Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin

Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters (also known as Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin, Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters, Buzz Lightyear Astro Blaster, or Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast depending on the park) is an attraction at Disneyland at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California that opened on March 17, 2005 (officially on May 5, 2005) for Disneyland's 50th Anniversary. It is based off Tokyo Disneyland's Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters attraction, but has some changes.

Premise
Guests board a "XP-40 Space Cruiser" armed with two infrared guns, "Astro Blasters," which takes them through scenes in space featuring characters Buzz Lightyear and Evil Emperor Zurg. Guests must shoot at differently-shaped targets, worth different amounts of points depending on the shape of the target. The Space Cruisers take guests through Star Command, to Zurg's ship, and then to Planet Z, through a lightspeed tunnel similar to that of Star Tours, and into a final battle between Buzz and Zurg.

My Disney Experience Official Description
Fire lasers to defeat Zurg in this shooting gallery game that puts you in the center of a thrilling space battle.

Target Point Values

 * Circle - 100 points
 * Square - 1,000 points
 * Diamond - 5,000 points
 * Triangle - 10,000 or more points

Secret Targets
It is been said that there are secret targets throughout the attraction. Here are a few:


 * In both the scenes with Audio-Animatronic Zurg, there are hidden targets in between his chestplates.
 * On the right & left sides, and on the ceiling of the black tunnel with the horrizontal running lights.

Internet
Since the attraction's opening, guests are able to send their scores and High Definition photos via email. It is the only Disneyland attraction to offer free souvenir photos.

In June 2005, people at home will be able to help riders at Disneyland boost their scores by playing an arcade-style video game on their computers, in which the score on the game is added to a rider's score. However, this feature is currently deactivated.

Alternate Magic Kingdom Version
The Buzz Lightyear attractions are a series of attractions based on the Disney/Pixar film Toy Story 2 at Walt Disney Parks around the world. Although each ride may have a different name (as seen on the infobox to the right), all share the same plot and major characters. As each form of the attraction appeared, new technology has allowed the guest to better interact with the ride and even connect with personal computer users.

The attractions use a third-generation Omnimover system, and are combination of a shooting gallery and a dark ride. The first ride featured laser guns that were not movable, but later versions featured the guns that are held in a holster and movable with the exception of a cord to keep them in the vehicle after the ride has ended. In 2005, the Walt Disney Company premiered a home version of the ride in the form of an internet video game that allows users to connect with guests at the parks. The scores of each guest from the dark ride are tallied with the internet gamer and increase the points won. There is also an attraction at Walt Disney World Resort's DisneyQuest with the name "Buzz Lightyear's Astroblasters", where players ride and control cars while shooting balls at each other.

Plot
The back story of the ride revolves around the attempts of Evil Emperor Zurg to steal the "crystallic fusion cells" (i.e., batteries) used to power the space vehicles of the "Little Green Men." Participants are "Star Command" raw recruits sent to defeat Zurg. The queue area is awash in the chartreuse, white, and bright blue hues of Buzz Lightyear himself (voiced by Corey Burton, who does voices for many Disneyland attractions). Since Buzz Lightyear is a toy, the attraction is cleverly scaled to give the illusion that one has just been reduced to the size of an action figure, featuring such detail as giant, exposed Philips screw heads and an explanation of the interactive phase of the ride that resembles a toy's instruction sheet, only on a gigantic scale. An Audio-Animatronic Buzz Lightyear figure and giant Etch-a-Sketch (Disneyland) and/or Viewmaster (Disney World) provide explanation of the "mission."That is to destroy Zurg`s secret weapon with your blasters.

Technical aspects
"Astro Blasters" and "Space Ranger Spin" are not only considered a shooting gallery, but also a "dark ride". Visitors board an Omnimover space vehicle featuring two laser pistols and a joystick. The pistols are used to shoot laser beams at targets of varying point values. Targets that are hit while lit up will produce much higher scores. A digital readout on the dashboard shows the player's score. The joystick allows full 360-degree rotation of the vehicle to assist in aiming. During the ride, if the ride slows down or completely stops (this is a result of either a handicapped guest or a ride breakdown), this allows for "bonus points" as the pistols and targets do not turn off. There are 4 different shaped targets. Round, square, triangle, and diamond shaped. The triangle and diamond shaped targets are worth the most points. At one point in the attraction, each visitor is photographed during game play and, at "Astro Blasters", has the option of sending an electronic postcard via e-mail at the exit queue. "Astro Blaster's" photos include the player's score. If the score is in the top 100 highest of the day, the player's ranking is also included in the photo. The Top 10 players' scores are shown on the scoreboard at the exit queue, along with 3 letters that the person chooses to identify themselves. The top person gets their face posted on the screen. The new Disneyland attraction features at-home play tied directly to the attraction itself via the Internet. The home game enables players to help Disneyland visitors by lighting up special targets that allow both sides to win more points.The score is on the status board and so was the rank.

Trivia

 * Magic Kingdom's version was actually the first version to come out. It opened in 1998 and was named Space Ranger Spin. Because it came out a year before Toy Story 2, Zurg's voice was not yet finalized; his voice sounds extremely similar to Frank Welker's Dr. Claw voice (it may even be Welker's voice). Other versions were named Astro Blasters. (Disneyland Paris named it Laser Blast).
 * Hint: Usually small targets and far away targets are worth the most points.