Nostalgia in Roller Coaster Marketing - Coaster101

The definition of nostalgia is a “sentimental longing or wistful affection for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations.”

Nostalgia is a major reason why we get excited. It’s why we return to our home parks or favorite childhood movies time and time again despite how good or bad they seem now in comparison to our childhoods.

We all have our own personal examples, but what about roller coasters specifically?

In the past few years, we have taken notice of quite a few new projects that have utilized the feeling of nostalgia to push a marketing campaign or excitement, but it’s been a staple of the industry for decades.

When thinking about the past, two roller coasters come to mind immediately — Phantom’s Revenge at Kennywood and Son of Beast at Kings Island. One was a refurbishment, and the other was a completely new ride — both used nostalgia to their advantage.

Nostalgia saved the original Phantom from destruction in 2001. The retheme and reprofiling turned Phantom into Phantom’s Revenge, a coaster that is running strong to this day.

Photo by Matt Dempsey / CC BY

Kings Island may not have known what they were doing when they hired Roller Coaster Corporation of America to build Son of Beast, but they did know what they were doing in the marketing department. Playing on their record-breaking coaster across the park, Beast, they connected the “Son” to The Beast, and the coaster world exploded in anticipation.

Of course, we all know that not even nostalgia could save Son of Beast after years of issues. Even so, the park still uses the memory to evoke emotions. The eternal flame next to Banshee is one of the funniest things a park has ever done, yet it’s still a way to evoke the feeling of nostalgia. Whether a passerby looks fondly back at the ride, has no idea what it is, or is glad it’s gone, the eternal flame demands attention.

When we look at these two strategies, we can easily see that they have continued into the 2020s on a much bigger scale now.

In 2023, Silver Dollar City announced it would close the original Fire in the Hole and open a new version the following year. The disappointment and shock were palpable in the older audience, while others were excited to see an updated version. What opened was essentially an updated version of the same ride. There is new audio and a new ride system with familiar scenes and moments, such as the iconic splash down at the end. This tight blend of new and old appeased fans of all ages and ultimately was a big success in drawing people to the park.

The new Fire in the Hole was created by Rocky Mountain Construction (RMC). RMC has a lot of experience using nostalgia to their advantage. Fourteen of their 26 coasters have utilized portions of former wooden coasters’ support structures, and many of RMC’s “hybrid” coasters have names inspired by their predecessors.

RMC’s consistent ability to take older wooden coasters and convert them for a cheaper price — rather than tearing them down and starting over — even has a built-in marketing campaign for parks. Parks utilizing RMC’s strategy already have the same space to work with and a partial structure. All a park needs to do is determine a new name that relates to the old coaster and a refreshed logo. Then they’ve got the foundation for a campaign fueled by nostalgia.

These are the RMC coasters that have used this strategy:

RMC has had a huge hand in the nostalgia boom, and they have yet to miss the mark. I would love to see an Iron Wolf at Worlds of Fun (converted from Timber Wolf) or a spiritual successor of Son of Beast with an I-Box track.

Just up the road from Silver Dollar City is Worlds of Fun, which recently used nostalgia to revitalize one of the park’s dearest coasters — Zambezi Zinger.

The new Zambezi Zinger opened at Worlds of Fun in the summer of 2023. Teasers for this coaster began circulating back in 2022, and it was immediately apparent that the park would be revitalizing the original Anton Schwarzkopf coaster of the same name, which was located at the park from 1973-1997. Using the same iconic spiral lift hill and “snake tunnel, The new Zambezi Zinger roars in the same plot of land where its predecessor once stood.

The final example we should break down is Top Thrill 2.

In 2022, Cedar Point announced that the original Top Thrill Dragster was being retired. Instead of tearing down the coaster, they enlisted coaster and ride manufacturer Zamperla to add a spike on the back half. On the marketing side, they decided to play it safe and toe that line of nostalgia we’ve been discussing.

The name Top Thrill 2 plays homage to the coaster it was before — they even kept a similar logo. Many of us don’t quite know if this experience will match or exceed that of the coaster before it. However, we do know that there are many die-hard fans of the original, and after such a fiasco with opening, it will be a tough sell when it reopens.

Earlier this year, Busch Gardens Williamsburg announced that “The Beast is Back,” with plans to open a new family inverted coaster, a nod to the suspended Arrow coaster, The Big Bad Wolf, which operated at the park from 1984-2009.

Busch Gardens Williamsburg invited fans to vote for the name of the new coaster by taking a survey that included names influenced by the defunct attraction. Survey takers made their voices heard and decided they wanted to go even further into the nostalgia than the park initially planned. Many theme park fans then took their opinions to social media, imploring Busch Gardens Williamsburg to use the Big Bad Wolf name.

The park listened to the outcry. In the official announcement posted on Instagram, Busch Gardens Williamsburg stated, “The ride’s name came to life when our fans cast over 30,000 votes in a naming contest, sharing their thoughts on what the name should be. We chose The Big Bad Wolf: The Wolf’s Revenge to build upon a beloved attraction in our park’s history.”

As made clear by these examples, theme parks and the idea of nostalgia have always gone hand in hand, and I’m sure that they will continue. I’m excited to see what’s next (Worlds of Fun, I’m looking at you for an Orient Express 2.0).

About the Author:

Elora Maxwell is a writer based out of Missouri. She writes mostly fiction novels, but also loves to write about her travel experiences in her free time. She enjoys parks that provide great food and even greater roller coasters. Her dream is to one day be on a social media team for a theme park.

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