Every Ride at Universal Orlando Resort RANKED!

nearly a year ago today i compiled a list ranking every roller coaster at universal orlando from worst to best ever since that video was posted i've wanted to go back and rank the other rides of the resort as well not only do they have roller coasters but some incredible dark rides simulators and even water rides so instead of just ranking the roller coasters i wanted to throw all the other rides into the mix there are 32 rides combined between universal studios and islands of adventure so this is a much more ambitious project than the last time not only that but i'm making these rides a bit differently than i did with the coasters alone which i'll get into later in the video in the meantime please be sure to support this channel with a like or subscription if you like content like this and with that it's time to rank every ride at the universal orlando resort from worst to best number 32 fast and furious supercharged this may be the most predictable placement of the entire list but i genuinely think this ride is that bad the queue is kind of cool to give it some props but i wouldn't call it one of the best what is truly great are the pre-shows well more so the cast members in the pre-shows they play off the characters on screen so well sometimes seeming entirely disinterested which is hilarious i'm pretty sure that many of them are in on the joke knowing exactly the reputation this ride has which leads to the ride itself if you didn't know this was originally a simulated portion in the studio tour at hollywood's universal studios like skull island reign of kong universal decided to clone that section of the ride and make some extra stuff around it so it seemed a bit more complete we'll get to skull island later in this video but let's just say it accomplished its goal much better than fast and furious did to be completely fair there were some extra scenes added to this one unfortunately they are incredibly boring and poorly executed in fact the entire story of this ride is so hard to track and just feels so thrown together and when you finally get to the ride itself disappointment is an understatement as someone a bit sensitive to noise this ride went from bad to straight up painful that's not even mentioning the visuals which have been fairly clowned on for years at this point more than anything i'm just shocked universal thought this edition was a good call especially in a park already swamped with screen based attractions removing not one but two better attractions wasn't a good call either that makes this ride more than just bad it's kind of insulting hopefully in a few years universal can right there wrong by tearing this thing down and starting over just a suggestion but a fast and furious roller coaster sounds like a much better alternative number 31 race 3 new york starring jimmy fallon this ride is in a very similar spot to fast and furious for me honestly it might be even more baffling like with fast and furious this took the spot of a superior ride replacing it with yet another simulator in a park filled with that not only that but i don't think anyone was really clamoring for a ride based on jimmy fallon of all people like with fast and furious the plus side is that the queue is kind of cool but considering i've never seen this ride with the line i've really stayed in there long enough to take notice unlike fast and furious though the story of the ride is pretty easy to understand and the ride is much less painful and more just boring the motion isn't anything crazy so in the end it's just a basic flying theater as i said earlier this ride never has a line which isn't something i can say about fast and furious so it might be an even bigger mistake on universal's part an unexciting ride with an unexciting ip unsurprisingly didn't turn out to be a huge hit number 30 the gun in the hat this ride is in a pretty rough state right now to say the least let's start with the ride vehicles which allegedly used to spin you much more than they do right now there's specific points in this ride where it really seems like you should be spinning more or like at all but instead it just doesn't maybe it's because it needed to be adjusted to appeal to children or maybe it's because the company who made these vehicles has been out of business for a while now but still they could try keeping it up until they run out of parts but if i had a choice i'd tear this ride down and put in a trackless dark ride instead still based on cat in the hat but with more modern theming and less well less of that this ride has some charm as it stands today but as time goes on it becomes more and more off-putting to say the least i'm not insulted by this ride's existence like the previous two on this list but it definitely needs some help in the near future number 29 kerose cell now we're getting out of the bad ride territory and more onto the ones that are just fine i mean this is a carousel there's nothing wrong with it it's just a pretty basic attraction for families i think this earns its spot in the park but it doesn't really do it for me and honestly it's not supposed to it's just one of those rides that is definitely here number 28 kangen kodos is twirl and hurl back at universal studios kang and kodos is one of two dumbo esque attractions at the resort the interactivity is kind of fun from the fact that you can move the ride vehicles up and down to the voice over instructing you to attack various simpsons but that doesn't make it any less of a basic ride it dies earned a spot in the park as a nice filler attraction but it doesn't deserve to be much higher in the list because of that number 27 one fish two fish redfish bluefish this is very similar to king and kodos if not the exact same ride but instead of trying to attack the simpsons you're trying to avoid fountains of water spraying at you honestly it seems more difficult to try and hit those fountains than it is to avoid them but it's still a fun gimmick the theming is also pretty fun fitting right in with the world of sue's landing pretty good especially for kids number 26 hogwarts express hogsmeade station okay i know this barely counts as a ride but i wanted to cover all my bases just in case this is more of a means of transportation than anything else but it's a very well themed version of that there are screens instead of windows that show some fun little scenes but the screens facing the hallway are much cooler and probably the highlight of the ride itself unfortunately the hogsmeade station queue is much less interesting than the one in the opposite part which is why it places just slightly lower on this list number 25 hogwarts express king's cross station this is pretty much the exact same ride although the visuals are a bit different than the other way around what puts this above hog's meat station for me is the q which features the famous platform nine and three quarters while the effect isn't quite as good as actually walking through the wall it's close enough to be somewhat interesting the downside is that this almost always has one of the longest lines in the park which makes walking from resort to resort much more compelling for me still a nice alternative for those who are looking for that number 24 despicable me and minion mayhem here's yet another simulator right at universal studios and although i'm not a huge fan of it i at least understand it despicable me like it or not is an incredibly popular franchise and re-theming the simulator that was already installed here makes a lot more sense the story itself is also much more fun than jimmy fallon is with a cartoony aesthetic which fits a simulator like this much better do i wish that this was still jimmy neutron's nicktoon blast yeah obviously still this is in no way a bad ride it's just a really mediocre one number 23 the high in the sky seuss trolley train ride fun fact this was actually the first ride i ever did at a universal park well maybe not the best introduction it's still a pretty decent ride overall there's some nice views of the surrounding area and some nice theming in the indoor sections not only that but there's two separate tracks that go to entirely different places which is a neat little thing to help rewrite ability overall a nice little tour of the land that's perfect for families number 22 tyrannodon flyers i'll admit i'm purely assuming on this ride's placement as i've actually never been on it there's a rule in place that you either must be a kid or someone with a kid to ride and i meet neither of those parameters so the closest i've ever gotten to riding this is just watching from the ground it looks sort of fun and seems to offer some good views of jurassic park but i'll admit i'm not too bummed that i haven't been on it it's nothing too special number 21 poseidon's fury okay i know this isn't really ride but again i'm just trying to cover all my bases the consensus on this ride seems to be incredibly mixed between those who absolutely hate it and for those who like or even love it i guess i fall right in the middle because there is some great stuff about this attraction the theming is amazing as is the case for the entire lost continent and some of the effects are still cool to this day there are just as many that don't quite work but in the end it balances out for me to be honest i don't remember too much from my experience here outside of that as i haven't gone through this thing in years by looking at footage i think this is about where i'd place it number 20 flight of the hippogriff here's where my list starts to differ from my coaster rankings originally i put this ride over woody woodpecker purely for its better theming and slightly better stats but after rewriting both somewhat recently i think flight of the hippogriff is just a bit worse the theming is still good and the ride itself is perfect for kids but nothing really stands out to put it ahead of the other offering number 19 woody woodpecker's nut house coaster woody woodpecker on the other hand has one element that puts it over the edge for me and that would be the final turn it's nothing incredible but it offers some pretty solid lateral force almost like a wild mouse other than that it's basically on par with flight of the hippograph but that turn really comes out of nowhere and adds to the experience number 18 storm force acceleron this is one ride i think i've only done once before and that's because it's just a souped-up version of the teacups ride at magic kingdom it's nothing outstanding but since it offers more thrill than the dumbo clones it's a ride i can appreciate a bit more not one of the standouts in marvel superhero island but a good little filler ride number 17 doctor doom's fearfall speaking of marvel superhero island this is another ride that i'm a bit mixed on i've never been a huge fan of drop towers so this one lasting about 20 seconds is both a good and a bad thing for me good because again not a huge fan but bad because of how little a ride experience it offers for whatever you spent in line luckily the line itself is pretty cool but it doesn't save this ride from being number 17 on this list number 16 the simpsons ride this ride seems to be a bit controversial particularly because of what it replaced back to the future the ride was one of the most beloved attractions at universal studios and one that unfortunately i was never able to experience it definitely looked fun and while i'd probably preferred over this ride i wouldn't say i hate it it's yet another simulator in a park full of them but it's one of the most charming purely because of the theme i swear i remember nearly every line from that pre-show and the ride itself has plenty of memorable and fun moments throughout i'll admit the animation isn't amazing as is the motion of the vehicles but i still enjoy it maybe it's just because of how many times i've been on it but i don't mind this ride's existence at all number 15 et adventure this is a weird one et adventure is the single remaining opening day attraction still operating at universal studios purely because of the stubbornness of steven spielberg he apparently has been doing everything in his power to keep it where it is for as long as he lives and honestly i can respect that this ride isn't amazing by any means but being the only classic dark ride still standing at the resort it definitely has its charm the first half is much better than the second but the second is so strange that i can't help but love it too hopefully this ride will stay in the park for at least a few more years number 14 men in black alien attack for a long time i thought this ride should be torn down and replaced while i still think this area plus the land where the fear factor live stage used to be would make for a great middle-earth i see the appeal of this ride i've never been a huge fan of shooting dark rides because to be honest i suck at them even so the theming story and humor presented throughout are great the spinning of the vehicles is really intense which is funny considering it's actually the same ride system as captain hat with the spare parts running dry i do wonder what the future of this ride might look like but for now it's one of the better rides at universal studios number 13. hollywood rip ride rocket i kind of tore into this ride in my last video but while i'm still incredibly confused by it i appreciate it a bit more on my most recent ride but let me recap my complaints first off the theming is just bad apparently it's supposed to be that you're recording a music video on a roller coaster which explains both the camera and music choices but i've never even looked at the on-ride video in fact i wouldn't be surprised if some of you didn't even know that was meant to be the gimmick the music choices are a unique aspect on their own but the greater purpose it serves really doesn't amount to anything second the layout like i said i gained more appreciation for this layout on my most recent ride but that doesn't mean the countless brake runs are any more enjoyable it's meant to help the ride's capacity but it does lose a lot of the ride's pacing in the process finally the restraints are just weird they're incredibly bulky do the music selection but i'll admit they don't really get in the way of airtime it's just more a weird quirk even with those complaints i do understand why some like this ride the layout minus the brake runs are actually pretty good it has some intense positive g's and at times even some airtime the non-inverting loop and treble clef would have to be my two favorite elements vertical lifts make me more uncomfortable than anything else but it's still a unique start to a very strange ride i do wish this ride was a b m hyper instead but as it stands it's perfectly mediocre number 12 transformers the ride 3d okay i have a bit of a rant for this one indulge me for a second this ride is just the worst version of spider-man in nearly every way it's the same ride system nearly the same layout and many of the same story beats but it fundamentally misunderstands what made spider-man so good in comparison the main issue is with the story and how it's communicated basically the decepticons are after the all-spark and you have to go off with evac to defend it it's a pretty simple story but every scene just boils down to here's this bad guy yell his name fight for a bit and then move on i know that might sound like what spider-man does but there's some key differences spider-man's story is equally as simple but the way it's communicated gives you time to be introduced to each of the characters rather than a villain coming on screen and having evac shout their name the spider-man ride introduces these characters and fleshes them out through small interactions between you the rider and them instead of having the action take place between two characters in front of you spider-man gets you much more involved in the story i don't know if all that made sense but i'd rather not get too off track here especially when this is a good ride it might not have the same magic as spider-man but the mix of practical effects and screens really works and it's pretty thrilling too if spider-man didn't exist i might have less problems with this one and maybe it's my bias towards the ip but transformers doesn't really work for me on the same level in the end it just feels kind of empty which i guess makes it a perfect adaptation of the films number 11 skull island reign of kong i know this was a while ago now but remember when i said this ride was better than fast and furious supercharged in every way well let's get into it originally i thought this ride was just all right but my appreciation for it goes up every time i go on it first off the q is one of the best at the parks it has an animatronic in everything which is such an unnecessary touch even the outside facade is just epic with this huge door leading to a much smaller door okay still once you get on the ride itself rather than fast and furious as lazily added scenes skull island actually feels fleshed out with more animatronics at the beginning and the end in fact that kong animatronic might be the best they've ever made i will admit though the actual climax of this ride is pretty disappointing like with fast and furious this was originally a simulator in the universal studios tour and they ended up saving that part for last the visuals are much better than fast and furious but that doesn't make the simulation any better all things considered this is a pretty great ride especially when it's in a park that's not already filled with simulators seriously islands of adventure is so much better than studios can't stress that enough number 10 harry potter and the escape from gringotts starting off the top 10 we have an attraction that's just a little confusing to me it's technically a roller coaster but the roller coaster portions aren't all that thrilling minus the amazing tail track at the beginning it acts more like a dark ride than anything but the simulated portions aren't all that great either again minus the first hill track honestly it's cooler to see how this ride works than to actually ride the ride even with those complaints escape from gringotts is still very well done there's a great mix of physical theming and screens although a bit heavy on the latter and the q is one of the best at the resort what's even better than all that for me is diagon alley itself which might just be the best theme park land ever constructed it is packed with detail in every corner which makes it an absolute joy to explore whenever i'm at the park otherwise this may not be the strongest harry potter attraction but it's one that universal studios desperately needed number 9 jurassic park river adventure the first of three water rides at the resort jurassic park is another ride i never realized was as strong as it is i'm usually more of a thrill person so while the final drop is great the rest of the ride didn't really do it for me on my most recent ride though i had a lot more appreciation for the first half and how it worked to build up where everything goes wrong the serene tone of that first half deeply contrasts the genuinely scary second half which makes this ride really stand out still though as someone who prefers thrills this would have to be my least favorite water ride in the park number eight popeye and bluedose build trap barges onto the second water ride and this might just be the best raft ride in the world not only is it incredibly themed perfectly capturing the cartoonish energy but the opportunities to get wet are ridiculously well integrated speaking of this might just be the wettest ride in the world like monumentally more than any other water ride i've ever been on in the moment it's great especially on a hot day but after the ride it's significantly less so you're standing around dripping for hours even so that's a huge part of the fun with this ride watching your friends get wet and trying to avoid it yourself if you're willing to accept those consequences you'll find one of the best rides in the resort number seven dudley do rights rips off falls this might be a bit of an unpopular opinion but dudley do rights is easily my favorite water ride in islands of adventure you might not get as wet as you do on popeyes but for me that's a plus it's right in between popeyes and jurassic park in terms of how soaked you get which is a perfect in-between for me the theming isn't incredible by any means but i think it works for what the ride is going for in a lot of ways this is universal splash mountain a log flume featuring multiple drops and based on a property that not many are familiar with i do think disney's offering is slightly superior but that doesn't make dudley do rights any less charming it's still a great water ride with the perfect mix of thrill theming and fun number six the incredible hulk coaster moving on from the water rides here's a coaster that i've had my fair share of tapes on my main gripe is how this ride really dies down after that mid-course brake run losing all sense of speed from then on honestly though i think i was a bit harsh on it this section of the ride might be a bit boring but there's significantly less of the ride than i remembered i've said before how this is the second half but it's really more like the fourth quarter those other three quarters on the other hand are incredibly intense and with some unique elements for a roller coaster of this type the drive tire launch is fantastic leading right into a snappy zero g roll all of the inversions afterwards keep up that intensity at times leading to grey out moments not only that but the theming in the queue and the landscaping in the second half only further solidify this ride's placement on this list the incredible hulk might not be my favorite b m in florida but it's definitely up there number five harry potter and the forbidden journey here's where we get to the s-tier rides in the resort not only are these the best of the best in universal's lineup but some of the best rides in the world that starts with harry potter and the forbidden journey one of the most influential dark rides ever made not only is it an amazing ride as is but the fact that this is a ride based on harry potter was enough to completely turn the tides in orlando universal gaining the theme park rights to the harry potter franchise was more valuable than anyone could have predicted increasing their attendance by massive amounts and giving them an even larger share of the theme park market this might have happened whether or not the land was actually good but the fact that universal went as far as they did really proves what they can do when they put their all into it forbidden journey is not only incredibly themed from the queue to the ride itself but it's also one of the most groundbreaking dark rides with the vehicle it uses the seats are mounted on a robotic arm which allows for some insane motion in every direction at times it feels like you're actually hanging upside down the physical sets are fantastic but the simulated sections would probably have to be the weakest part the motion and visuals are fine but it doesn't compare to everything else the ride has to offer apart from those minor gripes i'm so glad we got this attraction and the magical land that surrounds it number four the amazing adventures of spider-man as great as forbidden journey is i can't bring myself to put it over my favorite dark ride in the parks the amazing adventures of spider-man is just as groundbreaking as forbidden journey even if the ripple we made wasn't quite as intense i've already discussed much of what this ride does right when i talked about transformers but i'll recap a bit here every character is just so charming and the interactions you have with them really make each stand out i know this ride heavily relies on screens but the mix of physical stats and cartoony aesthetic make it work for me much more than let's say race through new york speaking of those sets there are so many fantastic practical effects from beginning to end simple things like this floating box all the way to the amazing fire effect works so well to suck you into this world anyway spider-man to this day is the best ride at isles of adventure if not the best in the entire world hopefully no one else tries to make a spider-man ride which just turns out to be a worse version of choice or mania that would be pretty stupid number three revenge of the mummy due to its extended refurbishment i haven't had the chance to go on revenge of the mummy for a very long time but my last few rides on it prove that it's a true classic i would go as far as to say this is the only great ride at universal studios but maybe that's a bit harsh while the past two rides have had more of the focus on theming than thrill i think this ride definitely leans more on the thrill side being a roller coaster mommy is able to have some intense moments from the launches to the occasional moments of airtime even though thrill is the focus of this ride it takes some time getting you into it the scenes before the launch are very well themed with one of the most memorable scripts on any ride i've ever been on another great moment is the fake out station which actually got me on my first ride now i enjoy it more so for the airtime field drop right after i'm not sure where the future holds for this attraction especially with it yet to reopen but i don't see any of the changes impacting its placement on this list this is the best ride in a park that could use a lot more love in the coming years number two jurassic world velocicoaster okay hear me out as a coaster enthusiast i absolutely adore velocico sir it's my second favorite roller coaster i've ever been on right behind fury 325 but as i said earlier this list is ranked differently than my coaster rankings would be the last ghoster as a roller coaster is easily the best in the park as a ride though i think it's slightly outclassed by another i'll talk about in a second as an example despite being my favorite coaster in the world if fury325 were on this list it probably wouldn't even place above incredible hulk it's all about the mixture between thrill theming and unique elements still velocicoaster excels at all three of those firstly this ride packs some intense thrill hitting a max speed of 70 miles per hour and launching up that 155 foot top hat this ride is easily the most extreme in the park the layout is fantastic getting more and more crazy as it continues the first half is great but pales in comparison to everything after that second launch from the top hat to the godly moses horus roll even with that focus on thrill philoso ghoster doesn't skimp on the theming the q is one of the best in the resort with some breathtaking animatronics and a fantastic view of the second launch the rock work in the first half is next level adding a whole bunch of hedgehoppers to increase the thrill there's not much in terms of theming on the second half of the ride but there doesn't need to be either finally though for as unique as this ride is it doesn't match the one-of-a-kind attraction next on the list velocicosta has some of the best theming of any roller coaster along with one of the best layouts but what number one accomplishes it's just a bit beyond that for me enough teasing let's get to number one hagrid's magical creatures motorbike adventure the ride with the longest name in the resort just so happens to be the best in the resort while it isn't nearly as thrilling as velocicoaster everything comes together so perfectly that it has easily become the crowd pleaser attraction at island of adventure riding a motorbike and clinging onto those handlebars is such a unique experience already but that isn't where the unique elements end there are plenty of animatronics throughout each representing their own mythical creature which is something i can't say many other coasters offer besides that the landscaping perfectly supports the idea that you're exploring at lush floors especially at night with the only light coming from the headlight of your motorbike even with all that theming hagrids doesn't light up on a thrill there are a lot of great launches but that's only the beginning before i get further into it i would highly recommend going into this ride blind so skip this part if you have yet to experience it all good alright let's get into it first off is that spike which is an incredible experience in the front and such a well-hidden element it comes out of nowhere especially with the switch track keeping you backwards for a lot longer than you'd expect then you head indoors for the second unique element of this ride the drop track is so perfect especially for those who have no knowledge of it going in it allows for a pretty solid moment of airtime too so i'd appreciate it even after the initial shock all of those elements compel me to call this the best ride in the resort even if the lost coaster is my favorite in fact i asked my friends which one they preferred during a recent visit and each of them said it was easily hagrid's and to be honest i get it philosoger at the end of the day is just a roller coaster hagrids goes beyond that fully immersing the rider in its world and supporting that with elements that you would rarely find on any other roller coaster not only that but with its lower thrill level it allows for even more people to be able to enjoy it all of that is to say that i think hagrids might just be the perfect ride a fantastic mix of theming thrill and pure fun all come together to make hagrids not only the best ride at universal but one of the best rides ever created and that's it two parks 32 rides all ranked from the best of the best to the absolute worst in the future i may make another video ranking volcano bay but apart from that i think that's everything luckily there's no more rides being built anytime soon that may make this list irrelevant oh god this is my longest and most ambitious video today so if you enjoyed it please be sure to leave a like and subscribe if you want more like this i'll have more park rankings coming in the future so keep an eye out for those but now i'm going to take a vacation see you all next time

Channel: hellomerio

Views: 662,625

Keywords: universal orlando, universal studios, islands of adventure, velocicoaster, jurassic world velocicoaster, hagrid's magical creatures motorbike adventure, hagrid's motorbike, hagrids coaster, incredible hulk coaster, hollywood rip ride rockit, jurassic park, spider-man, minions, despicable me, fast and furious supercharged, universal rides, universal studios rides, universal orlando rides, universal rides ranked, universal orlando rides ranked, universal orlando ranked

Id: Qr67SzpVc0A

Length: 26min 23sec (1583 seconds)

Published: Thu Jun 02 2022