1st place winner of NL2 Roundup 500! Thank you to everyone and congrats to all of our other honorees!
Welcome to the Institute of Steam Power! Today, the institute has invited you to be one of the first test riders of student engineering leader Jakov Jakovsky's new prototype transportation system, dubbed the Aeronauts! Operating out of a repurposed boiler room, these revolutionary steam-powered flying machines will whisk you on a test route around the Institute's campus and the surrounding woodlands, bringing you soaring at speed into the future of steam-era travel!
After over 3 years of work I'm extremely proud to present Aeronautica. It has been my first foray into the world of heavily themed and story-driven rides, and I ultimately wanted to experiment with just how well I manage it. I created Aeronautica as a nostalgia-fueled love letter and passion project dedicated to reliving some of the unrealistic, hyperbolic, newtony, stylized magic from the bygone days of my childhood with NL1, and the creations from that era which I found so iconic and inspiring.
Please note that Aeronautica is NOT meant to be a 100% realistic creation. While based off of real-world coasters and feasible/survivable, certainly, Aeronautica features stylized shaping and exaggerated pacing characteristic of an old-school NL1 creation.
Though this project originally started as a 3D modelling experiment based on the central dome from Silvarret's amazing Volvara, I was primarily inspired by some of the NL1 greats of the past, in particular Gaia, Aeris, and especially Curse of FellFall Wood, my favorite NL1 creation. I used the styles, ethos, and ideals from that era as the driving force behind a lot of my design decisions for this ride; everything from the color palette to the sightlines is inspired by old NL1 creations. Repeating textures, blank walls, rigid geometry; all things I try to avoid as much as possible in my modern projects, are all present in Aeronautica to reminisce on those wonky 3DS of the NL1 age. The classic 'Newtony-Intamin' shaping, hyperbolic pacing, as well as the semi-realistic atmosphere. Everything is purposeful to resemble those styles and aesthetics.
A few other real-world inspirations come from Soarin' Fantastic Flight and Journey to the Center of the Earth at Tokyo DisneySea, Space Mountain: De la Terre à la Lune at Euro Disney, Taron and F.L.Y. at Phantasialand, iSpeed at Mirabilandia, Cheetah Hunt at Busch Gardens Tampa, and Maverick at Cedar Point.
The video is a combination of old-school and new-school ideas, I wanted to keep the overall presentation fairly simple and classic, as that was largely the idea behind the ride itself. It was my first time ever making a video for one of my coasters, and I think it came out as well as my abilities would let it.
Overall, I wanted to both evoke the NL1 spirit and the artfulness that came from those days, but also to prove that the NL1 style of dramatic, presentational coaster creation wasn't a lost art. This ride captures that as well as I could have possibly aspired, and I hope that my passion for the essence and soul of those iconic NL1 creators shines through in Aeronautica.
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Statistics:
Max. Height: 134 Ft. (41 Meters)
Max. Speed: 62 MPH (100 KMH)
Length: 3779 Ft. (1152 Meters)
Max. G-force: 4.9
Min. G-force: -1.5
Max: Vert. Angle: 90 Degrees
Max. Horizontal Angle: 135 Degrees
Inversions: 4 (Cutback, Roll, Stall, Dive Loop)
Make: Intamin AG
Model: Blitz Coaster
Opening: Circa 2010-2012
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Credits:
ItsAmaliaB - Trackwork/Supports/3D Scenery Design/Special Effects/Story
TheCodeMaster: Environmental Assets/Train Components/Materials/Scripts
Element 115: Model Textures/Materials/Train Scripting/Train Components
nSeven: Environmental Assets/Ground Textures
Dustin Sloane: Environmental Assets/Smoke Effects
H3lix: Train Components/Model Textures/Materials
JAKool: Custom Nolimits 2 Environment
PvM: Model Textures
Andre Northan: Spinning Windmill Props
RobinBob: Custom Lighting Effects
Sal Mosca: Voice Acting/Audio Consultancy
Luis Humanoide: Music
James Newton Howard: Music
JetPulse: Camera Script
Kw6s: Video Consultancy
Mistize: Video Consultancy
Hazel/Kristalic: Video Consultancy
+ A few Sketchup 3D Warehouse users.
Special Thanks:
RobinBob, A113, Kw6s: Early testing and feedback
Mr B, Andre Northan, Devolgalf: Inspiration for the ride and just being iconic NL1 vets in general!
The music used for Aeronautica was created by Luis Humanoide and James Newton Howard. You can find the full soundtrack here:
• Aeronautica Soundtrack
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