After seeing countless media and influencer reviews about the brand new Battle at the Ministry ride at Universal’s Epic Universe I fell into the trap of believing them as the hype for this ride built and built ahead of my trip to the park but the second I experienced it I very quickly realised that free tickets are given out for a reason.
Now, don’t get me wrong you can still be invited to a media event and give a brand new attraction a bad review but I couldn’t find a single negative thing said about the brand new Harry Potter ride at Epic Universe anywhere until the preview days started, that’s when the general public could pay for a ticket to go and experience the park themselves.
Coincidence? I think not.
Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry ride is an experience and a well-themed one at that but just like many experiences at Universal over the years, the queue-line is usually better than the ride itself and it’s no different here.
Innovative Yet Negligent
The Harry Potter ride consists of one of the most beautiful queue lines situated within a Universal theme park anywhere in the world, it’s jaw-dropping and beautiful but it does lack in interactive areas for when those queues get long but I didn’t mind that, there was plenty to look at going through that queue-line and the attention to detail is sublime.
When advertising this ride we were told by the creative team that the Floo network effect was so advanced and was something never done before at a theme park. It turns out the Floo transportation illusion was simply grids in the floor that shot up smoke (triggered by sensors) the second you walk towards it. It’s a cool effect but I feel as though that speaks volumes about what was said Vs what we got the second you board the ride. Lots of talk and very little execution on this one.
The rides technology is also highly advanced but whilst they’ve put so much into the technology of the ride the actual ride experience itself just isn’t too different from any other type of ride out there bar a few unusually jerky movements.
Plagued with technical issues the ride was delayed multiple times in its opening and was closed for a week during previews to fix more issues. On opening day of Epic Universe the ride once again closed down for a few hours as issue after issue kept putting the ride out of action.
I feel as though the ride was rushed towards the end and with issues still ongoing with the ride it feels as though there is a lot of bugs still left to fix but even then the ride experience is well… poor.
Too Many Screens!
Universal prides themselves on screen-based rides but on Battle at the Ministry it’s overkill.
The perfect opportunity to build a Harry Potter ride at a Universal park packed full of practical effects was cast aside and replaced with overusing screens and projection mapping.
Now, the screens themselves are actually some of the highest quality I’ve ever seen in the world and they are impressive but Battle at the Ministry for large portions of the ride feels like a ride around a TV shop at times as opposed to an actual ride experience.
They’re blended well with certain physical sets but the physical prop aspect of the ride is very minimal and this is such a huge disappointment.
Over in Dark Universe they have the most physical effect heavy ride in Epic Universe which is a stark contrast to Battle at the Ministry, the decision to do this is just baffling as other Universal Harry Potter rides over at Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios Florida are also very screen heavy and were negatively reviewed (by the public not the nodding dog media) for its over reliance on screens.
They detach you from the experience and don’t immerse you in any-way shape and form.
Ride experience as a result was dull from a visual aspect aside from a few cool physical effects and a beautiful animatronic creature but these appearances are rare versus the screens which are literally everywhere.
Jerky Ride System
For those of you out there who have ridden a bucking bronco then you’ll be very familiar with the movements that Battle at the Ministry sets up for you, how on earth it’s so jerky is beyond me.
The seats you’re in are already quite hard and uncomfortable despite themed like plush fancy chairs and now we have to jump around all over the shop as the seat-belt is holding onto you for dear life.
The elevator mimicking movements coupled with the screens is motion-sickness inducing at the best of times and there have been many complaints of discomfort from guests during this particular ride.
Hard seats with jerky movements doesn’t equal fun in anyway shape or form so that trip around the screen-store just turned into an off-road experience through an 8K screen wonderland themed to your favourite little lightning bolt tattooed wizard.
The Only Attraction at Ministry of Magic
The Ministry of Magic land only consists of Battle at the Ministry and a show, that’s it.
Plans are in motion to add another attraction to this land but until then once you’ve seen the show (it really is a seen once and you never need to again type of show) you have an underwhelming ride to board.
The most fun I had within this space was talking to a mirror (similar to the fountain over at Islands of Adventure) and walking through the Battle at the Ministry queue line.
Other than that I think the Ministry of Magic Land is a complete failure, already themed around Fantastic Beasts, a franchise that only has a fan-base because of Harry Potter, if HP never existed Fantastic Beasts would have flopped and flopped hard!
Theming a whole land around Paris (a real life city) and not a fictional magical world of escapism was also a poor design choice for me. If you ask Universal fans to choose between Diagon Alley, Hogsmeade and Paris… I can almost guarantee that the majority winner will be anything BUT Paris.
Whilst visually stunning this glorified EPCOT pavilion needs a new experience and god forbid they add another screen based ride to it!
Get a lovely interactive and physical set experience in there and this land may have something to be proud of because currently, it’s the worst land at Epic Universe and it’s not even close.
