Halloween Horror Nights 28 General Discussion

[Parkscope Joe]

@SeventyOne to me it feels like this is to appease the long lines and people complaining about not getting through the house, but hey that’s just me.

 

[SeventyOne]

@SeventyOne to me it feels like this is to appease the long lines and people complaining about not getting through the house, but hey that’s just me.

But are they there during the day? And if there are no actors, is it experience they wanted?

But my larger point is even if this proves wrong--which I suspect it will--the current fanbase is ok with it. As fans we've accepted that some HHN houses are family-safe.

 

[Parkscope Joe]

But are they there during the day? And if there are no actors, is it experience they wanted?

But my larger point is even if this proves wrong--which I suspect it will--the current fanbase is ok with it. As fans we've accepted that some HHN houses are family-safe.

It’s a boiling frog effect for sure, but how many houses are actually scary based on the sets? Giggles? Dollhouse? Scary Tales? I haven’t been going as long as you but I’ve always thought it was the actors that added the scary factor.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

Stranger Things translates well to a walk-through experience, even without scare actors. People taking selfies and posting on Social media only makes the event more popular next year.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

It’s a boiling frog effect for sure, but how many houses are actually scary based on the sets? Giggles? Dollhouse? Scary Tales? I haven’t been going as long as you but I’ve always thought it was the actors that added the scary factor.

Agree. HHN has never been truly an "intense" event. It's so popular because EVERYONE can do it.

 

[ProColor]

Agree. HHN has never been truly an "intense" event. It's so popular because EVERYONE can do it.

I'm not sure its "Never" been intense, but right now it is the tamest Haunted event. For profit purposes, and to appeal to a changing audience(modern mainstram horror seems to favor startles over scares), it makes sense. That doesn't mean I agree with making it that way, but the crowds have responded.

 

[Nick]

if they open the houses during the day, they still need to have the guides inside to make sure people dont break everything and make sure they dont get lost, so i dont know....

and as for the actors, what if they got actors like the guys that work the Kong line? how many people work the kong line anyway? couldnt people like them be called? or something like that?

The people that work Kong would likely be working Kong, but very few do anyway. Most of them are HHN scareactors as well still.

 

[Parkscope Joe]

Agree. HHN has never been truly an "intense" event. It's so popular because EVERYONE can do it.

Huh? HHN is intense in ways more than “the sets are scary”. The USH walk through will be “lights on”. I’m saying it’s more than just sets; it’s sounds, lighting, and the scare actors.

 

[Nick]

@SeventyOne to me it feels like this is to appease the long lines and people complaining about not getting through the house, but hey that’s just me.

C’mon, if that was the case they wouldn’t have waited until the event was virtually over with.

Huh? HHN is intense in ways more than “the sets are scary”. The USH walk through will be “lights on”. I’m saying it’s more than just sets; it’s sounds, lighting, and the scare actors.

Sometimes. And then sometimes, like this year, we get zones like Vamp 85 and Klowns which have no scare factor to them at all. The shows used to be themed more towards horror, too.

And yes, it is more than just sets. It’s triggers too!

 

[Parkscope Joe]

C’mon, if that was the case they wouldn’t have waited until the event was virtually over with.

Great point, maybe it’s many factors including getting approval from Netflix or having USH biting the bullet and doing it first.

 

[OhHaiInternet95]

So. When is the announcement?

Doubt they care, but if they truly do follow those rumors from the start at the event, how many people would they lose? I know for a fact that that one angry tweet at them had a lot of people retweeting who AREN’T longtimers.

Regardless, I will be voicing that advice to them when I do the guest survey. Hey, I asked for more original houses last year.

FWIW, last year seemed very adult oriented. All but half of one of the IPs (Insidious) was rated R or the TV equivalent of R. And there was a zone that had strippers. I still hope we get a Demon Cantina requel at 30.

 

[ProColor]

So. When is the announcement?

Doubt they care, but if they truly do follow those rumors from the start at the event, how many people would they lose? I know for a fact that that one angry tweet at them had a lot of people retweeting who AREN’T longtimers.

Regardless, I will be voicing that advice to them when I do the guest survey. Hey, I asked for more original houses last year.

FWIW, last year seemed very adult oriented. All but half of one of the IPs (Insidious) was rated R or the TV equivalent of R. And there was a zone that had strippers. I still hope we get a Demon Cantina requel at 30.

I don't think that the movie/TV ratings really contribute to the adultness of the event (Though I agree that last years subject matter was generally more adult). For one, it seems that sometimes the R rated stuff gets "de-resrictified" in some cases (Exorcist and TCM in 26 being the best examples I could think of). Also, HHN gore effects just look silly. Third, the event itself is PG-13.

I'm thinking the adultness is more referring to other things (scarezones not being scary, removal of shot girls/bars, Bill and Ted) than the properties. Though, I also think than expecting hard R adult horror content in 2018 in a theme park mostly known by the general public for Harry Potter is a bit silly.

 

[Nick]

I don't think that the movie/TV ratings really contribute to the adultness of the event (Though I agree that last years subject matter was generally more adult). For one, it seems that sometimes the R rated stuff gets "de-resrictified" in some cases (Exorcist and TCM in 26 being the best examples I could think of). Also, HHN gore effects just look silly. Third, the event itself is PG-13.

I'm thinking the adultness is more referring to other things (scarezones not being scary, removal of shot girls/bars, Bill and Ted) than the properties. Though, I also think than expecting hard R adult horror content in 2018 in a theme park mostly known by the general public for Harry Potter is a bit silly.

This is my theory: Stranger things brought in a crap ton of extra people under 13 this year that wouldn't have come otherwise so because there's more kiddies running around the event now, it feels less like an adult event simply by them being there in large numbers.

 

[OhHaiInternet95]

I don't think that the movie/TV ratings really contribute to the adultness of the event (Though I agree that last years subject matter was generally more adult). For one, it seems that sometimes the R rated stuff gets "de-resrictified" in some cases (Exorcist and TCM in 26 being the best examples I could think of). Also, HHN gore effects just look silly. Third, the event itself is PG-13.

I'm thinking the adultness is more referring to other things (scarezones not being scary, removal of shot girls/bars, Bill and Ted) than the properties. Though, I also think than expecting hard R adult horror content in 2018 in a theme park mostly known by the general public for Harry Potter is a bit silly.

The event has always been PG-13. It’s not like the properties they had pre-Harry Potter were adult anyway (sans Terminator). Hell Jaws was rated PG (would be PG-13 by today’s standards). Also, TCM at 26 was pretty damn faithful to the movie—there really isn’t that much gore, most of it is implied. Exorcist felt like it was a victim of budget cuts more than anything.

 

[ProColor]

This is my theory: Stranger things brought in a crap ton of extra people under 13 this year that wouldn't have come otherwise so because there's more kiddies running around the event now, it feels less like an adult event simply by them being there in large numbers.

Yes, I agree with that, with the thought that there are also more younger teens 12-14 range, because Stranger Things/80s nostalgia in general are big with the younger set.

 

[ProColor]

The event has always been PG-13. It’s not like the properties they had pre-Harry Potter were adult anyway. Hell Jaws was rated PG (would be PG-13 by today’s standards). Also, TCM at 26 was pretty damn faithful to the movie—there really isn’t that much gore, most of it is implied.

Yeah, TCM was a bit of a stretch. I know there wasnt much gore (I love the movie), but I remember thinking that a couple of things were missing from a violence perspective. Though I may be misremembering.

 

[OhHaiInternet95]

But are they there during the day? And if there are no actors, is it experience they wanted?

But my larger point is even if this proves wrong--which I suspect it will--the current fanbase is ok with it. As fans we've accepted that some HHN houses are family-safe.

Just gonna guess based off your feed in the last month that you're not too happy with any of the area's parks as of late.

(I don't disagree with every concern about family friendliness or overarching criticism, of course.)

 

[WebHead1138]

The complete history of HHN! A must watch!

 

[sadbunny]

Should scarezones always have "victim roles"
Do they really add to the experience?
Do guests really like having that in the streets?

I know in some zones like purge victims were necessary for the auction show, but , should uni cast more regular roles?
Twisted tradition has the 2-3 victim characters by the church, but to me it feels like most people dont really think much of seeing them, and then those coyld be 3 actors that could be made scary. Or made into scary characters,

Vamp has the party goers, but it feels to me like all the actors should be vampires?
I dont think most people notice the victim party goers at vamp.

I get that uni has these roles for immersion and for telling a story within the zone, i get the purpose they have,

But i dont think in practice it has always worked. Im sure some hhn fans find them very enjoyable, but to me simetimes it feels like some zones are hurt by these roles because the zone feels understaffed of scary roles.

Twisted tradition sometimes is missing a bunch of pumpkin creatures, but the victim actors are there at the entrance. Which feels strange, because i think people would rather see more pumkin monsters.
Same with vamp. I think it would have benefit from having the party goers be turned vampires.

I dont know, this might be a weird rant. Sometimes it just feels like the actor could have been given a scary role. Or that the zone would need more scary roles

I think if the zone is fully staffed victims can work but with all of the stuff I have seen about understaffing, I feel like resources should be put into making more scary guys. Although some of the victims can do a good job of spooking you. (lookin at you binder guy).

 

[Brian G.]

Victims have their role. They flesh out the story and also attempt to make the situations feel more "real". Due to their appearance (not being scary, monster, etc.) it also allows them some opportune scares as most people normally will have their guard down around them as they are expecting the creatures & co. to do the scaring.

In regards to Twisted Traditions, the teens are responsible for releasing the Halloween curse from the church. The idea of them was to warn you about going through Central Park, setting up the scene; but because of the cluster of crowds, the pumpkins have started to bleed out into that area, sometimes staying out there due to crowds.