Part rollercoaster and part psychological experiment, this mind-bending ride has a playful and devious twist. The more fear you feel, the faster it goes.

The idea

The Neurocoaster isn’t just a thrill ride. It is an immersive adventure into the bizarre world of mad scientist Dr. Brian Meyerkopf. At heart, Dr. Meyerkopf is a classic mad scientist character – except he’s living and working in present-day Silicon Valley. Imagine Dr. Frankenstein crossed with Elon Musk, which is surprisingly easy to do.

Dr. Meyerkopf isn’t evil per se. But, like any truly mad scientist, he has an obsession. In his case, it’s brains. He is mad about all matters grey matter – the stranger, the better, from telekinesis to mind-melding.

Within the world of the story, the Neurocoaster is just another of Meyerkopf’s weird and wonderful experiments – for which guests are volunteering as his test subjects. The journey begins with a dark ride experience that leads guests through Meyerkopf’s laboratory. Following this, they are prepped to take part in his experiment.

Once onboard the Neurocoaster, test subjects have nothing to fear but fear itself. Using biofeedback sensors, the ride can measure the emotions of passengers in real-time, which triggers it to go faster or slower – up to a maximum speed of 88 miles per hour. What’s more, it is designed to present test subjects with plenty to be fearful of. Featuring various loops and inversions, the contorted tracks weave in and out of Meyerkopf’s laboratory, as well as spiralling around and around the giant Tesla Coil that powers his research.

At the end of the experiment, guests can view their test results and compare themselves with friends and family members.

Backstory

Dr. Meyerkopf has dedicated his life to studying the brain. He believes a world of infinite possibilities lies waiting to be discovered inside our heads. This lifelong obsession began as a boy when Meyerkopf realised the brain was the only thing in the universe capable of thinking about itself. This was shortly followed by the realisation that it was also the only thing capable of thinking about thinking about itself and so on, until he gave himself a headache.

These days, Dr. Meyerkopf heads up Myerkopf Labs, the world’s most advanced laboratory for experimental neurological research. It is located in Deja Vista, on the outskirts of Silicon Valley. In 2017, he was honoured with a Nobel Prize nomination for his groundbreaking work towards finding a cure for earworms.

Due to his acute paranoia, Dr. Meyerkop distrusts most other scientists as he thinks they are trying to steal his research. This is why the majority of his co-workers are specially-trained gorillas.

These intelligent primates were all once test subjects who he handpicked to help out with his experiments. With their simian assistance, Dr. Meyerkopf conducts a wide array of cutting-edge research, including his latest brainchild, The Neurocoaster.

When Dr. Meyerkopf first conceived of The Neurocoaster, he was intrigued to see how it might affect the human psyche. He hoped its paradoxical engineering would rewire the brain to take control of its own emotions. But, so far, the results have been disappointing. There is very little evidence to suggest his experiment works – and if anything, it may very well have the opposite effect.

If it wasn’t for the crowds of test subjects volunteering every day, Dr. Meyerkopf might have abandoned the experiment long ago.

Bird-The-Neurocoaster-Simon-Bird.pdf

Concept by Simon Bird
Illustrations by Mohamed Skifati