Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Oblivion is a steel roller coaster located at Alton Towers in England. The ride opened as the world''s first vertical drop roller coaster in 1998 amidst a large publicity campaign. The ride has a height restriction of 1.4 m. During 1997, Fantasy World (the area of Alton Towers in which Oblivion was eventually situated) was closed off and all the old fantasy-themed rides were removed except the Black Hole. Surrounding the area were signs announcing the arrival of a world''s first, codenamed "SW4". Over the year, Alton Towers'' secrecy and the ever-deepening hole being excavated fueled speculation and hype. The details about Oblivion were finally unveiled in March 1998.