I think I understand what you guys mean, and if I do then I agree with both of you. I don't want a 3D house if anything related to it is going to be half-assed. If a 3D house is going to be created, then I would want the same devotion and passion that was given to houses like Halloween and Nightingales so that it can be a great house. Please don't misunderstand, I'm all for having a normal house that would have a better chance in being successful, unless A&D is 100% sure that the 3D house that is being made that year will be a fantastic house or at least a sleeper hit.
Also, to compare the In-Between to other great HHN houses would be difficult, because it was really unique in its own way. If I had to compare it to anything, I would compare the house to the other HOTY that it tied with, The Forsaken. There were many factors that contributed to it's success. For one thing, the scenery was beautiful with every detail, and you could almost immediately tell the passion that was put into this project, confident that the designers and creative directors did everything they could to make this perfect. Another key thing was the difference in tone as compared other fun and whimsical (aka decent) 3D houses; but the most important factor was the way they used the 3D nature of the house to its advantage. everything from the scenery to the scares took advantage of the 3D style of the house, and the aggressiveness of the scare actors in that house was a huge plus as well. It had innovation, passion, and originality. It was different. The Forsaken also had beautiful scenery, as well as passion, but it was mainly the aggressiveness the scare actors had later on in the event that led it to tie with the In-Between. When another attempt at a serious 3D house was made in 2013, all we got was another carbon copy of the In-Between, but it was worse since it was half-assed.
My point is that unless they are sure the 3D house being made will be overwhelmingly amazing, or at least solid, they should stick to making solid normal houses. Also what did you mean by 3D done without gimmicks, criticalanalysis? Sorry I don't think I get what you mean there.