On a different note, I’ve got a possibly controversial opinion on the topic of Duel and potential steps they could take with it going forward; as much as I know there’s a huge desire for them to bring back the Haunted House for many, I think it would be the worst of both worlds if it happened.
That probably sounds like a blasphemous thing to say, so let me explain myself.
Now don’t get me wrong, I love a bit of nostalgia just as much as everyone else, and I can definitely understand the desire to bring back the Haunted House. Many on here had a lot of love for it, and considered it a classic, so why wouldn’t they want to relive those memories?
However, I have numerous reasons for it not being my ideal outcome for Duel as it is now.
Firstly, I’m not sure the average visitor would really “get it”. I think the laser guns are quite popular and do give it a certain appeal that it wouldn’t necessarily have otherwise, and besides, I’m unsure that it would be the huge hit that some expect among the public. As much as I’m sure some do have fond childhood memories of the Haunted House, I get the impression that it wasn’t the most popular by the end of its run, and there was no huge outcry over its removal; second-hand accounts suggest that by 2002, its queue was often non-existent, and it wasn’t exactly a highly revered ride in terms of either popularity or quality. The Haunted House has also been gone for 19 years (20 by 2022), so I don’t think its influence or reputation would be important or prevalent enough in 2021 to justify bringing it back. I think the backlash from the loss of the guns would substantially outweigh the good will from bringing the old ride back.
Secondly, I’d ask; would bringing back the Haunted House really be “bringing it back”, or would it simply be retheming Duel into a new ride that merely carries the Haunted House name? I suspect it would be closer to the latter, personally, what with all the differences it would likely carry. By pure virtue of the fact that technology has advanced a huge amount in 30 years, I’d wager that any move to “bring back the Haunted House” would differ from the 1992 ride to at least a certain extent, which I feel would be quite divisive, and possibly unpopular among die-hard fans. From experience of it in numerous fields, bringing back slices of history often doesn’t produce the results you’d expect.
However they did it, I can sense there would be complaints about how it “wasn’t the same as 1992”; it would inevitably differ to at least a certain extent, and even if they did a refurbishment while being as sympathetic to the 1992 specs as possible, I’m simply not sure that the ride built to exact 1992 specifications would necessarily hold up today for a number of reasons. I’m sure the ride was excellent, and really ground-breaking for the time, but the world is a very different place to what it was in 1992, and the gold standard of theme park attractions was very different; the bar has been raised a fair amount, and what’s seen as a strong dark ride has changed a lot, even since the Haunted House closed. I can sense that riding the 1992 Haunted House in 2021 would be like watching a 1980s/1990s film or TV programme after not having watched it for years; it would likely seem different to how you’d remembered it being at the time to at least a certain extent.
So basically, before I ramble too much, my basic point is; as much as I think the Haunted House being bought back sounds like a nice idea on paper, I don’t think it would be something that would resonate with the public like many would expect (I think the removal of laser guns might generate some backlash), and I also don’t think it would necessarily produce the final product that many fans would expect or be hoping for. As such, I think doing it would leave them in a slightly sticky situation, as neither guests nor fans would be overly happy with the finished product.
I apologise if that’s controversial or offends you; that’s just my personal take. I could be completely wrong.