Howl-O-Scream 2017

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RE: Howl-O-Scream 2017

As long as they have the scares along with the theatrics, I think New France is one of the best areas in the park for a Terror-tory. There is so much they could do, but I would love to see one of the gift shops transformed into something like a Viking tavern.

I think it would be cool to have a Terror-tory that people actually want to spend some time in aside from passing through. Sideshow Square has potential to become just that.
 
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RE: Howl-O-Scream 2017

That's my question as well for there are a couple of choices in which to use the area. To leave the territory still standing, renovate it into another theme, or remove it completely. I'm hoping that vampire point will be renovated to fit the new house Frostbite in Darkastle because it would be a shame to lose a territory. Which is why I'm also hoping that the park will expand on Sideshow Square this year and maybe a new territory ?
 
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RE: Howl-O-Scream 2017

Pretzel Kaiser said:
New France isn't Scandinavia, but I'm sure the park could figure out something like trolls hiding on the Viking ships or something.
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I thought the original point of the Terror-tories was that they were immersive in themselves and therefore didn't need to be tied thematically to the area. That concept has kind of fallen apart as budget cuts have forced certain areas (Vampire Point...) to rely almost entirely on pre-existing theming in the area, but ideally the scare zones and hamlets can be thematically independent. For example, Demon Street's Hell theme shares no thematic similarities with Aquitaine.

Of course, Wendigo is my favorite Terror-tory so I'd hate to see it replaced. They could relocate it, however. I think the Wild Reserve would accommodate it perfectly with its forested setting.
 
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RE: Howl-O-Scream 2017

Does anyone know what year Howl-o-Scream began in BGW? Was it 2000 or something like that? I can't seem to find very much information on HoS history.
 
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RE: Howl-O-Scream 2017

Merboy said:
Does anyone know what year Howl-o-Scream began in BGW? Was it 2000 or something like that? I can't seem to find very much information on HoS history.
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Howl-O-Scream started in 1999 with the Transylvania Express and the only house being Dark Tower where Unearthed Scarlett's Revenge currently lies.
 
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RE: Howl-O-Scream 2017

I honestly wish they would take advantage of the train once again. Doesn't have to be the most amazing thing ever, hell it doesn't even have to be staffed, but they could set up some props or something.
 
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RE: Howl-O-Scream 2017

So, back in 2013 we had the HOS train debate.  (I imagine we have it every year, but I can't be bothered to search through that many old discussions.)  I was and remain opposed to bringing it back.  Perhaps because I am lazy, I am just going to share two of my posts from back then for a rough explanation of why I simply don't miss it.

The short version is that the HOS train was really what the Christmas Town train should be: a themed ride through great light displays.  Sadly, it offered little in the way of scares.  It was also the perfect attraction if you liked massive, stampeding crowds and interminable waits.

In response to the rumor that the train was not part of HOS:
I really don't know why they got rid of the train (I'm sure others here do), but I do know that as a guest I really don't miss it that much.

Each year it got progressively less Halloween-y and by the last year, it reminded me more of Christmas than HOS. Even when it was a "Three Pumpkin" attraction, it didn't work extremely well. I think I was actually startled by a scare actor once, but I am about the easiest target in the park.

Mostly it was just a train going through some Halloween-themed props. And the lines were horrendous. I always get Quick Queues, but not even those front of the line passes helped when the stampede to the train came.
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In response to a concept for integrating the train into the Terror-Tories:
That said, I come back to my enduring objection to a haunted train at HOS: logistics.

It always seemed to me that it was very difficult for the actors to scare the passengers, while the train was moving. Generally they would do sort of scary things next to the train or sort of run along side it. I worry that interactions between monsters and hunters would prove even more difficult to implement.

Less important but significantly more annoying: the mobs in the station. The loading area for the "haunted" train at HOS was complete chaos in the past.
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I know that many people miss the HOS train; but I honestly don't understand why.  Perhaps if I had experienced it as a child, I would have some kind of nostalgia for riding though "spooky" props with scare actors wandering by.  Regardless, in my opinion, the park never made it work either from a logistical or an experiential perspective.

I can see setting up a child-friendly Halloween train ride during the day, but I remain very skeptical about a haunted attraction for adults.
 
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RE: Howl-O-Scream 2017

Nicole said:
I was and remain opposed to bringing it back....

...I remain very skeptical about a haunted attraction for adults.
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I couldn't agree more: the idea of a Halloween train ride is far better than one in practice. The park gets more out of an actor in a house or scare zone than from one maintaining a safe distance from a moving train in the dark.

Until Nicole's post, I'd forgotten about the insane lines... Then I had a flashback to a shoulder-to-shoulder crowd in Caribou waiting to get on a crammed train with very little to see.
 
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RE: Howl-O-Scream 2017

That's the same flashback I had as well. The Caribou Station seemed to always have a huge throng waiting to get aboard. Other stations have their problems of course, like how nobody knows to go to the exit gate at the end of the sidewalk in Scotland...

I do miss the haunted train. But then again, it's a means of transportation and not really a "ride", per se.
 
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RE: Howl-O-Scream 2017

Nicole said:
I know that many people miss the HOS train; but I honestly don't understand why.  Perhaps if I had experienced it as a child, I would have some kind of nostalgia for riding though "spooky" props with scare actors wandering by.  Regardless, in my opinion, the park never made it work either from a logistical or an experiential perspective.

I can see setting up a child-friendly Halloween train ride during the day, but I remain very skeptical about a haunted attraction for adults.
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I only remember being wet and chilly. Oh, and being highly annoyed by the number of people at the station.
 
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RE: Howl-O-Scream 2017

I can't understand why they don't just run it as usual, but with a few large, easy to move props off to the side. I just don't know if they could do anything special such as triggered lighting cues without having people stationed outside to manually trigger them. You would think they could do more things remotely in today's time.

A few times I have seen actors on Demon Street waving chainsaws at the train and that's all I would ask for. Combined with the burning house facade outside, it was just like the old train ride. True, it didn't have the narrations, but I think those were just cool for the time. It's like how the soundtracks park-wide have changed. Although both are great, people don't get so easily scared simply by listening to Midnight Syndicate or Nox Arcana anymore.
 
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RE: Howl-O-Scream 2017

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