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Duel: The Haunted House Actually Strikes Back - Refurb Incoming

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Rode the ride today and I must say the ride does need some work doing to it. There were large sections with no targets lit. (By the zombies that pop out and scream and also the zombie shadow window. Also the area before the spider and just after the graveyard scene).

Kinda makes the ride not flow with these dead areas. Shame really as I do enjoy the ride but disappointment that its been left to go this way.
 
There’s no doubt that Duel (or at least, the Haunted House) was a landmark ride for the park, and one of the last holdouts of Tussauds-era nostalgia. But it’s been beyond it’s prime for a good number of years at this point.

Even in the biggest parks, it’s not often that a dark ride remains truly static for its lifespan. Even Disney add updates to theirs, albeit they have the budget to retain the original magic. Towers, sadly, does not. The best one could hope for when it comes to the ride is what Europa-Park has done with Geisterschloss, continuously adding new things to the ride. But it’s now an absolute mess thanks to its conflicting animatronics and Happy Family characters being forced into it. Duel’s alternative is to end up like Tomb Blaster, which is effectively what it is today.

Without an insane budget, classic dark rides are doomed to become grotesque caricatures of their former glory. Unless they’re put out of their misery. Which is what I think should now happen to Duel.

But this doesn’t mean it all has to be scrapped, especially the amazing facade which I think is one of the best outside of the Disney mansion rides. The warehouse behind it has more than enough space for the whole thing to be gutted and a new ride system to be put in its place. Of course, modern dark rides are known for their preference of big screens over classic animatronics. But even that would be an improvement over what we already have.

Don’t be blinded by nostalgia. Duels best days are long behind it and will never return. Better to put it out of its misery and bring in something new.
 
Rose Of Dawn said:
There’s no doubt that Duel (or at least, the Haunted House) was a landmark ride for the park, and one of the last holdouts of Tussauds-era nostalgia. But it’s been beyond it’s prime for a good number of years at this point.

Even in the biggest parks, it’s not often that a dark ride remains truly static for its lifespan. Even Disney add updates to theirs, albeit they have the budget to retain the original magic. Towers, sadly, does not. The best one could hope for when it comes to the ride is what Europa-Park has done with Geisterschloss, continuously adding new things to the ride. But it’s now an absolute mess thanks to its conflicting animatronics and Happy Family characters being forced into it. Duel’s alternative is to end up like Tomb Blaster, which is effectively what it is today.

Without an insane budget, classic dark rides are doomed to become grotesque caricatures of their former glory. Unless they’re put out of their misery. Which is what I think should now happen to Duel.

But this doesn’t mean it all has to be scrapped, especially the amazing facade which I think is one of the best outside of the Disney mansion rides. The warehouse behind it has more than enough space for the whole thing to be gutted and a new ride system to be put in its place. Of course, modern dark rides are known for their preference of big screens over classic animatronics. But even that would be an improvement over what we already have.

Don’t be blinded by nostalgia. Duels best days are long behind it and will never return. Better to put it out of its misery and bring in something new.
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As long as the extrernal facade is retained, a new system would indeed be a good idea. Whatever they do with it there are bound to be people (mainly enthusiasts who hold the HH in thir hearts) who disaprove but, as the saying goes, "you an't please everyone". :)
 
You know, I can only go by what I feel [not blinded by nostalgia or rose tinted spectacles] when I'm on site as I was twice in the second half of September.

For me, D/HH has probably the best theming of any ride in the history of AT and is also the longest ride in the theme park -- as far as I know.

I know when I exit the RMT ride and walk toward Gloomy Wood and it just brings a smile to my face, the canopy of trees darken the path, the music kicks in on the path itself, you're greeted to the sight of a sarcophagus roofed and fenced off before walking to an extended path lined by gravestones and gargoyles. After which you take sight of that house front elevation. More atmospheric music as you enter the house and take sight of all the props, fixtures and fittings, cobwebs, interactive paintings and the "slanted" floor before boarding the train.

I don't touch the guns myself as I think it takes me out of the moment and stops me from enjoying the ride but I could quite happily sit on that ride all day.

Ps: I noticed the empty chairs at the dining table were moving and the lighting at the fireplace fixed [which I though looked fantastic].

Also, some info I noticed from wiki:

For the 2008 and 2009 annual Halloween 'Scarefest' events held at Alton Towers, the ride became host to "Duel: Live!" This attraction featured live actors situated in different scenes around the ride, to scare riders while in their cars. The laser guns and all the LEDs were switched off, so that riders were not distracted by the shooting and focused on the ride. The music was replaced throughout the ride, with a different, more atmospheric piece used instead of the usual Duel theme.

Duel Live made use of the original outdoor queue line, often with other actors roaming the wooded area. For the 2008 version, the queue featured gravediggers and werewolves creeping up on the guests, though in 2009 this was reduced to one actor in a hooded robe. Guests waited at the door instead of walking straight in, before being greeted by either a maid or a butler (the performers alternated during the 2009 version, but in 2008 only the butler featured) and given a brief talk about what was inside and why the guns were switched off. The TV screens in the Drawing Room were covered with cloth and muted, and the original spooky music turned up; the room being similar to what it was in the original Haunted House. During the 2008 event, the maid jumped out at guests as they entered the Drawing Room.
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Unsure if this is the right thread for this, but as this seems to be the thread for Duel-related discussion, I thought I'd share this really fascinating lights-on POV I found of the ride:

Fascinating to see; some of the scenic design on it really is brilliant when you see it like that!

Also, I noticed that the trommel was working in this video. How long has it been broken for?
 
Matt N said:
Unsure if this is the right thread for this, but as this seems to be the thread for Duel-related discussion, I thought I'd share this really fascinating lights-on POV I found of the ride:

Fascinating to see; some of the scenic design on it really is brilliant when you see it like that!

Also, I noticed that the trommel was working in this video. How long has it been broken for?
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This is certainly the right thread for it because watching that highlights how bad Duels bright LED lighting currently is. I couldn't tell much difference between that video and what it now looks like in the flesh! The only things I noticed where some pipes by the spider and just before the screaming heads and a CCTV camera on the wall by that awful first plastic zombie on a stick.

I had to laugh at the guy being amazed by seeing the bats like that. They look like that every day now.
 
Matt N said:
Unsure if this is the right thread for this, but as this seems to be the thread for Duel-related discussion, I thought I'd share this really fascinating lights-on POV I found of the ride:

Fascinating to see; some of the scenic design on it really is brilliant when you see it like that!

Also, I noticed that the trommel was working in this video. How long has it been broken for?
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I think the Trommel been bugged ever since 2016 sadly. Was a really cool technique to create nausea to the guests.
 
Trooper Looper said:
I think the Trommel been bugged ever since 2016 sadly. Was a really cool technique to create nausea to the guests.
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Again, you're overegging it. It was mildly disorienting, not nauseating.

Think Hex or the feeling of sitting of a train that's pulling off while an adjacent train goes in the opposite direction, not being spun around or anything like that.
 
Has Duel ever had a queue this big in it's current form?

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As well as Smiler being down, could the fact that RAP guests now use the main entrance also be a factor?
 
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Skyscraper said:
Has Duel ever had a queue this big in it's current form?

unknown.png


As well as Smiler being down, could the fact that RAP guests now use the main entrance also be a factor?
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I suspect it's an error, but yes I waited 45 mins or so for Duel in 2003, the queue went right around the graveyard with all the extensions open.
 
No idea, but they often run cars around without loading them. Our group today was split across 3 cars, the last of which ended up being some way behind the rest of us as they had to wait for 2 "not in service" cars to pass before boarding.
 
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