Bsquare

It is this house and this house alone that is dragging me to Orlando this year. I've been after them to make a Silent Hill maze since 2004, at least, so I kinda have to go now. Thing is, SIlent Hill...at least GOOD Silent Hill, say the first three or four games...is all about dread. It's about not wanting to look through that hole in the wall, or not wanting to go through that next door (or in this case, next set of freezer flaps) for fear of what might be waiting. It isn't about things screaming and lurching at you from the dark, which is kinda what HHN does. That feeling of dread is a difficult one to accomplish, and if they can achieve even a fraction of it, it will be worth the trip. And also I hope they don't feature the Boogeyman over Pyramid Head...PH is an inspired, almost ridiculous WTF of an enemy, whereas B-man is just a big guy with a trenchcoat and a hammer. He's not anywhere near as interesting as PH, with his pversized helmet and penchant for mannequin-rape. (See Silent Hill 2). I have high hopes for this maze, I really do. Which only means, of course, that they have farther to fall when they're dashed.

What I mean is that the soundstage location makes it more difficult to get at and steal/deface/destroy sets, props, and the like. And yes, you don't have to be drunk to mess with the props, anyone with two hands and a low IQ can do that, so I hereby and forthwith apologize for offending Oysterhead and, indeed, all alcoholics in general.

The Thing DESERVES a soundstage. As one of the most acclaimed fan-favorite houses at HHN EVER, it needs to be placed in a position of honor, not relegated to a tent. I want to see large scale puppetry and mind blowing effects, and we just aren't going to get that in a tent house...at least not to the degree we would be able to in a soundstage. The interior of as stage simply offers more control than does a tent, and drunks are far less likely to molest the monsters. (The damage done in the original Thing house by passing idiots was sad to behold.) Although I am quick to add that soundstage doesn't necessarily always mean quality (coughCreaturescough) but we are at least guaranteed a larger spectacle than in a tent,which is what this house desperately needs. I'm psyched about it, me.

Absolutely correct. She is a departure from previous icons, and even from a brief glimpse she conveys more personality than six Fears. She also has another aspect which is not readily apparent. I've said too much. Yoicks and awaaaaaaaay!

What a quaint and curious suggestion...but one would have to be mad to believe it. Stark raven mad, you might say.

Movie houses aren't necessarily bad, it's all in the execution. Dead Silence and The Thing, as well as parts of both All Night Die Ins are excellent examples. By the same logic, non-movie houses aren't always good, either...in fact, some of the worst houses in HHN history have been purely original ideas. Terror Mines and Where Evil Hides are prime examples of this. There are others. This is showbiz, folks, and in showbiz it ain't what you do, it's the way that you do it.

Cindy's FB is cool, and whoever does it does it rather well, but official it most certainly is not. Enjoy it, but take what it says with a truckload of salt. Personally I hope we don't see any old icons this year. If we DO see any, I expect to see Fear's potato head popping up at some point, hopefully somewhere WAY in the background. I'm expecting a new icon this year, or at least one we haven't seen much of...my pick is Fate, but in a much altered (less Terra Queen-y) form. Given what we have it makes sense. Granted, we don't have much. If we DO see any old icons popping up, they won't be getting a warm reception from me. Time for something new. PAST time. I still like the Riverboat from Hell idea.

Wow. A gambling palace that deals in souls run by demons and located on a Steamboat from Hell that churns it's way back and forth on the river Styx. Yes, please.

I can picture a tongue-in-cheek "Lost Vegas" style house, tonally similar to something like "Creatures!" or "Leave it to Cleaver." Come on,who wouldn't love to be menaced by zombie Elvis and zombie Wayne Newton? With eight (or maybe 9?) houses,there's room to experiment with that stuff. But the whole olde time-y rinkytink sepia toned quality of the teaser makes me think of Ghost Town, the little maze that could, and just how wonderful and effective a house and scarezone set in the old west could be. They could do something really classy here, I think. Or maybe they'll just get lazy and the face down card will just turn out to be...a Jack.

I'm sort of partial to the idea of the "House"itself being the icon...as in some sort of unavoidable unknowable irresistable unstoppable force that compels debts owed to it to be paid in the most gruesome and unpleasant fashion possible. Perhaps some sort of Lovecraftian elder God that just happens to have a yen for gaming. I can also see a Dealer-type mascot, but he would just be a conduit to a greater force, the "House". When a poor sucker loses his bet...and they always do...the Dealer could just smile, shrug, and look up, waiting for the hammer he knows is about to fall. And of course we aren't playing for money, we're playing for souls. Is that too subtle? Or am I just high?

Hrm. Well, it's early days yet,but I have to say I like what I'm seeing here. I like the music, the atmosphere, and the whole gambling/blackjack connection...it's simple and elegant. The whole thing reminds me of the HHN 17 tease, with the mirror and the music box. Of course, it could go anywhere from here, but the basic thrust is already fairly clear, I think. It's cool. It's a far cry from last year, when my reaction was not so much "Cool!" as it was "WTF is THAT?" But do you want to know what I REALLY like about it? Easy. No gnarly teeth. No growly voice. No art-damaged post-modern horror-paisley symbology. Just clear, simple imagery. REAL storytelling in place of obscure clues. In other words, NO FEAR. Could we be rid of old rootface? Have R and D seen the error of their ways and taken Fear out behind the barn...I mean soundstage...and capped his ridiculous warty ass Old Yeller style? Because if they HAVE, I just may find a design team member and give them a big old wet French kiss. One more thing: Could this mean we will be seeing a return of Ghost Town, the best HHN maze thqat no one ever talks about? One can only hope. Wow, I'm actually excited about this, after only one little teaser. Of course there is still plenty of time for it all to fall into the crapper, so let's just wait and see. In the meantime color me cautiously optimistic.

Read a BOOK? I hardly think so. Instead, perhaps I shall wildly misinterpret your post thusly: OMFG WE'RE GETTING A SCAREZONE DEDICATED TO BEARS!! Yes, that'll do.

Cigarz is a wonderful little hole-in-the-wall bar that's my favorite place for an HHN pregame. I make it a point to stop in a drown a couple of pints each time I go to HHN.

I agree that the icon as a roaming character would be pretty interesting. And as far as silent characters, Fear was more or less silent, wasn't he? Oh, he talked on the website...I suppose...did his mouth actually move?...but as far as park presence, he uttered not a peep. (He DID, however, wave his hands around idiotically like a spokesmodel on "The Price Is Right" revealing a new car in the Showcase Showdown...but that's another topic altogether.) So not talking isn't really a dealbreaker. Oh, and...um...I'm back.