Duel: The Haunted House Actually Strikes Back - Refurb Incoming

[Trooper Looper]

Yep competly agree Disney is becoming even more awful for many reasons, not just the fact they have moved away from attractions (including fireworks) that don't use characters, but also the mess thye have made fastpass into (now Genie+).

I can still remember visiting Epcot in 2017 for the first time, and even after going to most of the Pavilions with the newer attractions, The American Adventure and spaceship Earth were me and my families favourites.

Frozen ever after felt mediocre and out of place, and when I found out that it was once Maelstrom, it made the whole situation seem even more tragic.

 

[Groundking]

Yep competly agree Disney is becoming even more awful for many reasons, not just the fact they have moved away from attractions (including fireworks) that don't use characters, but also the mess they have made fastpass into (now Genie+).

Yep, I'm not interested in a bunch of screens with ip video on them, leave that crap to Universal, it's not what made Disney special and magical. Physical sets with quality animatronics only please Disney. As for fastpass or genie+ or whatever horrible aberration it is now the less said the better.

 

[rob666]

And back on topic...The original HH was a fantastic ride, neglected over time as some tricks failed.
The guns and zombies upgrade ruined the ride in my eyes, what they should have done is fix some of the original features, and replace a few of the sets completely to keep it fresh.
I like guns, I like zombies, I like Alton Towers, but Duel was a duff upgrade.

 

[Trooper Looper]

Yep, I'm not interested in a bunch of screens with ip video on them, leave that crap to Universal, it's not what made Disney special and magical. Physical sets with quality animatronics only please Disney. As for fastpass or genie+ or whatever horrible aberration it is now the less said the better.

And for some reason, people here think it's the right way to go at Alton Towers, especially with Duel.

When I think of Alton Towers and Disney, I see each park having its own unique character to it, such as Alton Towers with X Sector, Katanga Canyon, Duel/The Haunted House, and pre Galactica Forbidden Valley.

When I think of Disney, I see The Matterhorn Bobsleds, Fantasy land Dark Rides, Space Mountain From The Earth to the Moon, the OG Epcot, Body Wars, Cranium Command, Journey into Imagination, the list goes on.

I may have never experienced the last 3, but they feel way more Disney to me with their educational presence with the original fun ideas rather than an Indoor Coaster based on Gaurdians of the Galaxy. Yeah, very educational Disney. It looks really fun, absolutely, but it doesn't scream Disney to me, it screams Marvel.

 

[Matt N]

Rightly or wrongly, I think people go to Disney and expect to see Disney characters these days. As much as the parks weren’t originally designed to promote Disney IPs, I think their role and what people expect of them has changed, and they have to adjust to that accordingly. I reckon families would be seriously disappointed if they went to Disney World in this day and age and didn’t see their favourite characters and IPs coming to life. Things like Marvel, Star Wars, Frozen et al are big hitters, and they definitely turn the head of the average guest. You only have to look at how long the queues consistently are/were for Frozen Ever After and the other IP rides; I remember Frozen getting multi-hour queues in its opening year in 2016, and I still easily queued over an hour for it in 2019. I’m not sure Maelstrom had that kind of pull among guests.

By comparison, the original Epcot was not viewed very positively by guests, from what I can gather. Yes, it’s always had high guest figures, but it was often mocked; as an example, I’m thinking of any Simpsons episode that mentions theme parks/Disney. I remember one episode where the family goes to Florida, and the theme park they visit is the “EFCOT Centre” (which I’m guessing is a play on EPCOT Centre). Seeing as the characters moan about it consistently (I remember “it even looks boring from the sky…” being one memorable quote), that tells me that original Epcot does not have that much of a positive reception among the average guest. Rightly or wrongly, the original Epcot attractions that many on here love garnered it the reputation of “the boring Disney park”, so the IPs and characters are being used to revive it because people resonate with them more than the original Epcot themes.

Linking back into the topic at hand; as much as we enthusiasts might clamour for original themes, IPs are what the average guest wants and what pulls them into the park these days. And to be honest, I don’t personally feel that IPs are the evil that many enthusiasts make them out to be; if you think about it, it’s just a different attraction theme. If the attraction is pulled off well, what difference does that make?

 

[Groundking]

And for some reason, people here think it's the right way to go at Alton Towers, especially with Duel.

When I think of Alton Towers and Disney, I see each park having its own unique character to it, such as Alton Towers with X Sector, Katanga Canyon, Duel/The Haunted House, and pre Galactica Forbidden Valley.

When I think of Disney, I see The Matterhorn Bobsleds, Fantasy land Dark Rides, Space Mountain From The Earth to the Moon, the OG Epcot, Body Wars, Cranium Command, Journey into Imagination, the list goes on.

I may have never experienced the last 3, but they feel way more Disney to me with their educational presence with the original fun ideas rather than an Indoor Coaster based on Gaurdians of the Galaxy. Yeah, very educational Disney. It looks really fun, absolutely, but it doesn't scream Disney to me, it screams Marvel.

100% this, the fact that one of their rides was SO successful that it ended up spawning a multi billion $ movie series (pirates) shows you what Disney parks were all about. Whilst Disney have always had IP in their park it was only the classics, not new stuff. At one point Disney were creating rides that became staples of the industry, how many theme parks around the world haven't had at least at one point a run away mine train, indoor space themed coaster, or a boat ride themed to pirates, do we really expect any of the modern nonsense to become staples of the industry in the future?

Yep, it's not Disney it's Marvel, same with the star wars stuff too. If I wanted to go to a theme park that was stuffed full of ip I may or may not care about that relies so heavily on screens and projections I'd go to Universal who have been doing this since 2000 with Spiderman, Disney should be better. The most damning thing of all though is that Universal is seemingly moving away from the screen based attractions back to physical sets + animatronics with the secret life of pets, Hagrids and Jurrasic world ride, only using screens to supplement the experience rather than being the bulk of the experience.

 

[Groundking]

Rightly or wrongly, I think people go to Disney and expect to see Disney characters these days. As much as the parks weren’t originally designed to promote Disney IPs, I think their role and what people expect of them has changed, and they have to adjust to that accordingly. I reckon families would be seriously disappointed if they went to Disney World in this day and age and didn’t see their favourite characters and IPs coming to life. Things like Marvel, Star Wars, Frozen et al are big hitters, and they definitely turn the head of the average guest. You only have to look at how long the queues consistently are/were for Frozen Ever After and the other IP rides; I remember Frozen getting multi-hour queues in its opening year in 2016, and I still easily queued over an hour for it in 2019. I’m not sure Maelstrom had that kind of pull among guests.

As much as we enthusiasts might clamour for original themes, IPs are what the average guest wants and what pulls them into the park these days. And to be honest, I don’t personally feel that IPs are the evil that many enthusiasts make them out to be; if you think about it, it’s just a different attraction theme. If the attraction is pulled off well, what difference does that make?

New rides get bigger queues than old rides, this isn't exactly news is it? There'll be some point where Frozen doesn't have a big pull either. Frozen is especially egregious though because it just further breaks what Epcot is supposed to be about.

 

[Matt N]

New rides get bigger queues than old rides, this isn't exactly news is it? There'll be some point where Frozen doesn't have a big pull either. Frozen is especially egregious though because it just further breaks what Epcot is supposed to be about.

There are other examples besides the Frozen one. The Harry Potter rides still get some of the longest queues in the 2 Universal parks, and some of them aren’t exactly the newest rides in their respective parks at this point. Hogsmeade is 12 years old, and Diagon Alley is 8 years old. And sticking with Disney; Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is now 8 years old and gets huge queues relative to some of the other rides at Magic Kingdom.

Frozen itself isn’t that new anymore, now being 6 years old. Ratatouille and Guardians are now newer within the same park, but its popularity persists, as far as I can tell.

Even putting aside queues, I hear people talk about wanting to go to Disney to “go on the Frozen ride” or “go to the Star Wars land” or “go on the Guardians of the Galaxy ride” all the time. Would an originally themed ride have that kind of pull anymore? I’m not so sure.

 

[Trooper Looper]

There are other examples besides the Frozen one. The Harry Potter rides still get some of the longest queues in the 2 Universal parks, and some of them aren’t exactly the newest rides in their respective parks at this point. Hogsmeade is 12 years old, and Diagon Alley is 8 years old. And sticking with Disney; Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is now 8 years old and gets huge queues relative to some of the other rides at Magic Kingdom.

Frozen itself isn’t that new anymore, now being 6 years old. Ratatouille and Guardians are now newer within the same park, but its popularity persists, as far as I can tell.

Even putting aside queues, I hear people talk about wanting to go to Disney to “go on the Frozen ride” or “go to the Star Wars land” or “go on the Guardians of the Galaxy ride” all the time. Would an originally themed ride have that kind of pull anymore? I’m not so sure.

Yes, you're right about them being insanely popular, in the first few years that is. Look at the World of David Walliams, I remember having to queue for GG over an hour last year, nowadays it's mostly 10-20 minutes because of its poor capacity. Not all that great for the areas Flagship attraction. For all we know, Duel could have less of a Queue, but more people chose it over GG, and the reason for its non existing queue is because of its brilliant Throughput.

I remember last year in scarefest that the queue for Duel was all the way in the forest queue, and not far from the entrance, and that queue was moving stupidly quick, you'd at least move 10 steps every 30-40 seconds. And under 15 minutes, I was on the ride already.

 

[Matt.GC]

We've had this IP discussion before and they are no way comparable in terms of strength, relevance and implementation.

In Disney or Universal, you'll have an IP that they either own or have some financial stake in nurturing that comes with a comprehensive experience and theming.

Aside from the children's IP's which are a completely different kettle of fish, in a Merlin park you'll get someone else's IP nearing it's sell by date that's implemented by slapping vinyls and TV screens on an old attraction.

But if "good for Merlin" is the new standard then perhaps we should embrace a sign and some TV screens for a New York based comedy movie series about hapless scientists being shoehorned on to a traditional Haunted House situated in Staffordshire woodlands.

 

[WickerWonder18]

Does anyone know when the Duel pre-show videos disappeared? Or have the screens been removed completely? Think it'd help if they came back to help explain the story behind it.

 

[Trooper Looper]

Does anyone know when the Duel pre-show videos disappeared? Or have the screens been removed completely? Think it'd help if they came back to help explain the story behind it.

I'm not entirely sure if they're gone, but if they were brought back it'll be a bit of a problem since in the preshow video, the old Duel theme played. Imagine that with the new one in the background. I can see them bringing back the footage if the Vestibule theme sas also brought back, as the music was loud enough that you could only hear the narration.

 

[WickerWonder18]

I'm not entirely sure if they're gone, but if they were brought back it'll be a bit of a problem since in the preshow video, the old Duel theme played. Imagine that with the new one in the background. I can see them bringing back the footage if the Vestibule theme sas also brought back, as the music was loud enough that you could only hear the narration.

Ah yeah I see. Highly unlikely anyway at this stage.

 

[Bert2theSpark]

I believe the old preshow for the ride was ditched during the 2018 refurb, when they also got the new soundtrack and changed all the lighting. I think the fact that the forum is talking about a Duel refurb 5 years after the last one speaks volumes.

I think it's time to just put the Haunted House/Duel to rest, let it live on in our memories and get a new major dark ride in that spot. I don't care if it's an external IP as long as it's relevant and has longevity. Stranger Things would be perfect but since that's coming to a close I don't know if it'll be relevant in a few years from now.

 

[WickerWonder18]

I believe the old preshow for the ride was ditched during the 2018 refurb, when they also got the IMAscore soundtrack and changed all the lighting. I think the fact that the forum is talking about a Duel refurb 5 years after the last one speaks volumes.

I think it's time to just the Haunted House/Duel to rest, let it live on in our memories and get a new major dark ride in that spot. I don't care if it's an external IP as long as it's relevant and has longevity. Stranger Things would be perfect but since that's coming to a close I don't know if it'll be relevant in a few years from now.

I thought so, and it was Simon Allen who has done the new soundtrack. I think we are talking about a lot more than just some TLC here. At least a revamp. But yet again, it's Merlin, so we will probably just get some TLC.

 

[Trooper Looper]

I thought so, and it was Simon Allen who has done the new soundtrack. I think we are talking about a lot more than just some TLC here. At least a revamp. But yet again, it's Merlin, so we will probably just get some TLC.

Absolutely adores Simon Allen's unique take on the Park, instead of Imascore doing every soundtrack.

Qtalk about composers, quick off topic paragraph here, but I'd love Ian Habgood to come back temporarily to Compose more music for the Park when Simon Allen doesn't want to anymore. I adore Airs theme, and I'd love to see him take on other rides in own take of them.

 

[WickerWonder18]

Absolutely adores Simon Allen's unique take on the Park, instead of Imascore doing every soundtrack.

Qtalk about composers, quick off topic paragraph here, but I'd love Ian Habgood to come back temporarily to Compose more music for the Park when Simon Allen doesn't want to anymore. I adore Airs theme, and I'd love to see him take on other rides in own take of them.

Completely agree, I'd hate a IMAscore park.
Maybe, maybe, also think Nick Hutson has a decent shot too.

 

[Trooper Looper]

Completely agree, I'd hate a IMAscore park.
Maybe, maybe, also think Nick Hutson has a decent shot too.

IMO, the only good score IMAscore has done for AT is Wicker Man and Smiler... that's it. If Ian did come back, I'd doubt he'd be happy to know what Merlins done to his baby.

What's Nick done then so far? Iver never heard of him, but I'm intrigued!!

 

[James]

I kind of agree with @Matt N that Disney parks have evolved to be more IP focused with guests seeking that out.

As for Duel. I know we all have fond memories of it, but really the whole building needs to be stripped and started afresh. Whether an IP is a good decision or not depends really on what IP and how well themed the ride would be. Merlin don’t have a great track record so I wouldn’t hold my breath. Who knows, maybe they will shock us.

 

[WickerWonder18]

IMO, the only good score IMAscore has done for AT is Wicker Man and Smiler... that's it. If Ian did come back, I'd doubt he'd be happy to know what Merlins done to his baby.

What's Nick done then so far? Iver never heard of him, but I'm intrigued!!

Nick has done a few bits, bit like Simon in a way, with Simon at Towers and Nick at the Southern Parks. He's done a few tracks for Chessington, like Croc Drop, Tomb blaster re-vamp, rainforest and some event stuff for Thorpe. Think he did some scarefest maze audio a few years ago.