Liquid Light Studios of Los Angeles helped give birth to Valencia,
California's theme park Six Flags Magic Mountain's new roller coaster --
"The Goliath." Liquid Light created a 3D simulation of the ride, so execs
could take in the thrills before tracks were even laid. Last year, the
animation studio completed a similar 3D simulation for the park's
"Riddler's Revenge." Built around an "Indiana Jones," jungle theme, the
main highlights of this new coaster is that it travels up to speeds of 85
mph and climbs to heights of 255 feet. The 2:30 minute animation shows the
entire ride along with the atmospheric effects of smoke oozing from a
120-foot underground black tunnel, depth-defying drops and a mixture of
twists and turns. Liquid Light Studios used 3D Studio Max (Discreet)
running on Intergraph workstations for this animation. Digimation's Glider
was the main plug-in used to achieve the smooth effect of the train gliding
across the track.