Surprise we’re back earlier than usual to recap all the recent theme park announcements.
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VIDEO: Switchback Roller Coaster at ZDT’s Amusment Park POV.
A new style of wooden coaster is coming to ZDT’s Amusement Park in Seguin, TX in 2015. The Gravity Group designed a wooden shuttle coaster. Check out this awesome point of view animation of Switchback. This coaster will feature 1,175 ft of track, A 63 foot tall lift hill, 58 foot tall drop and will reach speeds of 40 mph travailing both forwards and backwards.
http://youtu.be/CPe4h1tjKlU?list=UU6lYzRxTvg1JHfcOTLTqawg
Haunt Review: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom Fight Fest 2014
Haunt Review: Six Flags Discvoery Kingdom Fright Fest (Sponsored By Snickers)
This year I made it up to Discovery Kingdom to check out their Fright Fest. The admission to fright fest is included in the price of your ticket but to visit the mazes is an additional fee. A bracelet was $12 for annual passholders and $20 for VIP line access. I had just purchased a standard bracelet but once I saw the line inefficiency going on I quickly grabbed a VIP pass.
First lets talk about the day activities the park hosts for the kids during the day. They offer Tiwck Or Tweat Twail, meet your favorite character handing out sweet treats on a trail. Pumpkin Patch Place, enjoy a haw maze puppet show, talking pumpkin and more. Witch’s Lair Cooking Decorating, Witch’s Brew & Island Zoo, a wildlife show with witches and animals. I did see this show and it was pretty fun! Finally , they have Hypnotist Steve Byner.
SCARE ZONE
Arachnid Alley: They say this was a big spider scare zone. I did not see any spiders that I do not remember and I had passed through this area a few times. I did see webs up in the tress though. Maybe I was just not paying too much attention?
Mt. Rotting Cemetary: This was not much a scare zone as it was just decorated. To be honest I did not even know this was an area until looking at the map and I had been through it a few times. It just looked like general park decorations.
Cirkus Berzerkus: Clown themed section of the park that was very small. It was kind of unusual though. They had built a section for you to walk through with the clowns that you had to take voluntarily to expeirence it. It was walls made of just Jail like bars, you could see right through the “maze”. Very strange choice. It kind of works though? Not sure what I think of this.
Bloodbath Bayou: I had been through this pathway as well and they did have guys out running around but the theming was very limited. There was some good terrorizing of some guests going on though so It was the most pleasing of the scare zones that I had seen.
MAZES
The Boathouse at Blood Lake: This maze was located in the station for the splash ride at the park. They were sending you in small groups to go through the maze to help with the expierence. Very scarecly themed maze and a whole lot of Drop Window scares. The best part was the inside rain scene. Once you exit the boat house the maze winds down a walled pathway with more decorations. There was hardly anyone in here working. Very weak as far as scare or entertaining factor: overall rating: 5
Massacre Mine: This was a strange maze. Not in a good way. Just strange. The walls were far apart and not tight enough to immerse you into the feeling of it being a maze or a mine. Especially with it being a mine I would hope it had a tight corridor. PLUS, no freaking roof….come on. A roofless mine? This is maybe one of the biggest bone head designer moves I have seen at a Halloween event. Another strange thing is I ran into more vibrating “animatronic” puppets than I did actual people. They just kinda….twitched….or shoock randomly. Very non believable or scary. Most guests were just laughing at them. There was one scharacter who was working the entrance and was giving the guests a good scare. That is the only reason I will be nice with my rating here. Overall rating: 5
Arsenic & Arania’s Nightmare Manor: This as a creepy mansion type maze. You wondered through rooms of a mansion with hardly anyone around to scare you. I dont remember much about this maze other than one very cool and possibly best thing I have seen at any park this year. There was room with very little decorated. Just looked like maybe a living or something. In this room was a red Velour Chair. No one sitting in it of course. It seemed as though all scharacters took the night off here. Then it happened. The chair sprang to life! Someone was in the chair! It was just a costume! This was seriously fantastic. It scared the hell out of the guy in front of me too. I wanted to just stand there and watch how it all worked but the flow of people kept me moving alon. This maze was ok but the chair brought it over the top and is why it will get a better rating. Overall rating: 7
Slaughter House Pig Farms: A hill billy pig farm with a twist. They have ran out of pigs and now they are using humans. This maze was ok. Decently themed, had a nice fridge scene in it. The ending was kind of weak and had of course a chain saw guy(see my big write up on chainsaws and why they should just go away at haunt events in my big finale write up in the next week) I have been through plenty of these hilly billy themed mazes and it was average. Nothing memorable from here. Overall rating: 6
Captain Bloats Shipwreck of Horror: This maze was located in the Sharks building. They did not cover up some of the shark tanks which was pretty cool but they also left up exhibit boards. What the heck guys! cover that stuff up! It totally killed the maze. The floor was still blue carpet and way to lit to be dark enough to be scary. The walls had TONS of detail into them but little to no effort into anything. I did not see more than 2 people inside the entire maze. This was just a
Casino Pier Announces 2015 and 2016 expansion
Casino Pier and Breakwater Beach announced today their 2015 and 2016 expansion projects. Casino Pier originally made famous by MTV’s tv show Jersey Shore which took place in the same town as this park, Seaside Heights, NJ. It was also greatly damaged by Hurricane Sandy, when images surfaced with their steel roller coaster Star Jet was sitting in the Atlantic Ocean. It is good to see this park expanding and back on it’s feet.
2015:
In 2015 Casion Pier will be adding a Double Shot Drop tower built by S&S
Universal Hollywood’s Wizarding World of Harry Potter to feature Forbidden Journey in 3D & more
New Interactive Ghostbusters Walk Through Attraction Opens At Six Flags Mexico
Lynton V Harris & The Sudden Impact! Entertainment Company have created the world’s first live
interactive GHOSTBUSTERS attraction, under License from Sony Pictures Consumer Products, and
launched into previews this past weekend ahead of an expected blockbuster Summer season starting
mid-July.
The company has inked a three year deal with Sony Pictures Consumer Products in Los Angeles, and
continues its relationship with Six Flags Mexico following the success of the Company’s previous
attractions there, ‘The Van Helsing Experience Live!’ and ‘TerminatorX: A Laser Battle for Salvation’.
Harris commented…“We probably could have eeked out another year with Terminator X given that the
fifth movie comes out this Summer, but I have been pestering Greg [Economos] at Sony for the past
couple of years to get a Ghostbusters attraction happening”.
Gregory Economos, Senior Vice President Global Consumer Products at Sony Pictures says, “We’re
excited to collaborate with Lynton on this fun, yet spooky laser tag attraction. It’s a natural fit for the
Ghostbusters brand, and we’re sure that attendees of Six Flags Mexico will know “who to call” after
making their way through the arena as paranormal heroes themselves.”
The new attraction has a cast of between six and eight live actors who will play as seasoned
‘Ghostbusters’ to interact with guests across two floors, in the historic La Llorona building inside Six Flags
Mexico. Players are ‘prepped’ downstairs in the Ghostbusters Headquarters, given their laser ghostbustin’
gear, then led upstairs and broken into teams of Ghostbusters in order to compete against each other in
an experience that features iconic environments and characters from the film. There are also cool ghost
gates, hidden targets, and ‘surprise characters’ that appear and disappear with the help of UV and lasertag
LED technology.
Director of Live Attractions Worldwide for Sudden Impact!, Dominic McChesney commented that “this first
preview weekend was a litmus test to determine if we got the brand fit right, and the audience have
already confirmed that it is a much more fun approach than Terminator X which had more of a ‘firm
handed’ approach, but enjoyed a successful four year run. Ghostbusters will be a hit!”
“We are very excited to have an attraction like this – GHOSTBUSTERS – the attraction is based on the
iconic and famous characters with the spooky adventure that the brand warrants. The families visiting us
can enjoy a unique live – interactive attraction. We invite you to be part of this exciting experience that you
can only find at Six Flags México”, said América Sosa, Communication manager at Six Flags México.
“It’s perfect for us” enthused Harris… our reputation is second to none in the interactive scare attraction
domain globally, and we also pioneered branded live laser tag adventures. Ghostbusters is one of the
most iconic brands in the history of the movies, and as the No #1 ‘horror-comedy’ of all time, and a new
film in the works for 2016, it’s a chance to converge the Ghostbusters brand with an elevated laser tag
experience to create the core brand value through creative application, along with a few fun startles.”
About Lynton V Harris & The Sudden Impact! Entertainment Company
Lynton V. Harris is a world-class keynote speaker, an entertainment industry groundbreaker, and the
subject of a Harvard Case Study, ‘Lynton V. Harris & Madison SCARE Garden’ and has been both a
commencement speaker and a guest lecturer to MBA Students at Harvard University & Business School.
Harris was awarded a prestigious Brand Laureate Award from the Asia-Pacific Brands Association – an
iconic ‘Brand Personality Award’, and he is also the subject of an Emmy Award winning documentary.
Harris and his team have imagined, created, and/or produced live attractions based on an enviable multibillion
dollar brand list that has straddled the Hollywood Studios of Paramount, Universal, Lions Gate,
MGM, Warner Bros, Twentieth Century Fox and Sony Pictures and has included some of the biggest
blockbusters of all time: The Mummy Live!, The Mummy Returns Live!, Lara Croft:Tomb Raider LIVE!,
The Mummy – Tomb of The Dragon Emperor Live!, The Scorpion King Live! , BATMAN: Arkham Asylum
Live!, Prison Break LIVE!, Van Helsing Live!, Alien Vs Predator vs You, TERMINATOR X, Universal
Monsters Alive!, SAW LIVE!, Ice Age Live!, Night at The Museum Alive!, The World War Z Experience,
The Mazerunner Adventure Live! and in 2015, Harris & Sudden Impact! are opening the world’s first
GHOSTBUSTERS X: The Ghostbusters Experience under license from Sony Pictures, at Six Flags
Mexico City.
Harris is also due to deliver an address on BRANDS ® at the International Association of Amusement
Parks and Attractions [IAAPA] Asian Conference and Trade Show in Hong Kong in June 2015.
www.suddenimpactentertainment.com
I Sat on my Nuts
Drew is back and talks all about Drew’s California Adventure. The gang then talks StarWars Land and Cedar Fair announcements.
ftp://itl.inthelooppodcast@ftp.inthelooppodcast.com/ITLAug25.2015/ITLAug25.2015
Six Flags Announcement Day
Universal Studios Hollywood: Halloween Haunt Review and Video
Yesterday we visited Universal Studios to once again visit Halloween Horror Nights. This year boasting 6 mazes, 4 scare zones and a Jabbawockeez show, it was bound to be a great night ahead. The crowds for the evening were absolutely massive with the ininevitability of them only getting longer as we progress closer to Halloween. Most mazes were between 80-110 minutes most of the evening. If visiting prepare yourself for a lot of hanging out with your friends in line.
There was some improvement from last year as far as the heavy amount of walking that took place last year. They had added a tram to the backlot where Alien Vs Predator and Crimson Peak is now located. This helped take the walking out of the event a little bit. There was also no shortage of walking for the Purge Terror Tram either. Bring comfortable shoes, something to stay hydrated, and be prepared to hoof it again this year, but not as much as last year fortunately.
Halloween: Michael Myers Comes Home
This maze was located in the upper lot by Mels Diner. You enter into the Halloween house and then wind your way through the Halloween story. This maze was of course well done as far as sets and costumes go. Michael looked as Michael as ever and also even had some appearances of the ghostly costume Michael wore for part of the film as well. there are some fairly graphic scenes in here and will satisfy those looking to feel they are being hunted by Michael himself. I have never been a fan of the Universal Studios trick where they hit a button, a sound effect and strobe light goes off, followed by the talent jumping out at you. This maze had a lot of those but to my surprise had some legitimate scares with out the gimmick. There is also a semi finale with a maze room full of Michaels which is surely going to fool most of the maze visitors. Overall I give this maze a Solid 9 out of 10.
Insidious: Return To the Further
This maze was created and inspired by the Insidious 3 film. I am not personally familiar with the 3rd film but I am a big fan of the first film. This maze definilitly had the creepy vibe of the movies. This maze even possesed one of my favorite maze scenes I have ever seen involving a long dark hallway, a creepy speaking topless over weight man speaking in a not so welcoming voice. Sure to give most visitors a good chill, or to horror fans, a huge smile in appreciation of how great this paticular part came together. There was a really smelly room (Universal loves this gimmick) with what I believe was an our door dirt scene. The smell will absolutely choke you. Its dreadful. There are some great jump scares and a violent disturbing scene involving choking and violently thrashing around the victim. Not for the weak at heart. There once again were alot of those Push button scares with minimal non strobe light sound effect scares. Over all I give this maze a Generous 8 our of 10
This Is The End: 3D
This maze was inspired by the the film, This Is the End, a Horror Comedy film. Now when this was announced everyone’s initila reaction what “how in the world is this going to work”? I stayed optimistic to see a maze that was thinking out of the box. When I arrived to the maze I was greated by a Michael Cera skewered to a street light and asking “Who took my F&*#$@ cell phone man”. They had played real audio tracks from the movie. Once I saw this I got pretty excited and knew that this was going to be fantastic. What I forgetting is this maze is going to be in 3D. This is where I think it went wrong for them. The maze looked like pretty much every single 3D clown maze we have seen before, and was lightly themed to This is the End. I was delighted to see that in deed do a great scene with the posession of Jonah Hill. Sad to see there was not a Backstreet Boys finale though. I was told by the Creative Director, John Murdy, that this was due to Copyright Restrictions. I will not give away anymore spoilers but this maze to myself was a bit of a disaster. I see what they were trying to do and it would of worked MUCH better without the 3d gimmick and all the florescent paint. I am sad to report I give this maze a 6 out of 10.
The Walking Dead: Wolves Not Far
I was not impressed with last years The Walking Dead maze at all so I did not have much faith in this years. It seems as though they have once again learned from their past mistakes and brought them back into this maze. I believe they said this is their largest and most monster filled maze. There were zombies in every corner waiting to pounce. there was a mix of Push button scares and real life jump scares. I was really impressed with this years. The zombies looked like zombies as they always do, but there were some really well put together scenes that were impressive. Particularly a woman that appeared to be a pile of goo, cadavers hanging on hooks, feeding frenzies, and creepy. Of all the mazes this was my favorite maze. This is the highlight of the mazes this year and I urge you to brave this new maze. You will not be disappointed.I give this maze a Celebratory 10 out of 10.
Knott’s Scary Farm 2015 Review
Recently we visited Knott’s Scary Farm on opening night to check out what the park would be presenting to their guests for 2015. Knott’s Berry Farm is the original Theme Park Halloween event. They have over the years set a standard and developed innovative ideas to move the Theme Park Halloween industry. This year was no exception
