Experiment 10 [SPOILERS]

[TraX]

The new maze is without a doubt the best of them all, and the two times that I went through, I was taken in different different directions. It's hard to explain without spoiling it, but it really plays on a few fears!

[Marc]

Agree with all said, Experiment 10 was very impressive, total different to any maze ive been in before, also themed very well.Others were all as they were, Asylum was pretty good as always, Se7en and Curse pretty good, actors were also really going for it in Saw Alive.Theres a few bits and bobs of theming scattered across the park.

[Kevin]

Seconding what has been said about it, there has been clearly such decent thoughts into Experiment Ten.I am never one to really get scared, but Experiment Ten got to me, it's such a tremendous maze.Lets not spoil it with giving too much away

[Sheepie]

Spoiler from Nerd's live updates:

Experiment 10, what a maze, best bit… you are split into individual chambers and then victimised… Very impressive!Well, that was pretty intense! I’m impressed. Spoilers lie ahead so beware…You are briefed by a scientist and told that you need to be decontaminated. You then get locked, individually, in a chamber. You can hear loud thuds and screaming around you, and you’re then ordered to move on. The actors directing you are wearing gas masks. Throughout the maze you’re split down different routes, so it’s hard to describe everything that happens, but on my route we crawled though a tunnel on our hands and knees. Lifting your head would bang it—it really was quite small! Some of the rooms were filled with smoke, there were strobes, actors who are part of the experiment and other theming such as beds and body parts. It’s certainly a maze that makes you want to go on again, knowing that there’s potential for a different experience each time. A definite improvement on Hellgate!

That sounds pretty epic. Get me to Fright Nights now.Also- moved from Future to Present discussion.

[holtjammy16]

I'm now actually debating weather or not I want to go in.. This has never crossed my mind before..

I really dislike the idea of being split up and being alone.. From Nerd's review, I dont understand if you go into the chambers and then come out with your group? or do you go through the rest alone..

[Sheepie]

I'm now actually debating weather or not I want to go in.. This has never crossed my mind before..

I really dislike the idea of being split up and being alone.. From Nerd's review, I dont understand if you go into the chambers and then come out with your group? or do you go through the rest alone..

To answer your question, from Nerd:

We've received some questions asking if you join back up with your group after being split up in Experiment 10. The answer is yes, you do! Although the group is split into 2 'sub-groups' twice throughout the rest of the maze. If you have any questions or feedback, feel free to email feedback@themeparknerd.com

[holtjammy16]

To answer your question, from Nerd:

We've received some questions asking if you join back up with your group after being split up in Experiment 10. The answer is yes, you do! Although the group is split into 2 'sub-groups' twice throughout the rest of the maze. If you have any questions or feedback, feel free to email feedback@themeparknerd.com

Oh okay thanks :)Probably will do it, then

[JoshC.]

Got back from a dead park earlier, with two goes in E10 (what I call it for short).Teaser review, some spoilers:

Very claustrophic and alone. I didn't get to join back with my sub group either time straight away though did find some people. Went on both routes, first tine through the tunnel, second time the other way - tunnel definitely adds to the experience. I think my first time was better, not because of the obvious never being in it, but because it wasn't as rushed. The beginning scenes were much longer (bare in mind this was at 4) and I was locked in for much longer. I nearly got to the point where I contemplated saying 'I want to get out of this maze'.

Also loved the general atmosphere. Brilliant Thorpe!

[holtjammy16]

Completely peed my pants in Experiment 10,

The part when I got separated from my group, omg, I was in the room with my hands over my eyes saying 'get me out, get me out, please, dont scare me just let me out'.I got lead through the tunnel routeThe rest was kind of a let down though.What I think makes it scary is the whole panic and rush of it all, with the lab people pushing you in every direction

I think they missed a lot of opportunities to completely scare the life out of people.I'm going next weekend, and in the half term so I wonder if fright nights will improve like it did last year

[Sheepie]

My spoiler-filled review of Experiment 10. It is also on my blog. Here! Hope you enjoy!

Some would say that Fright Nights, like many other aspects to our UK entertainment industry, has become merely a brand of which is very much more about style rather than having much substance. Whilst I agree somewhat with that, I thoroughly enjoyed Fright Nights this year.

So what is Fright Nights? Essentially, it's all about the mazes across park- and it has 5 of them now, not a bad offering of additional experiences along with a full attraction listing. So let's get right down to it: Experiment 10. Well, I'd read some of the reviews before and I'm glad I did. What none of the reviews I've read have conveyed, however, is just how much you're manhandled in that maze. More on that as I go. Queuing in the arena, pre-recorded announcements and roaming actors give the illusion that this is a secret government facility, in which we are subjects who are volunteering to be used as part of an experiment. The roaming actors were fantastic, asking random people faux questions about their medical history and really taking themselves so seriously, which is all the more chilling. After roughly an hour of queuing, we were into the pre-show room for the attraction which outlines the story for the rest of the attraction. We find out that we're volunteering for an experiment where scientists are trying to eradicate fear from the human brain. This attraction is full of dark humour, walking in to this pre-show room, a series of CCTV monitors show various states of carnage, before quickly the character switches them off in a panic, "nothing to see here, everything is running as planned". I really cannot commend this actor in this room enough, I found his speech funny, unnerving and yet totally had me invested in this story. They've got me. You then proceed; Scientists in gas masks and lab suits literally shout at you, push you to where they want you. Your group is split up onto two sides of this chamber. You're told to await instructions and to breathe deeply. The conviction in which this was said sent shivers down my spine as smoke filled the room, acting as a gas chamber before being plunged into darkness. Definitely some echoes of the Holocaust here, at least for me, whether intentional or not… and if you have ever done any research on it or have seen Schindler's list, I think this alone is quite a hard hitting emotional impact.

And then, oh yes, then there are the chambers. Scientists direct you into one of the many chambers. They want you to go one at a time. "One at a time, one at a time", they insist with such sinister conviction, whilst trying to tear my boyfriend and I apart. In other mazes you know there is safety in numbers. Not so with Experiment 10 as many of the unsuspecting victims soon discover. Say goodbye to your usual Thorpe Park conga line. Fortunately for us, they did not manage to separate us, yet this was not without them trying their hardest to do so. Almost knocking me over with the force of which they pushed me about. We're shoved into the chamber on the far right hand side…

So we're stood here for a few moments, in darkness, screaming and banging echoing all around, until, the silence. We suddenly discover that all of the other chambers have been emptied. It is this that is the most unnerving aspect of the attraction, the unknown, the total chaos that you know was your choice to participate in, yet you can't help but be totally invested in this story. Just as we notice a small glow of a white light in front of us, an actor plunges their face into the side of the chamber, to what can only be described as a flexible, perhaps latex sheeting. Pretty disturbing.

The door opens, and we're lead through the thick smoke by more scientists, again, literally pushing us to where they need us to go. It's all very violent and gives a great impact. Sadly, I cannot comment fairly on the level of scenic design in this maze. It was so densely filled with haze and smoke that I could barely make out any of the scenes I was travelling through. What I did know though, we were alone. Well, alone in the fact that it was us two, and then screams coming from all around us.

When we were told crouch down and traverse through a tunnel, a chuckle of disbelief just breezed over my face, though this was wiped clear when a scientist from behind shoved me downwards, forcing me to continue on this twisted route. The tunnel carries on for what feels like an eternity, it actually changes in gradient as well, sloping downwards for a fair amount of the way. A cool effect is that it slowly gets steeper, so you actually start to panic if this is going to turn into some kind of slide.

At the end of the tunnel, you are treated by an actor for this predictable, yet totally effective startle scare. Sadly though, I was not able to make out their character as they had disappeared into the bellowing smoke. If I had one criticism of Experiment 10, on our personal route through the attraction, we did not encounter many actors who were physically trying to scare us, yet hearing shrieks of terror from behind, I can't help but feel as though we missed out on some of the best scares in the attraction.

Through the smoke, I could scarcely make out glows from lit signage, a lab and bed but just could not comment on where I was throughout the attraction apart from telling you that we were in a room with lots of strobes. Not seeing where you could go did add to the general panic of the attraction, yet sadly seemed to have no pay off, at least for us, as we did not encounter any actors right until the end of the maze. It is clear however, that we were in the minority, clearly, judging the amount of chilling shrieks of pure terror that would be enough to send shivers down your spine.

Variety in haunted attractions, especially if an event has a number of them, if an essential part of a guest experience…. I can say that Experiment 10 is unlike any other maze at Thorpe, but also unlike any other Scare Attraction I have done. There have been hints that something was changing for this year's Fright Nights for a couple of months now- including job adverts for a new events manager and entertainments vacancies being available on Merlin's career page, yet it was only when Scare Tour posted their review and stated that there was a new creative team behind the event, that this was confirmed to me. It is very clear that this attraction has come with fresh ideas, daring and controversial in places. They have really pushed the boundaries of what can be done and what an audience can expect from these types of attractions.

We exited the attraction to find that everyone in our group were already waiting for us. They went a different route and said that it was populated by many actors, it seems as though the two routes differ slightly in types of scare. This is also evident from reviews of both the media launch and staff preview events, who all say that is a very interactive in that it can be done various times and you'll experience different things.

Whilst for us, Experiment 10 did not have that big finale scare, what was so evident that the intensity, the chaos and pure panic built to such a climax, which was enough of a finale for us. I do feel, again, that we were in the minority with this experience, and I think our experience would be very different if we were to do the attraction again. Over the coming nights, this attraction will just continue to be improved and tweaked, until, and I do not say this lightly, Thorpe have one of the most intensely scary and violent Scare Attractions in the country.

[Laelda_95]

Yeah, I definately agree with your point about the gas chamber being like the holocaust. It definately reminded me of that.

Edited October 9, 2011 by Sheepie
Added spoiler tags in case people wished to not read my review :)

[holtjammy16]

Reply to sheepie./ my own review

Yeah it reminded me of holocaust too.I wish I had tried harder not to get separated, I was with 2 12 year olds and an adult, and even when I was crawling through the tunnel I heard him shouting 'Whats going on!!??'I feel sorry for the 12 year olds, the dark room had me petrified, there were sound effects that made it sound like the people in the rooms next to me were screaming 1 by 1 so it had me waiting for something to happen to me.Also the tunnel was a nightmare, the way they push you around is really kind of weird, and I hate how it went down hill, your kind of crawling and almost sliding down it :| the strobe lights leave you practically blind, with the odd actor flashing past you.But I think the theming was very good, what sheepie left was that there are these cylinder tubes full of liquid with floating heads inside, and also you go through a lab room with a hospital bed.excellent attraction, really is scary.

[Mr.man]

now I am really scared. I'm thirteen, do you they will try harder to split my up by myself or not?

Edited October 9, 2011 by Sheepie
Added spoiler tags.

[AstroDan]

I really enjoyed Experiment 10, especially the first more "interactive" parts.

It was panic-led and stressful. Most of the latter half seemed a little poor by comparison, and lacking in actors.

That said, overall, it gave FN mazes a new level and completely overshadows the others.Asylum, Se7en and The Curse sorry, but they're just rubbish. None of them did anything for me and the white tents are just hideous. The park seems to do very little to Halloween-itself up compared to Alton or Chessington, though. Some of the musical changes were nice, but many were inappropriate - such as that on Flying Fish!

[holtjammy16]

now I am really scared. I'm thirteen, do you they will try harder to split my up by myself or not?

Umm, I'm not sure but

I dont they are going to treat you any different to anyone else, unless you adamantly refuse to stay with your friend/s.We said to them we dont want to be split up but they still did :/

Can we not make a separate topic for Experiment 10?

[Ryan]

All discussion relating to the new horror maze can be posted here.

[holtjammy16]

Yay, no more spoiler tags :PWas anyone else unusually scared inside this maze?Normally I laugh but being separated made me a shivering mess haha.

[AstroDan]

I thought the first 1/2 of this attraction was incredible. There was general panic amongst my group upon being batched, which helped inside the maze to create that tension.I loved the splitting up, the separating and the crawling. This created a genuine level of stress and the actors in there, with their gas masks, really added to the experience. The group was scared and fearful. Beyond this point, I would say it was only what went before that kept the stress level up through the maze. Not a lot seemed to take place in the last half, and the exit, although hasty due to an actor touching my neck, I don't feel gave an ending that was as good as the start. Overall, definitely the best maze at TP this year (by a mile) - but it's a shame there wasn't anything really impressive in the second half.

[TN Jonny]

Yay, no more spoiler tags :PWas anyone else unusually scared inside this maze?Normally I laugh but being separated made me a shivering mess haha.

Do you do that all the maze on your own if you do then I've got a heart attack scheduled in 2 weeks

[holtjammy16]

Do you do that all the maze on your own if you do then I've got a heart attack scheduled in 2 weeks

No, you only get seperated for like 2 mins when you are put in a dark room, then you get taken out and you join with your group

[Sheepie]

That is not guaranteed though, I have read many reviews and also our own experience where you do not rejoin your group for the entire attraction. Don't bank on seeing the people in your group until the exit.

[holtjammy16]

Oh okay, I can see how that would happen, just let the people out of the rooms at different times.Luckily, I caught up with my group in the tunnelCan anyone tell me what the other route is? the one that's not the tunnel.

[JoshC.]

My full review / thoughts on the maze, after 3 goes (twice on Thursday, once on Saturday):-The H&S talk outside the maze is nicer compared to other ones, simply because it themes it up a little with the word 'scientist'. I'd like it if the same was done for the other mazes, like 'The lost souls will touch you, but do not touch them' would work brilliant for Curse. The debrief works brilliantly work the attraction. I liked the use of the 'broken' security cameras and the general feel of worry it can create; if you're in the frame of mind to play along with the theme of course. The guy I had first time round did brilliant, very eccentric and set the scene beautifully. He added a bit of dark humour to it, but also came across as slightly schizophrenic as well, which was perfect for the role. I was surprised when he counted all 8 of us and said '4 for each side' - from there, I really did not know what to expect.. The second time was VERY short and sweet, whereas the third time brought a different tone for the rest of the maze than the other times. The first two times I felt like I was going to a lab, but should be very careful, whereas the third I felt as if I was going to be experimented on. -First time round, being greeted by a Hazmat suit in the decontamination room and having a member of my group split away from us, I was wondered what we had got ourselves in for.. Whatever it was, it would be above the norm. After a LOT of smoke, we were directed in different ways. After experiencing the smoke effect and lights turn off and on in different ways each time, I think the best way is a lot of, then the lights go off, then as soon as the lights come back on, be whisked away. -Having a Hazmat suit brashly pushes me through an open door, shouting to go in there is by far the best bit of the attraction. It is frantic and works fantastically well to set the tone of what the maze is about. I'll say one thing after my go on Saturday - it works best with just a Hazmat suit actor in there. On Saturday, there was an actor (not a scientist, more a patient) stopping and dispatching people down the corridor, then you find a Hazmat suit pushing people in. It takes away from it really; I think it works better having one actor there as it makes it more frantic, more shocking. Also, on Saturday, when pushing people in, the actor said 'You, in there, and don't come out.' It sounded like helpful advice, not the brash panic it should be. I much more prefer the 'Get in here now!' approach, so it's more obvious that they don't like you. - Of course, when I was alone, I was a little bit shocked to say the least. I really was not expecting it. To realise I was in pitch darkness, alone and locked in a small room took a few seconds, but when it sunk it, it did what it was designed to do - make me think 'What the flip do I do now?!' I felt a handle, tried opening it, and failed.. I think that, despite actors and loud audio creating bangs, the guy in the door next to me was actually banging the walls. Anyway, after a long amount of time, goodness knows how long though, another Hazmat suit actor final opens the door and forcefully guides me away. First time, I came across a tunnel, and almost instinctively, I went in. It didn't take long for me to catch up with the first guy. Again, the tunnel felt very long and never-ended, and after finally getting up, it is a relief. The other two times, I've gone down the corridor route, which I've found disappointing due to the lack of actors really. Only been 1 on each visit. -From here, it's pretty much a standard maze - a bit of the others in some ways - very bright strobes, dark spots, some decent theming, tight areas, etc, except you don't need to be hand-on-shoulders. I like the testing lab scenes, which are full of ambience and a little jump I s'pose. Not that many actors (though a staff member has told me more will come when FN is busy, and I can see where they would be). The end is a monster-ish noise, sounds like a dragon to be honest, and an actor. It's not a scare or a jump even (as the monster noise can be heard from the queue - it's loud), in a way, it tries - and fails - in doing an Asylum ended - but it's more a 'relief' to be outside again. If there's one thing that needs improving, it's the positioning of actors. Bare minimum before the isolation room, and more after, much more. It would make the maze 10/10. *As a side note, I did not get the feel of the Holocaust from the beginning, like others did. Maybe it's the way the actors set it up in the reception scene, but every time it was clear I was being decontaminated before entering a laboratory. The isolation room didn't remind me in any way of the Holocaust either, to any description. Would be interesting to see if they were trying to give a nod to the Holocaust though.

[holtjammy16]

I think that, despite actors and loud audio creating bangs, the guy in the door next to me was actually banging the walls.

That might have been effects, because when I was isolated, there were people screaming on each side of the room and banging , but when I came out I asked, and none of them screamed or anything.Also the actors walk down the corridor banging on the doors, then they bang on the wall (which you hear very loudly from the queue and it makes everyone jump)In the corridor after the scientist (the one when the lights keep turning on and off and it gets filled with smoke) The actor told us firmly to keep strictly to the left, but they told the adult in my group to stand on the right (this was before the lights started going on and off) and I think they were going to take him down the other route, but after he refused to leave us they let him continue with our group.My first impression is that when the lights went off, they would take him away, and when the lights turn on our group would be 1 member less, I thought this was going to keep happening untill we were all alone, but that didn't happen thank god

[JoshC.]

That might have been effects, because when I was isolated, there were people screaming on each side of the room and banging , but when I came out I asked, and none of them screamed or anything.

Whilst I can't be 100% sure, it did seem like he was banging as I felt some vibration from the wall. Of course, could've been an actor, but I'd like to think that it was someone actually banging..