Godzilla: Terror in Transit
By DashHaber
(Simulator/dark ride)
Godzilla is attacking, and the government has developed a weapon to battle the monster: Mechagodzilla. Climb aboard a train and head to safety, or else you may wind up caught between these towering behemoths as they battle across the city.
Attraction Exterior and Queue, Part One
Among the building in the urban area of Toho Town stands a large white and green accented building. This is the Toho Station, its name emblazoned upon the roof for all to see. A stone awning supported by pillars offers some shade around the main entrance to the building. This would be a rather ordinary structure most times, but large posters on the building’s walls capture the imagination. They are red with a silhouette of Godzilla, a message written in both English and Japanese present upon them: SHELTER TRANSPORT WITHIN.
Heading in through the main doors, guests enter the main lobby. A station board shows the various railway lines that Toho Station normally offers, though a note of EMERGENCY now shows clearly on the board. Guests continue forward, navigating through hallways marked with posters advertising some of the cities across Japan and the work of the Godzilla Countermeasures Division. As guests follow these paths (taking them upward along rampways to a higher level), televisions broadcast news reports about Godzilla’s return and the path of destruction coming from it. Once on the upper level, guests find themselves heading towards a waiting room.
Preshow and Queue, Part Two
The waiting room is in top condition, all cleaned up for visitors. A few benches rest by back walls for those who need to take a seat, but this is standing room for the most part. Once guests are inside, the doors to the waiting room close. A large monitor built into a side wall comes to life, and on its screen is a confident commander named Ishiro Tanaka. He explains the situation that Godzilla is attacking and that guests must head for shelter, courtesy of a shinkansen (bullet train) at this station. He tells them not to worry, as the Godzilla Countermeasures Division have developed a new weapon to combat Godzilla: a remote-piloted robot known as Mechagodzilla. With weapons inspired by the legendary beast’s own abilities, Ishiro is confident that this will finally bring an end to the menace of Godzilla.
With Ishiro’s presentation done, doors on the other side of the waiting room open. Guests follow the doors out, heading along a railed pathway to the loading platform. Waiting for them is the shinkansen, which appears to have open windows to its sides. Guests climb aboard, safely filling out the seating rows. Once guests are safely seated, the doors are closed and the shinkansen pulls out of the station.
Attraction Experience
As our shinkansen leaves the station and enters a turning tunnel, a conductor calls out to us over the vehicle’s radio system. He welcomes us, saying that he is in touch with members of the Godzilla Countermeasures Division. With their help, we should be transported safely to the shelter. We reach the end of the tunnel and emerge over a cityscape, already baring the scars of Godzilla. As we pass by wrecked cars and ruined buildings, our conductor says that we must do a temporary stop as another transport train is still at the station ahead. Pulling to a halt with some skyscrapers to our right and a screen to our left, we see him: Godzilla.
Though Godzilla is a fair distance away, his steps still bring tremors to our train. However, his current path is interrupted as Mechagodzilla flies in on jet boosters and tackles Godzilla. We watch as the two giants rumble, with Mechagodzilla taking Godzilla by surprise with eye lasers. Our conductor gets the okay to continue, pulling forward as Godzilla fires a burst of atomic breath that sends Mechagodzilla backwards into a power generator. As we head into the enclosed station, we can see Mechagodzilla colliding with the generator, emitting a shower of sparks as he does so.
Entering the station, the lights surrounding us flicker before eventually giving out. Red emergency lights bathe the station in an eerie glow, as the conductor tells us to stay seated for our safety. The moment is quiet, too quiet, as our shinkansen shakes from familiar tremors. Then, a quake from above strikes the ceiling, with support pillars starting to crack. As the tremors grow and the station cracks further, a voice quickly yells through the radio that Mechagodzilla has gone haywire. He urges us to flee, as metallic fingers pierce the ceiling and confirm his story. Our conductor tells us to hang on, as we speed from the station and hear it crumbling behind us as we escape.
Free from the station, we pull forward along the track with buildings around us. Our conductor says that the track has been obstructed ahead by Mechagodzilla’s rampage. Forced to halt, our shinkansen stops once more between two large screens on either side with buildings marking different points. Mechagodzilla is on the right-hand screen, letting out a roar that grabs Godzilla’s attention (who is on our left-hand side). We find ourselves caught between the two monsters as they battle, with Mechagodzilla firing a barrage of missiles while Godzilla roars with atomic breath. Wind and heat help to sell the effects of their attacks as our shinkansen shakes, along with effects in some of the buildings (like a burst of flame from a building’s window while another starts to tilt from structural damage). Eventually, Mechagodzilla flies over our train (with a heavy wind to better sell the effect) for another tackle, but Godzilla grabs him this time. Godzilla grips the robot’s head, with a strong turn that rips its head off. Throwing the head over the shinkansen to the other side, Godzilla lets out his signature roar in triumph.
With the obstruction finally cleared, the shinkansen starts moving once more. The conductor apologizes for what has happened but congratulates us on having survived the wrath of the “King of the Monsters”. Pulling into the station, he urges us to safely disembark and head for shelter lest we find ourselves caught in another attack. With that, we disembark from the shinkansen, following sides pointing the direction to the shelter through a downward hallway and back out to Toho Town.