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HHNiP

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    HHN XXI Wishful Thinking

    in Halloween Horror Nights 21

    Posted

    For what it's worth, I'd love to see a new version of Ghost Town, Demon Cantina and Hellgate Prison. Heck, throw in a new Deadtropolis and I'm a very, very happy camper.

    I know there's a lot of argument over the whole original vs. retread, but I think an earlier poster is correct. Well-designed houses establish a particular universe. Subsequent houses can explore other locations and themes within those universes without being a carbon copy of the original.

    HHN XXI Speculation

    in Halloween Horror Nights 21

    Posted

    I love riddles and rumor-mongering as much as the next guy, but honestly, why does it matter who the guy (or gal) is? He/she has already established their trustworthiness, so why not just drop the whole thing? Besides, if you end up figuring out Belasco's identity, you might just cost them their job . . . and any future clues he/she might be willing to drop.

    HHN XX VIP Lounge

    in Halloween Horror Nights 20

    Posted · Edited by BigChippah

    King Panther, I think your statement that "the idea is not to appeal to lesser fans, it's to make those lesser fans bigger fans," is a wonderful thought (and I'm sure it's the final goal of the A&D team). I know that 2005's extra consideration to the fans (the ARG, specifically) is what really caught my attention and made me the fan I currently am.

    However, I think 2005 is also a good example of a few of my points about Fear. Yes, there were a LOT of extra storylines running through the 2005 event, but most of them were lost on the average consumer. I attended the event that year, and even I was unaware of just how intricate and inter-connected the various houses-and-scarezone stories were.

    Just as you said, 2005 featured "an almost tacked on" Icon in The Storyteller. If I remember correctly, there were a lot of negative opinions on her at the time, just as there currently are for Fear. Their purposes were identical, though: represent the event in bold, easy-to-understand terms that appeal to the mass market. If memory serves (and for any of you reading this, feel free to correct me if I'm wrong), The Storyteller was created by the marketing side, completely independent of the A&D team. The event needs to appeal to as many people as possible, thus cool-looking Icons who are a little more "shallow" in their characterization will typically win out over creepy (not terrifying) looking but interesting-in-the-long-run characters.

    HHN XX VIP Lounge

    in Halloween Horror Nights 20

    Posted

    Oh, I completely agree that Fear was under-utilized, both in the marketing of the event, as well in-park. Your thoughts on the billboards featuring "Fear's mouth" are apt, but they're probably also a result of some of the fallout from the Bloody Mary billboards. Universal may be hesitant to feature graphically-frightening characters so front and center on a billboard, or other advertising. I think the actual marketing of the event should have featured the character far more prominently, and probably would have been considered more succesful had they done so. Then again, hindsight is 20-20.

    Now Sindy's appeal, on the other hand, is limited at first glance (again, in my opinion). Yes, children can be creepy in the right context, but it's that context that makes them creepy. If you were to see a standard photo of Cindy, you might think, "That kid looks really intense, which is kinda creepy." You probably won't jump straight to, "Wow, that kid looks really intense, so she probably has telekinetic powers and could light me on fire with her mind if she so chose." If you've ever seen the classic Twilight Zone episode, "It's A Good Life," or seen the 1980's Twilight Zone: The Movie, you've seen similar stories: innocuous-looking children (innocuous, in Sindy's case, as there are no outwardly identifying features that would indicate her powers) who are eventually revealed to hold incredible (and potentially malevolent) power. Those stories work because of the juxtaposition of the "innocent child" with "evil and powerful." And again, I say that those stories DO work, but they work because the revelation as to the true nature of the character usually comes later in the story. Hence, my analogy of Sindy to the "slow-burn" movie.

    HHN XX VIP Lounge

    in Halloween Horror Nights 20

    Posted · Edited by BigChippah

    I disagree with the opinions on the other night's alternate pitch. While I thought the "Halloween Tree" idea was interesting, I think the decision to go with Fear was the correct choice of the two.

    I enjoyed the Sindy pitch video. I enjoyed the extensive Sindy backstory and I thought the way they tied her origins in with the other Icons was clever and unique. I enjoyed the imagery of a giant, flaming tree as a centerpiece of the event. I appreciated how they would have finally given Sindy her own year to headline, as opposed to the hidden nods that we've had thus far. All of those things appealed to me and my "hardcore HHN fandom."

    However, myself, and any of you who also consider yourselves to be "hardcore HHN fans," are not the target demographic of the event. As much as we hate to admit it, the event is aimed at the casual consumer: people who come to the event with a group of friends, see a handful of houses, enjoy a number of alcoholic beverages, then leave. The ideal Guest doesn't know backstory of any of the Icons, nor does it matter to them. They don't have much (if any) knowledge of previous events, and are drawn more by the spectacle of the event (and the spectre of lots and lots of booze) than by anything else. Unless there's pre-existing knowledge of the Icon (i.e. Freddy, Jason, Leatherface and, at this point, Jack), the choice of character that appears on a billboard is irrelevant.

    With that in mind, which pitch do you think appeals more to the average HHN-goer? In my opinion (and that's all this is), the more accessible-to-Joe-Public choice is obviously Fear: he's visually appealing, his backstory can be summed up concisely, and he allows more liberal usage of the previous Icons. You can learn all you need to know about Fear by listening to one of the HHN ads, or by simply seeing his image. Fear is the HHN equivalent to a horror movie trailer: there's instant appeal, it creates anticipation for the event, but these things are sacrificed at the expense of layers of development and complexity. Sindy's story, on the other hand, may feature more complex themes, but they require much more of a time investment on the part of the consumer. You have to learn about Sindy before she's at her most frightening. Sindy's story is a "slow-burn" thriller film: it may be scarier in the end, but you have to make it to the end to get that payoff.

    When you start thinking about what could have been, remember this: the creators of HHN are fans, too. They love these characters just as much as any of us, but they're still subject to the business decisions of a corporation. When good ideas go unused, they're never thrown away. If it weren't for those HHN creators, we never would have seen the Sindy pitch video, the incredible concept artwork of years past, or had the opportunity to attend the Secrets of the Past lecture series. They want to share these stories with us, be it through a full-scale event or other channels. Enjoy that relationship with the creative team. Enjoy the things that they are able to actually pull off, and enjoy the ideas that didn't make it or haven't-yet-been. After all, just because it sounds good in a pitch doesn't mean it would have worked in real life.

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