The Disney MountainEars are pretty happy with our 11th place finish in Basic! We had some tough moments but even more good victories and good team work! Thanks Third Gate Games for a fun MouseAdventure!
I thought it was too dark in the AMC. It was nice that it was much closer to DL though! Speaking of that, it seems like we always ask for more game time. And we stand around for awhile waiting for 10:00am to roll around. Could we get our packets at 9:45? Or maybe meet for sign in at 8:00 and get started at 9:30? And maybe end at 4:30? That extra hour would have been huge! I guess I’m just a glutton for more MA punishment! Also it seemed weird that we went to different scatter location in DtD. And then we all went in to DL together! Shouldn’t we have had scatter locations in DL itself? Then we’re already in DL at start time instead of making the long walk and having to go thru bag check and the entrance all during game time.
You bring up some points that are often mentioned in our surveys (and one will be coming soon for this event as well), but we have no easy way to respond, so I will try here.
Earlier Start Time/More Game Play. We try to maximize your game time as much as possible. Starting teams earlier would not really help in any meaningful way because A) many shops and restaurants are still closed or on different menus earlier in the morning (and it could be limiting to avoid some of those locations) and B) many times the backup of other guests trying to get into the park at earlier times is worse and makes getting in take even longer.
While we know that it feels like you are just waiting around waiting to start, the timed scatter start has been the most favored method, by far. Once all the teams clear our morning meeting location (in this case, the AMC Theatre), we still have to pack up all our sign-in supplies, and get in place for distribution. This is pretty much as fast as it can happen.
One other thing to note is that we PURPOSELY give you more to do than can be completed by most teams. Time management should be part of your team strategy. So, are you really just asking for fewer quests?
Packet Distribution. Currently, with security at the resort in constant flux, it is best if we distribute at least the starting game packet to teams OUTSIDE of bag check. It is much easier for 150+ teams to each walk in with one packet than for us to try and get 150+ packets in without being stopped and having to get cleared. We only ever had small issues with getting materials into the park, but we would never want to delay the start of the game due to this.
Along those same lines, it is best for us to separate into smaller groups to distribute game packets. This makes it easier and faster for everyone. The scatter locations for Basic teams were all very close to one another and should not have impacted game finish times in any way.
Please keep the questions and suggestions coming!
