Howl-O-Scream 2010 Actual
- Thread starter Chris
- Start date
Shafor said:
THIS
I was honestly quite surprised about the number of complaints for a kids show (especially on facebook). If anything the show has seemed more of a nuisance in getting through Ireland (at least they wised up this year and made a path) than a show that people would really be mad about. Then again, people like what is familiar. (Of course, not judging anyone if they do, in fact, like Jack- to each his own)
Personally, I think they are trying to phase Jack out. He's been the figurehead for HOS for the better part of a decade. Think about how they slowly got rid of the train and Festa Dementia. Slowly making them less desirable until- poof. Of course this is just a theory and a very bad one at that.
I don't get the complaints about this year in general really. I've been going to HOS since the very first year when the Dark Tower was the main attraction and was a mashup of a bunch of unrelated scares. While I have not been able to go since 2007, this has been the most in depth the park has gone (England used to be totally scare free, as was Pompeii IIR) that I can recall. As I said in my last post, Festa and San Marco could use some scare actor help, as could Oktoberfest (I give them some slack since they have so many back in Festhaus Park), but other than that I don't see any major problems.
VTBGWFan said:
As many BGE fansites I have been on I dont see how people cant see all the problems BGE's haunt has compared to everyone elses. The people who arent "invested" in BGE will agree with me when I say that BGE's Howl o scream is one of the worst Halloween events for a park of its caliber for the past few years now. They seriously suck compared to other haunts in quality level. They dont even need to take the scare to the level of HHN or BGT, but they can make scares more accessible to everyone and do better in the scarezone and storyline department.
I mean, I wont even go into the scares, the quality of the attractions and prop usage and all that jazz but I will say the line stacking is horrible inside houses. This is something that should never happen... EVER.
in reply to all of the bad comments about HOS at BGW:
I really feel like BGW's HOS is a whole breed of its own, and has come MILES farther from what it has been. It may not be on the caliber of HHN or even BGT, but this year certainly shows progress. I also think alot of it has to do with being owned by a new company.
As for Jack, I believe its time for a change, and now that jack isn't the center focus of the HOS event, it leaves more room for a variety of theming and even more scares. Jack will be missed, but let's welcome the new things BGW has in store for HOS this year, and more years to come!
I am going to the park on the 9th and 10th, and am so excited to see all of the new things, and give a detailed trip report
I really feel like BGW's HOS is a whole breed of its own, and has come MILES farther from what it has been. It may not be on the caliber of HHN or even BGT, but this year certainly shows progress. I also think alot of it has to do with being owned by a new company.
As for Jack, I believe its time for a change, and now that jack isn't the center focus of the HOS event, it leaves more room for a variety of theming and even more scares. Jack will be missed, but let's welcome the new things BGW has in store for HOS this year, and more years to come!
I am going to the park on the 9th and 10th, and am so excited to see all of the new things, and give a detailed trip report
As many complaints as I've heard about this years HOS, I wish the park would just go ahead and make it a separately ticketed event next year. That would let them increase the scares without worrying about parents complaining that their kids got scared and teens and adults complaining that it isn't scary enough. It seems that the park has somehow found the perfect balance to make people on both sides (parents with sheltered children & teens/adults) upset at the event.
It's no surprise that I enjoy it, but then again, I don't get scared at any Halloween event, so that's not what I go for.
The park may have finally reached the crossroads a lot of people have apparently been waiting for. They either need to go full scare and guests pay for it, or they need to go fully family friendly. The problem is that they can't make the right decision. Either way they go, it's going to be complaints, complaints, complaints. It's either going to be, "we have to pay for Christmas Town and now Howl-O-Scream!" or, "this Howl-O-Scream is even worse than last year!"
Like I said before, I hope they go with the first option and charge to get in after 6 or 7.
It's no surprise that I enjoy it, but then again, I don't get scared at any Halloween event, so that's not what I go for.
The park may have finally reached the crossroads a lot of people have apparently been waiting for. They either need to go full scare and guests pay for it, or they need to go fully family friendly. The problem is that they can't make the right decision. Either way they go, it's going to be complaints, complaints, complaints. It's either going to be, "we have to pay for Christmas Town and now Howl-O-Scream!" or, "this Howl-O-Scream is even worse than last year!"
Like I said before, I hope they go with the first option and charge to get in after 6 or 7.
I think Howl o scream this year was better than last i think the new company is heading in the right direction and if they keep up on the path they are on HOS will be even better next year.
I will admit i was alittle disappointed when we went friday but it was the first day and we expected it we still had fun and we will going back proabably this friday again.
As for food go try the spooky cone at the ice cream shop beside cafe lulu in france.YUUUUMMMMM!
I will admit i was alittle disappointed when we went friday but it was the first day and we expected it we still had fun and we will going back proabably this friday again.
As for food go try the spooky cone at the ice cream shop beside cafe lulu in france.YUUUUMMMMM!
Chris said:
Being new here and only experiencing BGW as owned by the current company, and never having known what this once was, I can see your point. You can't please everyone, all the time, and indeed, when you change things, people do tend to get upset. That is why it must be tough working in the marketing department for some of these places. I know from first hand experience what it takes to deal in customer service. Even though in my profession, it is not on a big a scale as BGW, I can't imagine the blowback that can be experienced from one mild change, such as Jack. Looks like people are just plain upset. I agree with your idea about making HOS a separate event, but that, as you said would bring with it a bag of problems all its own. It would also shorten the general season of the park making the bottom line even smaller, since it is probable that they would not be able to charge the full gate price for the special event, much like the way they are doing Christmas town. But what do I know, I could be all wrong, but what can you do? Maybe they could consider doing full on scare nights that are only for people over 12, that way the people who want just plain blood and gore scary would be happy, on the other side, they could have family friendly scare before 6:00 p.m. that is something to consider, but also not as cost effective, and let's face it, in this economy, I think we are fortunate to have HOS on the scale that it is offered now. But, I digress. Just my thoughts.
Chris said:
I think that is a good plan! They still have all the HOS family fare before 5 and then ramp it up at night for those who want more scare. This seems to be a no brainer and the best of both if you ask me. That is something they should consider, and it would also make people looking for a more intense experience happy.
Personally I think this is an issue where the vast majority of the feedback is coming from people who go into the event with a "comparison" mindset. What was the experience like vs. last year, or year X, or KD, or Disney, or whatever?
The VAST majority of the guests are just patrons who go to BG, whether they have children or not, and experience the event as it's presented. They judge it on whether or not they had fun, just like any other trip to BG. If the lines were long for the rides, if they were out of fries, if you couldn't see a show because of the tall guy in front of you, that might dampen your experience. Same thing with HOS. For the most part people go and absorb the decor, the atmosphere, the shows, the mazes, etc. and either enjoy the majority of it or not.
Take the Jack is Back thing for example: As far as I regarded this show, it was kind of a goofy, upbeat, 10 min. "introduction to HOS" show geared towards kids. It viewed it that way last year and I viewed it that way this year. People getting the vapors over it like it's ruing the whole HOS experience, seems just a tad bit disingenuous. (If memory serves me from last year, I was hard pressed to find many adults who were complimentary to that show back then. Of course, in hindsight, it was so awesome that HOS just isn't the same without it. Um..ok.)
Well, my family has fun (and we have two little kids). And we saw way more people jumping, screaming, smiling and laughing than we did moping toward the exit early or circulating Bring Back Jack petitions.
As far as charging separately for it, I always looked at it like this, if I have fun at BG without the HOS stuff, wouldn't I have fun there with an completely additional seasonal experience for no extra charge. Ah, yeah.
The VAST majority of the guests are just patrons who go to BG, whether they have children or not, and experience the event as it's presented. They judge it on whether or not they had fun, just like any other trip to BG. If the lines were long for the rides, if they were out of fries, if you couldn't see a show because of the tall guy in front of you, that might dampen your experience. Same thing with HOS. For the most part people go and absorb the decor, the atmosphere, the shows, the mazes, etc. and either enjoy the majority of it or not.
Take the Jack is Back thing for example: As far as I regarded this show, it was kind of a goofy, upbeat, 10 min. "introduction to HOS" show geared towards kids. It viewed it that way last year and I viewed it that way this year. People getting the vapors over it like it's ruing the whole HOS experience, seems just a tad bit disingenuous. (If memory serves me from last year, I was hard pressed to find many adults who were complimentary to that show back then. Of course, in hindsight, it was so awesome that HOS just isn't the same without it. Um..ok.)
Well, my family has fun (and we have two little kids). And we saw way more people jumping, screaming, smiling and laughing than we did moping toward the exit early or circulating Bring Back Jack petitions.
As far as charging separately for it, I always looked at it like this, if I have fun at BG without the HOS stuff, wouldn't I have fun there with an completely additional seasonal experience for no extra charge. Ah, yeah.
But remember that the folks who frequent fansites are, as I think someone mentioned, of course a different breed from the average park goer. I think a lot of park goers may be fine with HOS as it is, yes sort of a compromise but with something for everyone. Those wanting more intense thrills probably know they can find them at KD, for example (or so I've heard, I've not been to their haunt).
I personally love HOS as I see it as an "extra" thing going on but not something I go to the park specifically for. We love to go in the fall but because it's cool weather (at least in theory) but we don't say, "gotta go to BGW this weekend, it's HOS!" That is to say, when we go to BGW during HOS, we're still going primarily to do everything we always do at BGW, ride the rides, eat the food, relax and be together. And we usually throw in a show or 2 -- so for us during the regular season it's a regular season show, and during HOS it's a HOS show, usually Monster Stomp (now Revamped). We enjoy the ambience of the decorations and so forth very much, just as they are, and we look forward to seeing the park spooked up for HOS, but we don't view going during HOS time as essentially any different from going during the spring and summer.
I do like mazes that are spooky and thrilling but I hate loud noises, so I steer clear of chainsaw-heavy areas, e.g., as I find them very annoying but not remotely scary but love Harvest Hollow and the old Sea Dog Cemetery and attractions like that. So again HOS is great for me as it is.
I'd hate to see HOS be a separate ticketed event. My season pass already feels devalued from ChristmasTown requiring a separate ticket. Undercut it more with any part of HOS requiring a separate ticket and the pass's value may no longer seem worth the price. BGW is unfortunately a seasonal park, of course, unlike BGT.
Okay, Shafor and I were posting at almost the same time. Shafor's point is pretty much what I was trying to say only he said it better. I don't think the average park goer is as critical and comparative as we folks on fansites.
I personally love HOS as I see it as an "extra" thing going on but not something I go to the park specifically for. We love to go in the fall but because it's cool weather (at least in theory) but we don't say, "gotta go to BGW this weekend, it's HOS!" That is to say, when we go to BGW during HOS, we're still going primarily to do everything we always do at BGW, ride the rides, eat the food, relax and be together. And we usually throw in a show or 2 -- so for us during the regular season it's a regular season show, and during HOS it's a HOS show, usually Monster Stomp (now Revamped). We enjoy the ambience of the decorations and so forth very much, just as they are, and we look forward to seeing the park spooked up for HOS, but we don't view going during HOS time as essentially any different from going during the spring and summer.
I do like mazes that are spooky and thrilling but I hate loud noises, so I steer clear of chainsaw-heavy areas, e.g., as I find them very annoying but not remotely scary but love Harvest Hollow and the old Sea Dog Cemetery and attractions like that. So again HOS is great for me as it is.
I'd hate to see HOS be a separate ticketed event. My season pass already feels devalued from ChristmasTown requiring a separate ticket. Undercut it more with any part of HOS requiring a separate ticket and the pass's value may no longer seem worth the price. BGW is unfortunately a seasonal park, of course, unlike BGT.
Okay, Shafor and I were posting at almost the same time. Shafor's point is pretty much what I was trying to say only he said it better. I don't think the average park goer is as critical and comparative as we folks on fansites.
Shafor said:
Well said. I agree with you on the "comparison" issue, as well as your other points. Like mentioned before, you can't please all of the people all of the time and when you get right down to it, isn't just being there a good thing anyway?
From what I have noticed. You have people come through the mazes with a chip on their shoulder and nose up in the air. They are expecting it to instill fear in them as a Texas Chainsaw Massacre character would have. They fail to realize that it is meant to be a startling yet fun experience and not a fear for your life and have a heart attack experience(although it is that to some). My thing is people go there to have a good time not walk around or through something with a chip on your shoulder. I would love to see that person go to Mickey's not-so-scary Halloween party
Honestly Chris, i would have no reason to renew my season pass if it did not get me into HOS, i would not pay to go to just HOS...
Scoutn757 said:From what I have noticed. You have people come through the mazes with a chip on their shoulder and nose up in the air. They are expecting it to instill fear in them as a Texas Chainsaw Massacre character would have. They fail to realize that it is meant to be a startling yet fun experience and not a fear for your life and have a heart attack experience(although it is that to some). My thing is people go there to have a good time not walk around or through something with a chip on your shoulder. I would love to see that person go to Mickey's not-so-scary Halloween party
I quoted you but Im this isnt directed specifically towards you.
The park markets the event every year like it is gonna be the best, scariest thing ever. When its not, people get dissappointed... I mean just go look on their facebook page. Disney doesnt advertise their halloween event as scary. I honestly thought this year was gonna be the " scare your pants off year" compared to last year because the advertising. I get to the park and its at the worse its ever been and way more kid friendly than ever.
BGE is a world class themepark. when they do a haunted event I expect the best from them. Let me pull some comments off the facebook...
From "Jack's" FB"
"Sam Provance: I can't believe somebody thought the new Jack would be better...it ruined everything. The old show I went to countless times...this one is ridiculous, especially the weird bit with the crow."
"Becky Drewry: Jack....please get your other face back on. the new one is "Cheap" looking and it was much better LAST yr
I'm sad that it changed...why are your male dancers looking like the "Back Street Boys"? WHAT & WHO messed this all up? They need to be "LET GO" come Back my dear old Jack...your old self is MISSED BIG TIME! "^im
"Edward Bermudez: What was BG thinking, they need to return Jack-O-Lantern back to his original state, the new show sucks. Bring back Jack, with his original face, howl-o-scream is not the same with out you."
"Justin Lewis: WOW, BG ruined Jack"
Im not even going to quote comments from the main page...
You see, the points you're making aren't really conducive to the situation though. You said every year the park says it's bigger and better. Of course they do. Just like the new car that comes out next year is 100X better than this year, when it's the same model. You don't expect the park to say, "This year is mediocre compared to last year's event!". That's just silly, and of course, horrible PR.
Your next statement was that "Disney doesn't advertise their event as scary." That's because Disney's events AREN'T scary at all. There isn't a "scare" in the entirety of the parks. It's a fun non-scare filled event that anybody of ANY age can partake in. BGW's event is not "family friendly" in the same breath. It *is* more family friendly than Cedar Fair's parks, Universals, etc.. In the same breath, currently, BGW isn't an "extreme park" and more-than-likely won't be anytime soon. It's a family friendly park with events and rides for all ages. I think the "KIDsiderate" promotion shows that off effectively.
As for Facebook, people by nature tend to make negative comments more outspoken than positive comments. An example would be if you go to a restaurant and get excellent service, do you go out of your way to notify the manager of your great service? Do you write the head office about how incredibly happy you were? Possibly, but probably not. Now, if you were unhappy with your service, you're more inclined to notify a member of management. Some people make a habit of doing that everywhere they go just so they can try to get free items, a refund or comps on something. That Facebook page is a very small percentage of the general population that visits the park each year. Now that that very small sliver of people who frequent the Facebook page and narrow it down even more by the standards I set above - the people who want to complain. Again, we'll go back to the same example of the official Facebook. Looking at just the comments being posted, do you really think that "most everybody" hates Howl-O-Scream this year? It's an unfair sampling of the park attendance and the park knows this.
As far as the, 'Jack is Back', show is concerned, it was changed to make another option for the KIDsiderate promotion. Last year there were complaints that there weren't enough kid-friendly options available. It was also deemed that it was one of the less popular shows in the park so it was changed. Now, people are complaining, on Facebook, that they don't like how it's a kids show now. At the same time, Guest Relations gets a few compliments on how friendly the show is. You can't please everybody all the time and trying to cater to everybody just isn't possible.
Yes, I'm babbling, but mainly because I'm doing something else and my attention isn't fully here right now. I still wanted to get this out there. I know you'll say I'm defending the park and I agree with everything the park says given my history, but that's far from the truth. There's many things I don't agree with or wish could be changed, I just happen to understand how systems work within the park, so I understand that saying this, doing that or wishing those just isn't feasible from any standpoint. .. and here I go babbling again ... *wanders off*
[EDIT]
This is also my last "rant" (I hate that word) on the subject. I've no affiliation with the park anymore and I don't wish to go back and forth and derail this thread (like the other one). Please keep this thread on topic.
Your next statement was that "Disney doesn't advertise their event as scary." That's because Disney's events AREN'T scary at all. There isn't a "scare" in the entirety of the parks. It's a fun non-scare filled event that anybody of ANY age can partake in. BGW's event is not "family friendly" in the same breath. It *is* more family friendly than Cedar Fair's parks, Universals, etc.. In the same breath, currently, BGW isn't an "extreme park" and more-than-likely won't be anytime soon. It's a family friendly park with events and rides for all ages. I think the "KIDsiderate" promotion shows that off effectively.
As for Facebook, people by nature tend to make negative comments more outspoken than positive comments. An example would be if you go to a restaurant and get excellent service, do you go out of your way to notify the manager of your great service? Do you write the head office about how incredibly happy you were? Possibly, but probably not. Now, if you were unhappy with your service, you're more inclined to notify a member of management. Some people make a habit of doing that everywhere they go just so they can try to get free items, a refund or comps on something. That Facebook page is a very small percentage of the general population that visits the park each year. Now that that very small sliver of people who frequent the Facebook page and narrow it down even more by the standards I set above - the people who want to complain. Again, we'll go back to the same example of the official Facebook. Looking at just the comments being posted, do you really think that "most everybody" hates Howl-O-Scream this year? It's an unfair sampling of the park attendance and the park knows this.
As far as the, 'Jack is Back', show is concerned, it was changed to make another option for the KIDsiderate promotion. Last year there were complaints that there weren't enough kid-friendly options available. It was also deemed that it was one of the less popular shows in the park so it was changed. Now, people are complaining, on Facebook, that they don't like how it's a kids show now. At the same time, Guest Relations gets a few compliments on how friendly the show is. You can't please everybody all the time and trying to cater to everybody just isn't possible.
Yes, I'm babbling, but mainly because I'm doing something else and my attention isn't fully here right now. I still wanted to get this out there. I know you'll say I'm defending the park and I agree with everything the park says given my history, but that's far from the truth. There's many things I don't agree with or wish could be changed, I just happen to understand how systems work within the park, so I understand that saying this, doing that or wishing those just isn't feasible from any standpoint. .. and here I go babbling again ... *wanders off*
[EDIT]
This is also my last "rant" (I hate that word) on the subject. I've no affiliation with the park anymore and I don't wish to go back and forth and derail this thread (like the other one). Please keep this thread on topic.
I still do not get what all of the Jack talk is such a big deal? His show has always been a dance party, never been anything great. Nobody pays attention to him as the icon but now that he's not everyone is all over it and about his not so unusually crap dance party. The number of people chickening out at the houses is higher than they have ever been. Like I said, sit out there and watch the emergency exits and notice how many people run out of them OR the queue line without even going in the house.
HoS this year appeals to the average person and not the 1 out of 50 that does not get scared by much. Consequently those are going to be the subjects who voice their opinion because like I said; they are not being chased through the backwoods of texas with a real psycho behind them.
Daggumit, Doc. You beat me to it. That should end that discussion.
HoS this year appeals to the average person and not the 1 out of 50 that does not get scared by much. Consequently those are going to be the subjects who voice their opinion because like I said; they are not being chased through the backwoods of texas with a real psycho behind them.
Daggumit, Doc. You beat me to it. That should end that discussion.
People should just go enjoy the event for what it is and have fun.
BG does not have to put on a halloween or christmas event but they do so guest can enjoy the park for more than just a normal season and of course so they can make more money.
Theres so much crap in the world today people should enjoy the simple things.
off my soapbox now
BG does not have to put on a halloween or christmas event but they do so guest can enjoy the park for more than just a normal season and of course so they can make more money.
Theres so much crap in the world today people should enjoy the simple things.
off my soapbox now
PushTheButton said:People should just go enjoy the event for what it is and have fun.
BG does not have to put on a halloween or christmas event but they do so guest can enjoy the park for more than just a normal season and of course so they can make more money.
Theres so much crap in the world today people should enjoy the simple things.
off my soapbox now
Could not agree with you more! Like I tell my kids, you get what you get and you don't throw a fit. We are all fortunate to have a place like this to go to and should appreciate whatever there is to be had. However, constructive intelligent banter is always appreciated as well. No it probably won't change the world, but it brings everyone together (or not) and makes us all think and see things from another point of view.