News Plus Notes took care of the Weekly Topic this time and the topic posed the question, “Does theming matter on a coaster?”

At a quick glance my reaction was yes. Theme adds a ton to a coaster, or so I thought. Then I thought about it a bit more, and of all of the themed coasters I have ever been on, I really just remember the ride.  The theme might help to stir some memories, but the ride experience doesn’t change all that much.

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Brandon of RCPro has just posted a great update of Aftershock. The coaster has finally started vertical construction but still has a long way to go. I’m pretty sure a good portion of the ride is still at its former park. Hopefully we will get to see this thing in action before the end of the 2008 season.

Check out the rest of the update here.

I was looking at one of my favorite flash game sites today and came across a roller coaster related game. We don’t just have to play Brakeman anymore! In this one, you design the track to hit certain tokens. It may not be totally correct if you are into coaster simulators, but it is worth a try. Click on the image to take you to the game or click here.

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Hershey had all of us going during this off season with a “viral” marketing campaign to advertise their new ride and to give us hints about to what it would be. This was done by a series of games and puzzles. Since that time they have announced and built the coaster. They are now in the testing stages and it will be opening in about a month.

But Hershey has not finished with the games just yet. The photos Jake posted yesterday at number 1-14. We received 4 of the pictures. A few other sites/people also received pictures. Each of the images have a letter hidden somewhere in it. Theme Park Review has put the collection together here. If you can figure out what it says, please let us know. My bet is that is something to do with the 2009 addition.

Several pictures of concept art for SeaWorld’s Manta coaster have recently shown up on the net. This post was meant for a few days ago, but there were a few problems with the site that prevented that from happening. Anyway…The ride has already been announced, but there have been few details out there. The pictures are pretty awesome looking, and if this is coaster is anything like the pictures SeaWorld will have a hit on its hands.

This is really going to be an interesting coaster. I can’t wait to see how they make the coaster dive into the water.