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Duel: The Haunted House Actually Strikes Back - Refurb Incoming

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Skyscraper said:
I mentioned to my dad earlier about Duel closing and he was disappointed, and said that it would be boring without the blasters.

Obviously some people will be disappointed if the blasters do go, but hopefully it will be done in a way that holds guests attention without a physical interactive element.
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In an ideal world I have said that had Thirteen been built in GW and not Ug Land/Dark Forrest then it would have likely have seen an early overhaul of Duel into HH then with the blasters removed as you'd expect in an area that need TLC for a new attraction opening up E.G like what happened with X-Sector following Smiler opening in 2013, then you could have had Sub Terra built into a shooter dark ride instead of a drop tower ride which would likely happen for those who do miss the blasters and thus everyone has a dark ride of their choice and maybe have the current plans all happened a decade sooner.

If we are to lose the blasters for Duel, I can defiantly see a new shooter dark ride being built at Towers to try and make up for those who do miss the blasters as I'm sure Merlin/Towers wouldn't want to lose an interactive feature that could be made for good use on a new ride. Going off a tangent but where would they build a new dark ride in the park? Either way, I do like the ideas of all the dark rides having something different about them in which a revamped HH could be seen as the flagship dark ride on the park, Hex being its own thing, GG as the one for kids and maybe some new shooter ride being for those who want an interactive feature, certainly you'd have more choice for your dark rides on the park as opposed to now.

I know we have said poorly about Merlin's other dark rides either being cheaply done (GG and such) or expensive flops (DBGT) which I'm sure the latter left Merlin traumatized of its failure and I can understand why they would be reluctantly to throw cash out on a dark ride which sadly leads them to look poor as some of us have said about GG, Gruffalo etc. Anyway, if these have been done by a new team and these were their first attempts at making dark rides then they'd likely started at the bottom, hopefully learn from the mistakes made and now the only way is up and if the HH revamp is a major success then hopefully Merlin might be more willing to throw more money out on future dark rides so this could be in the wider picture a real crossroads moment for any future Merlin dark ride going forward.
 
QTXAdsy said:
Going off a tangent but where would they build a new dark ride in the park?
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I think they could easily build a new warehouse next to the Cuckoo land theatre where Flávio is right now going back into that corner. They could potentially also add a warehouse out into the coach park areas similar to where Sea Life is too.
Both would be good ways to only have a façade inside the park and hide the warehouse similar to the Haunted House.
 
I'm curious what's Happen to this Thread when the ride closes? Will it be renamed to the new attractions name as a General discussion, or will this thread finally be put to rest?
 
Trooper Looper said:
I'm curious what's Happen to this Thread when the ride closes? Will it be renamed to the new attractions name as a General discussion, or will this thread finally be put to rest?
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I actually saw an MMM trailer parked up next to this thread recently so that could be a clue - whatever happens to the thread, I really hope John Wardley is involved.
 
Trooper Looper said:
Back to Duel please guys!

I believe they should keep what scenes and props are left of the Haunted House years, and renovate them as they originally were, then improvise in the rest of the attraction.
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I wish I could have a time machine and take you back to Towers in 92 and ride it with you.

But I can't.

I hate to tell you this but Bambi's mum did in fact actually die. So did the dog at the end of Marley & Me and that bloke with the girly hair hanging on to wardrobe at the end of Titanic.

They're all dead son, and no matter how much we try to replicate the best features from them, they're still 6 feet under. The Haunted House has been slowly dying for almost 3 decades. At least we had plenty of time to say goodbye.
 
Matt.GC said:
I wish I could have a time machine and take you back to Towers in 92 and ride it with you.

But I can't.

I hate to tell you this but Bambi's mum did in fact actually die. So did the dog at the end of Marley & Me and that bloke with the girly hair hanging on to wardrobe at the end of Titanic.

They're all dead son, and no matter how much we try to replicate the best features from them, they're still 6 feet under. The Haunted House has been slowly dying for almost 3 decades. At least we had plenty of time to say goodbye.
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Everybody's dead, Dave...
 
Bambi's mum etc were organic, living objects, they all die in the end.
The Haunted House was inanimate, and all organic material was already dead.
It can therefore be replaced exactly, but Bambi's mum remains old venison.
I think it might be time for me to leave this topic well alone until the spring.
Too many what if's make my head ache.
 
I wonder what they'll replace that zombie statue outside with? One idea I've thought about that I know won't happen but would be cool to is having an interactive feature to interact guests with much like that talking fountain at Islands of Adventures.

Would make up for the loss of the blasters for those who want something interactive and could act act as a wee additional attraction for the area. The thought of a talking fountain there with a snarky sense of humour and spraying water at some cocky chavs would be worth the admission ticket alone! 🤣
 
Log Flume's Dennis said:
Reliable source tells me that the blasters will be moved to In the Night Garden Magical Boat Ride. There are photos on Twitter of Makka Pakka with a glock
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What about the dungeons if they decide to drop it as a dungeons attraction?

World's first blaster system on a water ride anyone?

...actually, even Merlin wouldn't want to do that even with all their USP demands for rides.
 
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