Defunctland: The History of Tomb Raider: The Ride

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In the Defunctland Season premiere, Kevin travels back to Paramount's Kings Island in Mason, Ohio to discuss one of the most unique dark rides of all time, Tomb Raider: The Ride.

Check Out Brian Krosnick's Article on Tomb Raider: The Ride:

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Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License

[IRONHIDE]

imagine getting on a brand new roller coaster, you've no idea what you're about to experience, then some jerkass next to you starts narrating everything that's going on as it's happening.

[FlightyAphrodte]

The fact that we/riders did NOT know what it was cannot be stated enough. We had no idea. My mom rode it first before riding with me and she couldn’t describe it. What you really miss from this video, was the people who ignored repeated warnings that this ride COULD NOT secure your stuff. You flip that first time and you hear “THUNK THUNK CLINK” and see a bright LED light tumbling end over end as someone loses their razr cell phone to Shiva.

[drallimylime]

when i die, please turn my house into a seasonal haunted house attraction

[yuhgetintoit]

"What do you say meridith?"
*"YIPPEE SKIPPEE"*

[Gold_Tail]

5:10
Whoa whoa whoa.
i worked at kings island and i know for a fact that that girl is NOT tall enough to get on the ride.

[Nihyre]

I am Laura Croft, the heroine. Ready to find my treasure. - Some Lady

[sioframuirne]

I usually don't stop mid video to comment noted flaws, but the fact that he just brushes past a Face Off themed roller coaster is an utter sin. I require at the very least a 5 part series on how they even convinced Mr.Paramount that Nicolas Cage's aura is safe to meld with steel

[VDJVivacity]

"These mothafuckas thought they was Universal." was seriously the funniest thing I've ever heard in a theme park related video.

[catherinehepburn]

A ROLLERCOASTER THEMED AFTER FACE/OFF?!!?!? What a time to be alive.

[spencexxx]

Imagine going to India and going on a cheesy theme park ride featuring a giant statue of angry Jesus with glowing eyes attacking you.

[pixelapocrypha]

Theme Park Management: *slaps abandoned building* This bad boy can fit so many seasonal haunted houses in it.

[MorriganAtwood]

I stood in line for 2 and a half hours for this ride on opening day, and it did not disappoint. We did not know what the ride was -- outside the queue they did have a two-seater version of what the rig would be inside, so that people could test it to see if it was comfortable for them. My friend and I were certain it had to be an indoor roller coaster like the Outer Limits (Flight of Ear), another attraction in the park. We couldn't see the stage when we were strapped in because of the fog (and some of us had our shoes taken away with no explanation), and seeing the walkways fold away from the stage seating was so ominous and cool -- we couldn't wait for it to begin. Excited screams abound when the lights went out and then the first thing we could see in the fog were the statue's glowing eyes. That's when we began to move -- and lots of what they describe in the video is as it was on opening day. You could feel the chill of dripping water from the stalagtites, the blast of heat when held over the water. My friend and I were clasping hands and screaming our heads off, and it was amazing.

What did disappoint was coming back only a year later to find out how much the experience had declined due to mechanical issues. MOST of the water effects were already gone within a year of Tomb Raider opening, before it was even rebranded. The fog machine was gone (so you could see the goddess statue, all the hidden effects, everything, and you didn't feel the mist from the icicles anymore. Honestly I can't even remember if the water jets in the lava part were even still there. We soon found out why: Later that day we would find out that if we'd waited to ride Tomb Raider again instead of running straight to it as soon as we got there, we might have had some misfortune: the ride had to be shut down because it had frozen with a full passel of parkgoers trapped on it until they could be gotten down. People talked about one of the reasons there were fewer water features is that it was affecting the equipment, causing it to stick in places, and I guess it still was.

[clabbert]

“You’re in Merideth, what do you say?”



“Y I P P Y S K I P P Y”

[whiskeyandwaffles]

5:13 and then Meredith went flying because she wasn't tall enough for the seat. Yipee Skippee

[gloriamcclamma]

I think the show building for Tomb Raider: The Ride should've been covered with jungle foliage to make it more believable.

[crazydiamond]

"But who would have thought that you'd find a mysterious temple...in Ohio?" That got me. there's nothing here.

[erinwren]

As someone who rode Tomb Raider a lot, but also has worn glasses all her life, this episode was both nostalgic and enlightening. I've never gotten to see the what the ride actually looked like while in motion. So neat!

[ENCHANTMEN_]

The narration of the riders was so inane.
"WOW, WE'RE ON AN AMUSEMENT PARK RIDE!"
"WOW! THERES A BIG STATUE OF A HINDU GODDESS!"
"WHOA, NOW WE'RE GOING UP AND DOWN AND SPINNING!"
"WOW, THAT LOOKS LIKE LAVA!"
"AMAZING, WE'RE AT AN AMUSEMENT PARK! IN OHIO! ON EARTH! AND BREATHING OXYGEN!"

[christianscott]

Who knew I could become so emotionally attached to a YouTube series over broken and abandoned roller coasters. Great to have you back!

[rattyeely]

I'm honestly so fascinated with Tomb Raider: The Ride. The concept of taking a off-the-shelf flat ride but then giving it Universal-quality theming is such a great idea, and I'd love to see more rides in this style. Why is it only roller coasters, boat rides, and omnimovers that get detailed theming most of the time? I want to see more of the common traveling fair thrill rides given this treatment