This ride really is a "Blast". I think that, over a four day period, I must have gone on it a dozen times at least. And while I am not the kind of person that likes thrill rides, my brother, who does like thrill rides, enjoyed this ride so much, that when there was an aproximately five minute wait, he went on by himself. So you can see that both ends of the spectrum of riders like this attraction making it a good ride to enjoy as a family. The only downside is that each car fits basically two people. In addition, even if you were able to fit more than two people in one car, there are only two blaster guns (I'll explain in a moment) so only two people would get the full experience of the ride anyways. But at least you would get to wait in line together.
The following is a brief overview of the ride:
The ride really starts in the standby line when you enter the building. There is a big walkie talkie on your right that apparently belongs to Buzz Lightyear. As you enter you may hear a number of different clips, including the three-eyed little green aliens and the Evil Emperor Zurg himself. And if you get stuck here (which can happen since the ride seems to have made a bad habit of stopping somewhat often) you may hear all the clips several times. As you go on and join the Fastpass line (What is a Fastpass?) You enter another room with a life-size Buzz Lightyear, who gives you a briefing on what you need to do. Then you go through a short hallway before you finally see the ride. At this point you are almost there (provided it doesn't stop) and you may want to decide who goes with who if you have more than two people. As I said before, each car can fit basically two people, wich is all you want in a car anyways, because there are only two Blaster Guns. These Blaster Guns are what you will use to shoot the different targets, including four Evil Emperor Zurgs, that are throughout the attraction. As you get into your car you may hear two different recordings: "Please remain seated, your shields will be lowered automatically" (which in some cases may be a cast member lowering the front of your vehicle, or the car doing it automatically). The other recording, which is Buzz Lightyear, is something about aiming at the lit targets, because they are worth the most points. I have actually heard several things on that, but I will talk about that later on.
Once in your "space cruiser" you round a corner and immediately see robots that are supposed to be stealing batteries from innocent toys. On these robots, in various places, are Zs, wich is what you are supposed to be aiming at.
As you leave this first room you go past a series of Zs that go up and, when hit, lay flat.
This is followed by coming face-to-face with a life-size Evil Emperor Zurg who actually may ask you to join his side and go against Buzz Lightyear! You can be comforted by knowing that no one ever takes his advice.
After this you go through a little dark spot that still has targets in it, and when these are hit a little flash of light comes from the area with the target. I guess these robots do not like being hit. Please note that if you (or someone else) does not like the dark, it never really gets completely dark on this ride, and is usually very well lit.
Once through that very short section, you "land" on Planet Z. This is a very unique planet, because it has aliens, a volcanoe and even a dinosaur-looking creature.
After this you see the Evil Emperor Zurg again, going back and forth on his secret weapon right before going into a short tunnel that has lights that seem to zip across on the walls and ceiling. Although at first glance it may appear that there are no targets in the tunnel, if you look carefully, you may be able to spot a few. These targets become completely visible when hit right. Please note that if you (or someone else) does not like flashing lights, the tunnel is very short, and, provided your car is turned correctly, you can see either end of the tunnnel.
Once past the tunnel, you see Buzz Lightyear and the Evil Emperor Zurg battleing it out with the three-eyed aliens around including on Zurg's secret weapon. As you go through the room Zurg protests and Buzz lets you (and all your fellow space rangers) know that you are doing a good job.
The next room I will let you find out about yourself. I'll just tell you that I gave a small hint before. Your blaster may also become disabled at this point
After that room you get a congratulations from Buzz Lightyear, via a TV moniter. As you pass this you may want to look at your screen in front of you, which gives your score and the level you got to (It goes back and forth between them). The level you get to depends on how high your score is. I usually got either level three or level four, but the highest is level seven (which you have to get about million or more points to get).
Now what targets should you aim for? Well, I have heard several things on that. The best targets are supposed to be:
Moving targets, Far away targets, and Lit targets
So maybe if you find a lit, moving target that is far away you'll get a good amount of points.
When to ride: We went during a peak season (not the peakest of peak seasons, but still pretty crowded) and the line was usually between 30 to 45 minutes (aproximately). So if you pass by during an aproximately 30 minute wait, that is probably a good time to go. Although, when the park was open til midnight and we went late, the ride got down (according to my brother) to an approximately 5 minute wait. So if you want to wait, you might get on very quickly at that point. There is also another option, the Fastpass (What is a Fastpass?). Although I would not suggest it if it is two or more hours wait, unless the standby line is really long. If you do go the Fastpass route, don't forget that there is Innoventions just a little ways away, which is a great way to wait for your Fastpass to become valid.
Was there anything wrong with the ride? Even though I liked the ride so much, I do think that a lot of the stuff in the ride looked very flat. But maybe that is what they were going for, so that it would look more like the cartoon on the Disney Channel.
Things to look for: If you are riding the ride for the second or third time and like to look for things, here are a few tings that I noticed:
1. When you first see the Evil Emperor Zurg, look behind him for you first glimpse at his secret weapon.
2. In the room that I did not tell you about, there is a receipt. See if you recognize the name of the store.
Check out the Buzz Lightyear Astro Basters page on the Disneyland Resort website.
If you were interested in this post, you may be interested in these posts:
California Adventure Ride Review: Monsters Inc. Mike and Sulley to the Rescue
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