With an attraction that’s this popular and this unreliable, there’s obviously no perfect solution to getting a chance to ride. But I’m starting to wonder if they should try a system that is a combination of FP+ and boarding groups. What if they made ROTR a ride option when selecting FPs but instead of a return time window you got a BG number. It would count as one of your 3 FPs for the day and you couldn't make a ROTR BG if you have FPs at other parks.
I know with FP+ you risk having spots taken up by people who end up not showing up, but at least a system like this would alleviate the inconvenience of going early and getting shut out, as well as the massive crowds and immediate long waits at opening. As I said, it’s not perfect, but it’s easier to plan around. It would also hopefully cut down on the people who devote every morning of their trip to trying to get a BG and riding multiple days. People will realistically want FPs at other parks, so if you want to do that, you can’t get ROTR.
A system like this would probably constantly crash the app though with even more people trying. But I’d be less upset about missing out if I did it from the comfort of home rather than getting up early and going all the way to the park.