Scarefest vs Fright Nights

From what I've seen this year, in comparison. Fright Nights looks like it'g going to be a much better event than Scarefest! With Alton's mazes getting used again I feel like we need a change! (Apart from The Sanctuary, it would be silly to close it on the first Scarefest will understand that it's linked to The Smiler) don't get me wrong. I love Scarefest and everything it provides! But in comparison? With six scare mazes, which all look great at this point, but may well be crap. The opening hours are better, (it's open until 10pm instead of 9pm) and as far aware scare maze entry is free?

Quick reminder I'm not hating on Towers here at all. I love Scarefest. I just want to know you guys' opinion.

Fright nights all the way. Scarefest is a pile of rat droppings compared to the atmosphere and the mazes thorpe are advertising. Plus the way the mazes are open later. A later ride close also swings it in my favour. Scarefest look mediocre at the present moment in time. It needs a complete overhaul, with a good budget for once... :L

Fright Nights on paper looks to be the better event. The mazes will probably be inferior to Alton's though.
I think Thorpe now also benefits from it's smaller size with the event atmosphere, given that Alton Towers barely bother with the atmosphere around most of the park anymore.
It's good to see Fright nights have an overhaul it definitely needed it.

I really do find it baffling that, all of a sudden, Scarefest is this poor quality Halloween event and everyone is parading Fright Nights.

As much as it's excellent to see Fright Nights getting some new attractions this year, it might be worth noting that Fright Nights has changed very little over recent years, and the money spent on it has been very low.

It is quite true to say that between 2007 and 2010, one or more Scarefest attractions changed considerably every year. This isn't the case for 2013 and I am very disappointed in that. However, it doesn't suddenly mean that the mazes at Alton Towers are bad.

In fact, and I am quite happy to say it, the mazes at Alton Towers are, generally, some of the best I have done - including events in Europe.

Also, Fright Nights hasn't even opened yet. And I bet none of their mazes will be of the level of high quality of The Sanctuary, either.

Apples and pears.

I prefer Apples, and scarefest. Fright Nights don't do anything for me, but each to their own.

AstroDan said:

Also, Fright Nights hasn't even opened yet. And I bet none of their mazes will be of the level of high quality of The Sanctuary, either.

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Fright Nights does look excellent potentially. Also disappointed with some decisions in regards to making The Sanctuary a paid maze again etc - What I must say though, was even from the end of last year, to the start of this, The Sanctuary had some fantastic improvements, taking it from a maze I found a bit "meh", to something I became positively addicted to doing over and over! I will be surprised if there are not more improvements coming.

The actors over all, the spirit in the camp (which I saw thanks to doing the last run through), the creativity of the mazes I have to say is brilliant. ToTT I found dull as dishwater mind you.

What I am glad of, is that with TP going for this IP based experience, probably shorter mazes of more number, and a very different feel, what we will end up with are two completely contrasting styles of Halloween events.

That to me, is fantastic. I would far rather they diversified and kept out of each others territories, so we get as this appears - more variation on the horror themes!

I cannot wait to reacquaint myself with Dr Kelman et al, and experience this new TP Fright Night style!

I think an "AND" is now more appropriate than a "VS".

TheMan said:

ToTT I found dull as dishwater mind you.

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Could not agree more. Have always felt this - just a wander around waiting for something to happen. Very disappointing, especially as it always seems to be bigged up so much by most members on here.

I adore Terror of the Towers... genuinely, it's the first proper Halloween maze I ever did and it's the one that I always enjoy the most.

AstroDan said:

I adore Terror of the Towers... genuinely, it's the first proper Halloween maze I ever did and it's the one that I always enjoy the most.

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I think I had this about X10 and Asylum. Particularly Asylum. I think if I had done those after the likes of The Sanctuary this year I may have felt a bit differently about them.

I did find ToTT dull, but then quite a few shared that view about my obsession with Asylum. These mazes are so fantastically subjective, and so dependent upon many variants, the actors, the day you are having, the group you are with. That is why I think your first experiences of them give those mazes a real special place in your mind.

Pixie-Ro said:

Could not agree more. Have always felt this - just a wander around waiting for something to happen. Very disappointing, especially as it always seems to be bigged up so much by most members on here.

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Maybe it will be a bit more lively this year, I found the same that hardly anything happened at all, though the end was quite intense, there just seemed to be some ducking, and stairs - soooo many stairs! My run through was more like a HSE practice ;D

From past experience none of the Thorpe mazes have come close to ToTT or The Sanctuary me. Experiment 10 in its first year was a really great fresh new concept, but theming wise, it wasn't up to much.
I miss the Field that's my outstanding memory of Scarefest.

I've only ever done Fright Nights once and on the whole the mazes weren't a patch on Towers. Experiment 10 was fantastic the first time round. Then The Asylum was ok but nowhere near as good as say TotT. Saw Alive, well the less said the better. The Curse and Seven were both rather poor.

The mazes at Towers are always of a high standard. I am looking forward to seeing what Fright Nights is like this year though.

With TOTT I was sort of disappointed that the actors couldn't even be in the first room by the time we'd walked through it. Really didn't have any atmosphere in there but the rest was rather good, I always have trouble choosing between it and The Sanctuary.

As for Zombies? Not much needs to be said about it apart from it's sort of okay.. I guess.
Carnival Of Screams has always been the creepy one for me. Not scariest, but the overall atmosphere around COS is pretty great with the breakouts and stuff. It's best location was the Black Hole tent. But obviously nothing's going there again.

Really I think I miss The Boiler House the most.

Rob said:

Saw Alive, well the less said the better.

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The fact the only time I did that, during Fright Nights, consisted of a conga line... no, I mean a real conga line that ended up catching up with the group in front, who then also conga'd, I'd have to agree! May not have been the scariest experience but was one of the funniest I have had! ;D

The thing with this is who knows?

Until both are open we can't compare, in my book 3 good mazes are better than 4 mediocre ones but Thorpe might come at us with 4 amazing mazes. If they do then they will have a better event but the proof of the pudding will be the eating.

We will have to wait until the 19th to be sure, it's worth noting that Thorpe only have one attraction more than Towers and I worry that spending on an IP reduces how much they have for the mazes.

Either way in my mind a great Frightnights can only be a good thing, Towers have a great creative team behind Scarefest and if Thorpe do something amazing this year it might force the accountants to give Towers the money to prove it.

Dave said:

Either way in my mind a great Frightnights can only be a good thing, Towers have a great creative team behind Scarefest and if Thorpe do something amazing this year it might force the accountants to give Towers the money to prove it.

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Agree with this entirely Dave. I think all of us who consider these things understand it is not the Ents teams fault they cannot create an atmospheric park in its entirety. I would love them to get a big fat wad of cash and absolutely go to town as I think they would create something world class. The intro and first room of The Sanctuary to me prove what they could do with a bigger budget, that shows the imagination, the desperately deserve full backing, surely they have proven by now they are worth it.

The setting alone wins it for Alton hands down - all you have to do is wait for the sun to set, and the park already takes on a new creepy yet magical atmosphere, which Thorpe can never hope to provide. Alton has lots of wide open space to play with, not to mention an actual gothic mansion - in stark contrast with the canvas tents and warehouses of Thorpe, it's hard to imagine a better setting for a scare maze. And that's before we even move on to the matter of Nemesis in the dark...

Alright, the Asylum's pretty good, and Thorpe perhaps ARE putting more effort in this year (although, as has already been said before, look at everything that's happened before when Merlin have worked with Lionsgate). They won't top Alton's event, but it's nice to see them trying.

I agree, you cannot beat Alton's atmosphere at night. Seeing the Towers lit up in different shades on blue, purple and green is amazing across the lake. Love it

I completely agree. Towers is like a different place after sunset, and the lighting of the Towers themselves is an awesome spectacle to behold. It somehow enhances the excitement at night time, hence I always make an effort to visit Scarefest at least once a year.

Whilst I was not wading into this debate I changed my mind.

Scarefest is going to have to be awful to be worse than what I experienced at the TP preview. The two high profile new mazes are OK, and unique in their running, Cabin is rather good in fairness - I also know they are so subjective, but overall on what should have been a quiet/reasonable day it was pretty crap.

I don't want this to become a contest of "who can be less crap", I certainly do not think the ents team at Towers work this way either - but overall events wise I think Towers are going to win this hands down.

That is a shame, I had hoped both would be brilliant.

Only thing I'd say, I would like Towers to adopt a maze where you do it individual "free roaming" like the two new ones at Thorpe, they can work better, create confusion and in fairness some real good laughs when one of your group suddenly vanishes and appears about 5 minutes later again ;D