Howl-O-Scream 2018

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The park still has 2 houses left to reveal according to the site! So as of right now we have Demented Dimensions, Circo Sinestro, Cornered, Frostbite, and Lumberhack. No Unearthed, no Catacombs as rumored, and more interestingly no Deadline. With this jester scare zone, I kind of hope the not-Catacombs is a Masquerage revival...

Since they're squeezing TWO houses into NewKastle, where is all of that going? Either NK has way more space than I realized or they're going to be using previously backstage space.
 
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cspencer715 said:
Busch just released the first new haunted house! It's called demented dimensions! Which I think is a re-make from Tampa. http://bit.ly/2JYDGT7. It is located in Oktoberfest so does that mean they are putting a house back in drach's queue?
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"Demented Dimensions is located inside NewKastle in Oktoberfest next to FrostBite."

I definitely think that they will be utilizing the space where Catacombs previously existed. I think we will be seeing some sort of Masquerage/Jester cross over house in this area due to the new scare zone that has been announced. The only other space that makes sense to utilize is under Escape from Pompeii.
 
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coasterfan94 said:
"Demented Dimensions is located inside NewKastle in Oktoberfest next to FrostBite."

I definitely think that they will be utilizing the space where Catacombs previously existed. I think we will be seeing some sort of Masquerage/Jester cross over house in this area due to the new scare zone that has been announced. The only other space that makes sense to utilize is under Escape from Pompeii.
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I agree this would be a cool theme for that area to brin gback the jest and stuff, especially sicne Circo lacks that jesty clowny vibe that many missed from Fear Fair
 
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lce729 said:
My two cents (I'd love some discussion on this) on the upcoming scare zones and houses:

I think the "scare is everywhere" rumor spreading around is bogus. They have such an emphasis on being family friendly now that to put scare actors everywhere would make the park a lot less accessible to all audiences. It also semi defeats the purpose of having so many scare zones this year.
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I think I have to disagree, they have been hinting at it way too much for it to be a coincidence. I think maybe it might not be coming back in the form we think, but I definitely don't think Busch would throw that kind of red herring.
 
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cspencer715 said:
I think I have to disagree, they have been hinting at it way too much for it to be a coincidence. I think maybe it might not be coming back in the form we think, but I definitely don't think Busch would throw that kind of red herring.
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Good point, but they could just be alluding to the fact that with all of their scare zones, they will have scares everywhere in a sense, in that between scare zones and houses each portion of the park will have something spooky about it. I just don't see them doing more houses than usual, more zones than usual, and still finding the staff (considering past years have been severely understaffed inside the houses) to put people every where all of the time
 
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lce729 said:
Good point, but they could just be alluding to the fact that with all of their scare zones, they will have scares everywhere in a sense, in that between scare zones and houses each portion of the park will have something spooky about it. I just don't see them doing more houses than usual, more zones than usual, and still finding the staff (considering past years have been severely understaffed inside the houses) to put people every where all of the time
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I agree, they are asking their rehires to bring new hires and their new hires to bring friends. So I think they are trying their hardest to be overstaffed if anything.
 
cspencer715 said:
I definitely don't think Busch would throw that kind of red herring.
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They haven't exactly been precise with their language in the past -- I don't think it's a red herring so much as HOS marketing team hype that SOUNDS like the scare is everywhere but just means "will be scary".
 
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I’m worried about what might be happening in the space under Pompeii.
BGT recently announced how Zombie Containment Unit was leaving. With Our zombie house going away, maybe we might get a rehash of ZCU? All of the Lazer Guns can be shipped to BGW and some of the props can be reused- and they can keep the layout of Deadline and just add fences and stuff. Plus, we might get a zombie scare zone around Pompeii.
 
WhalerYT said:
I’m worried about what might be happening in the space under Pompeii.
BGT recently announced how Zombie Containment Unit was leaving. With Our zombie house going away, maybe we might get a rehash of ZCU? All of the Lazer Guns can be shipped to BGW and some of the props can be reused- and they can keep the layout of Deadline and just add fences and stuff. Plus, we might get a zombie scare zone around Pompeii.
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That would effectively be a reskin of Deadline since that was supposed to be zombies. I don't think anyone would be too fond of two BGT plug ins
 
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Busch Gardens Tampa built their Demented Dimensions as a way to reuse old props and cut costs. Given that, this could be our ultimate throwback house. I am concerned about how Williamsburg will handle this house, though. The point of DD at BGT is that each room has a different, yet distinct theme. I'm not sure I trust BGW to make cohesive rooms with such a broad theme. Each room has a unique story about anger playing out in different dimensions, and that's more difficult sometimes than one overall story.

Also, unless BGW plans on copying BGT exactly, our house will rely entirely upon what props Williamsburg already has in their warehouses. BGT often looks at their prop inventory before creating the story for a new house, and that was exactly how houses like DD and Zombie Containment Unit were created. I expect us to see remnants of several previous mazes in Pompeii, but I really don't want to see ZCU over here, though it wouldn't surprise me. As happy as I would normally be over BGW copying BGT, this is also likely our first sign of budget cuts.

Also, here is the video that the park posted for Demented Dimensions. The footage is entirely from Tampa's house. I can only hope that we will receive this level of quality.


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CastleOSullivan said:
. I am concerned about how Williamsburg will handle this house, though. The point of DD at BGT is that each room has a different, yet distinct theme. I'm not sure I trust BGW to make cohesive rooms with such a broad theme. Each room has a unique story about anger playing out in different dimensions, and that's more difficult sometimes than one overall story.
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Remember 13 Your Number's Up? 13 different rooms with an overarching theme. This could kinda be a re-reboot of that because a lot of those sets are fairly unused (though they do represent very real things and won't work very well for different supernatural "dimensions"
 
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^ 13 is exactly why I don't trust them to pull this off the way Tampa did. Perhaps they can, but please don't let them have Oak Island Creative design this. OIC ruins everything they touch when it comes to houses like this. They just want to use the park's houses as trade shows for their line of Scare Products.
 
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CastleOSullivan said:
^ 13 is exactly why I don't trust them to pull this off the way Tampa did. Perhaps they can, but please don't let them have Oak Island Creative design this. OIC ruins everything they touch when it comes to houses like this. They just want to use the park's houses as trade shows for their line of Scare Products.
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13 was good when it first came back and was well stocked with actors, it only was terrible once they started neglecting it and people got used to it I feel. I think they can pull it off.
 
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I kinda disagree. I thought 13 was a bad concept that was poorly executed from the beginning.

If COS is right, I think the best hope that DD won't fall into the same traps as 13 is that the underlying premise is different.

As I said years ago, the idea of basing a room on a phobia is very hard to execute. If a person is not afraid of clowns (I'm not) then no matter how well themed a room is, it will still be ineffective an d boring (I was bored). Additionally, some of the phobias did not lend themselves to a walk-through. Fear of waiting rooms (or whatever it was) made no sense at all to me. I imagine people experience anxiety in a waiting room, because they fear whatever it is they are waiting for. Walking through a room does not elicit that sense of foreboding.

So, perhaps with a different concept, DD can be more successful than in my opinion 13 could ever have been.
 
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Here is the press release:

BUSCH GARDENS® WILLIAMSBURG PULLS CURTAIN BACK ON A NEW HAUNTED HOUSE AND TERROR-TORY™
​
WILLIAMSBURG, Virginia (June 20, 2018) – A new Era of Terror is coming for the 20th anniversary of Busch Gardens ® Howl-O-Scream ®. Fear abounds within the park’s collection of elaborate haunted houses, immersive themed scare zones, challenging escape rooms and darkly entertaining live shows. This means more scares are in store for unsuspecting guests during the popular fall event.

With so many new Howl-O-Scream attractions on tap, Busch Gardens will reveal new scares on the 20th day of each month through Aug. 20 until the full line-up is announced. Details can be uncovered at HOWLOSCREAM.COM/VA


Here are the June reveals:

New Haunted House: Demented Dimensions™
Guests will enter Sterling Manor - a haunted house built on top of a dimensional vortex. The energies of the vortex have opened portals to other realms where humans are hunted by monsters, where aliens are in control and the virtual has become reality.

New Terror-tory™: Fools’ Court™
Guests will experience Jester characters in Fools’ Court scare zone, where chaos reigns supreme. When the Motley Fools hit the streets, the joke always will be on you.


New scares coming in 2018 include:
3 Haunted Houses - 7 total
3 Bars - 5 total
2 Terror-tories™- 6 total
2 Party Zones
1 No Escape (Escape Room Experience) - 2 total
Plus more frightening fun


July 20 Reveal – Another haunted house, a second Terror-tory and the No Escape Room


August 20 Reveal – A third haunted house, party zones, bars and other frightening features


Howl-O-Scream opens Sept. 15 and will run on select days through Oct. 28.

The best way to enjoy Howl-O-Scream and other events all year long is through the Busch Gardens Williamsburg Membership Program. Get unlimited visits to Busch Gardens, Water Country USA®, Howl-O-Scream and Christmas Town™ for as little as $12 per month. Plus, exclusive discounts and monthly Member Rewards valued at over $250. For more information, visit buschgardens.com/joinBGW.
 
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I have a question and forgive me if it's posted somewhere but what is the area/building that's being referred to as NewCastle? I see where it is referenced in regards to location of new house but haveno idea what it is or where.
 
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