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2013: General Discussion
AstroDan
TS Team
AstroDan
TS Team
Resort Update: 22.9.13
1. Horror Nights Preparation
Horror Nights previews this week, and the park are finishing off the construction of the various attractions. Here, on the left is Take Away and on the right, The Crypt:
Here, we see the queue for Matterhorn Blitz, part of which is to be used for the Snow White attraction:
Poseidon's queueline, meanwhile, changes ready for The Undead:
2. Park Refurbishments
Paint jobs on the Baby Service area:
New flags for Old Timer:
3. Winter Season Map 2013/14:
Once again, the map doesn't highlight Blue Fire or Wodan, one of which is likely to be open when the temperature is 5C+. The rides are left off, just like Schweizer Bob Bahn is off the list, so as not to cause disappointment if they cannot open due to the weather:
4. Theming additions in the Magic Cinema 4D:
5. Park Halloween theming arrives:
All images from Chris-Space or EPRust.
1. Horror Nights Preparation
Horror Nights previews this week, and the park are finishing off the construction of the various attractions. Here, on the left is Take Away and on the right, The Crypt:
Here, we see the queue for Matterhorn Blitz, part of which is to be used for the Snow White attraction:
Poseidon's queueline, meanwhile, changes ready for The Undead:
2. Park Refurbishments
Paint jobs on the Baby Service area:
New flags for Old Timer:
3. Winter Season Map 2013/14:
Once again, the map doesn't highlight Blue Fire or Wodan, one of which is likely to be open when the temperature is 5C+. The rides are left off, just like Schweizer Bob Bahn is off the list, so as not to cause disappointment if they cannot open due to the weather:
4. Theming additions in the Magic Cinema 4D:
5. Park Halloween theming arrives:
All images from Chris-Space or EPRust.
Plastic Person
TS Member
Am I right in saying a tamed down version of Take Away is open with the park during the Halloween season?
AstroDan
TS Team
Plastic Person said:
Almost.
A tamed down version of VILLA is open during the daytime - usually from around 11am to 4 or 5pm.
It is located next to the Flight of Icarus (balloon ride) in Greece.
Interview with Jora Entertainments about developments for Horror Nights this year:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRlC_2mX48U#
AstroDan
TS Team
Horror Nights 2013
Early reports from HN 2013 are that it is an improvement on 2012, although still some way short of the original THN events in 2007 and 2008. That said, all we can ask for are improvements!
Here's a video of one of the tracks "I am an Animal" from the HN 2013 soundtrack, which has been releasted on HellFest Records today and is available at the park and online. The video is fan made and has some photo's from the press night of HN which took place last night:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWaoJBHODgs#
Early reports from HN 2013 are that it is an improvement on 2012, although still some way short of the original THN events in 2007 and 2008. That said, all we can ask for are improvements!
Here's a video of one of the tracks "I am an Animal" from the HN 2013 soundtrack, which has been releasted on HellFest Records today and is available at the park and online. The video is fan made and has some photo's from the press night of HN which took place last night:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWaoJBHODgs#
AstroDan
TS Team
Halloween Season Begins
As is the case with many of the major European resorts, UK excluded, today sees the beginning of the Halloween Season. Europa-Park is no exception, and the whole resort has been transformed - with decoration across every themed area and every hotel. The park will remain this way until the end of the main season on Sunday, 3rd November before it becomes a Winter Wonderland from November 23rd when the Winter Season begins.
Horror Nights runs Friday/Saturday nights through the end of September and most of October, with daily events taking place from 25th October through to 2nd November.
This year, Marc Terenzi is completely out of the equation with the event (although he will be doing some DJ sets at the Vampires Club on selected evenings) and it sees Europa-Park, together with Jora Entertainment, going it alone - with some new mazes, a major new Ice Show and Scare Zones. There are, in all, 160 actors across the mazes and scare zones, plus 3 rides available (Pegasus, Matterhorn Blitz, Cassandra).
Mysteria returns from 25th October - 3rd November - the dramatic 1/2 hour fireworks, laser, pyrotechnics, dancing, music and fountain show - which is included with all theme park tickets and runs at around 6.30pm in the evening after dark, with the parks rides also remaining open during that week until after darkness. A perfect chance to ride Wodan, Blue Fire, Silver Star and the others under cover of darkness and see the parks amazing lights.
Other Halloween attractions include re-themes to Eurosat, Koffeekopjes (Tea Cups) and Feria Swing (aka Vampire's Flight) along with food and beverage. There's also a daytime scare maze, several walk through's (i.e. Spider Island) and other grizzly offerings across both park and hotels.
The park will open fairly late at peak times, tonight for example it closes at 8pm, although ride close, as usual with Europa-Park is entirely dependent on how busy the park is.
As is the case with many of the major European resorts, UK excluded, today sees the beginning of the Halloween Season. Europa-Park is no exception, and the whole resort has been transformed - with decoration across every themed area and every hotel. The park will remain this way until the end of the main season on Sunday, 3rd November before it becomes a Winter Wonderland from November 23rd when the Winter Season begins.
Horror Nights runs Friday/Saturday nights through the end of September and most of October, with daily events taking place from 25th October through to 2nd November.
This year, Marc Terenzi is completely out of the equation with the event (although he will be doing some DJ sets at the Vampires Club on selected evenings) and it sees Europa-Park, together with Jora Entertainment, going it alone - with some new mazes, a major new Ice Show and Scare Zones. There are, in all, 160 actors across the mazes and scare zones, plus 3 rides available (Pegasus, Matterhorn Blitz, Cassandra).
Mysteria returns from 25th October - 3rd November - the dramatic 1/2 hour fireworks, laser, pyrotechnics, dancing, music and fountain show - which is included with all theme park tickets and runs at around 6.30pm in the evening after dark, with the parks rides also remaining open during that week until after darkness. A perfect chance to ride Wodan, Blue Fire, Silver Star and the others under cover of darkness and see the parks amazing lights.
Other Halloween attractions include re-themes to Eurosat, Koffeekopjes (Tea Cups) and Feria Swing (aka Vampire's Flight) along with food and beverage. There's also a daytime scare maze, several walk through's (i.e. Spider Island) and other grizzly offerings across both park and hotels.
The park will open fairly late at peak times, tonight for example it closes at 8pm, although ride close, as usual with Europa-Park is entirely dependent on how busy the park is.
Sam
TS Member
Spotted by Astro, but he hasn't bothered to post these updates so...
Oldtimer-Fahrt
New jazzy costume for Euromaus.
BENCH
New penguins, because why the hell not?
Other
Construction of new admin block.
New change machine in France, base of Eurotower.
Also, an interesting article in the Badische Zeitung about Albert de Paris, better known as the park's legendary Charlie Chaplin.
After 23 years, the mayor of Rust is stepping down. Applications are open now if anyone is interested!
Oldtimer-Fahrt
New jazzy costume for Euromaus.
BENCH
New penguins, because why the hell not?
Other
Construction of new admin block.
New change machine in France, base of Eurotower.
Also, an interesting article in the Badische Zeitung about Albert de Paris, better known as the park's legendary Charlie Chaplin.
After 23 years, the mayor of Rust is stepping down. Applications are open now if anyone is interested!
AstroDan
TS Team
AstroDan
TS Team
The stage for Mysteria is currently being put up. The show. which features music, fire, lights, lasers, fireworks, water projections, projection mapping and dance will run every day from 26th October to 3rd November, at 6.30pm in the Festival Arena, between Euro-Mir and The Flight of Icarus:
Photo from Pierrot P.
Photo from Pierrot P.
AstroDan
TS Team
And with the final crashes and bangs of Mysteria, the 2013 Summer Season at Europa-Park has just come to a close after a very busy weekend - Friday (1st November) was the 3rd busiest day of the season, with ride close extended to 9:00pm.
The park closes until Saturday, 23rd November when it re-opens in all of its winter glory. It then closes again on Sunday, 5th January.
The park closes until Saturday, 23rd November when it re-opens in all of its winter glory. It then closes again on Sunday, 5th January.
Sam
TS Member
A few other little changes and improvements on-park that I noticed since April, that haven't been picked up by the fansites:
- New on-ride photo on Piccolo Mondo
- New red flashing lights on Alpen Express
- The underside of Atlantica has had new coverings put over it to make it more aesthetically pleasing
- More theming has been added to the Fjord Rafting lifthill, including new animatronics and a big 'MACK BEER' barrel!
Horror Nights 2013
Spoilers ahead!
This was my first Horror Nights, and I have to be honest, expectations were low after the critical mauling the event received in 2011, and the lukewarm reception it got in 2012. However, I was pleasantly surprised. While it didn't quite have the EP 'magic', the event did have some pretty decent exterior theming, especially in the Chinese section. Now, on to the mazes!
Take Away
The idea was definitely interesting, and it's an original theme. We need to see more of this in the scare maze world - new ideas, not just zombies/vampires/chainsaws/hospitals. The detailing on the sets was extraordinary, right down to the Chinese newspapers and half-eaten meals scattered around the dining hall. The maze itself reminded me a lot of Left 4 Dead 2, in the way it felt, and also a bit of films like Hostel.
Unfortunately however, I would have enjoyed it a lot more if it had been batched properly like Towers mazes. Instead, we effectively proceeded through in 'omnimover' fashion, reducing all the scares by about half I'd say. Walking in a continuous line can never be that scary. I appreciate that they have to keep throughputs up, but not when it comes at the extent of the experience like this. Reduce tickets available or build more mazes!
6/10 (8/10 if it had been batched properly)
The Villa
Although proceeding through in the same 'omnimover' style, this one worked better for it. A lot of the scares relied on people bursting out of things or through things, which still works OK in a continuous line. Theming was quite good, if a little cheap and cheerful. Some interesting and innovative effects going on, especially involving timed scares with sound effects and strobing. A decent maze.
6/10
The Crypt
Spiders don't do as much for me as they do for other people, so I went into this knowing it wouldn't terrify me as it did to some. However, the theming (provided by Joravision) was still good, and it was a decent maze, yes. The ending did get creepy though, especially the person seemingly paralysed in a web in the corner. That actually made my heart feel very light, and I had to run past it. Solid.
7/10
Snow White
UTTER balls. This was the maze in Blitz's queue, that ended with a ride on Blitz. I have no idea what was going on. There was no coherence. No theming. No story. No scares. Just a series of baffling 'scenes' one after an another, in which an actor did something weird and everyone moved on, non-plussed. Long queue as well.
3/10 (but 2 of those points are for the night-time ride on Blitz)
Dead Inside
The zombie maze in Poseidon's queue. Absolutely hands down the best scare maze I have EVER done. I wasn't expecting much but jesus. Sometimes in other scare mazes, things make me jump. This is the only one to have ever made me full on involuntarily scream and stagger back several steps, my heart stopping and my whole body palpitating. Why, you ask?
In other mazes, the effects and the actors have no connection. In TOTT, the actors jump out at you, but it isn't connected with any effects or with the music. In Dead Inside, each big scare is a major set piece. You enter a room full of crates and suddenly the room goes pitch black. Then, without warning, an actor bursts out of one of the crates in exact sync with a piercing audio scream and a burst of strobing. That little technological extra turns a normal scare into a heart-stopper.
10/10
Overall
7/10
- New on-ride photo on Piccolo Mondo
- New red flashing lights on Alpen Express
- The underside of Atlantica has had new coverings put over it to make it more aesthetically pleasing
- More theming has been added to the Fjord Rafting lifthill, including new animatronics and a big 'MACK BEER' barrel!
Horror Nights 2013
Spoilers ahead!
This was my first Horror Nights, and I have to be honest, expectations were low after the critical mauling the event received in 2011, and the lukewarm reception it got in 2012. However, I was pleasantly surprised. While it didn't quite have the EP 'magic', the event did have some pretty decent exterior theming, especially in the Chinese section. Now, on to the mazes!
Take Away
The idea was definitely interesting, and it's an original theme. We need to see more of this in the scare maze world - new ideas, not just zombies/vampires/chainsaws/hospitals. The detailing on the sets was extraordinary, right down to the Chinese newspapers and half-eaten meals scattered around the dining hall. The maze itself reminded me a lot of Left 4 Dead 2, in the way it felt, and also a bit of films like Hostel.
Unfortunately however, I would have enjoyed it a lot more if it had been batched properly like Towers mazes. Instead, we effectively proceeded through in 'omnimover' fashion, reducing all the scares by about half I'd say. Walking in a continuous line can never be that scary. I appreciate that they have to keep throughputs up, but not when it comes at the extent of the experience like this. Reduce tickets available or build more mazes!
6/10 (8/10 if it had been batched properly)
The Villa
Although proceeding through in the same 'omnimover' style, this one worked better for it. A lot of the scares relied on people bursting out of things or through things, which still works OK in a continuous line. Theming was quite good, if a little cheap and cheerful. Some interesting and innovative effects going on, especially involving timed scares with sound effects and strobing. A decent maze.
6/10
The Crypt
Spiders don't do as much for me as they do for other people, so I went into this knowing it wouldn't terrify me as it did to some. However, the theming (provided by Joravision) was still good, and it was a decent maze, yes. The ending did get creepy though, especially the person seemingly paralysed in a web in the corner. That actually made my heart feel very light, and I had to run past it. Solid.
7/10
Snow White
UTTER balls. This was the maze in Blitz's queue, that ended with a ride on Blitz. I have no idea what was going on. There was no coherence. No theming. No story. No scares. Just a series of baffling 'scenes' one after an another, in which an actor did something weird and everyone moved on, non-plussed. Long queue as well.
3/10 (but 2 of those points are for the night-time ride on Blitz)
Dead Inside
The zombie maze in Poseidon's queue. Absolutely hands down the best scare maze I have EVER done. I wasn't expecting much but jesus. Sometimes in other scare mazes, things make me jump. This is the only one to have ever made me full on involuntarily scream and stagger back several steps, my heart stopping and my whole body palpitating. Why, you ask?
In other mazes, the effects and the actors have no connection. In TOTT, the actors jump out at you, but it isn't connected with any effects or with the music. In Dead Inside, each big scare is a major set piece. You enter a room full of crates and suddenly the room goes pitch black. Then, without warning, an actor bursts out of one of the crates in exact sync with a piercing audio scream and a burst of strobing. That little technological extra turns a normal scare into a heart-stopper.
10/10
Overall
7/10
Sazzle
TS Administrator
Excellent report there! Gives me confidence for a visit in 2014
One thing I'm surprised at is the batching - I don't recall congalines being done before?
I don't mind waiting for experiences so long as the end result is worth it. If the mazes were strong, the wait wouldn't be an issue regards batching!
Sent using Tapatalk
One thing I'm surprised at is the batching - I don't recall congalines being done before?
I don't mind waiting for experiences so long as the end result is worth it. If the mazes were strong, the wait wouldn't be an issue regards batching!
Sent using Tapatalk
ImUrNemeis
TS Member
Jonathan said:
Anyone from Towersstreet eaten there?