EPCOT Testing Rule Changes to Cosmic Rewind

Walt Disney World has a problem with Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind and has for a while. A new rule change is being tested that’s aimed at addressing this, with the goal of improving crowd flow and reducing wait times for higher-spending guests. This covers details about the new procedure, plus my rant about why this is stupid.

Since it reopened earlier this summer, Test Track 3.0 has been the #1 highest wait time at EPCOT. It’s also been the top Early Entry and regular rope drop priority. That’ll change eventually, but as of right now, the monthly average is 75 minutes for Test Track vs. 65 minutes for Cosmic Rewind. That’s still high enough to make Cosmic Rewind one of the highest overall wait times at Walt Disney World.

This precisely why our list of the Best & Worst Times to Ride Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind offers comprehensive advice about “beating” the crowds. The easier alternative if you don’t mind splurging is buying line-skipping access via the Lightning Lane Single Pass. That costs between $16 and $18 per person most days, depending upon demand and crowd levels. Those posts explain each option, their pros & cons, and everything else you need to know.

Admittedly, these resources and others like them create a certain sense of urgency for riding Cosmic Rewind, which feeds into the problem being addressed by Walt Disney World with the new rule change. Actually, it’s been a series of changes–I saw a different procedure being tested in late August and early September that was less ‘aggressive.’ (What I’ve seen previously is certain doors closed to ‘funnel’ guests along with stanchions in the first holding area. Apparently that was insufficient?)

The latest procedure change is that Cast Members at Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind are essentially separating the pre-show rooms (all 3 of them) with one side for standby and the other for Lightning Lane guests. This occurs after the merge point in the respective queues, which comes before these rooms.

Previously, all guests merged at the end of line at the first holding area (not really a pre-show) room. Lightning Lane guests typically loaded first in here, but were not directed to a certain side or area. It was a “fill in all available space” situation. Given guest demographics, I would assume that more standby guests were gravitating to the right side.

The new test divides guests into two sides when they enter this holding room. Standby guests are directed to the left, and Lightning Lane guests are placed on the right. Cast Members stand in the middle with outstretched arms to keep the groups separated. As seasoned Citizens of EPCOT (sorry, EPCOT Terrans) know, the last pre-show doors leading to load are on the far right–meaning this puts Lightning Lane guests at a theoretical advantage.

This process with Cast Members serving as a divider in between each pre-show repeats in the Big Bang room (the one with Glenn Close) and again in the teleportation room. This puts Lightning Lane guests closer to the load platform, while also better distributing guests in the pre-shows, so everyone isn’t just packed like sardines on the far right side.

This purpose of the test is presumably two-fold.

First, it’s aimed at improving crowd flow, eliminating the all-too-common scene of guests crammed into one corner of the teleportation room while the other side is empty. That’s gotta be a safety issue, and I’ve seen tensions get high as guests jockey for positioning over there.

The other likely explanation is complaints from Lightning Lane Single Pass purchasers. Cosmic Rewind is one of the Walt Disney World attractions with the longest wait from merge to load, simply by virtue of these pre-shows (right up there with Avatar Flight of Passage and Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance). There’s no changing that in a material way, but at least this makes the higher-spending guests feel better about how they’re being prioritized. Perception matters a lot.

Our Commentary

This is stupid. It makes my blood boil to an irrational degree, and I recognize that it’s not worth being upset about this. Nevertheless, I am. (Self awareness counts for something…right?!) 

To be clear, it’s not stupid that Walt Disney World has resorted to this rule change. I completely get the why of it, and understand that their hands were probably forced by guest feedback and satisfaction scores. Not to mention safety. Just based on what I’ve personally observed, it’s not hard to envision a kid, elderly or disabled guest being trampled or made to feel unnecessarily uncomfortable. This is doubly true later in the evening, when alcohol could exacerbate the issue.

Point being: this is an imperfect solution to a real problem. And I’d imagine that the test will continue to be tweaked, and the Cast Members eventually replaced by some stanchions, as the current approach is labor-intensive.

What’s stupid is that this problem exists in the first place. The underlying guest behavior that gave rise to this new rule.

As you might be aware, I spent a lot of time field testing Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind strategy earlier this spring and summer. It was probably a waste of time, in the grand scheme of things, as the resulting post hasn’t been particularly popular. It wouldn’t surprise me if this one resonates more with readers, and at ~5% of the time commitment.

During that testing, I observed a lot of irritating little guest behavior (I’ll never do Cosmic Rewind ‘for fun’ again after ~8:30 pm), but the one thing that really stuck in my craw was the stampede to the right in the final pre-show. A large percentage of guests immediately cram to the far right side of the room, jockeying for position by the exit doors. This is not a new development; if you’ve done Cosmic Rewind in the last 2 years, you’ve probably seen it.

Back in the spring, I jotted down a post idea (“Stop Ruining Cosmic Rewind for First-Timers”) that I ultimately abandoned. I rant enough, and aiming an argument at a subset of readers–as opposed to the company itself–might not be well-received.

With that in mind, let me start by saying that I’m a firm believer in meeting guests where they are, and in the defense of everyone who does this, the lead-up to the actual ride-through portion of Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind is interminably long. After the lines merge, there are three separate holding areas, the first of which serves no ostensible purpose. It’s tedious, and easy to see why guests tire of these holding rooms by the time they’re at the marquee pre-show that is actually fun and funny.

So I’m not letting Disney off the hook for what strikes me as poor pacing and pre-show design. Cosmic Rewind could’ve and should’ve been built differently to maintain attention and interest through the final pre-show (Battle at the Ministry and Rise of the Resistance strike mas good multi-phase attractions that are very well-designed). But that doesn’t excuse guest behavior in the pre-show. Two wrongs don’t make a right, or whatever.

There’s a reason my (abandoned but now revived) rant would’ve been titled “Stop Ruining Cosmic Rewind for First-Timers” instead of “…for Yourself.” (Although either would be apt.)

It’s because the people leading the charge to crowd the exit doors in the Cosmic Rewind pre-show are, almost without exception, repeat riders. Obviously, everyone is responsible for their own choices, but first-timers simply would not know to do this but for the Walt Disney World regulars.

The problem is that first-timers see this, FOMO sets in, and they follow suit. I know this happens because I’ve repeatedly observed this pattern: there’s an initial rush towards the exit doors, then other guests see what’s happening, and they do what everyone else is doing. It occurs in two distinct waves.

The first-timers don’t know why they’re mimicking the behavior of regulars, but they don’t want to miss out or be at a distinct disadvantage. So instead of focusing on the pre-show, which at this point is actually exceptional, they’re packed like sardines to leave the room. They miss portions of the pre-show, or don’t appreciate it fully. All for unknown or unclear reasons.

For WDW diehards, rushing the exit doors might be savvy if it offered an appreciable strategic advantage. But it doesn’t!

That’s precisely why this is stupid! The very first people through those doors are maybe going to save a 2-4 minutes on average when aggregated over time. Even so, there’s more time spent in uncomfortable congestion while missing the cool pre-show. The best case scenario here is still a net-negative outcome.

More to the point, on each individual ride-through, there’s no guarantee of any time-savings whatsoever by being the first party versus the very last party out of the room. You might save 30 seconds, 3 minutes, negative 30 seconds, or somewhere in between.

Cosmic Rewind has a dual load platform, and so much is determined by which side you’re assigned and how you’re grouped. (Also, there’s a good chance you’re not the first through those doors even if you’re at the forefront, pushing other guests out of the way!)

I know this because I am always the last to leave the pre-show. If you wonder how I have so many empty photos of the room, that’s the answer–not because I’m first to rush inside. I enjoy watching the pre-show, trying to spot the illusions as they happen, and see no sense in rushing.

Despite this, I routinely have found myself passing other guests who rushed through the doors before me. Not always or even most of the time, but enough to say pretty conclusively that luck plays a big role. And on other occasions when I remain at the back of the pack, I’ve occasionally gotten my own ride vehicle because sometimes the pre-shows don’t pulse through quickly.

Staying left and waiting is the subjectively superior strategy, and arguably even the objectively better approach on balance. I would contend that it is–there’s way more upside than there is downside to letting the herd of humanity pass and tightly wedge its way through the corridor.

Finally, I want to circle back to the whole “stupid” thing. That’s strong language. Just to be clear, it’s the behavior that’s bad, not the people who do it. (A distinction with a difference.) I do plenty of stupid things on a daily basis. Just ask Sarah about my misadventures in the kitchen.

Bigger picture, what we’re diagnosing is ultimately a symptom of the problem as opposed to the underlying issue itself. Walt Disney World’s policies are the catalyst for this–just like DAS abuse and so many other things. Disney purposefully fuels the FOMO machine, introducing stress and friction to the guest experience with confusing and convoluted policies plus high prices…and then sells solutions to the problems they’ve created. The stakes are high for guests, and time is money on vacation.

One of our goals, though, is helping readers recognize when savvy strategy is important and offers valuable time-savings, and also identifying when FOMO or FUD or whatever is counterproductive, or actively damaging to their own experience. It is my strong belief that rushing the exits in the pre-show at Cosmic Rewind is counterproductive, making your own experience and that of first-timers worse.

All of this is to say that I don’t mind Walt Disney World’s new prioritizing of the “higher-class” guests in the Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind pre-shows. If that makes the big spenders feel better about their investment in Lightning Lane Single Pass, so be it. And again, it’s a good move on Walt Disney World’s part to prevent the post-pre-show stampede.

You will continue to find me on the far left side of the room, actually enjoying the pre-show. As longtime fans who appreciates attractions as opposed to rides, there’s a reason we pay the big bucks to visit Walt Disney World as opposed to regional amusement parks. There’s a time and place for efficient itineraries, but as we’ve often remarked, the parks should be savored like a fine wine as opposed to chugged.

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YOUR THOUGHTS

Thoughts on this rule change at Cosmic Rewind? What are you thoughts on the three pre-show rooms before the ride-through aboard Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!