airtime with a seat moving assist cannot be overstated. This makes pipeline incredibly fun save for a few uncomfortable valleys. The Corkscrew and turns are smooth, the layout suitably twisty, and the short layout is as all standups should be. I'm not yet sure if this surpasses Georgia Scorcher as my favorite standup, but it is absolutely in the top two. The launch has an excellent kick to it that just might put it over the edge.

Medusa is a great floorless coaster. It still has great theming as a holdover from its Bizarro days. I'd rate it about the same as Scream, just slight...

Medusa is a great floorless coaster. It still has great theming as a holdover from its Bizarro days. I'd rate it about the same as Scream, just slightly better due to better theming and setting.

Tron is well themed with its awesome on ride audio, queue, and lighting. It's very smooth and very fun. But it's quite short and feels like it needs o...

Tron is well themed with its awesome on ride audio, queue, and lighting. It's very smooth and very fun. But it's quite short and feels like it needs one more break run's worth of track to feel complete. The leg restraint is very uncomfortable. The back row with the regular seat is probably much better, but it's better saved for those who need to transfer from wheelchairs and the like. It's good overall but not Disney's best roller coaster.

Insane roller coaster. Inversions, airtime, laterals, everything you can ask for at breakneck pacing. Unfortunately the lap bar is deceivingly cramped...

Insane roller coaster. Inversions, airtime, laterals, everything you can ask for at breakneck pacing. Unfortunately the lap bar is deceivingly cramped and uncomfortable, and for me personally detracts from the ride experience by quite a bit. But the intensity of the death roll, inverted overbank, wave turns, and airtime hills cannot be overstated.

This is Walt Disney Imagineering's Magnum Opus. Smooth, cinematic, intense, scary, and the best theming and landscaping on any roller coaster in the w...

This is Walt Disney Imagineering's Magnum Opus. Smooth, cinematic, intense, scary, and the best theming and landscaping on any roller coaster in the world. There's not much else to say.

Cheetah Hunt is an odd one, but a really fun one. You get awesome ejector airtime in the front, and it has three fantastic launches. Its location is o...

Cheetah Hunt is an odd one, but a really fun one. You get awesome ejector airtime in the front, and it has three fantastic launches. Its location is one of the best of any coaster. Diving over and under bridges, past other rides, next to paths and over animal exhibits, the panoramic view atop the tower, and especially the canyon midride. It's not short of fun elements. The tower rise and drop give great airtime. There's sideways floater on the odd first hill, and the heartline roll gives away hang time. The turns in the canyon really whip you, and there's really good airtime on the return trip. The ride is oddly paced, switching from intense to meandering on a dime. Either way, it's incredibly fun for everyone, and a unique coaster that fits the park perfectly.

A long, comfortable, and insanely fun ride. You cannot see what's coming. The forces are truly unusual and unexpected. The music changing each ride ma...

A long, comfortable, and insanely fun ride. You cannot see what's coming. The forces are truly unusual and unexpected. The music changing each ride makes this coaster even more rerideable than it already is. One of Disney's best efforts and by far the best ride at Epcot.

My only complaint would be the restraints.. but on my most recent ride they were improved and I no longer have any complaints! Maverick is smooth, int...

My only complaint would be the restraints.. but on my most recent ride they were improved and I no longer have any complaints! Maverick is smooth, intense, and hilariously aggressive. The erratic pacing is always changing, the airtime is sharp and scarily forceful, the changes in direction are faster than your body can keep up, whipping you around and leaving you in the dust. The first drop is stupidity terrifying, the launch is exhilarating, and the whole ride makes me giggle like an idiot. The theming really sets Maverick apart. There's western landscaping on the whole footprint, with rockwork, architecture, foliage, and water effects all reminiscent of the wild west. Maverick is the best bucking bronco launch coaster I can think of.

Needs better theming, getting in the ride vehicle is difficult, and the ride is very short. Still, it's very fun. Ejector airtime, fun launches, hangt...

Needs better theming, getting in the ride vehicle is difficult, and the ride is very short. Still, it's very fun. Ejector airtime, fun launches, hangtime on the apex of the spikes, nice little layout.

By far the best stateside flying coaster. One train ops work in this one's favor because you don't have to sit on the brake run waiting to unload. ...

By far the best stateside flying coaster. One train ops work in this one's favor because you don't have to sit on the brake run waiting to unload. The pacing on this is immaculate. Forceful first drop into back to back Corkscrews in different directions is disorienting and awesome, and the views are incredible. The two overbanks after are also very Forceful and aggressive. Then the pretzel loop at the end is huge and seemingly never ending. If anything the last barrel roll and helix are there for you to recollect yourself after the nosedive, and gives one last scenic panorama before the ride ends. The location at the top of the Magic Mountain is incredible and the theming and pacing complete it.

Scream is a very fun floorless coaster, great inversions, a forceful helix, and nice spots of floater. The lack of theming feels like a novelty that's...

Scream is a very fun floorless coaster, great inversions, a forceful helix, and nice spots of floater. The lack of theming feels like a novelty that's fun to make fun of.