- Nov 3, 2015
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The Old HHN 30 Speculation Thread (2020)
- Thread starter Brian G.
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- May 10, 2018
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Well Universal made it official on their twitter, reopening 6/5 and asking many to please follow the guidelines they and the the CDC have put in place.
I wouldn't mind pulse lines, I think it's better for this time and would make the experience a bit better, I'd take it over a conga line and get stopped every two seconds in a house.
Also about HHN 20, it was really good, the dark theme, the tagline, the look was really good and definitely what HHN needed at the time too, of course people can see Fear icon as being a little too hyped but he was last minute, but everything really worked well, I still say Psychoscareapy Echoes of The Past was my favorite that year. I loved the tie-in to Zombie-Gras and Zombiegeddon.
I wouldn't mind pulse lines, I think it's better for this time and would make the experience a bit better, I'd take it over a conga line and get stopped every two seconds in a house.
Also about HHN 20, it was really good, the dark theme, the tagline, the look was really good and definitely what HHN needed at the time too, of course people can see Fear icon as being a little too hyped but he was last minute, but everything really worked well, I still say Psychoscareapy Echoes of The Past was my favorite that year. I loved the tie-in to Zombie-Gras and Zombiegeddon.
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Yes.
Fear and Lady Luck are definitely on the lower end of icons, but I'd choose Fear over her. As I said, 21 was leaps and bounds better with the house line-up, but 20 still had some good ones (notably Catacombs and Havoc). I thought 21's zones we're pretty bad, save for 7 and Acid Assault - and even then, they're just good.
- Jul 27, 2015
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With regard to Scarecrow 2: I never actually heard it rumored. It’s been heavily speculated as returning in some capacity because marketing used a Scarecrow image in one of its first post about HHN 30, stating the year would feature reimagined things from the past. Personally, I’ve held the belief that if Scarecrow returns, a zone in Central Park makes more sense than another house. But, again, it’s not a rumor. It’s speculative.
Regarding 20/21:
Fear was far better than Luck. While both were pretty boring, at least Fear wasn’t bad. And his zone was light years better than Luck’s. The streets in 20, across the board were better: Saws and Steam, Esqueleto Muerte, and Zombie Gras were all remarkably creative, effective and consistent. Even its weakest zone that year (The Coven), was better than most of 21’s (I’d rank it above Canyon, Luck, and of course Nightmaze).
Houses are going to be a little more equal, and I’ll admit I have some personal animosity towards two fan favorites from 21 (Bloodengutz and Nightingales). I hate them both, and rank them in my bottom third. The In-Between was a top-tier house, and The Forsaken turned into something that worked. But The Thing and Nevermore were somewhat boring and Winter’s Night was a lot of style over substance (there’s a reason a Doctor Who Easter egg is the most memorable part of the house).
HHN 20, with Catacombs and Havoc, had two all-timers, unique and satisfying fan-service (Orfanage, Legendary Truth, and Hallow’d Past), and narrative twists with the first “integrated” house and zone with Zombiegeddon. Its two weakest houses, Hades and Echoes of Shadybrook, were more forgettable than bad. Throw in the fact that 20 is one of the few years with no IP presence at all, and it’s something unique.
HHN20 beats out 21 on pure consistency.
Regarding 20/21:
Fear was far better than Luck. While both were pretty boring, at least Fear wasn’t bad. And his zone was light years better than Luck’s. The streets in 20, across the board were better: Saws and Steam, Esqueleto Muerte, and Zombie Gras were all remarkably creative, effective and consistent. Even its weakest zone that year (The Coven), was better than most of 21’s (I’d rank it above Canyon, Luck, and of course Nightmaze).
Houses are going to be a little more equal, and I’ll admit I have some personal animosity towards two fan favorites from 21 (Bloodengutz and Nightingales). I hate them both, and rank them in my bottom third. The In-Between was a top-tier house, and The Forsaken turned into something that worked. But The Thing and Nevermore were somewhat boring and Winter’s Night was a lot of style over substance (there’s a reason a Doctor Who Easter egg is the most memorable part of the house).
HHN 20, with Catacombs and Havoc, had two all-timers, unique and satisfying fan-service (Orfanage, Legendary Truth, and Hallow’d Past), and narrative twists with the first “integrated” house and zone with Zombiegeddon. Its two weakest houses, Hades and Echoes of Shadybrook, were more forgettable than bad. Throw in the fact that 20 is one of the few years with no IP presence at all, and it’s something unique.
HHN20 beats out 21 on pure consistency.
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- May 10, 2018
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I agree, I mean seeing how they did Twisted Traditions at 28, I could see them trying to give their best shot with it in that area.
And yeah I agree, I mean the marketing to Fear was cool too, with icons involved and their own insignia on their faces to mark em, that was cool too. I think I liked 21 for just the houses, not really the scarezones but some of the houses caught my interest that year. 20 though was really strong with houses like Catacombs and Hades and Havoc was aggressive, something I think the second house needed more of but I was expecting too much from the sequel. It was alright, as for 21 definitely Bloodengutz, Nightingales and Poe were up there for me and to think that 21 would lead us into full blown ips coming to the event at 22.
- Aug 18, 2017
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20 did at least seem like a year in which they tried a lot of new things.
I know why you hated Nightingales: Prey, but what's your reason for Bloodengutz? 21 did look pretty incredible to me.
- Jul 27, 2015
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I was designing “Calendar Fear” during my breaks in Catacombs. I sketched out some scenes that were the same stories used in Bloodengutz (killer cupid massacre and Christmas elf uprising, specifically).
- Aug 18, 2017
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Ah, I remember reading that walkthrough.
I know I'd be happy if they ripped off your Shakespeare or fortune telling ideas.
- Apr 7, 2019
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Soo why does everybody hate Lady Luck? She’s not my fav but Atleast was unique imo
- Aug 18, 2017
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Yeah considering how she was worked into the story of each house. Makes her better than Chance IMO.
Theories (truth probably a compilation of a lot of things):
* Design was underwhelming. Compared to Fear the year before -- say whatever you will about his backstory, the make-up and stilts made him impressive in person -- it was a woman in a green dress with some minor succubus make-up. Set design felt like an afterthought as well.
* It was the first year selfie culture hit the event full-force and her zone was not designed to accommodate that. Made things awkward.
- Jun 29, 2012
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Agreed. I wonder if Director has been the icon during the boom of Instagram the community would have similar feelings.
- Jul 27, 2015
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She didn’t do anything. She never actually asserted herself on the event. She didn’t talk beyond gambling cliches. We didn’t see her kill anyone. She exhibited no personality. She just existed. Even her “involvement in all the houses” was a passive revelation we read about instead of saw (and it was a stretch in some houses). Bloody Mary and Storyteller were infinitely better executions of the “woman causes the event” idea. Fear suffered from a similarly droll design, but he was given the added context of being in control of the other icons. That, immediately, told us everything we needed to know about the character. Jack, Caretaker, and Director had “shows.” And the Usher had a relatability to a lot of guests that no other guests had.
“Selfie culture” had nothing to do with it. She was just a poorly executed character.
Why they didn’t give her a casino house is beyond me.
- Nov 3, 2019
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Fear must have looked a lot better in person. To me, any footage I've ever seen of his costume made me think a few things; A: Leftover from Terra Cruentus, B: Wayyy too much going on with the flags, stilts, carvings, etc..., and C: Despite that, he feels almost too generic in a 3edgy5me sense. Like a jumpscare monster/demon from a free indie computer game.
So that's totally not my thing. But I do appreciate that it could hit all the right notes for someone else, there's nothing wrong with that! And I acknowledge that physically portraying an entity-esque figure in a satisfying way is never an easy feat.
Also, this is not to say that Lady Luck was any better in my eyes. The way she was incorporated into the history of each house was fun, but that's about it. There's something to think about that the most enduring icons in my personal view had very archetypal concepts, and super simple physical designs; but I think what makes them so memorable is how their basic designs allowed the talent behind the makeup to really bring their full charisma into the role. The Director is just "evil snuff film jerk", but the way an actor moves and voice acting delivers the soundbite can elevate him to this enigmatic and simultaneously sleazy character.
EDIT: What Legacy said above is totally right too. Universal could have marketed Luck a lot more effectively had they leaned more into her human-faced interactions and done away with the poor succubus transformation altogether. It's not like Storyteller needed to morph into a 2000s nu-metal monster to gain a fanbase.
So that's totally not my thing. But I do appreciate that it could hit all the right notes for someone else, there's nothing wrong with that! And I acknowledge that physically portraying an entity-esque figure in a satisfying way is never an easy feat.
Also, this is not to say that Lady Luck was any better in my eyes. The way she was incorporated into the history of each house was fun, but that's about it. There's something to think about that the most enduring icons in my personal view had very archetypal concepts, and super simple physical designs; but I think what makes them so memorable is how their basic designs allowed the talent behind the makeup to really bring their full charisma into the role. The Director is just "evil snuff film jerk", but the way an actor moves and voice acting delivers the soundbite can elevate him to this enigmatic and simultaneously sleazy character.
EDIT: What Legacy said above is totally right too. Universal could have marketed Luck a lot more effectively had they leaned more into her human-faced interactions and done away with the poor succubus transformation altogether. It's not like Storyteller needed to morph into a 2000s nu-metal monster to gain a fanbase.
- May 26, 2010
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Agreed that beyond the fun throwback lore and games on the hype website and face of the marketing material, she just didn't do much once you walked through the gates. They knew it was a problem, because they eventually got the commercial's spinning wheel out near the park entrance with additional scare actors to allow for photo ops/a welcome statement. The zone was underwhelming in the sense that it wasn't a full maze; I thought it was a good zone once they beefed it up, but you're right in that it was never going to give the character the meat she needed to be successful. A casino of death maze would've been perfect, and I still don't quite get the rationale on why they resisted that route.
Hell - I remember being disappointed because the early version of the commercial didn't even have the succubus character! I guess they kept walking back how "nasty" she was allowed to be... some sort of departmental infighting.
I really don't think FEAR was successful at all and had all the same problems Luck did; the only reason he gets a pass by some, I think, is because his zone was elevated by other memorable characters that could actually talk and interact and the lore implications that were placed upon him. His design just didn't gel, and he had basically no presence elsewhere in the event.
It's really crazy to think that had this been a "regular" year we would've already had 3-4 house announcements at this point. 30 will absolutely go down in history as one of the craziest HHN's, for better or for worse.
- Aug 18, 2017
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Well, keep in mind that no year before 26 had any (house) announcements before June. We've been spoiled lol
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- Jul 27, 2015
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Shoot, before 23 (I think that was the turning point) there weren’t any announcements until the end of August. With this year being what it is, I hope they do that again. It would be the ultimate throw-back.
I don't recall about the them announcing IP's early, however I do believe 17 was the year folks discovered you can look up permits...and Uni didn't really hide what house was on said permit.
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