Fright Nights 2022

[MattyMoo]

On 8/10/2022 at 1:25 PM, MattyMoo said:

I don't think the SAW Alive boat is usable, but that whole area (where the scare zone was last year) including the abandoned SAW Alive queue line is pretty damn big.

I mean, you could even stick a tent over the queue as is, switch some fences around and make it a true "maze" of sorts.

 

OK so there's no tent - but spoiler alert, the Saw Alive queue line IS being used as part of the scare zone this year.

[JoshC.]

Tonight is the Press Night for this year's Fright Nights. Naturally spoilers for this year's event will come out. Please post any spoilery things here. 

 

Of course, your favourite Thorpe Park centric fan site will be there and posting updates on social media! Keep an eye out as we see if there are nightmares to be unlocked!

[JoshC.]

With spoilers inevitably coming out tonight from the Press Launch, we now have a Spoiler Thread: 

 

 

Please post anything spoilery there. This thread will remain open for now for those who wish to avoid spoilers.

[Inferno]

This crept up!

 

Have a great time - looking forward to hearing about it

[JoshC.]

So I'll post my thoughts here. A review will be appearing on TPM later today (which will feature lots of nice pictures), and there's also some more stuff on our Facebook and Twitter of course.

 

I prefix my review as I do every Fright Nights. Yes, I attended the Press Night, and these feature no queues, usually more actors and a sort of 'best representation' of the event. Of course, the point of these events is for influencers and fan sites to go along and post good things regardless of the quality of the event; that's what the TPM main site review will do. This review is my own, honest thoughts of what's gone down. AND of course, spoilers.

 

Survival Games

Let's start with the big new thing. I think the first thing that should be said is how big and imposing this looks from the outside. It's really well done. I like the music outside, and there's also similar music inside.

 

The premise of this might sound a bit deeper or more complicated at first. You're effectively auditioning to join a new social media network, and to do that, you go through 'the Survival Games'. If you survive, you join the social media network, if you don't...well, you're dead. This is featured in the pre show and at the end, but outside of that, there is very little story in the maze. Actors have lines which fit in with that idea throughout, but that's about it.

 

This may sound like a negative, but it's not. If anything, it's a positive. The idea of Survival Games is to be chaotic, and that's exactly what it does. Sticking to a long-winded, developed story throughout would harm it.

 

The maze pre show works very well; splitting everyone off into individual cages, before having people individually 'snatched' away. This could be done even more extremely, but obviously a balance has to be made. You then make your way through various scenes before heading to the 'arena'. This is a huge space which takes up about half the space of the maze I reckon. It's completely free flow, with multiple routes, the ability to double back on yourself and very chaotic in general. Actors are everywhere, and do everything they can to intimidate, scare and disorientate you. It's fantastic. The ending of the maze sees you get put through a hidden door (in a bit which feels a bit Black Mirror Labyrinth esque), before being given one final scare. The finale is nothing original or special, but works in context. 

 

I have concerns about how well it operate on a standard day, which I raised with some of those responsible for the attraction, and I feel confident it will be well managed. 

I'm also a bit lost how this is the park's most expensive maze. The theming isn't anything special (though, like with the story, it doesn't need it). I guess a lot goes on the structure and set up. But even then, it surprises me this was a bigger investment than Trailers, which looks a lot better in terms of theming.

 

All in though, I think this is a great experience, and up there with my favourites. It's just so much fun, with levels of drama and chaos you don't see often in mazes.

 

Trailers

There's no difference between last year's version of Trailers. All of the scenes have new posters indicating sequels, which is a fun little touch. That's something I'd like to see continued, as well as having scenes replaced every couple of years (having a Creek Freak room for example, in turn allowing for a chainsaw run out finale would work well!).

 

So yes, don't expect any changes, but it's a solid cast and just in general a very lively atmosphere in there.

 

Creek Freak Massacre

Again, no real changes here, aside from a slightly difference script in the pre show which references Project Exodus tearing down the sawmill. I had a fun run, but this has never been something I've rated particularly highly. I hope it gets better received than last year.

 

Scare Mazes: Bottom Line

A thing which hasn't been noted really is the line up of these 3 mazes is actually Thorpe's 3 most expensive maze investments (or at least, 3 of the top 4). And those investments shine through. Whilst the upcharging of mazes is controversial, if it does result in new stuff having more money thrown at it and ultimately improving the experience, that's a massive win.

 

I still think the upcharges are on the pricey side. Survival Games is worth the £8 outlay as a passholder (especially if you end up in there for 10-15 minutes like I did). £10 is too much in my books. But Trailers and Creek Freak are closer to the £5 price point for me. 

 

The Terminal

sigh

This. This is a thing. It looks terrible outside; no real entrance feature, and just a group of containers.

 

What is The Terminal? It's an audio experience in darkness, so you wear headphone and have a story told to you, with loads of sound effects playing. And that's basically it. You have a pre show in your group. But it is very much just 'sit down and wear headphones'. There's a couple of extra effects, such as air sprays and vibrations. But for me, it doesn't do it.

 

Don't get me wrong, this will get some people. Two people in my batch were terrified and had taken their headphones off at the end. But for those who are a bit braver, it won't do much. And you have to be truly invested in the experience from the word go to get anything out of it.

 

This would be better with more sensory effects. Leg ticklers. Back and butt prodders. Leg grabs. Yes, I'm literally suggesting they take a page out of the Derren Brown Ghost Train book to improve this. But it needs a lot more.

 

In The Terminal, I experienced the worst sensation you can experience in an attraction. Boredom. That about sums it up.

 

Death's Doors

So the new scare zone. It has a concept which sounds cool; knocking on doors and see what horror lies behind them.

 

Obviously this has huge operational problems, and I can see them coming to a head soon. The doors are grouped together in blocks, and presumably one or two actors serve a block of doors. Already seems like a problem.

 

One thing which took me by surprise is how...humour-filled the attraction is. Some of the characters include an evil Easter Bunny, an elf who's decapitated Father Christmas, a wicked Siren, etc. A little bit of dark humour works well, and is something which hasn't been featured in Fright Nights so explicitly before. I don't know if people will really expect it or get it as a result, but it's something which was appreciated by me.

 

This feels like an attraction which has been shoehorned a bit for the 'unlock nightmares' tagline for the 21st edition of Fright Nights. The location isn't ideal. The characters don't quite fit the feel or story of the attraction. The ideas are there, but the execution is off.

 

The Crows of Mawkin Meadow

This is much the same as last year and good fun.

 

However, there is the addition of a new route making use of the Saw Alive queue line, which takes you through the ruins of the village within the story. It's a nice idea, but doesn't quite work for me. They've partially draped the queue line, but for the most part, it feels like you're walking through a meshed fence queue. It needs more theming to get you immersed and to buy into the idea. 

 

Apparently the park did look at a larger solution of partially removing the queue line, but it wasn't financially viable for this Fright Nights. Maybe next year?

 

Amity vs LycanThorpe High

Another good, new, dance set, and the same usual fun. Very much seems the be the last year of this vampires vs werewolves, so presumably they have a plan moving forward for what follows. Look forward to seeing that.

 

Birthday Bash

Some good humour here (the addition of a grandma character is a big hit in my books). Again, new show, and again, good.

 

Creek Freaks Unchained

Didn't see it, but the roaming van they have used for all the events this year has had a Creek Freaks overlay.

 

Legacy

A new fire and light show is taking place on the small side of the Beach. It tested after the Press Event for the first time, and ran last night to the public for the first time. Have yet to see it.

 

---

 

All in, Fright Nights is a fab event this year. They've built off the successes of last year, and have got a very good trio of high quality mazes this year. There's some lowlights, The Terminal in particular, and some potential issues which may come out during normal operation. But this is once again another great Fright Nights, and I'd really recommend going along this year!

 

 

 

[LukeP_8]

So I went to fright nights yesterday, and given the constant rain the park seemed to empty out rather quickly and was generally rather quiet... and so were the mazes 😬 I apologise for the negativity in advance.

---

So first was creek freak massacre in which we didnt hear nor see a single chain saw, which is meant to be the signature theme of the maze. For large portions the corridors were empty, and even though there were absolutely no queues and was just me and a friend in there it lacked the intensity I felt it had in 2019 when I last went to the event. However on a positive note some of the individual acting was solid. But ye, disappointed to say the least.

---

Next we did trailers which I didnt do last year as I didnt attend the event. But this was for me just as poor as creek freak. The pre show story about everyone having being "sucked into the screens" was a bit odd and some of the scenes didn't actually have actors in them. I will say though that some of the theming was impressive. 

 

But ive certainly never walked out of the exit to that building so relaxed before 🙄

---

Last was survival games which was easily the best maze of the night. The start where someone comes up behind you and pulls you away was something I didnt see coming and was really effective. However the rest of the maze still suffered from a lack of actors but just to a lesser degree with some of the maze feeling empty. However being completely alone and lost looping back on myself was good fun and quite daunting. However the maze just didnt scare me one bit aside from the beginning.

---

So overall as of 30/09/22, very poor event. I havent been back to the event since they began upcharging mazes and I really hope with a change of heart they'll stop doing it. They are in no way worth the money and non of the mazes had any sort of queue to them or any element of apprehension given I was already set up for disappointment given I just spent a tenner to walk through an empty queue. 

Again I apologise for the negativity but just going by **my personal** experience I won't be paying for mazes again. An upcharge maze should surely mean more revenue to invest into actually having actors and more than 3 mazes. They really  need to go back to 4 or 5 free mazes that were actually good and bouncing with activity. But the event still somehow finds ways to become worse 😂

 

Hopefully this was all just down to thorpe anticipating the park would be quiet and the mazes will be better during peak weeks.

[ML27]

Survival Games closed early around 8pm for the night.

 

Heard apparently a safety issue happened and it wasn’t safe to be in there?

 

anyone got any light on the situation?

[ML27]

Went last night, a Saturday.

 

Was fairly quiet but will get busier each week towards Halloween.

 

Saving the scare mazes until next week, but can imagine they will have the whole lack of actors issue.

 

Scare Zones

The Crows -

 The actor at the start trying to tell you a story doesn’t work with the amount of people coming through, nice touch though.

 

The extended area doesn’t really work, not many people know it’s a route but when you do go through then there are two actors in a pretty unthemed queue line. I’d say keep it to all one route rather than multi, you notice there’s a lack of crows in the original route now. That was one of the best things about the zone, it was packed of actors because it was so small.

Deaths Doors

 

This is a nice idea but it doesn’t work, went a 3pm then 5pm and 7pm. Each time the zone was full of young kids with their phones proceeding to smash on every door they see without waiting and either filming the actor or trying to scare them.

 

Nice idea but doesn’t work at an event which isn’t exclusive to adults.
 

Amity
More fun then scary.

 

Upcharges at Fright nights 

There are pros and cons to the up charges. The upcharges prevent people who aren’t willing to be scared to not do them, also prevents young immature kids and adults alike from being anti social in the maze. The the quality of guest for the actors is higher.

 

However, this fright nights compared to any other fright night in the park couple of years. The mazes are a key a crucial part of the event. £10 is too expensive to redo a maze again even if you enjoyed it, £5 is a lot more doable. However that might price more unwelcome guests back in. As a passholder, I cannot justify £24 for all 3 mazes each visit. I’d like to do it but the pricing structure doesn’t cater to passholders maybe something better next year for passholders. Like £45 unlimited mazes for the whole duration?

 

 

 

[JoshuaWAHH3]

I was eh on this year's event, let me review it deeper.

 

The Terminal:

This was awful- a waste of £10. It looks bad, it is boring, and has the worst ending to a scare attraction?

I like how they are trying something new, but when charging £10 you would expect something fully realized, but The Terminal is a failed experiment and the queueline tonight reflected it. The ending feels like some sort of crappy self help book. Being told to appreciate my friends in a scare attraction? I think if they are to experiment again, maybe make it free timed tickets? I am very sure anyone paying for this did not end the attraction feeling like their £10 was money well spent.. Just poor.

 

Trailers:

With the setup I really believe they could of mixed a room up or two, but it is the same, and it looks pretty. My main problem with it from last year is still there- it is simply not scary to me, and this year it felt even less scary as it had seemingly less actors. it just lacks a punch to it, with Trailers I never quite get into my flight or fight- I can't quite word it. I think the summer edition of this maze was WAY better as they used it more for laughs and made it way more camp. But yeah, Meh.

 

CF: I love this maze- actors always seem to know how to work the space and it feels like it is designed for the actors and not against them. The maze was intense as per usual, with buckwheats always being within sight in this attraction. It felt full, busy, and was fun. I have done this quite a few times so I generally know it pretty well now- but I can say it retains the position of being a really good maze.

 

Survival Games:

First off I know this has been mentioned by another, low-key superior Josh. But how did this cost so much? The theming does not exist- it is too dark honestly to even see the set, and generally the theming is a oil barrel or two. In ways I do wonder if Thorpe are falling behind a little on the theming front- just look at Doom Town or some of the mazes at Xtreme Scream.

Despite this though- Survival Games is a really fun maze, it has a pocket sized Sub Species vibe to it. Seperation, dark rooms, touching. It very much reminds me of Sub Species- which is a positive. I think its honestly a really strong maze for the event, and I hope they can expand on it.

 

I really liked Thorpe Park tonight- but I believe Terminal and Trailers need changing. I also found paying +£30 for 3 mazes and a shipping container with headphones a little too much. With an entry fee I have seen my friends spend too much money on one day- it also kicks that you only get one through, and if you want more you have to pay out even more. The scarezones though were great, and brought much joy. All four were great in their own ways- the high school in Amity seemed to really please families and seemed like some mild fun, the door knocking scare zone was actually a brilliant idea for a scare zone and ended up being something we did while walking across the park- we loved it! So yeah, it was a great night. But I do wonder if the pricing is a little extortinate.

 

+ points for good ride ops tonight as well

 

[ML27]

I love the reviews for this years fright nights.

 

Press night everyone was saying it was the best year yet. 
Afterwards, everyone was saying it was weaker.

 

There was a discussion on Twitter about this and I get the premise of press night. But the difference of opinion is quite different 

[Benin]

5 hours ago, ML27 said:

I love the reviews for this years fright nights.

 

Press night everyone was saying it was the best year yet. 
Afterwards, everyone was saying it was weaker.

 

There was a discussion on Twitter about this and I get the premise of press night. But the difference of opinion is quite different 

 

This is usually the case every year. Add in the Twitter toxicity and lack of any grey area these days and it's ridiculous.

[Mark9]

Nothing is ever as good or as bad as the first reports of excited people.

 

 

Thats why I'm the go to for fright night maze opinions because I think they are all boring as hell. 

[ML27]

Is it bad I can get out of survival games purely by looking up at the ceiling and working out my position with the exit?

 

feel like it should be covered

[Inferno]

1 hour ago, ML27 said:

Is it bad I can get out of survival games purely by looking up at the ceiling and working out my position with the exit?

 

feel like it should be covered

😂 This can be the issue with doing the mazes time and time again - it was the same in Big Top, where the emergency exit line on the floor guided the way through the mirror section (I think it was big top? I’m doubting myself now).  Once you noticed it there? There was no missing it!

[Coco]

I went with my pops this Friday/Saturday just gone, and I didn't have all that much to grumble about besides a few things I miss from previous years. However, we were staying in the hotel since that seems to be the best value option after declining to renew Merlin passes. We both said that it was brilliant we were able to get all the upcharge attractions done within the allotted free entry time for shark cabin guests between 3pm-4pm. We weren't expecting to manage that on a Saturday. Especially not after the problems we faced with mazes last year after buying tickets (2 and a half hours queue for Trailers that resulted in us missing our Platform 15 entry, and since the park was closing, we had to get tickets replaced for the following day. Good job we were planning on being there 2 days on the trot!) I was going to say that the queue problems from last year seemed to be solved, but then Survival Games had an 80 min queue when the park was supposed to be closing according to the app on Saturday.

 

But anyways, we both said we had a brilliant time. We just don't think we would have been too impressed at paying for Creek Freak in particular this year.

 

Trailers

We started out with Trailers, and props to the queue hosts for getting everyone ready to enter so fast that the 1st group went in a minute early. They were so smooth with organising the queue line pre-3pm that we were kinda blown away by that.

 

Thought we were gonna have a naff run due to being grouped with quite a large bunch of very loud, very pushy young lads. As we always do in situations like that, we just let them go first and stayed at the back to avoid being shoved. We weren't together for long as one of the early actors chased them out of the room pretty swiftly before preventing my dad and I from proceeding by blocking our path and saying a lot of creepy stuff, haha. The result was us doing the rest of the attraction as a group of 2, so that was a win! We never saw anyone ahead or behind us for the rest of it, and every single actor was full of energy really giving it their all in there. Any time we get to run a maze minus the rest of a group is generally a fantastic run, though I feel for the actors in situations like that >.< But I'd have to put it as my favourite Fright Nights attraction this year.

 

Creek Freak

Creek Freak was sadly fairly weak on our run. It seemed a little sparse on actors which was odd for one of the first runs on a Saturday. It just felt really flat after coming out of Trailers. The actors still scared most of the group successfully, but for the most part I just wandered through it unphased, which is generally not how I feel when at the head of a group. It's just there were too many long corridors that I walked down where nothing happened. No one was there. And that persisted throughout most of the start and middle of the maze. It was only towards the strobe section at the end that things got lively. It's not really an attraction that I'll miss. 

 

Survival Games

My dad and I had differing opinions on Survival Games. I absolutely loved it, but my dad found it sort of meh. The concept and story were cool, and we were both a little disappointed that it sort of vanished after the intro scene, but it's totally understandable given how the attraction works. Not many mazes make me anxious from beginning to end these days, but this one did. I can't even remember the last time I got so sweaty going through a scare attraction xD It was utter chaos of the most delightful variety.

 

Being split up from the beginning was great, and I was expecting for that not to last, but I wound up pleasantly surprised by how persistent the actors were in keeping people separated! I tagged along with 4 different splinter groups of strangers, only to be torn from each of them. I was even reunited with my dad at one point, for all of about 15 seconds before an actor physically pulled him away and sent him off in a different direction xD It reached a point where I began to wonder if I would ever get out of there. Now, my sense of direction isn't great, so that probably played a part in it. I was relieved whenever I came across other people, which is generally the opposite of how I feel in scare attractions considering my social anxiety! Eventually, I made it out with a group of 3 young lads. My dad was waiting. I'd taken 5 minutes longer than him. We reckon I was in there for about 20 minutes xD I know I saw the same rooms a fair few times. It's the most lost I've ever been in a maze though I think.

 

Saw some weird stuff in there too and I still don't know if they were other guests, or actors playing the part of fake guests, haha. I asked my dad if he noticed the monitors cos they were pretty neat with what was playing on em, very much like Black Mirror Labyrinth. He said he didn't see them though >.<

 

It absolutely reminded me of Sub Species! For me though, it felt superior. That's likely because I only ever did Sub Species once though, and it was a disappointingly uneventful run. I'm really surprised to read here about the cost of Survival Games though, as both my dad and I were saying it must have been quite cheap to make in comparison to other attractions at Fright Nights! >.<

 

His main reason to dislike it was the lack of set design and stuff. He much prefers attractions with elaborate designs. He said Survival Games felt somewhat cheap and a bit tacky. I loved it though! Sure, I too adore gorgeous attractions with beautiful sets and great storylines, but I equally enjoy ones like that which just get your heart racing from the pure chaos of it all. So yeah, personally, I enjoyed it equally to Trailers, but my dad would put Trailers 1st and Survival Games 2nd.

 

Terminal

As for Terminal, I have mixed feelings. As a big fan of Darkfield, I was expecting it to be brilliant. As much as I wanted to love it, I just can't say that I did.

 

I first encountered Darkfield's work when we attended Seance at Warwick Castle a few years back. That was so good that we decided to book tickets for Darkfield's containers in London and did both Flight and Coma. We also paid to do all the shows on Darkfield Radio through lockdown and beyond. I think what they do is absolutely amazing, and while some shows are better than others, they're generally all entertaining and thought provoking.

 

Terminal seemed like the weakest one of all. I wouldn't necessarily say I thought it was bad, but I certainly didn't think it was particularly good either. It pains me to say that, but it just wasn't up there with their usual storytelling standards. Which sucks for me as a fan, but I feel it sucks even more for anyone encountering their work for the first time because it doesn't leave a great impression! Had Terminal been my first Darkfield experience as opposed to Seance, I probably wouldn't have bothered looking then up or attending any of their other events.

 

I think the reason it fell so flat for me was it's overuse of sound effects. To me, what makes the other Darkfield experiences great is the interesting dialogue and compelling scenarios. Terminal lacked both of these for the most part. It started out well enough, but as soon as the main actor's piece was over, it all went downhill from there.

 

Also, I'm not sure why the containers were so plain. I know the story didn't call for all that much, but with the Flight, Seance, and Coma containers, you really feel as though you've stepped into another world. Like you're there in the story. I didn't get that feeling from Terminal. I guess it's harder to do with a sci-fi sorta scenario, but still.

 

Even if we hadn't managed to experience it without paying extra during our hotel free entry hours, I would've purchased a ticket based purely on the fact that it's a Darkfield thing. However, I don't think I would've been particularly happy about it! 

 

The Crows

The Crows were just as fun as last year, though weirdly there seemed to be less of them on Saturday compared to Friday, and waaaay too many people with their phones out trying to get selfies. I do love them a lot though. I find them to be some of my favourite newer Fright Nights characters even though they can't speak!

 

Death's Doors

Death's Doors was a lot of fun. We did it 5 times over the 2 days. A couple during daylight hours + some in the dark. There were a few different characters between the two days, so that made 

it even more interesting! Even with large groups in there, it still seemed to function just fine, if a little chaotic. Some of the actors were spouting out some pretty funny lines reminiscent of the sort of stuff you hear at The Dungeons attractions, which we thought was hilarious. I wouldn't really say it was remotely scary, but then that's personal. I saw one or two older kids crying in there, so I imagine they'd beg to differ! What it was though was good, spooky fun I'd like to see more like it.

 

The crazy alarm only went off once in the multiple times we went through, so that would be a shame to miss if you only did it once because it was quite amusing to see all the actors leave their doors and run around as though all hell has broken loose. I heard one person near us say "What the **** is going on?" in a voice filled with awe. And that's exactly what I was thinking as a beekeeper being chased by a swarm of invisible bees ran by followed by several other characters charging about to the siren and flashing lights like a psycho flash mob. Kinda reminded me of that scene in Cabin in the Woods where all the creatures are released from where they're being held and everything goes to **** xD

 

Birthday Bash + Amity Stuff

I can't comment on Birthday Bash, as we only saw bits of it. Same with the Amity stuff with the werewolves and vampires.

 

Legacy

We did watch Legacy while waiting for coffee to cool down, and it was okay if you don't have anything better to do. I have no idea how it compares to last year since when we visited in 2021, Legacy wasn't operating that weekend and nobody we asked seemed to know why. I assume it's different this year though just based on the fact that it's telling the story of the locksmith and showing trailer-type scenes for this year's attractions before moving on to a series of throwbacks for attractions of the past.

 

It was fairly funky, but seemed more like one big piece of advertising more than anything to me. Also, I don't know if it was the speaker setup or some of the tracks themselves, but the audio quality was quite crackly and just bad in places. I don't know much about audio tech, but I have ears, and decent enough hearing to know that something can't have been right with how the sound was setup.

 

Other

Definitely noticed more roaming actors on Saturday compared to Friday. The Creek Freak wagon was amusing!

 

The main thing I wish would come back is more of the atmospheric lighting + soundtrack + alternate station sounds on rides. I know they're only small things, but added altogether, they make a big difference to the atmosphere. I really miss the soundtrack changing once Fright Nights attractions kick off. It used to make me so excited because it was like a signal to say **** was about to get spooky! As far as I could hear while we were there, it was the same soundtrack all day. Just similar style music to what's used in Trailers, including a twisted sort of happy birthday theme. It kinda did my head in listening to that all day >.< And yeah, no change to ride station lines and stuff, which was disappointing.

 

I also don't understand why the party island sorta vibes were still present in some of the decorations like the big green walls with neon signs on. They're ugly as heck and could be replaced with some sorta Halloweeny decoration for Fright Nights.

 

Same as I don't understand why they can't just put 1 zombie actor in TWD ride during Fright Nights in that section when you leave the ride. Pretty much everyone we rode with sighed in that room when they realised it was empty. 

 

Also, DBGT was awful. I wasn't expecting the demon actor to be back since that's been gone for ages now, but I don't know. I just thought they'd maybe do something to spice it up a bit for Fright Nights this time. But nope. It seemed like the shortest version ever. And the headsets could've done with better cleaning or ideally replacing, as the ones I got were falling apart on the headphones and scratched or extremely dirty on the lenses >.<

 

Other than those little niggles though, we had a fantastic time! I do feel like it was much better than last year. But also that it was nowhere near as good as other years gone by. 

[StevenVig]

The actual, real and honest review

 

Survival Games

 

They're chatting **** when they say this is the biggest investment to date. It's just a dome with plain black walls. Where did the money go!? It was fun, I enjoyed free-flow concept again, and being split from the group is always unnerving for me. Being split is the only reason I would still have any sense of 'fear' when going round again. So much wasted potential here though, the story is barely told.

 

Trailers

 

Same as last year, not scary in the slightest, predictable, needs more actors, or to be demolished/replaced all together. 

 

Also people need to stop blaming actor shortages on breaks etc, the experience should be consistent no matter what time of day you do it, this applies to any scare maze/attraction. 

 

Creak Freak

 

Again, nothing changed apart from mention of Exodus. Distinct lack of chainsaws, also needs more actors. 

 

Deaths Doors

 

My god, what a load of absolute dog****, this is up there as one of the biggest jokes the park has ever installed. It's so rubbish all you can do is laugh. Sorry but it's true, anyone that says anything otherwise is lying to you. Lets take this for what it really is, knocking on some cheap wood and getting the worlds worst actors to do the famous merlin pig snort. An absolute embarrassment. 

 

The Terminal

 

It's a thing. I think it was overhyped by enthusiasts because they creamed themselves when they saw Darkfield. It's just recycled shipping containers, and noise cancelling headphones. Oh and a single thump at the start. How Thorpe have the audacity to make this an upcharge is frankly nothing short of ballsy. It's not worth it at all.

 

The Crows

 

Why does this exist? Nobody knows. Regardless of time of day you do this, I just personally do not find this scary or creepy at all. There is a story that is being told on the PA system and by an actor simultaneously, but of course they aren't saying the same thing so it's all just a bit of a mess. 

 

Birthday Bash

 

Didn't see it, cant comment. I imagine not much has changed.

 

Legacy

 

A somewhat improvement over last year. They moved the screen from the dome and relied too much on it. Nice visuals. Not enough effects. Fire goes off about twice, probably dont have the budget for anymore gas canisters. Will never be on the same level as Wastelands, so they should try their own idea instead. 

 

Amityhigh/Lycanthorpe

 

Thank God this is going. 

 

Roaming Actors

 

There was none unless they were walking between the dome and their respective maze/zone. Creak Freaks Unchained non-existent, area is a ghost town. Dont look behind the heras fencing its depressing. 

 

Unfortunately Fright Nights seems to take two steps forward and one step back every year. Audio around the park is a mess, lets be honest, it's never going to be fixed, they've been trying for over a decade. There is absolutely zero atmosphere on park, it baffles me how other places in the UK with less budget can put on a proper halloween event with incredible scares, atmosphere and concepts. But a multi million pound park gets it wrong YoY. Such a shame because I used to absolutely love Fright Nights, now it's just an annual tick in the box.

 

Overal Rating: 3/10

[MattyMoo]

Just watched a SLKSTN POV of Survival Games which I purposefully didn't watch before my run through on Friday.

 

Needless to say that 1) didn't see anyone with those cool LED masks - have they gone the way of the DBGT Demon already or are us mere mortals not allowed to see them and 2) I had nowhere NEAR the amount of actors as he did, as you'd expect - and did not see any of the fake guests (actors) also in the video....

 

Maybe I had a poor run but Survival Games looked the part but didn't deliver at all for me.

 

Our second run through on Creek Freak was great (first was very meh) and only managed to get the second run through because both Survival Games and Terminal staff didn't scan our "Fearsome Four" tickets. If I'd only had the one run on Creek I'd be very very miffed for what I actually got for my £9ish. Trailers looked the part too again, but severe lack of actors - none in the doll room, none in the Ship Happens room, and not even one in the bed jumpscare which is just inexcusable if you ask me - surely that's one of the "highlights", no? This is why I dislike immensely the "one shot" tickets for mazes - if you have a duff run either because of no actors or being put with a group of idiots (the likelihood of this increases as you approach Halloween), that's it - you've spent your money, see ya later. Compare with even the Tulleys top package, £97 - less £25 (merch token & food) - even if you get just one run - which isn't going to happen with unlimited fastrack - it works out more like £6 a maze. We normally get 20+ runs so you're talking less than £4 a maze which is far more acceptable.

 

Oh and whilst I remember - I was invested in Terminal, I liked the lift pre-show and the creepy Black Mirror-ish attendants - but my god that is a steaming pile of trash. Wow. That's £9 ish I'm never seeing again....

 

Upcharge attractions aside - I had an absolutely great day to be honest on Friday - 4 rides on Stealth, 3 of which front row and 2 at night - got all the coasters done (my god Saw is painful in parts now!) and there's minimal downtime other than Saw in the morning. We weren't expecting to last until 9pm but we were kept occupied. Also, shout out to the "Ghost Train" BBQ stand next to the teacups for some great food (for a theme park) - lovely ribs!

[Martin Doyle]

Lack of actors!!??

 

But...but... Mr Silkstone had LOOOOOOADS of actors around him in his videos!!

 

I'm sure thats got NOTHING WHATSOEVER to do with the fact he and all the "celebs" went on press night.....RIGHT!!??

[ML27]

The L.E.D mask was being used in the final room where you get told if you made it or not. There were about 8 people in that room and the guy seemed to focus and confront me really close all of the time.

 

 

Lack of actors, I didn’t really notice at the time. But thinking back, the places I was expecting actors there wasn’t, and then there still wasn’t a sign of one. Then I got comfortable 😂, looking back there’s a lack of actors, but there is a staff shortage in the world, but I’d say remove the roaming team plus any attraction actors and put them in paid mazes where they are needed.

 

The upcharge issue isn’t brought up enough because said YouTuber who has been mentioned gets to go via the VIP line each time. He’s not gonna complain and kick up a fuss or it’s the people who willingly pay to do 10 run through SG because it’s the new maze and the in thing.

 

The queues are short; I don’t see how all these people go to fright nights and don’t do the mazes as that’s what’s happening. The price is extremely off putting. Maze queues are 15 mins at most, surely that’s not the greatest of profits. £5 mazes need to happen, even free! As passholders it’s very difficult to do them again even at £8

[MattyMoo]

100% didn't have it in the final room on my go. They must have 2 of those masks as they are in the run through video from press nights...

 

Similarly - I found maze queues very short. Longest was our second run on Creek Freak which was about 20 mins. Trailers was about 10 mins, Survival Games was walk on, Terminal was - obviously - walk on....

[JoshC.]

Re. the LED masks in Survival Games:

 

They were there on Press Night. One at the start, one at the end. They look cool, yes. But the actors were hard to hear as a result. Whether that was because of the speaker they were using, the music levels in the rooms or what I don't know. But in general, I struggled to hear them. It was indeed a piece of feedback I relayed too.

 

Whether they have decided to scrap them for creative reasons, or because they weren't working, I do not know.

[Marc]

They had the masks in the first and last rooms on Saturday evening and they all seemed to have some sort of mega phone so was much clearer than on press night too which was nice!

[StevenVig]

The LED Mask was used on Sunday when I visited, luck of the draw I guess

 

Wouldn't be surprised if it's cut, like many other things, that's always the way

[JoshC.]

Wouldn't make sense for them to be cut if they're not being used one day, but then being used the next. Seems to be either a creative decision, or perhaps they were waiting on a fix to them.

 

Whilst there's no denying that they look cool, I don't particularly think they add anything to the experience. Very much take it or leave it in my opinion. 

[Matt 236]

Right, so went to Fright Nights 22 last weekend. Here’s my thoughts. 
 

Survival Games/

Something of an original idea, especially with the “game show” type element. One of the better mazes this year, especially with the cage thing at the start and multiple routes inside. 
 

Creek Freek/

Still my favourite, the actors were on form when we went and the props and setting help too. Going to miss this maze. 
 

Trailers/ 

I enjoyed it, but it just seems to be missing something now, especially since the newness has worn off. Wasn’t awful but just not my favourite now. 
 

Deaths Door/

An interesting and unique concept, given the actors go in/out of doors, but could maybe be implemented better in the future. If it returns. 
 

Meakin Meadow/

Enjoyable, but the second route just feels like it’s been bolted on for the sake of it. It feels like you miss more of the action that way. 
 

Amity high/

Fun, lively, musical. Makes a nice break from the mazes indeed. 
 

I didn’t get chance to do the terminal or legacy. If they return next year maybe I’ll give them a go. 
 

I do enjoy Fright Nights, but as always the usual criticisms arise, better lighting, music balance (why isn’t it as good now) and other bits and bobs. I really think they should revert back to 10pm closings, at least for some days because 9 doesn’t feel like there’s enough time to take in the action or do night rides.