Tulley's Shocktober Fest Scream Park

[Mer]

http://www.halloweenattractions.co.uk/locations/crawley/shocktoberfest

 

The page has been updated and mentions coming dressed as a clown for preview night. Wonder if this will be their world record attempt this year?

[Jack]

7 hours ago, Mer said:

http://www.halloweenattractions.co.uk/locations/crawley/shocktoberfest

 

The page has been updated and mentions coming dressed as a clown for preview night. Wonder if this will be their world record attempt this year?

It's not a record attempt this year, just a dress up 

[MattyMoo]

I'm going on Saturday 7th  Going VIP as we figure the re-runs of mazes are worth it.

[Mer]

Me and Stuntman are going on preview night

 

I will no doubt write a review, with spoiler tags of course  

 

I popped down there today to a look round, which got me even more hyped for it! I could hear some sound effects playing from The Cellar (or near there), and I'm pretty sure the actors were rehearsing. There was quite a bit going on around the place, the food places in the main square are up too. The saloon bar door was open so I peeked in, it looks so good!  

[JoshuaA]

About to head off for Tulleys this year! I really cannot wait, expect a review written up by tonight/tomorrow, I'll try to get a ton of photos too.

[MattyMoo]

Look forward to the reviews. We found Big Top this year up to Tulley's standard if not better, so we can't wait for the 7th for our visit 

 

[RobF]

For those who were interested in vixi, it's essentially still just hellements, with a 10 second walk through added to the end

[ben199]

Yeah, I was a bit disappointed there weren't actually any new mazes this year. Hellements I thought was worse tonight because the fire was going up in little poofs as opposed to one huge blast, it didn't really feel like a finale and then the hood off walk-through was a bit wtf.

On the other hand the clown maze was much improved on last year. The carnival game bit at the beginning from last year (which I thought was awful) is replaced by a curtains maze with actors behind most flaps, it was great and gave the maze the scare factor it was lacking.

Rest of the event was pretty much identical. Coven seemed shorter but I got on right before closing in just a group of two so I probably breezed through it. Very creepy maze in a small group.

Had a brilliant night, Tulleys really is excellent.

[Jack]

16 hours ago, JoshuaA said:

About to head off for Tulleys this year! I really cannot wait, expect a review written up by tonight/tomorrow, I'll try to get a ton of photos too.

Link to review?

[JoshuaA]

5 minutes ago, Jack said:

Link to review?

 

[Jack]

Ah thanks 

[Mitchada04]

I think Tulley's was a bit stale this year.

 

With nothing new this year and only minor tweaks it felt very samey. Yes Hellements has new things but that's just fixing an issue they've had for years. Coven apparently had new scenes but it almost felt shorter, Chopshop is still the same. Very marmite maze, it's either gonna make you love it or go eh. The clown maze had some changes once again but none of it felt overly new. Colony and Cellar weren't touched which is good as they're solid consistent mazes which is good for an event to have.

 

The street theatre this year didn't seem as large as previous years or as entertaining. It just felt like they could have done more. They have 8 attractions, push the boat out with one, try something new. Might take a year or 2 off from Tulley's now unless they have a big shakeup. Like they say, you can only have so much of a good thing.

[RobF]

22 hours ago, Mitchada04 said:

I think Tulley's was a bit stale this year.

 

With nothing new this year and only minor tweaks it felt very samey. Yes Hellements has new things but that's just fixing an issue they've had for years. Coven apparently had new scenes but it almost felt shorter, Chopshop is still the same. Very marmite maze, it's either gonna make you love it or go eh. The clown maze had some changes once again but none of it felt overly new. Colony and Cellar weren't touched which is good as they're solid consistent mazes which is good for an event to have.

 

The street theatre this year didn't seem as large as previous years or as entertaining. It just felt like they could have done more. They have 8 attractions, push the boat out with one, try something new. Might take a year or 2 off from Tulley's now unless they have a big shakeup. Like they say, you can only have so much of a good thing.

Totally agree with the above

[JoshuaA]

Press night was pretty good tonight.

 

Coven and Cellar's cast have too have settled in, and Cellar was brilliant on my run through.

Coven seemed to improved, and the second half was very strong, though I feel there is still something missing here..

 

Hayride and Chop Shop return very strong like preview night, and the Cottage seems to fairly jumpy this year.

 

VIXI or Hellements V2 on my run through though was dreadful.. Yes it was very late and the park was about to close, though the fire effect not being on just was awful..

 

[MattyMoo]

Went to Tulley's last night so will be stinking of bonfires for ages  ...we forked out for VIP (in advance) - and so glad that we did, 100% worth it. For a start it meant we didn't have to queue for 30 mins to get in. Plenty of roaming actors as always which really set the scene.

 

Chop Shop (x3)

Very good as always - so so many chainsaws and it builds perfectly to the finale. Some of the strobes were perhaps on for too long so the ending could've been a bit darker for more scares etc but was still top notch. My mate said "We've lost our friend" to which an actor replies "WELL BOOOO HOOO!"  

 

Coven Of 13 (x4)

The laser effect at the start is simple but very effective - if this was at a Merlin park, people would be raving about it  Definitely improved upon last year, and the two actresses in the house were amazing, the first one was giving it some proper effort (and often reappeared) and the blonde in the next scene before you go through the fireplace was great too <3 So many actors in this maze, very impressed.

 

Horrorwood Hay Ride (x2)
Brilliant as always - managed to be sat at the back of the tractor so had a lot of interaction with the actors - the most amazing scene for me was the actor on the swing with the bird-head on surrounded by smoke - they don't even get on the tractor but it was iconic! And they never slip out of character too. The new "nuns" scene is amusing

 

Creepy Cottage (x5)

Fantastic. Classic and fantastic. Love the fact the actors remembered us from before so were telling us to "Go Back to Coven!" as we'd been saying we were looking forward to going back to it  Love the girl hanging from the ceiling that you have to go underneath. Plenty of jump scares... on the later runs some actors got particularly close  

 

Clowns 3D (x1)

Didn't really think the 3D effect worked that well with the exception of the chequered coridoor bit. At one point we were suddenly surrounded by 4 clowns from nowhere which was BRILLIANT.

 

The Cellar (x1)

Was solid as ever - Cottage was superior, we probably should have gone on this again!

 

The Colony (x3)

Forget how HUGE this maze is - like - insanely huge. When you get a good run with lots of actors, it's fab. I could even say that the maze is perhaps... too long? Is that a thing?! Had a couple of parts where jumps/scares were lacking but enjoyed it - not entirely sure about the ending but still - it's a quality maze that seems never ending.

 

VIXI (x1)
Awful. The problem is - having a bag on your head doesn't scare me, especially when people up ahead keep stopping so it doesn't flow. It was basically walking around for 10-15 minutes in the dark holding on to a rope, getting narked with the fact that people weren't moving quick enough. Total waste of time - however, the final scenes WITHOUT the bag were good.

 

Overall a fantastic night - as expected! No regrets paying £64 for VIP as it was a great evening. Without VIP, you would have definitely got all the mazes done in time I think, but we wanted multiple runs  Love Chop Shop so much - and Hayride is iconic!

[Coaster]

Visited Tulleys yesterday for the second ever time, definitely the UK's best Halloween event IMO, the overall atmosphere of the "scare-park" is fantastic with the live bands and a huge number of roaming actors.

 

Maze reviews below (in the order we did them in);

 

Creepy Cottage

I'm a huge fan of classic old-school ghost trains, so Creepy Cottage appeals to me with the use of props and some simple animated scenes as well as a few actors along the way.  Theming was really good, the maze lasts for a good amount of time - just a shame the coffin effect wasn't working. 6/10

 

VIXI

Unpopular opinion, but I really enjoyed this!  The walk was disorientating with sight removed, and there were a number of effects which added to the experience.  I really liked the ending with the barrels, however thought the fire effect was executed much better last year. 6/10

 

Coven of 13

Great contrast within the maze, the first half with the lasers is fantastic and so cleverly done, the outside sections are effective as is the "haunted house" section.  I did miss the falling chair effect from last year within the laser section, however that's a minor niggle considering the rest of the maze was very creative and enjoyable. 6/10

 

Twisted Clowns 3D

Fun maze, and I quite like the 3D element even though trying to keep the cardboard glasses on is a nuisance!  Actors made good use of the props to startle us, and the use of humour is present throughout. 6/10

 

The Colony

WOW!  I was absolutely blown away by this, I remember enjoying it last year but the scares were on another level yesterday!  The maze lasts for around 15 minutes, during which there is a stark contrast between quiet, dark sections and full on jump-scares.  Theming is fantastic and the actors were going all-out. 9/10

 

The Cellar

What happened?  Last year this was my favourite maze but it was in poor form on my run-through yesterday with a lack of actors, a number of sections where nothing happened and some effects failing to work.  Also, the ending of last year was gone and instead we just walked out with no actors anywhere to be seen.

On a more positive note, theming was really good throughout the maze and there were a number of obstacles to navigate through, adding a level of interactivity. 5/10

 

Horrorwood Haunted Hayride

Such a fun attraction and my definite highlight of the evening, so much creativity has gone into this and it's just general hilarity from start to finish.  Some of the effects used are very impressive, as are the jump scares and the swing scene is terrifying! 9/10

 

Chop Shop

A maze of two halves, from the scenic detail in the first half to the utter chaos in the second.  I really enjoy this maze however feel the use of so many chainsaws does somewhat lessen the fear factor, as instead of running away from it you're forced to carry on walking at a calm pace and therefore get used to them.  With that said, it's still an impressive feat for a horror maze and overall we really enjoyed it! 7/10

 

Finally, the new 3D Cinema is worth a mention, it's included in an X-Scream ticket well worth doing in my opinion.

[JoshuaA]

The Tulleys website has been updated for 2018!

 

So far there is no information on the ninth maze (the new one) but the website says all 8 attractions from last year will all return.

The Cellar and The Colony seem to both be getting upgrades or some changes this year with "The Cellar: Imprisoned" and "The Colony: Dystopia".

Its going to be interesting to see what they for their ninth maze.. But they have teased it will have a scare factor of 8.

[MattyMoo]

Yes, website now shows a "New for 2018" maze - I would assume it's something police/jail related from the jailers and prison cell that was in the middle of the park last year but maybe not if The Cellar is now The Cellar Imprisoned?

 

Is it Halloween yet?  Glad I got my VIP Unlimited ticket back in February, woop woop!

[Jack]

I live 5-10 minutes from tulleys so took a little drive down there yesterday, I spoke to some of the management team and they said all will be revealed on the 31st August! Getting in there 2 days before the expected Thorpe announcement, great move. 

 

Also I don’t think the scare factor really means anything unless you’re the GP, the colony is an 8 and that is by far the biggest best and scariest maze at tulleys in my opinion!

 

As for the name changes on the cellar and the colony; I don’t think too much will be changed, maybe a new finale for each maze but there isn’t a lot of space to alter too much in the cellar so we’ll have to just wait and see...!

[MattyMoo]

Cheers for the intel

 

Colony is probably my favourite, purely because of the sheer size of the thing! Tulley's is now an annual visit for me for sure, completely worth the money.

[JoshuaA]

The website has added more info on the changes in both The Colony and The Cellar.

Quote

COLONY EXTENDED

"Survivors of the apocalypse are those who harbor the darkest hearts.  Those who can survive the end of the world are the end of humanity.  True humanity.  Kindness, compassion and charity are no longer. These are souls of violence, malevolence and war.  Survival of the fittest was never more apt but now a new threat has wracked The Colony.  As the world shook with debris and dark matter, the tectonic plates moved to create great gashes in the earth.  A toxic gas from deep in the earth’s core escaped into the atmosphere.  Now everyone’s days are numbered.  But what will get you first?  The poisonous air or the deadly inhabitants of The Colony?  “Fair is foul and foul is fair.  Fight through the fog and filthy air.”

This leads me to believe that there is going to be a lot gas masks and fog in The Colony this year, other than that it probably won't be too different.

I'm hoping they introduce a new finale that will revolve around the 'toxic gas' idea so we don't get the chainsaw cop-out again, but I doubt it.

I would be surprised if they actually extend it, its long enough as it is!

Quote

THE CELLAR - EXTENDED FOR 2018

The Cellar has long been a place where things are kept and forgotten. Lost things in the darkness scavenging to survive. But those that dwell in the Cellar have not been forgotten, they have been purposefully locked in. Imprisoned. Incarcerated. An experiment. What once was human is now a feral and malnourished murder of scavengers. Live These ‘Creatures’ have ransacked their ‘comfortable’ surroundings and turned it into a deadly game of cat and mouse. So when their captor releases the ‘live food’ into The Cellar they are the cat and YOU are the mouse.

I'm hoping this means The Cellar gets some TLC some season, it somewhat was hit/miss last year and I think its about time we saw a few changes.

I doubt its going to get much of a extension but hopefully they change around the rooms a little too spice things up a little.

Maybe the cage from last year was hinting more to this?

[Jack]

I’m not too sure what to expect but tulleys always seem to know what they’re doing... although I’m not quite sure how I feel about the cellar being changed as it’s been a staple attraction for so long now. Personally, I’d prefer them to rip it out completely rather than try to alter it, however I have faith in the tulleys crew and only time will tell for wether it’ll be good or not.

[MattyMoo]

Colony could be interesting with that twist... and extending even further? You'll be in there half an hour if you're not careful 

 

New Cellar sounds interesting also! Bring on October 6th ?

 

[ScottYalloP]

Interested to find out what the new maze will be, always thought tulleys had a good line up! Roll on October the 11th ?

[Jack]

Today’s the day... (supposedly)!