Why are animatronics so abused/abandon?

[anastaciacominatcha]

My little heart broke today. Prior to a...*not* (for the sake of not breaking confidentality clauses LOL) working there I had never been to Universal Studios before. So Im *not* seeing it all for the first time. Apparently back in the day there was an attraction in Islands of Adventure in the Jurrassic Park area called "Discovery Trail" or "Triceratop Encounter" (www.islandsofadventure.co...eviews.htm (http://www.islandsofadventure.com/reviews/triceratops-encounter-reviews.htm) is the only decent link I found for it). It consisted of 3 huge animatronic triceratops and you ventured through a trail to see them and you could pet them (well kinda...they were fenced off but u were allowed to.) It closed in 2004 apparently and for the main part I've heard it was hard to get the damn things to work...a lot of setting on fire and what not.

Well my *not* trainer took me through there today and it was kinda sad to see the old robots. I seen 2 of them and they were in decent shape but there was some spare skin lying around (which was...Rolfe and Earl creepy...LOL). Never having seen them in action I cant say how good they were but cosmetics wise they were really neat and real looking and HUGE. Kids must have loved these things.

The apparent reason there not going back up is because it'd cost a few 10s of thousands to try and make them work and they were a lot of trouble. Looking at them it makes you wonder how much they spent MAKING them and that whole area. Sounds really stupid to just be done with it instead of investing to me.

Overall though (and reading up on people's reviews of these things and other animatronics) WHY are animatronics so abused/abandon these days? And also WHY so disrespected?

First off yes kids are jaded but ya know if these things are done up real nice and presented right they do look 'magical' (yeah they arent real dinsaours/singing bears but they could be cool to watch/be entertained by). I hate to say it but Disney probably still does this best and just by 'barely'. And of course adults are super jaded. But I think that again goes back to quality. You see a proper done up animatronic show with decent content and nicely maintained and its not excruitating to sit through.

Then that goes back to the companies who make these things. Its like they make them and this @#%$ being around over 30 years now you'd think they know they cant just make a ONE TIME INVESTMENT and never have to upkeep or make decent content/shows again. Yet apparently this is not the case...So what u spend millions on developing and marketing these shows? You'll be damned before u spend another CENT on upkeep! Thats just obnoxious.

Then of course since they dont maintain them one of 2 things happens: for starters either way customers/people loose interest. So then either the place closes (ala above) and your out your investment or you go the CEC route and just run it anyways no matter how @#%$ it makes ur business look. Chuck E might not be moving that day but what the hell lets run him anyways! SERIOUSLY!

I guess I just dont understand the logic. I see WHY people dont care these days when crap falls into disrepair but I cant figure out why companies have this logic and several of them do it continually for years and new attractions. Someone explain that to me...

[RockafireGuy]

That's a VERY good question.. I often wonder that myself.
The public as a whole has forgotten the magic of Animatronics in a World where Gemmy makes cheap animated characters for Christmas and Halloween that you just plug in and turn on and they start singing and talking. Of course; I can tell you from experience that Gemmy's characters are cheaply built, wear out in no time, and break very easily.
These Wal-Mart animatronics are not recomended to anyone who actually wants to impress somebody.. LOL! Although I Jerry rigged one to where I could program it one time....8)

My personal opinion of course is going to strike up quite an interesting conversation.........

CEC is responsible for the way animatronics are treated today.

You may ask why I have such an opinion.... well... here are my conclusions.....


The only way you will actually see animatronics that are well kept is to go to a Disney Park. They're the only ones who still care.... of course that is because they originated the technology and they strive to maintain quality.

When you mention animatronics, most average people actually DO NOT think of Disney.... they think of CEC... and most have NO idea Disney uses robots in their parks.... LOL!
I've heard people comment that Disney couldn't be much different from Six Flags.. a Theme Park is a Theme Park.... Give me a break....... :rollin


As I said before... When you say animatronics,most average people say Chuck E. Cheese.

I've also heard people say that Chuck E. Cheese has crappy animation and Disney's couldn't be much better since CEC makes so much money.....it's probably about the same.... I would like to add another Give me a break there... :rolleyes

So; most people think of crappy singing critters that barely can move and terrible/corny/canned material that is barely loud enough to understand in a sea of screaming and hollering kids when you mention animatronics......


CEC stopped maintaining their shows the proper way years ago to save money (when really they could have saved more by maintaining them). They also decided to go to a kiddy-fied format with terrible voice actors who need to just shut up and sing instead of bothering to talk.... and plus.. they need to sing in their real voices......Pasqually's accent and corny dialogue makes me absolutely shiver...........Which brings me to another point... the Characters aren't that memorable.......
They may be to some of you, but to a majority of kids around the USA......Japanese anime, Cartoon Network, Scooby-Doo, Nickelodeon, and Disney are FAR cooler than CEC characters.


People think of crappy and annoying animated shows that barely can move surrounded by screaming kids along with pizza that tastes like cardboard (which is what I've heard a lot of adults who go there now say) when you mention animatronics.

CEC has ruined the reputation of animatronics and it would probably take a lot of work to bring animatronics back to the level they should be on. CEC Corp's escapades may have even hurt the reputation of the robotics industry in general.


Why is this????????? Ask a certain CEC Chief Exectutive Officer...........