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Duel Improvements 2012

They still seem to be fiddling with Duel at bit. I went on it yesterday and there have been a few minor changes since my last ride a few weeks back.

The lighting seems to have been altered near the big spider and the Electric Bill section, its much darker down here now and you dont see the big spider to much later on. Also the woman with the cross in her hand just pass electric bill is now in darkness until you get to it then a bright white strobe comes on.

Other than that most of the ride seems the same. The big monster thing near the start with the cup in his hand still is broken and so is the monster that pops up with the photo point at the end, other than that it seems to be working fine.
 
Ian said:
I really do think removing all of the interactive element without performing a total overhaul of the ride would be a mistake at this time. Duel is my favourite dark ride of its kind. However, it is far from my favourite interactive dark ride. Before going to Europe last week I would have said that interactive dark rides of this kind are awful, and the whole idea is a bit naff.

However, after now riding Buzz Lightyear's Laser Blast and Maus Au Chocolat I am willing to believe that the concept can be made to work. The problem with Duel I think is that it was a rushed and haphazard refit of a perfectly fine ride. They just went through and stuck targets everywhere with little or no thought. What these rides need is planning!

One of the biggest bugbears of the system is that there are so many targets and all in the wrong place. Part of the fun should be looking for the targets, and their zoning should be made so as not to interfere with the atmosphere and feel of the ride. With Due, thought a lot of the targets mean that some of the large scare props are seen long before they are triggered.

The way forward for Duel would be to drastically cut back on the number of targets (Already in progress) so there aren't so many. One target for each prop is plenty sufficient. Buzz only has targets on the important areas of each scene, and very few which are placed at random. I mean in Duel why on Earth do we spend half the time shooting window frames and pillars?! Granted, if something happened as a result it'd make more sense, but it doesn't!

Just take one target, maybe add some sort of theming to it like a target symbol at the centre, and stick one to each large prop. There are some instances when they could leave a few in. I.E. one on each leg of the giant spider. Or the two in the grim reaper's eyes. Ones like that work. But don't cake everything in them for the sake of it.

Next, if possible reverse the colours. The green is very bright and obvious. Maybe have the targets red and turn green when hit. Or even better disable to LED, place it in a crosshair as said earlier, and make the target glow in the dark. UV paints and acrylic is cheap enough to buy - £8 a can in B&Q. Then when it's hit it can flash red or green or yellow. This would make them much less obvious and more subtle. It would also add to the fun. The way riders have to look for targets to earn points, rather than being given them all.

Then, reposition the targets so they are only visible when an effect is triggered, and rearrange the new props slightly. For example, the zombie on the entrance to the spider room, drape a sliced black cloth between the two pillars. Then when he is triggered he bursts out from behind the cloth, giving riders more of a scare, and also hiding him until needed. The Haunted House worked well as this was how it was designed. But the Duel props were just plonked here and there, spoiling that.

Finally, though it would be more complex how about having a few effects triggered by the targets. For example, in the skeleton corridor add a lid to the coffin. Then when you shoot the coffin the lid burst open revealing the vampire inside, who also has a target. Then when she is hit the lid closes (It would also do this on its own after each scene, ready for the next vehicle) similararly maybe add an air cannon to the giant spider's mouth. When you hit the target on his head (Positioned so he can only be hit when in the right area) it fires off a few times, blasting the riders with short sharp bursts of air. It's a little change which would really emerse riders in the ride better.

There's lots of changes Towers and the ride team could make to Duel to revive the ride while retaining the interactive quality. As for marketing Towers could simply readvertise it as Duel - The Haunted House Strikes Back - Now scarier than ever. Simple, but effective. It gets the message to the public that there have been changes, and invites them to try it out. It could be a good project to run on a low investment year where money is tight. A cheap way to bring people back.

Once you have the winning ride the public will keep coming back to it, so Towers can continue with change year on year, without ever needing to market it again. Word of mouth spreads. How do you think Disney can keep updating their Phantom Manor rides without needing to advertise every change? The ride hit the nail on the head first time, so people keep returning. They then see the changes like the new Hitchhiking Ghosts in Florida, so come back next time to see if anything else has changed, while also telling their friends about this "awesome new part", which in turn draws in fresh custom.

If Towers are willing to fork out a bit of money now they can secure the ride's future for years to come :)
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You sir really should be put in as head designer of any Duel refurb. In my eyes all the above hits the nail on the head.

Its a shame really, such a great building, great queue line and great ride system, which has the potential for something fantastic. It its current state, although improving, I cant help but think someone has just said 'meh, that'll do'!
 
I'd like to know when they'll sort out the pointless zombie that disappears before you've even reached it? :p

I can't remember where exactly it is, but it's on the right side of the car and swings back behind a barrel. Unless you're either leaning out of the car a little on the left or you're watching where it should be, it's easy to miss.

I think it's moves so soon because of how close the car would get to it if it stayed put, so surely they should move it to somewhere so that you can see it properly? He just seems a little... pointless!

:p
 
There's one on the way into the Spider Hall, which is rather badly timed. The first one shoots out from the left and goes right along the very edge of the left hand side of the vehicle. If you sit in the front left seat it really gets close! That's one of the best ones I think! The second one pops out on the right hand side, but quickly moves back as it appears to swing right into the line of the vehicle! :p
 
That's the one I'm on about! Why is he there? Is he trying to get himself run over? :p

Alton could do with moving that zombie further back away from the track and further away from the wall he goes behind so that it can swing out sooner rather than have to pull back quickly so that the cars don't obliterate him.

:p
 
I'd hardly describe it as a waste! The ride provides a great addition to the parks line up, provides fantastic entertainment for many and generally seems to get positive reviews from people who come off it.

Yeah, it is a bit outdated now and the ride system itself is getting tired but its operated better this season than it has in a while and I can't see it going anywhere soon.
 
The whole ride is certainly the best it has been for a long time, with all the minor updates to the lighting, sounds and even getting the fans and heating fans working on the ride again.
 
BigAl said:
I'd like to know when they'll sort out the pointless zombie that disappears before you've even reached it?

:p
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Has anyone actually seen this one working? I'm assuming you're referring to the one in the barrel towards the right near the end of the ride. It's target hasn't been working for years and it's scream comes before it's appearance and just seems laughable. But nonetheless I will ever-continue to love these new tweaks, not a great fan of the crucifix ladies new scream though. But I guess it's neat to keep things updated.
 
Really?! I think Kaycee's new scream is one of the best sound additions of the ride, it really suits her and genuinely feels like it's coming from her mouth (the same can be said for the 'new' lunatic and undertaker laughs) rather than just being generic MWAHAHAHA!
 
Stelios said:
BigAl said:
I'd like to know when they'll sort out the pointless zombie that disappears before you've even reached it?

:p
Click to expand...

Has anyone actually seen this one working? I'm assuming you're referring to the one in the barrel towards the right near the end of the ride. It's target hasn't been working for years and it's scream comes before it's appearance and just seems laughable. But nonetheless I will ever-continue to love these new tweaks, not a great fan of the crucifix ladies new scream though. But I guess it's neat to keep things updated.
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I don't recall exactly where the zombie is, so I'll have a check next time I'm there and say which one it is that runs away before the ride has even reached it. :p
 
Words can't describe how much i love Duel, it's just so much fun, well themed and very atmospheric. However saying that, i would love it if they changed it back to a good old fashioned haunted house, like it used to be back in 1992, it didn't need to change ! The addition of the laser guns add some fun to the ride but it becomes quite boring after a while, now i just find that i sit and don't shoot taking in all the theming and animatronics :p
 
When Iv'e been on in the last two weeks, I thought the ride looked appalling! The queue line screens weren't working, there was no working animatronics until the bat scene, Tromwell's Tunnel was not working, the zombies looked damaged and bright blue, the photo ghost wasn't working and the cars wouldn't space properly. It was a joke and quite embarrassing how run-down and to be honest, crap it was.

The only good points I can think of was, the new audio in some scenes.
 
That's very disappointing then. As at the start of the season Duel was running amazingly. My family, who don't normally notice such things, commented on how well it ran and how much better it was than the year before.

Unfortunately I think that it is a case of any work at the start of the year wearing off by now and without any form of Duel Live at Scarefest it can leave the ride feeling unloved. We can only hope that the dedicated ride team put the same effort in this closed season as they did last year on a budget of nothing!
 
Unless you're a 10 year old kid, only fanboy enthusiasts seem to rate this ride - to everyone else it's a rather meh way to pass 5/10 minutes. Who really cares if they have changed th colour of lighting or fixed a moving zombie arm anyway, in the long run the attraction is dead (although, credit to the individuals who make this happen with limited resources).

And all the "it does its job as a filler" comments are just ridiculous - have you seen how much space Duel takes up?! This ride should be a star attraction, the Harry Potter or Spiderman of Alton Towers.

The only argument against any radical investment is that any remaining charm left from the Haunted House may be lost, but that might just be a sacrifice worth making.

:)
 
I don't think anyone doubts its a ride reaching the end of its life, it's just nice to see them trying to make some improvements as its going to be around for a few years more.
 
Problem with Duel is the location, it's in an area which the majority of guests probably just walk through to either the Valley or Katanga, and it just lacks anything to keep people in the area for an extended period of time to investigate...

Very few people bother as well because of the unknown quantity of the ride, if you had no prior knowledge of said ride, would you bother going on it or would you rather spend your time going to the next major ride?

And the high throughput from it commonly means that it will have no queue... So it all just adds up really...

I doubt we'd ever see anything to the level of Spidey/Potter, just due to the high expenditure, but if Gloomy Wood had ever got that old Broomstick Launched Coaster idea, I wonder if the popularity would have been different...

Regardless, shame to hear about the off experience, I think it's looked the best in a long time this year, and just hope that the people involved do not get too put off by issues...
 
If gloomy wood had another attraction, one that could literally put it on the map, the popularity of duel would increase, however it is in what is simply used as a shortcut.
 
The ride is seemingly a big hit with families, seen many many of them wanting to stay on to re-ride.

Hopefully it'll get some more love and attention over winter like it deserves.
 
Oh come off it mrbrightside and others! Duel is just terrible, it really is, and someone needs to say it. It's little more than a travelling ghost train with a bit more budget and space.

Compared to the vast majority of similar-sized dark rides in Europe, let alone Florida, it becomes a joke. If it was at any other park, people would call it out for the tired waste-of-space that it is and hope for a replacement ASAP. :p
 
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