This dark ride is the second project I have led for the Themed Entertainment Association @Univ. of Alabama. Currently WIP, the ride is loose based off the story of Little Red Riding and designed in the style of classic darkrides such as Peter Pan's Flight and Snow Whites Scary Adventures. The scale of the project is a fully rendered digital model of the ride in Unreal Engine, a functioning model of the ride's most interesting special effect, and a small non-functioning physical model of the ride's layout.
Concept Development
To begin the project we started with three constraints. First we had a real estate constraint, the project must be able to fit within the show building of the former Snow White's Scary Adventures at the Magic Kingdom. Second we had the thematic constraint of fantasy. Thirdly we had the technological constraint of the level of technology used in those old Disney dark rides, something we could theoretically build a fully functioning miniature of.
With these constraints in mind, I led a blue sky session to brainstorm ideas for the ride. From this session we settled on a few ideas.
First, the ride should be based around the familiar story structure of Little Red Riding Hood. That structure being, a courier is sent to deliver a package to a weak individual, when the courier arrives at their destination the situation is not as expected in a sinister fashion, and the courier confronts the source of the sinisterness. We chose this structure because it drawns on a familiar fairytale so it will be more recognizable to guests, and because it places guests in an active role in the story rather than as an outside observer.
Secondly, it should involve a dragon.
Finally, the idea of going from a nice place to increasingly dark and sinister environments.