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The Old HHN 30 Speculation Thread (2020)

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I started looking back for the last time there were only 2-3 IPs and got to HH22 and gave up.

29-6
28-5
27-5
26-6
25-5
24-5
23-5
22-5

I don't mean to be a contrarian but I feel like there are a lot of ideas and theories in this thread that are way off base. :D This is the speculation thread though so carry on . I see the house roster being very similar to this year and the last 5+ years.

Personally I don't count Monsters as an IP.

That being said, these high numbers for past years mixed with a spectacularly low guest satisfaction on a lot of the IP houses this year, are why we won't see many next year. They're running out of IPs, and guests just did not respond to the ones this year
 
Wish list:

Twin Peaks- At this point the “it’s not horror” or “it’s not well-known enough” arguments don’t hold a candle. This could be the cult-classic house for the year and I REALLY want it to happen.

Vamp ‘25: Gatsby party, but with Vampires. Seems pretty easy and the concept sells itself.

Lightning Gulch: Little House on the Scary:
Lightning Gulch prequel and spiritual successor to Roanoke. The story is that the location of the Lightning Gulch we know is not the original as pioneers had settled on Skinwalker territory and we’re completely annihilated. It would be much more open-concept and have Skinwalkers instead of the Wendigo.
 
That's why I think Universal would have no problem implementing some limits. They aren't spending and most of them are causing headaches (yelling, causing a ruckus, disrespectful towards guests and scare actors). I don't want to be an old man yelling at a cloud here, but they suck. :lol:

I totally feel you. I saw way to many kids this year not being supervised by an adult. My first HHN was when I was 12 so I was pretty young but I went with an adult. Now my first time alone at HHN was at 14. I would have no issue with an age restriction policy for unaccompanied teens.
 
Are you saying that guests respond to the original houses better than the IP houses or that they don't respond to the IP houses positively enough to justify the costs associated with them. I would believe the latter, but I would have a really hard time believing the former.
 
Wish list:

Twin Peaks- At this point the “it’s not horror” or “it’s not well-known enough” arguments don’t hold a candle. This could be the cult-classic house for the year and I REALLY want it to happen.

Vamp ‘25: Gatsby party, but with Vampires. Seems pretty easy and the concept sells itself.

Lightning Gulch: Little House on the Scary:
Lightning Gulch prequel and spiritual successor to Roanoke. The story is that the location of the Lightning Gulch we know is not the original as pioneers had settled on Skinwalker territory and we’re completely annihilated. It would be much more open-concept and have Skinwalkers instead of the Wendigo.

One of the mods was probably going to get this, but I will point out there is a separate "wish list" thread now. :lol:
 
Wish list:

Twin Peaks- At this point the “it’s not horror” or “it’s not well-known enough” arguments don’t hold a candle. This could be the cult-classic house for the year and I REALLY want it to happen.

Vamp ‘25: Gatsby party, but with Vampires. Seems pretty easy and the concept sells itself.

Lightning Gulch: Little House on the Scary:
Lightning Gulch prequel and spiritual successor to Roanoke. The story is that the location of the Lightning Gulch we know is not the original as pioneers had settled on Skinwalker territory and we’re completely annihilated. It would be much more open-concept and have Skinwalkers instead of the Wendigo.

If that happens, I'll move back to Orlando. Even if it's just a scarezone.
 
My completely baseless prediction. I have zero insider info and didn't even bother look at the rights for any of my IPs, some could now be owned by Disney and be 100% impossible.

Theme – The end of an Era – closing out the 80s, setting up the next 5 years to be set in the 90’s.


IP Houses (yes, I'm a big John Carpenter fan)

1. Best of Netflix – ST, Hill House, Suspria, etc. Don’t want a full ST house again. Mashup house like Blumhouse.

2. Zombieland Double Tap – gets the street to house treatment. Haven’t seen the movie, but assuming there is enough good stuff to justify a house.

3. The Thing – John Carpenter’s classic finally brought to life. Exactly to movie standards following the plot, nothing from the sequel/reboot or previous house. 100% faithful to the movie.

4. Halloween – Mashup of the last movie/reboot plus Halloween Kills. Halfway through the house have a big setpiece with fire effects with Michael trapped in the basement. Second part of the house is Halloween Kills.

5. They Live – the Cult Favorite / Comedy House – They give you fake glasses to wear (that do nothing, there’s no 3D or anything, but just the experience of having the glasses and seeing the “truth” in the house). Three rooms in a row have to be the same characters fighting – really hamming it up for how long and ridiculous of a fight that was.



Original Houses

1. XXX Years of Fear – Past Icon(s) in a house. Maybe do something silly like have it be the year 2100 or something so it’s in the future and they’re looking back at the HHN days and have “artifacts” and one of them is some kind of timewarp to bring the icons into “present day”. Pretty stupid idea, but just trying to think of something for how they could change it up.

2. In Between Requel house – Everybody’s favorite 3D house makes a return. Hopefully they learned how to overcome the scratched floor and other things that ruined the experience for some people. The String Room is still one of my all time favorites, even though it wasn’t the least bit scary.

3. Nuclear Winter – on 12/31/89 the US and Soviet Union kick off World War III and launch nukes at each other (opening room or two) then the rest of the house takes place in the aftermath/fallout/nuclear winter that follows with radioactive mutants. House exits near the Fallout Zone.

4. 30 Nights of Hell – A prison riots and the inmates take it over. For 30 days they control the prison with nobody from the outside making it in, until now….you are part of the first group to get into the prison in 30 days. Most violent house ever. May or may not tie into Hellgate Prison. Some ritualistic killings/aftermath. Prison has developed it’s own rules and even has “cops” to police themselves. A half consumed body is in the electric chair and they keep “toasting” him and take portions to eat.

5. Tooth Fairy / Urban Legands house that was previously scrapped. If they already have all the stuff for it, why not? Frees up some cash for other houses.


Zones

1. Fallout – not based off the game, but a nuclear fallout zone by the exit of Nuclear Winter. Snow machines on top of buildings making it snow in the streets.

2. Russian/Spetznat super soldiers zone. Big hulking beasts with guns (hopefully they’ll be allowed guns) take over Central Park after the Soviets Attack.

3. 80’s toys come to life – twisted Toy Story. Cabbage Patch Kid returns along with Teddy Ruxpin, stupid looking robot toys, “man in suit” Godzilla, etc. Sick of our kids always abusing them when playing with them, now they want to “play” with us.

4. Rob Zombie: Past, Present and Future – This year’s zone was so damn good that I see either a return with a different album or possibly a “From the mind of Rob Zombie” house.

5. Gremlins 12/31/89 – NYE party and Gremlins invade. Mostly people with stuffed animals on them attacking them. Lots of projections of shadows of gremlins on buildings and stuff. Attack victims. A Chucky-like stage show with puppet gremlin(s). A test to see if the technology and execution is good enough to justify a full house for 31.


Shows

1. Academy of Villains – This year’s show was amazing. Can’t wait to see what they do to top it next year. Maybe a Twisted Reagan vs Gorbachev Cold War type show to fit in with my other wild guesses.

2. 30 Year Retrospective Lagoon Show – Shows something from EVERY year….even if it’s just the event logo or promotional print ad.

3. Jack Stage show by Mel’s – Seems like an anniversary tradition. Maybe have Chance and Eddy show up and have Jack kill one of them. Something crazy like that. Or have a teenage Cindy show up and say her time is coming…something to upset the icon hierarchy. Have Fear come out and everybody laugh him off the stage. Or throw him into a woodchipper.

4. XXX – 30th Anniversary Parade – I continue to hold out hope for the return of the parade though it’s impossible with the crowds and street props.


Upcharge Interactive Experience – Horror Nights through the years. Some kind of VR/AR with all the past icons, some characters from fan favorite original houses/zones, maybe some surprise IP appearances, past shows like Death Drums, etc.

Upcharge Retrospective – Like they did for XX, but probably $15 or $20 now. Have it just cover the last 10 years. Talk about the evolution from all originals to the new IP/Original mix. Maybe show the full plans for Scream, Insideous, etc that were scrapped/changed at the last minute (might be able to get away with it if it is just blueprints and stuff with no names mentioned).

Upcharge XXXtreme house – The long rumored upcharge house finally makes an appearance.

Honorable Mention – A Rocky Horror Pictures Show house. A comedy house that calls back to all the years they had the show. Each room is a different song from the movie. People going through the house would be yelling out the audience participation parts and/or singing and dancing to the songs. I’d love this, I think most people would hate it, so didn’t put it on my proper list.
 
Are you saying that guests respond to the original houses better than the IP houses or that they don't respond to the IP houses positively enough to justify the costs associated with them. I would believe the latter, but I would have a really hard time believing the former.

This year? The former. A lot of the IP houses were at the bottom of guest satisfaction this year.
 
I'm surprised that they released the full calendar this early. Looks like no Wednesday's will be cut out this year due to a park buyout. That's really good for people like me who missed out on a HHN date this year due to that buyout on Oct 16
 
It seems many are speculating on a Terra Cruentus house this year. I do remember watching some HHN history vids on Youtube claiming that when the Terra Queen sacrificed herself on the final night of HHN 15, she is bound to reappear 15 years later. Can anyone attest to the legitimacy of this claim? Only time will tell.
 
I fully expect Stranger Things to be back if season 4 is released in time. Even if the house this year didn't get great feedback, am sure the merchandise is a licence to print money.

Looking at horror films (using the term loosely and looking at what has been at previous events / similar houses) released in 1990 which they may lean into we had:

Childs Play 2
IT
Tremors (potentially for Slaughterhouse Sinema 2)
Leather face TCM3
Night of the living dead (remake)
Night breed
Predator 2
Tales from the dark side
Slumber Party Massacre 3 (again maybe Slaughterhouse Sinema)

Technically Twin Peaks did launch in 1990 but I doubt this would happen even though I personally would love it.
 
JungleSkip brought up Dungeon of Terror. Would anyone be into them re-doing the first Dungeon of Terror as close to the original as they could, since (I imagine) they still have the blueprints?
 
I do want to point out something regarding Zombieland since I've seen a few suggest it could come back. Ignoring how well the 2nd movie can translate in a house (based on others, I haven't seen the film):

1. The zone was not the first choice to do in NY.
2. The movie is not doing anything spectacular at the B.O.
3. The zone was not received well; inside and out of fan circles (compared to TrT and Klowns, which were highly rated and highly loved.)
 
I think the issues with the zones the last few years was due to the response to Vamp ‘55. People loved it and they have since tried to replicate it with all the zones. They are leaning heavily into the “party” atmosphere and interaction. Seemed to bite them pretty hard in the ass this year.
 
I think the issues with the zones the last few years was due to the response to Vamp ‘55. People loved it and they have since tried to replicate it with all the zones. They are leaning heavily into the “party” atmosphere and interaction. Seemed to bite them pretty hard in the ass this year.
Party atmosphere and interaction wasn't the problem this year.

The problem was most of the scareactors weren't interacting. They were just hanging out with their friends or giving off the vibe that they didn't want to be there
 
I think the issues with the zones the last few years at'was due to the response to Vamp ‘55. People loved it and they have since tried to replicate it with all the zones. They are leaning heavily into the “party” atmosphere and interaction. Seemed to bite them pretty hard in the ass this year.

Yeah, that's a problem with a lot of the streets and atmosphere in general, takes away from it being scary. There's a good medium that needs to be found again.
 
UOR not going to shut down their new Bourne Stuntacular for 3 months to slide B&T in. If the dudes come back, it will be in FFL, with AOV back to an in-park stage.

You probably know but might as well tell everyone: I've been told AoV was invited back next year.... as an in-park stage show. Not in FFL. Things can change but take that for what it's worth.
 
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