Three Legoland Parks to Debut First Virtual Reality Coaster Aimed at Kids

© Legoland

It was announced today that three Legoland Theme Parks will soon debut the first virtual reality roller coaster meant for kids, named The Great Lego Race VR Coaster.  The ride will open first in late 2017 at Legoland Malaysia, then in 2018 at both Legoland Germany and Legoland Florida.

The virtual reality adaptation will take place on the Project X roller coaster at each park.  These rides are a larger Wild Mouse model designed by Mack Rides, featuring one bigger drop in addition to what is commonly found on the traditional Wild Mouse layout.

© Legoland

The Great Lego Race coasters will feature a "high-octane experience that puts kids in the driver's seat and asks, "Are you brave enough to face, race and beat the best of the best in all of Lego world?"  Riders will enter the attraction through the new entry portal that is depicted in concept above, amid the sounds of racing engines.

The queue for the ride will feature the pit crews of each of the characters that visitors will race against, along with hands-on interactive elements designed to keep visitors' minds occupied while they wait.

© Legoland

Once on board and situated with the virtual reality headsets, riders enter the main race in the virtual world.  They will race alongside "brick-built contraptions driven by Trendsetter, Pharaoh, Surfer Girl, Wizard and Pirate Captain, including a rocket-powered surfboard and a stylish scooter fueled by espresso."  A snip of some of the virtual world can be seen above, riders will move across and through different landscapes throughout their journey.

"The Great Lego Race was inspired by the way kids play with Lego toys at home," said Candy Holland, senior creative director for Merlin Magic Making, which designs and develops attractions for Merlin sites around the world. "It's a unique Lego adventure that lets kids enter an epic imaginary world made entirely from Lego bricks, featuring a host of different themes and fun Lego characters, all mixed up together."

The Lego Movie 4D A New Adventure Opening at Legoland Parks in 2016

Debuting at the Legoland Florida Resort in January of 2016, and soon after at the Legoland California Resort on February 6th, will be an all new 4D adventure film themed to the popular Lego Movie.

The Lego Movie 4D A New Adventure was previously hinted about by the chain of parks, operated by Merlin Entertainments, but now new details have been made available.  The film is being created in partnership with Warner Bros. Pictures, Village Roadshow Pictures and Lego Systems A/S, and will eventually premier at all the Legoland Parks around the globe and the Legoland Discovery Centers as well.

The film will follow a new journey for the characters of The Lego Movie, including Emmet, Wyldstyle, Unikitty, Benny and MetalBear.  A new villain character, voiced by Patton Oswalt and named Risky Business, will be added to the series.  The attraction is being directed by Rob Schrab, who is also directing the squeal to The Lego Movie in 2018, and will also feature many of the original voice actors from the feature film like Elizabeth Banks and Nick Offerman.

The plot finds the characters having received a "mysterious invitation leading them to a new theme park where all of the rides are based on the characters’ adventures in “The Lego Movie.” But not all is as it seems as the heroes are once again thrust into the middle of an evil secret plot, only this time, it will be up to the audience to use their Master Builder skills to help save them!"

The 4D attraction will feature special effects such as smoke, water, wind and lighting to create a "larger-than-life" experience for guests.  In a sense the film will also bridge the gap between the first Lego Movie and the next, still to come.

Gerstlauer Sky Fly Debuting at Two Parks in 2012

Gerstlauer's latest amusement ride is an interactive one - allowing riders to roll and twist high above the ground in their own independently controlled car.  The attraction is named Sky Fly, and it's a more stationary version of the Sky Roller ride the company has already created.

The Sky Fly allows twelve riders per cycle to control the movements of their car - including full inversions - as the arm is lifted to 72 feet in the air.  Two of the rides will open next year at European parks, Legoland Germany and France's Nigloland.

This is the model of the Sky Fly that will be debuting at both parks.  The Nigloland version seemed to be themed to airplanes, while the specific theming at Legoland has only been hinted at in some concept art the park released:

The Ninjago theme, combined with Legoland's usually thorough theming on even the simplest attractions should make for a nice ride.  While the rides are quite low on hourly capacity, they make a thrilling and unique attraction for smaller parks.

And we may not have to wait too long to try one out in North America.  If rumors are true, then Nickelodeon Universe at the Mall of America just may be building one right now.