AvP: Descent Into Darkness – The Cancelled Malaysia Rides & Land

A particularly painful topic for me is the cancelled Alien vs. Predator themed land and rides at Genting SkyWorlds Park in Malaysia. Those who know me know that I’m a theme park aficionado, and yes… I really would’ve flown to the other side of the planet for this. Originally known as 20th Century Fox World and announced way back in 2015, Genting SkyWorlds finally opened in the misty mountains of Pahang in 2022 after a lengthy construction process and a legal battle with Disney which resulted in a name change for the park and the retheming of some properties, among them Alien vs. Predator.

Though we’ve seen Alien and AvP featured in theme parks before such as the Nostromo sequence in the now-defunct Great Movie Ride at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, or the walk-through AvP mazes during Universal Studios’ Halloween Horror Nights event, the lands and rides planned at Genting SkyWorlds (and in the entirely cancelled Fox World Dubai) would’ve been the most significant attraction development in the properties’ history.

The land included the drop ride Aliens: Terrorforma, also planned were a few smaller thrill attractions centered around Colonial Marines training, as well as a restaurant with a Nostromo inspired aesthetic. I’ll be detailing the entire themed land here but first I’d like to focus on the previously illusive main “E-ticket” attraction, which would’ve been housed in the largest structure in the area. This experience would’ve been a high-speed dark ride / coaster hybrid.

Earlier this year I came across some new conceptual plans and photos on the theme park construction forum ThemeParkX which finally shed some light on this mystery ride. It would’ve been called…

AvP: Descent Into Darkness

This ride, referred to by the manufacturer as an ‘SFX’ coaster, would’ve featured highly themed practical set elements combined with screens and intense coaster maneuvers. Some comparisons might be Revenge of the Mummy or Harry Potter and the Escape From Gringotts, both at Universal Studios. The ride was to be manufactured by Dynamic Attractions, who have a lengthy history and have produced rides for clients such as Disney and Universal.

Below is a gallery featuring conceptual artwork and 3D plans for the AvP: Descent Into Darkness. These images show design elements, narrative concepts, the track layout, as well as some photographs of partially completed elements of the attraction. Construction of the wider land was pretty far along prior to the retheme, with mostly complete Alien animatronics, ride vehicles, and hive scenery.

After finding these images, I went on the hunt for further information regarding the attraction. I reached out to a number of individuals who were involved with this project, and some graciously agreed to contribute to this editorial on the condition of anonymity.

The narrative was set in the future and had guests entering an off-world Weyland-Yutani mining and terraforming installation. Of course, this was all a front. The company was secretly searching for Aliens for their bio-weapons division. Discovered during their mining operations was a Predator hunting Pyramid. The Predators were not too fond of this corporate activity on their ancient hunting ground, which would drive them to arrive on the scene.

Guests would board a Weyland-Yutani branded ride vehicle which would take them on an expedition inside of the ancient temple which looked quite like the one from the first AvP film. The vehicle would be attacked by Xenomorphs with a Predator arriving to defend riders from the horde.

The ride vehicles went through a few different conceptual iterations. Initially they were intended to be small mining tractors with drills mounted to their fronts. These exclusive conceptual designs and moodboards featured below experimented with different elements incorporated from the Prometheus rovers and the AvP Snowcats.

The drill element was seemingly removed in favor of a more streamlined expedition vehicle.

AvP: Descent Into Darkness would have had a number of screens blending with the practical sets to show the action (similar to what we see with the Planet of the Apes ride in the same park), but would have also featured animatronic elements such as a Queen Alien and numerous warriors.

The coaster would launch outside the building into some banked curves and an inversion before re-entering for the finale. The Predator character, overwhelmed with Xenomorphs would activate his self-destruct device. The ride vehicle would then drop into cover and proceed past the ruins of the destroyed pyramid to the end of the ride.

Below you can see a layout of the track, sent to us by someone who worked on the attraction. The SFX coaster would’ve featured three innovative new high-tech coaster elements: The ‘Tumble Table‘, the ‘Tilt ‘n’ Drop‘, the ‘Side Slide‘, and a more commonly used vertical drop.

I’ve managed to transcribe some of the scenes of the ride displayed in the artwork. Using those along with other new material I’ve examined, I’ll do my best to provide a detailed description of the entire ride experience, from the queue to the gift shop.

Queue A:

The threshold to Queue A is on an entrance passageway where guests are greeted to the WY Mining Facility, and this is divided into two lanes – Guests and an Express lane.
Themed as an industrial space, metal panels line both walls and ceiling, and the floor is ‘well-worn’ polished concrete. A row of ride columns puncture through the ceiling on one side of the queue.

Queue B:

The ‘bio-lab,’ a clean space environment continues with the look and feel of Queue A. Both Express and Guest lanes lead through this space, finally passing by a specimen table with dissected facehuggers and a second table features facehuggers in ‘high-tech’ specimen jars. Here, there will be 2 monitors that feature grainy CCTV footage of the communications scientist conducting his check-in to the comms center/cab looking for fellow miners and technicians in another mine location. In addition, the monitors will feature stats and maps, mining activity, x-rays of specimens and corresponding bio read-outs.

Scene 1:

-Ride Vehicle passing slowly through temple architecture
-Predator laser light shoots out of an alcove in the temple wall

Scene 1 to 2 Transition:

-Passing by the crashed ride vehicle
-Passing the crashed vehicle, we enter a chamber with 3 different openings leading into 3 different temple corridors

After the ride vehicle passes another crashed expedition vehicle, riders enter a chamber where the pyramid walls begin to shift. This sequence is achieved using a dome screen. The track rotates into position using the ‘Tumble Table’ effect, and we can see glimpses of the Aliens through the moving walls. The coaster accelerates with its first launch. As we race through the darkness all we can see are the enormous pyramid columns.

The cart slows as it arrives in another dome screen room. The track itself tilts forward with the ‘Tilt ‘n’ Drop’ feature, and riders look down to see they are within the sacrificial chamber. As the riders dangle forward, facehuggers begin to emerge from their eggs and jump at the vehicle. The track then tilts backward, placing the riders in front of a hole in the ceiling. An animatronic Xenomorph emerges to attack, and the ride vehicle drops backwards onto a new track section to escape.

After a series of intense reverse twists and turns, again the vehicle slows into a new chamber. Guest can feel hot breath on them as the track itself shifts again, this time horizontally. Riders are face to face with the Alien Queen (as a upper body animatronic).

Before she can attack, she’s blasted with plasma fire from out of our view, and the vehicle with a section of the track itself slides down a small hill horizontally using the ‘Side Slide’ feature. The track segment is literally going down another track beneath it. As we reach the end of the hill, we continue to move horizontally and the Predator warrior who saved us appears to warn us of further danger. This Predator character is not a practical element but rather displayed with a screen panel on the wall.

The track segment stops as it connects with another launch hallway in front of us. In this larger pyramid corridor columns flank the walls, and a number of Alien warriors begin to peer out at the vehicle from behind the columns. We’re surrounded by multiple animatronic Xenomorphs emerging from the shadows of the sides and descending from the ceiling above. The vehicle again launches forward, this time out of the show building and to an outdoor section. This features a corkscrew inversion and a few turns before re-entering the darkness of the building.

Scene 9 & 10:

-Coming back from the outdoor portion of the ride, the ride vehicle slows down as we return back to the temple complex.
-This time, we find ourselves in a chasm with temple architecture on each side. Ahead of us, we see the same savior predator standing on a lintel.
-Gobo shadows of aliens are now projected onto the walls adjacent to us, revealing alien figures that are hidden in the temple architecture.
-In the screen ahead of us, we see a group of aliens approaching toward us and the predator. the predator tries to hock back the aliens, firing laser shots at them but he is overwhelmed.
-The predator keys a code into a device on his wrist – a self detonating device. It sets off and causes an explosion, the ride vehicle dropping 6m into Scene 10.
-Amidst the rubble, we see flashlight shining towards us, with voices calling out to us. The ride vehicle moves slowly forward and turn into unload.

After the ride, guests would exit into a gift shop themed after a mining tunnel, reaching a temple chamber. A statue of a Predator fighting a Xenomorph would feature prominently in the room.

Though the AvP: Descent Into Darkness ride would be the main ‘E-Ticket’ attraction, there were to be other Alien/Predator themed rides, a restaurant, and walk-through space.

Thanks to one of our sources, we’re happy to be able exclusively to show you a full animatic video of the ride! As well as never before seen early storyboards detailing the attraction! Though some narrative beats are slightly different between the two, they’re mostly the same and give a sense of what this experience might have been like. Check them both out below!

Animatic Video

Ride Storyboards

One of our sources also provided us with their thoughts on this attraction:

“It was a truly innovative coaster that fit the storyline of the IP perfectly. It would have been an extraordinary experience that would have thrilled roller coaster enthusiasts and AVP fans alike.”

We can also show you some exclusive diagrams for the attraction below:

AvP Themed Land

The entire land housing AvP: Descent Into Darkness and the other attractions was highly themed and went through numerous iterations. Initial concept art for the area released with the park’s announcement showed a massive Space Jockey ship, an element which wouldn’t make the final plans. For the entry ‘portal’ into the Alien and Predator themed section of the park, a centerpiece of the Space Jockey chamber filled with Alien eggs would be featured within a tunnel. This grand entry display went through numerous conceptual drafts:

The land would’ve featured elements from the franchise such as doors based on those of the Prometheus ship, a marine dropship, power loader. Some of the other attractions and shops would be themed after the Colonial Marines, as the narrative for the land had a USCM field station as part of the settlement. Check out some concept art for these ideas below.

A restaurant was also conceptualized which incorporated the aesthetic of the Nostromo, though not quite as sterile with hanging plants from the ceiling above and inside central pillars, evoking a ship’s garden or hydroponics lab such as what we saw in a deleted scene for Alien: Covenant.

During an earlier phase of the land’s development, a Prometheus themed roller coaster was also conceptualized:

Upon a closer look at the original announcement concept art for the land featuring the derelict ship, we can see a coaster track surrounding it. It’s likely this is the same Prometheus inspired ride.

The finalized version of the land prominently featured a secondary main attraction, this time just themed after Aliens sans Predator elements. An elevator drop ride featuring an unusual and frightening introduction. It was called…

Alien Terrorforma

You may have already seen our previous reporting on the drop tower attraction, Alien Terrorforma. Previously we discovered a demo-reel showing some behind the scenes elements as well visual sequences featuring actors to be utilized during the pre-show and ride sequence. Check out that video below if you haven’t already.

Unlike the SFX coaster which faced numerous setbacks, the drop ride attraction was mostly completed, already adorned with the logos of Weyland-Yutani on the building and ride vehicles. Alien Terrorforma was a ‘Space Shot’ style ‘Combo Tower’ ride which uses compressed air to launch and slow the elevator vehicle. This system is manufactured by S&S – Sansei Technologies based out of Logan, Utah.

The narrative featured riders as Weyland-Yutani VIP guests, receiving a tour of the terraforming tower. As we begin walking up a spiral ramp, atmosphere effects and screens help to set the mood. I’ve transcribed some of the scenes from the storyboards briefly shown in the video to help give some details.

Entrace to the Weyland-Yutani Corporation Terra-forming Alien Outpost. A terraforming Engineer in WY jumpsuit greets us.

VIPs move up the ramp, following flickering lights, past pumps, hissing, compression sounds, and voices of miners laboring away.

We follow the ramp as it takes us into the core structure of the terraforming towers.

Steel encased monitors stamped with the WY logo are sporadically placed along the ramp walkway.

We stop to watch as informational media plays on the monitor.

As we make our way up the ramp we’re introduced to a Weyland-Yutani representative named Zara, sporting a similar outfit to Prometheus’ Vickers. She gives us details about our tour and the wider operations of the Company. We’re told about the process of terraforming planets using the AES, or Atmosphere Exchange System.

The tour will be giving us a ride to the top of the terraforming tower. Below this tower is a mining operation utilizing an enormous drill. Eventually we arrive at a dimly lit holding area where we receive a safety briefing. The doors to the central chamber open and riders stow their personal belongings before sitting down and engaging their safety restraints.

After the doors close, monitors show us a WY technician instructing us to prepare for launch. Suddenly, something goes wrong, as the screen flickers and alarm klaxons go off. The platform floor opens underneath the elevator and it slowly descends into a lower chamber.

In this room, riders would be confronted with multiple Xenomorph eggs and a warrior Alien ready to strike. The WY technicians tell us to stay calm and that they’re trying to get us out of the room.

[V.O.] Engineer Devon (PA System): You are under full red alert… do not move… stay in your seats… no matter what happens… we’re working to get you out…

Before the riders become facehugger victims, the elevator shoots up to the top of the tower. After rebounding a few times using the compressed air system, the elevator ascends to the top of the tower for another drop. It stops for a moment before dropping us back downward, bounding a number of times before softly arriving back at the initial loading platform.

We catch our breath, again, unbuckle, step off the platform, retrieve our belongings and move toward the exit corridor.

Zara: We hope you’ve enjoyed your visit to Weyland-Yutani and remember… together we can discover many vast wonders, bringing high profitability to the admiration of Earth.

Physical props for the drop ride were completed, including the Xenomorph eggs, hive elements, and warriors. Check them out below, as well as some additional concept art and diagrams of the attraction:

The ride has since opened stripped of the Alien theming. Having now seen a video of it, it definitely felt like something was missing and the Alien theme was hastily removed. Even the same video screen elements remain with the technicians’ Weyland-Yutani patches swapped out for ‘Alpha Space Corporation.’

Colonial Marine Outpost

As part of the narrative for the land’s setting, the United States Colonial Marines were also stationed on this exoplanetary settlement. The ride for this area was a spinning flat ride called Colonial Fighter Pilots. Each pod would hold four riders and spin in inversions as it circled the platform.

Another attraction was the Marine Boot Camp Challenge, which was not a ride but rather a ropes course in which participants would climb a series of stars and be hooked up to a zipline taking them around the structure. Check out some conceptual artwork and plans for these attractions below:

One of the shops in the area would also be themed after a Colonial Marine APC, which was also in the process of being built!

Constructed Elements

Thanks to another one of our sources, we can give you a look at some never before seen construction photos of a large scale dropship, life-sized Power Loader, Xenomorph eggs, and Space Jockey wall:

Merchandise

During the theme park’s construction, a 20th Century Fox World gift shop opened in the Genting Highlands resort, which featured Alien, Predator, and AvP merchandise. Check out some of what could be found on the shelves below:

One Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem mug for me, please.

Ultimate Fate

Due to the settlement with Disney, the entire section would be changed into a generic space theme and be rebranded ‘Andromeda Base.’ Curiously, numerous other 20th Century Studios properties such as Planet of the Apes, Night at the Museum, Independence Day, Rio, and Ice Age were allowed to remain. But not Alien and Alien vs. Predator. Even with this new theme, the SFX coaster has yet to be completed, but is apparently still planned to be done sometime in the next two years.

Dynamic Attractions ran into financial and technical issues with their first SFX coaster, Mission Ferrari at Ferrari World in Dubai. In development at the same time as AvP: Descent Into Darkness, Mission Ferrari would eventually open, but would also be years late and millions of dollars over budget. If you’re curious to learn more about the only completed Dynamic Attractions SFX coaster, check out this excellent video on Mission Ferrari by Coaster Studios.

Unfortunately the issues with both Mission Ferrari and AvP: Descent Into Darkness led to bankruptcy for Dynamic Attractions, and it’s yet to be seen if the company will ultimately recover. Construction apparently has restarted on the SFX Coaster at Genting SkyWorlds, which will be rethemed like the rest of the land was.

If you visit the land in person today, you would be able to tell it was purpose-build to be Alien, and yet only ‘Andromeda Base’ is to be seen. We can see from the attraction logo comparisons here that the theme needed to be hastily changed late in development.

The more I see of this project, the more I lament its demise. When I was younger and excited about the release of the first AvP, I even drew a ride layout for an ‘Indiana Jones’ inspired dark ride through an AvP temple that Weyland-Yutani had discovered. This really would’ve been a dream come true for me.

Regardless, it’s always fascinating to explore what could have been with these franchises. Be it Alien 5, Prometheus 2, or even an outlandish alternate ending to ‘The Predator,’ there is still likely plenty of art and footage locked away in a vault somewhere and continuing to fuel our curiosity, even for this.

For AvP Galaxy, This is RidgeTop, signing off.

Thanks to our private sources and reddit user marquezbi for providing insight into this topic. And an extra special thanks to the ThemeparX forum, without whom this article would not have been possible.