2023 looks to be a very strong year for new roller coasters. Per RCDB,
180 new roller coasters are scheduled to open this year. Typically I try to get this list out in Q1,
but I wanted to wait until rides were further along in their construction and testing phases.
Heck, some of these rides have already opened to rave reviews. I should be getting on a handful of
them this summer. So in this video, I will rank my top 25 most anticipated coasters in 2023.
Before starting the list, I want to note a few rides that will be excluded.
First, there will be no mountain coasters. There are 10 scheduled to open this year.
They’re usually fun, but the experiences often blend together so
they can’t beat the 25 rides I selected. Second, I am not including any coasters
with unknown layouts. This means you will not see the GCI coming to Happy
Valley Changán or the Mack launched Big Dipper coming to Sun World Ba Na Hills.
Third, I want to give honorable mentions to two creations from Jinma Rides. You have the
Aurora Flying Coaster at Silk Road Paradise and Rush Out of Yulin Stronghold at Sanya Silk Road
for poorly ripping off other manufacturers. Their rides were known for being very rough.
Their two newest rides look significantly better- both in terms of layout and profiling-
but I’m going to wait until more reviews come out before increasing my excitement level.
25) DarKoaster at Busch Gardens Williamsburg- This is an Intamin straddle coaster entirely
indoors. It promises to continue the story of the Curse of DarKastle dark ride that it replaced.
Motocoasters typically have punchy launches and a great sense of speed, and I imagine that will
be accentuated by the darkened environment and some special effects. This should help
compensate for the ride’s short height and length. 24) Motorbike Coaster at Fuji-Q Highland- This is
another Intamin straddle coaster, but it’s larger and more involved. I imagine the tire-driven
launches will have deceptive force to them like the ones on Juvelen. Then the layout has a mix of
larger, heavily twisted hills and some low turns. 23) Maximus – Der Flug des Wachters at Legoland
Deutschland- This is a small B&M wing coaster. But the initial helix looks like it could have
some sustained Gs and the two inversions appear to have incredible hangtime. I really hope this ride
is a success for the park and it’s added to more Legoland parks across the globe.
22) Mandrill Mayhem at Chessington World of Adventures-
This is yet another small B&M wing coaster, but this one is unique for being a shuttle coaster.
You have a multi-pass launch, spikes on both end of the layout, and a super-slow barrel roll.
I’m particularly excited for the hangtime on the backwards pass.
21) Gozimba at Serengeti Park- This may be the weirdest ride on this list. It is an Air Loop
from RES. Take the vehicle from a Gerstlauer Sky Fly and put it on a coaster track. That’s
basically what this coaster is. Sky Flys are one of my favorite flat rides. I can get dozens of
flips on them. So I’m intrigued how different the experience will feel navigating a full layout with
a series of twists, turns, and dips. It should make the flipping even more disorienting.
20) Uncharted at PortAventura- This is an indoor multi-launch coaster from Intamin.
While it has modest stats, the quirky elements should keep riders on their toes.
Then the theming should elevate the whole experience. I’m not attached to the film
franchise, but I hope there’s a lot to see along the layout.
19) Top Gun at Fantawild- This Vekoma launch coaster doesn’t appear to have the same pacing
or airtime as their other new coasters, but the inversions look fantastic. That high-speed barrel
roll should offer some downright wicked latearls. 18) Whale Breaking the Sky at Fuli Ocean Happy
World- This looks like a cross of Hersheypark’s Fahrenheit and one of their 10 inversion coasters.
You have a vertical lift and drop. Then you have a layout with 5 inversions. The first two look like
they’ll get you out of your seat, but I’m not sold on the cobra roll. Then the second half looks to
throw in some airtime pops for variety. 17) Zambezi Zinger at Worlds of Fun-
This is a funky GCI creation. It’s mostly wood, but there are some special steel sections.
The spiral lift hill makes it the spiritual successor to the old Schwarzkopf Speed Racer that
came before it, but the layout is a lot different. It stays low to the ground, as it weaves its way
through the woods. I know this is being marketed as a family coaster, so I doubt the airtime will
be as strong as some GCIs, but the location and speed should make it plenty enjoyable.
16) Storm – the Dragon Legend at TusenFryd- This is a weird inverted coaster from Gerstlauer. It
will feature a multi-pass launch and we know this company can make powerful launches.
And there’s a little bunny hill that should deliver awesome airtime.
There are two wild cards for me. First, what forces will the three dive loops deliver.
Will they offer airtime and laterals, or just positive Gs. Second, will the ride be
smooth? Some Gerstlauers can be pretty rattly. 15) Big Bear Mountain at Dollywood- This looks
to be a great family launch coaster from Vekoma. While it may not match the rides ahead of it on
this list in terms of intensity, it sports a very long layout with at least a dozen airtime hills.
And the ride has on-board audio too! I wish the landscaping around the attraction was
more refined, but the elements should be strong enough to stand on their own.
14) Tron Lightcycle Power Run at Magic Kingdom- This Vekoma motorbike coaster looks really cool.
The initial launch and outdoor turn look to have great speed.
Then the indoor sections look to have some psychedelic theming. I’ve heard the coaster feels
a bit on the shorter side, but I’ll happily hop back in line if it delivers a quality experience.
13) Matugani at Lost Island Theme Park- This Intamin accelerator coaster was formerly known as
Kanonen at Liseberg. While it’s smaller than other hydraulic launch coasters, that initial launch
should still have some serious yank. And the rest of the layout is more complete. You have a rapid
series of inversions and airtime hills. 12) Pipeline at SeaWorld Orlando-
The prototype B&M surf coaster is a new generation stand-up coaster. The initial launch looks pretty
good. Then instead of delivering a ride chalk full of inversions and positive Gs
like the old stand-ups, Pipeline is all about the transitions and airtime. And because the seats
move up-and-down a few inches, those negative Gs look really unique and extreme at points. And I’ve
heard this is significantly more comfortable than the older stand-ups. While I’ve found a
way to ride the older ones comfortably, this is a positive development for your average rider.
11) Launch Coaster at Colorful World- This S&S creation should be getting more attention. It
will feature one of their intense pneumatic launches. Then the layout is a mix of airtime
hills and inversions. The top hat and smaller hills should have good airtime. Then the two low
barrel rolls should offer some ferocious whip. 10) Mission Ferrari at Ferrari World Abu Dhabi-
This long delayed SFX coaster looks really unique. It has multiple show
scenes and some bizarre elements. You have some launches and two inversions. Then there
are some weird track maneuvers, including one at the end that is a world’s first.
9) All American Triple Loop at Indiana Beach- This is the one ride on the list I technically
rode. I experienced it as Quimera at La Feria de Chapultepec. I have an entire review on that
coaster, but in short, it was the most intense coaster I had ever ridden. Part of that may
have been Mexico City’s high elevation, but the layout was fast and extremely forceful. The three
inversions had greyout-inducing positive Gs. And with the lack of braking, the second half had some
shocking airtime and lateral moments. With a few other large Schwarzkopfs closing, I’m glad Indiana
Beach is giving this ride another chance at life. 8) Hyper Space Warp at Fantawild- This looks like
an improved version of Energylandia’s Formula. That ride had a nice mix of airtime, inversions,
and positive Gs. It was just short. This one has an extended layout with some extra
airtime hills and then the initial launch is replaced by a steep, airtime-laiden drop.
7) Super Boomerang at Fantawild- This Vekoma creation looks to have an incredible layout
you experience going both forwards and backwards. It starts with a big vertical drop. Then you have
all sorts of airtime hills and I’m especially excited for those negative Gs going backwards.
Then there are two inversions with the barrel roll before the return spike looking particularly
special. It reminds me of the final inversion on Great Adventure’s old Chiller coaster.
6) Firestorm at Ocean Flower Island Fairyland- This is a big Vekoma launch
coaster. The lone launch should be pretty forceful since it accelerates you to 72 mph.
Then the main layout has a beautiful mix of airtime hills and inversions. The big
question is whether the intensity is closer to Legendia’s Lech Coaster or Energylandia’s Abyssus.
If it’s closer to the former, this could be one of the world’s best coasters.
5) Manta at SeaWorld Abu Dhabi- This will be a long Intamin creation featuring 3 LSM launches.
Assuming this is a high-thrill coaster, I’m putting faith in Intamin that the experience
will include countless airtime moments and snappy maneuvers. If that’s the case,
it could be a dark-horse candidate for the best ride in the UAE.
4) Wildcat’s Revenge at Hersheypark- This RMC hybrid converts the former Wildcat wood
coaster into an infinitely smoother and wilder experience. The ride doesn’t look to have as
many instances of airtime as other RMCs, but the hills it does have should deliver.
Where this ride appears to excel is in the pacing and inversion department. This ride will take you
upside-down 4 times, and I’m particularly excited for the giant step-up underflip and zero-G stall.
3) Batman Gotham City Escape at Parque Warner Madrid- This is the signature coaster this
Spanish park desperately needed. This ride looks like a mash-up of Velocicoaster and Pantheon.
You have 3 launches, all of which should have some oomph to them. Then you have a diverse
layout combining airtime hills and inversions. And I fully expect the latter to lift you out of your
seat, particularly on that super sustained stall towards the end. Then this coaster has a unique
finale with a vertical spike as well. 2) Toutatis at Parc Asterix-
This LSM Launch coaster does a lot of the same things as Batman, but it looks to be
more airtime centric. It is advertised as having roughly 2 dozen airtime moments. The swing launch
sequence should offer a beautiful mix of negative Gs and weightlessness like the one on Pantheon.
Then the main layout just keeps finding ways to toss you from your seat, whether it be a bunny
hill or a hangtime filled inversion. 1) ArieForce One at Fun Spot Atlanta-
I love airtime. And this RMC hybrid looks like the king of the 2023 coasters in this department.
Everyone who has ridden this coaster says it has incredible ejector airtime. Heck, some say the
quad down at the end is even a bit too much! Then there are four great inversions as well.
The long zero-G stall looks exceptional and then I’ve heard the two barrel rolls towards the end
are super intense and whippy. This looks like a top tier RMC, meaning it has a shot to place in my
top 5 overall coasters when I eventually ride it. So those are my top 25 most anticipated coasters
for the 2023 season. The top of the list is dominated by RMC and Intamin,
which isn’t too surprising since I love comparable rides they’ve produced
elsewhere. What are your most anticipated rides in 2023 and if you’ve ridden any of these already,
let me know if I’m hyping them up too much or too little? If you enjoyed this countdown, I’d
appreciate it if you gave this video a like and you considered subscribing since there will be a
lot more roller coaster and amusement park videos here at Canobie Coaster. Thanks for watching!