A motion simulator is a mechanized platform that rises, dips, tilts, and moves side-to-side in order to convey the illusion of motion of movement beyond the mechanism's range of motion. The first motion simulators were simple hydraulic platforms mimicking aircraft of the time, but with the advancement of electronics in the second half of the 20th Century, motion simulators became enclosed capsules where movement of the capsule was synchronized with the movement of the point-of-view on a screen.

Most uses of motion simulators were for educational purposes, such as training aircraft pilots. Eventually, however, someone had the bright idea of using motion simulators for entertainment. And thus the Simulator Ride came to be.

A Simulator Ride is a motion simulator that plays pre-programmed movements choreographed to match the movement on a screen. Some are fully enclosed capsules, with the screen mounted on the simulator itself, while others are open box-seat motion simulators in a theater, with a large screen mounted on the wall in front of it. Some simulator rides are E-ticket attractions in major amusement parks, some are found in malls or arcades, and some are portable installations for fairs or carnivals.

Simulator Rides with their own TV Tropes pages:

• At Universal Studios:
  • The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera, one of the first major simulator rides.
  • Back to the Future: The Ride, one of the most famous simulator rides.
  • The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man.
  • The Simpsons Ride.
  • Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon.
  • Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem.
  • Fast & Furious: Supercharged, a combination simulator ride and dark ride.
  • Jimmy Neutron's Nicktoon Blast
  • Transformers: The Ride
• At Disney Theme Parks:
  • Soarin'.
  • Star Tours.
• Mass Effect: New Earth.

Other notable simulator rides:

• The Devil's Mine Ride was an early simulator ride about a mine cart travelling through a Rollercoaster Mine.
• Elvira's Superstition, an Elvira-themed simulator ride.
• Busch Gardens had a simulator ride called Akbar's Adventure Tours, in which the eponymous host leads a tour into a haunted Egyptian pyramid.
• SeaWorld had a simulator ride called Wild Arctic, in which the audience were passengers travelling to a remote arctic outpost.
• Various Disney Theme Parks had simulator rides, including:
  • Body Wars, a simulator ride at EPCOT about going inside the human body to witness white blood cells fighting off an infection.
  • Flight of Passage at Disney's Animal Kingdom's Pandora – The World of Avatar.
  • Millennium Falcon: Smuggler's Run, a Star Wars themed simulator ride at both Disneyland and Disney's Hollywood Studios.
  • Nemo & Friends Sea Rider at Tokyo Disney Sea.
  • Mission: SPACE at EPCOT, an astronaut-themed simulator ride which originally featured Gary Sinise as the Cap Com. It was later revamped and Gina Torres took over the role. Riders experienced lift-off, G forces, hypersleep, and the return to earth, and could somewhat control their vehicles with a joystick.
• At Universal Studios:
  • Earthquake: The Big One, a combination simulator ride and dark ride, that simulates the experience of an earthquake that rates 8.3 on the Richter scale.
  • Disaster! A Motion Picture Ride... Starring You!, a combination Simulator Ride/ Dark Ride/ behind-the-scenes tour.
• At one time, Dollywood had a simulator ride called Thunder Road, based on moonshine runners from the past. Guests were taken on a wild ride through a large wooded area as a moonshiner outrunning the local cops. A short film introducing the theme and characters was shown part-way through the line to keep patrons from getting bored while waiting their turn.
• Dutch Wonderland, a children's amusement park in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, used to have two motion simulators- a vintage rocket themed (and rocket-shaped) capsule called Astroliner, and a more modern capsule called VR Voyager, which played various assorted simulator rides. Both simulators closed in 2020 to make room for a new roller coaster.
• Gundam the Ride: A Baoa Qu, a simulator ride at Fuji-Q Highland in Fujiyama, Japan, which had riders caught up in the Battle of A Baoa Qu, protected by two GMs to get them to safety. It was later replaced by Gundam Crisis.
• MGM Grand Adventures had "Deep Earth Exploration," which combined video screens, hydraulically-lifted ride vehicles, and live sets to simulate a trip to the Earth's core.
• The popular SpongeBob SquarePants 4D attraction existed in a number of theme parks as a simulator ride. ^note Most notably at the Paramount Parks, several Six Flags parks, the Mall of America, and the aforementioned Dollywood It has riders join SpongeBob on a Wild Goose Chase through Bikini Bottom to complete a customer's order. A majority were closed by the late 2000s, though the ride film was still used as a 4-D movie into the 2010s.^note Though mostly at smaller amusement parks, zoos, and aquariums
• Star Trek: The Experience in Las Vegas opened with "Klingon Encounter", a 24-seat vehicle with four degrees of motion in front of a 270-degree domed theater.

Works that feature or are about Simulator Rides:

• Most of the documentary Thrill Ride was focused on the history of and science behind simulator rides, which are referred to in the film itself as "Ride Films". Segments of several simulator rides, up to and including Back To The Future: The Ride, are used for Stock Footage.
• Defunctland has made videos covering simulator rides that have closed down, including The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera, Back To The Future: The Ride, and Body Wars.
• RollerCoaster Tycoon: The first three PC games all feature some form of Motion Simulator as a possible "thrill" ride in the park, looking like a little spacecraft that shakes up and down. While they don't take up a lot of space, this means that not a lot of guests can enter it at the same time either.
• Theme Park also features motion simulators as an in-game attraction.
• The Other Wiki has an article on Simulator Rides👁 Image
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