The Giant Ape Adventure is the latest amazing project developed by EOS.
Installed in Carthageland theme park in Hammamet, Tunisia, the Giant Ape is a unique set for leisure and entertainment, featuring 3 main attractions: a giant animatronic, a customized spinning coaster (280 m long), and a dark ride experience.
The whole set has been designed and installed on top of an existing building.
The experience:
Visitors are invited to join an exploration, searching the traces of a notorious beast, which has freightend the world in the past.
They reach a station, where a spinning train takes them to a breathtaking ride. And they finally get close to a giant monster. Huge flames burn high, when they approach. The beast rises in anger, roaring and yelling at them. The train continues its crazy run, but it's finally stopped in front of a cave. Geysers explode when the train stops and enters the cave. Here the visitors experience a mysterious jungle with unfriendly attacks and scaring events.
The main piece of the set is the animatronic, a whopping 13 metres (42 feet) tall monster which has been carefully crafted to represent a real gorilla. Specialist craftsman at EOS based the extremely detailed model on scientific anatomical studies of the real animal.
What gives it the edge, of course, is that it moves in truly terrifying King Kong style.
For the majority of the time, the ape is seen resting on its knuckles, turning his head and looking around.
Then, all of a sudden, King Kong stands up to its full height, raises its arms and thumps its chest angrily, while its head turns and its mouth opens, emitting an ear-splitting roar. Guests will even see the ape’s hot breath pour from its nostrils.
EOS has employed special effects more often associated with blockbuster movies to create this truly thrilling coaster experience.
Real flames, 6 meters (20”) high, flare when the coaster approaches the giant ape. Lights flash like those of a New York police car, referencing the original movie. The 7,200 Watt audio system ensures that King Kong’s roars can be heard a kilometre away.
Amazing animatronic facts:
- Dimensions: L 7m x W 6.5 m x H 13 m (Reduced to 9.5 m when down in resting position)
- Total weight: 25,000 Kg
- Installed Power: 235 kW
- Hydraulic Plant: 150 kW
- Audio system: 7,200 Watt
Besides the animatronic, the set features:
- A Customized spinning coaster, 280 m long, with 6 rotating vehicles, reaching a maximum linear speed of 60 km/h
- An innovative dark ride, where video mapping contents are combined with projections and traditional 3D figures, for a very immersive experience where virtual and real items are combined and fused together.
EOS, based in Treviso, Italy, designs and builds a wide range of rides and attractions including dark rides, transport systems, water rides and coasters. The company also offers complete amusement park solutions.