Halloween Horror Nights 33 (UOR) - Reviews, Photos, & Videos
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Is that the Slimer Korean Corndog?
Also....
Also....
"Beware the stare of Mary Shaw... she had no children, only dolls. If you see her, do not scream. Or she'll rip your tongue out ..at the seam"
- Jun 15, 2023
- 175
- 643
Definitely not caught up on the threads, but just some observations after a packed weekend (rip in peace to my feet) and some time to reflect-
-I don't know if the highs this year match the highs last year- outside of potentially a well-staffed Insidious, there isn't a scene that gets my blood racing like The Darkest Deal triple-scare, Bloodmoon's church + finale and the narrative excellence of Dr. Oddfellow- but, the lows are nowhere near as low. Reminds me a lot of 2016 in a way, a lot of really solid haunts that are all within a few spots of each other in my rankings, but no definitive "Top 10" haunt.
-I think really the only "negatives" I have are that each haunt could have benefitted from an extra day with the decor team to just add that little bit more to some scenes, or maybe even just a little extra blood on blood day- but these are nitpicks from the dude who obsesses over sets so I don't think many people will notice
-Overall (not including Insidious) the haunts seem to be brighter as well- haven't done NY Stay-and-Scream, but even in broad daylight I haven't had a single issue seeing in any of the haunts, which might be the main factor people keep saying "it doesn't feel like HHN" but I'm trying to avoid the negativity
-I don't actually hate the use of TVs / screens for background effects, but I think this year may have been a little to reliant on some of them
-Goblins Feast just looks so, SO, good. I think that first scene trumps anything in Dead Man's Pier and Bloodmoon.
-I think Triplets is easily the worst- but for me it's on-par with Unmasked last year, which I ranked 7th last year and like 80th overall in my 14 years of going, and I think Goblins is my current #1- and would probably be right around a Top 20 haunt for me (Darkest Deal, Oddfellow and Bloodmoon are all in my Top 15).
Really, I think people are being way too harsh on this year, at least from what I've seen on other platforms. Lots of cool stuff that might still be rough around the edges, but at least it's not like a really good late-20s year. Those haunts all were effectively the same scare-wise with a bunch of boo boxes and maybe 2 or 3 "cool" things for variety, and that's not a knock, just an observation that HHN was very formulaic for a bit- and this year, most of the haunts feel fresh. I really didn't get much of a "it's what you've seen before at HHN, just slightly different" vibe like I've gotten a lot in the past.
Experimental, innovative, whatever you want to call it, I think this a great year with a lot of good stuff- the zones and icons on the surface are a big step back from last year after Oddfellow kind of re-ignited the Icon passion. But I have to say, Torture Faire is one of the best zones I've had the pleasure of experiencing- just not on premium night, but there always seems to be something fun going on, and the times Sinist3r and Surr3al have appeared in those respective zones have been commanding- maybe not the Oddfellow charisma, but certainly characters I'd love to see again.
I think if this year had stronger zones and a more cohesive theme from the start, people would be calling it "THE BEST YEAR EVER" or something close to it- as I said, the highs don't match the highs of last year, but the lows are FAR more managable.
Not to mention some of the best things- Major Sweets brings the 2008 vibes and is probably one of the best sleeper hits I've done, and the accessibility with the updated tent infrastructure saves us from so much pain and suffering and time loss- big, BIG wins.
We will see where the dust settles after a few more weekends and better staffing- I noticed a lot of holes on opening- but I really enjoy this year, and I like a lot of what I see.
EDIT: Can't believe I forgot to add that the IPs are like, REALLY good this year. I truly hate to hate on IPs- and when I do, it's because I know Universal can do 'em like they did this year. I could name maybe 7-or-8 IPs in 14 years that match the level of all 3 this year- Monsters doesn't count lol. And maybe as a downside that means the originals feel less-spectacular because the IPs are, for once, almost as mind-blowing as expected. I think Frozen Empire beats 2019, AQP > any Stranger Things, but I don't know if Insidious beats 2015- or some parts of Blumhouse 2017, for that matter- but it's a *different* type of haunt that I still love and appreciate.
-I don't know if the highs this year match the highs last year- outside of potentially a well-staffed Insidious, there isn't a scene that gets my blood racing like The Darkest Deal triple-scare, Bloodmoon's church + finale and the narrative excellence of Dr. Oddfellow- but, the lows are nowhere near as low. Reminds me a lot of 2016 in a way, a lot of really solid haunts that are all within a few spots of each other in my rankings, but no definitive "Top 10" haunt.
-I think really the only "negatives" I have are that each haunt could have benefitted from an extra day with the decor team to just add that little bit more to some scenes, or maybe even just a little extra blood on blood day- but these are nitpicks from the dude who obsesses over sets so I don't think many people will notice
-Overall (not including Insidious) the haunts seem to be brighter as well- haven't done NY Stay-and-Scream, but even in broad daylight I haven't had a single issue seeing in any of the haunts, which might be the main factor people keep saying "it doesn't feel like HHN" but I'm trying to avoid the negativity
-I don't actually hate the use of TVs / screens for background effects, but I think this year may have been a little to reliant on some of them
-Goblins Feast just looks so, SO, good. I think that first scene trumps anything in Dead Man's Pier and Bloodmoon.
-I think Triplets is easily the worst- but for me it's on-par with Unmasked last year, which I ranked 7th last year and like 80th overall in my 14 years of going, and I think Goblins is my current #1- and would probably be right around a Top 20 haunt for me (Darkest Deal, Oddfellow and Bloodmoon are all in my Top 15).
Really, I think people are being way too harsh on this year, at least from what I've seen on other platforms. Lots of cool stuff that might still be rough around the edges, but at least it's not like a really good late-20s year. Those haunts all were effectively the same scare-wise with a bunch of boo boxes and maybe 2 or 3 "cool" things for variety, and that's not a knock, just an observation that HHN was very formulaic for a bit- and this year, most of the haunts feel fresh. I really didn't get much of a "it's what you've seen before at HHN, just slightly different" vibe like I've gotten a lot in the past.
Experimental, innovative, whatever you want to call it, I think this a great year with a lot of good stuff- the zones and icons on the surface are a big step back from last year after Oddfellow kind of re-ignited the Icon passion. But I have to say, Torture Faire is one of the best zones I've had the pleasure of experiencing- just not on premium night, but there always seems to be something fun going on, and the times Sinist3r and Surr3al have appeared in those respective zones have been commanding- maybe not the Oddfellow charisma, but certainly characters I'd love to see again.
I think if this year had stronger zones and a more cohesive theme from the start, people would be calling it "THE BEST YEAR EVER" or something close to it- as I said, the highs don't match the highs of last year, but the lows are FAR more managable.
Not to mention some of the best things- Major Sweets brings the 2008 vibes and is probably one of the best sleeper hits I've done, and the accessibility with the updated tent infrastructure saves us from so much pain and suffering and time loss- big, BIG wins.
We will see where the dust settles after a few more weekends and better staffing- I noticed a lot of holes on opening- but I really enjoy this year, and I like a lot of what I see.
EDIT: Can't believe I forgot to add that the IPs are like, REALLY good this year. I truly hate to hate on IPs- and when I do, it's because I know Universal can do 'em like they did this year. I could name maybe 7-or-8 IPs in 14 years that match the level of all 3 this year- Monsters doesn't count lol. And maybe as a downside that means the originals feel less-spectacular because the IPs are, for once, almost as mind-blowing as expected. I think Frozen Empire beats 2019, AQP > any Stranger Things, but I don't know if Insidious beats 2015- or some parts of Blumhouse 2017, for that matter- but it's a *different* type of haunt that I still love and appreciate.
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Rankings for opening weekend (obviously, things could shift around)
Houses:
1. Slaughter Sinema 2
2. Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire
3. Insidious: The Further
4. Major Sweets Candy Factory
5. The Museum: Deadly Exhibits
6. Goblin's Feast
7. A Quiet Place
8. Monstruos: The Monsters of Latin America
9. Triplets of Terror
10. Universal Monsters: Eternal Bloodlines
Scare zones:
1. Torture Faire
2. Swamp of the Undead
3. Demon Queens
4. Enter The Blumhouse
5. Duality of Fear (does this one even count? It's basically non-existent lol)
Houses:
1. Slaughter Sinema 2
2. Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire
3. Insidious: The Further
4. Major Sweets Candy Factory
5. The Museum: Deadly Exhibits
6. Goblin's Feast
7. A Quiet Place
8. Monstruos: The Monsters of Latin America
9. Triplets of Terror
10. Universal Monsters: Eternal Bloodlines
Scare zones:
1. Torture Faire
2. Swamp of the Undead
3. Demon Queens
4. Enter The Blumhouse
5. Duality of Fear (does this one even count? It's basically non-existent lol)
- Jun 8, 2022
- 57
- 122
After a full weekend with multiple trips through each house, here is my list:
1. Monsters EB
2. Goblin Feast
3. Monstrous
4. A Quiet Place
5. Major Sweets
6. Insidious
7. Triplets of Terror
8. Ghost Busters
9. Museum
10. Slaughtered Cinema
I enjoyed all of the houses this year, which is the first time I've ever enjoyed the entire lineup. I waited in some lines that had inflated wait times but I also waited in some that were a lot longer than posted. The event overall seemed just as busy as ever for an opening weekend. A couple of the scare zones were really enjoyable this year and a couple of them were very disappointing. Can't wait to see how the rest of the run goes.
1. Monsters EB
2. Goblin Feast
3. Monstrous
4. A Quiet Place
5. Major Sweets
6. Insidious
7. Triplets of Terror
8. Ghost Busters
9. Museum
10. Slaughtered Cinema
I enjoyed all of the houses this year, which is the first time I've ever enjoyed the entire lineup. I waited in some lines that had inflated wait times but I also waited in some that were a lot longer than posted. The event overall seemed just as busy as ever for an opening weekend. A couple of the scare zones were really enjoyable this year and a couple of them were very disappointing. Can't wait to see how the rest of the run goes.
- Jun 11, 2020
- 258
- 1,069
I attended the premium scream night and I was highly satisfied. I got to the park a little after 7 and was welcomed to no crowds. In a nutshell, I went through almost every house alone and now I have to stop saying HHN is not scary lol. I tried the more expensive food items to see if they were worth buying again during a regular night. The fish and chips were quite delicious but I cannot pay almost 20.00 for them on a regular night, but man they were good. I really hope they bring this back next year as I kinda feel I went through the houses more than enough times to reduce my HHN year down to just this one night in the future.
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