If you’re unfamiliar with Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, let us catch you up. It’s an E-ticket attraction that’s definitely drawing a lot of buzz on both coasts, and for good reason. The ride already opened at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge — endearingly called Batuu East — at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World in Florida on December 5, and since then it has been consistently popular. Here’s a brief summary of what the ride’s all about, courtesy of Disney:
An Attraction on a Scale That Is Impressive, Most Impressive
Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance will be a massive attraction with multiple ride systems that is unlike anything you’ve ever experienced at the Disneyland Resort… or anywhere else in the galaxy!
Accept a Mission from the Resistance The Resistance needs your help! Hidden in the forest outside Black Spire Outpost, the Resistance is gathering recruits for a secret mission.
With the First Order desperate to extinguish the spark of the Resistance, the mission is bound to have unexpected twists and turns. When your transport is captured by an imposing First Order Star Destroyer filled with legions of stormtroopers—and even Kylo Ren!—you’re going to need all the help you can get. Fortunately, a covert team of Resistance fighters—including Rey and BB-8—is at the ready to give you a fighting chance to escape… and a chance for the Resistance to rise.
Get ready for a thrilling, first-of-its-kind adventure when Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance launches on January 17, 2020.
“It still amazes me to this day,” said Heffner to the OC Register. “This is the most complex attraction ever built in the world.”
The test-and-adjust team of Cast Members works hand-in-hand with Walt Disney Imagineering to make sure that an attraction is fit for the public. They also then work with ride operations Cast Members to make sure they know how the attraction works. It’s their job to make sure that the Cast Members who will operate Rise of the Resistance every day know exactly how it works and what they need to do to keep the guests safe and the attraction running.
In an interview with OC Register, Rise of the Resistance test-and-adjust Cast member Jerry Williams shared more insight into his day-to-day. “A typical day in the life of test and adjust is truly like, ‘Here’s our plan. Let’s see if it works. If it doesn’t work, let’s troubleshoot on why it doesn’t work.’ And then repeat, repeat and repeat.”
It’s been two years since work began on Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, and testing has been ongoing for over a year. Every element of the attraction is tested until the entire ride — each scene, special effect, audio-animatronic, projection, and more — runs like one smooth, cohesive show.
“I’ve seen every little component tested individually,” Williams said. “But then to finally have a ride through of it, it’s like, ‘Wow, now it makes sense to me.’ I was able to see the story come together in a different way.”
Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance is a highly complex attraction that utilizes several different ride systems and relies on a variety of components — including 5 million lines of code — in order to run. So while we cannot confirm that the issues Rise of the Resistance is having are isolated to Florida, we do know that the test-and-adjust teams on both coasts work together.
“What they’ve learned we’ve applied and what we’ve learned they’ve applied,” Heffner said, referring to how the teams of Cast Members at Batuu West and Batuu East continue to work together and share how they tackle the attraction. “We’re still fine tuning the attraction, but we’re feeling good about it.”
Disney will continue to test Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance this week to prepare for this Friday’s opening. And you bet that as soon as we experience California version of the ride for ourselves, we’ll share our feelings. For now, we’ll try to contain our excitement.
Credit: Inside the Magic
