Author - Jennifer Paxton

Knott’s Soak City Waterpark Opens in May with New Slides and More

2017/05/03

BUENA PARK, Calif, (April 2017) – The weather is warming up in sunny Southern California just in time for the opening of the newly expanded Knott’s Soak City Waterpark on May 20. Orange County’s largest outdoor water park is opening its gates to guests for an unforgettable summer season running through Labor Day weekend. During Knott’s Soak City’s opening weekend the newly expanded water park will be debuting seven new slides on two new slide towers, Shore Break and The Wedge including; a fully remodeled Longboard’s Grill, additional seating areas and new spacious cabanas.

Shore Break will take single riders on an adrenaline-filled water adventure as thrill-seekers board one of four Aqua Launch chambers to await the chamber’s floor dropping from beneath their feet sending them on a high speed free fall down a 60-foot tall slide and through a series of exhilarating drops and daring loops. Additionally, Shore Break offers two dueling tube slides which will have riders zipping through adventurous drops and turns as they soak up the warm summer sun.
The Wedge will take families – up to six riders – on an open-raft ride as they descend down navigating hair-raising twists, turns and unexpected dips.
Longboard’s Grill will return for the 2017 summer season after a complete remodeling and expansion which now offers a newly redesigned sleek restaurant layout. While Longboard’s theme remains the same, the menu includes new and delicious items such as hand breaded chicken tenders, fish & chips and assorted wraps. Plus classic favorites like grilled burgers and hot dogs. A new shaded outdoor seating area has been added by the restaurant’s entrance, welcoming diners to fuel up with delicious meals as they take a break from the sun.
As part of the water park’s expansion, additional spacious cabanas and seating areas have been added to the park’s blueprint. Guests can relax and unwind in the new row of cabanas which will be conveniently located across the new Shore Break tower. A new seating area equipped with lounge chairs will allow guests to relax in the sun and is also located near the Shore Break complex.

In honor of summer and the new expansion debuting at Knott’s Soak City Waterpark, guests are invited to celebrate the revamp with a park-wide Soak City Beach Bash during opening weekend, May 20 – May 21. The weekend-long celebration will bring the perfect summer care-free ambiance along with an upbeat summer soundtrack to the splashing pools of the beloved water park.

Guests can experience Knott’s Soak City Waterpark’s opening weekend celebration and much more with a 2017 Gold Season Pass. A Gold Pass includes unlimited 2017 admission to both Knott’s Berry Farm and Knott’s Soak City Waterpark. Gold Season Passes can be purchased online starting at $117.00 or 6 easy payments of $19.50. Applicable taxes and fees apply. The Season Pass payment plan is only available online at knotts.com

For more information about Knott’s Soak City Waterpark and Knott’s Berry Farm please visit knotts.com. Join the conversation about the new thrilling additions at Knott’s Soak City Waterpark and Knott’s Soak City Beach Bash by using #KnottsSoakCity #KnottsSoakCityBeachBash.

Prey Original Game Soundtrack Now Available

2017/05/02

Jennifer Paxton

May 2, 2017 – Ahead of Prey’s global release on May 5^th, the full Original Game Soundtrack is now available! You can listen to the game’s original tracks on Spotify or Apple Music right now, or pick it up on iTunes, Amazon Music or Google Play. Even better, you can check out Mick Gordon’s music in the free demo, available right now on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

No stranger to space, Mick’s work has appeared in a plethora of games in partnership with Bethesda Softworks, including a recent trip to Mars with the award winning soundtrack for DOOM from id Software. However, Mick took Prey in completely different direction, building a diverse soundtrack that combines ambient arpeggiated guitars and heart thumping synth beats. The result lends itself perfectly to the tense, menacing journey to uncovering the mysteries surrounding Talos I and facing off against the alien threat that has taken over the station. Be sure to check out Bethesda.net for more details.

The Prey: Original Game Soundtrack full track list includes:

“The Experiment” byMick Gordon
“Everything Is Going to Be Okay” byMick Gordon
“Typhon Voices” byMick Gordon
“The Phantoms” byMick Gordon
“Into the Tunnels” byMatt Piersall
“Human Elements” byMick Gordon
“The Truth Will Set You Free” byMick Gordon
“No Gravity” byMick Gordon
“Alex Theme” by Mick Gordon
“December and January” by Mick Gordon
“Neuromods” by Mick Gordon
“Stranded” byBen Crossbones
“Semi Sacred Geometry” byRaphael Colantonio and Matt Piersall
“Mind Game” byRaphael Colantonio, Production and Electronics by Matt Piersall

Prey is the highly anticipated first-person sci-fi action game from Arkane Studios set to launch worldwide on Friday, May 5^th on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC. In addition, a free Prey demo is now for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, allowing fans to board Talos I and play the opening hour before the game launches. Prey has been rated M for mature by the ESRB. For more information about the game please visit: prey.bethesda.net.

Nexon and First Strike Games Partner for AAA Multiplayer Titles

2017/05/01

Jennifer Paxton

Geek News, Industry News, News

LOS ANGELES – MAY 1, 2017 – NEXON Co., Ltd. (“Nexon”) (3659.TO), a worldwide leader in online games, today announced its wholly owned subsidiary, Nexon America Inc. (“Nexon America”) has entered into an ongoing relationship with First Strike Games, a game studio formed last year to specialize in multiplayer experiences. Nexon has acquired the worldwide publishing and marketing rights to First Strike Games’ first title, an unannounced multiplayer online game

“Partnering with First Strike Games is another example of our focus on and commitment to working with the best development talent in the Western market,” said Owen Mahoney, president and CEO, Nexon. “This partnership will leverage First Strike Games’ passion and unbeatable background in multiplayer games and our deep expertise in online services to build innovative games that appeal to global tastes and engage communities of players that will stand the test of time.”

Founded in 2016, First Strike Games is a new studio formed by industry vets with strong pedigree in AAA game development across a broad range of multiplayer genres and led by CEO Kevin Franklin whose over a decade of experience in the industry includes 343 Industries (Microsoft) and EA Blackbox.

“We are super focused on competitive multiplayer games at First Strike,” said Kevin Franklin, CEO, First Strike Games. “In Nexon, we found a partner who has truly understood the gameplay we are exploring, has embraced our company vision and has contributed great ideas and expertise. We are looking forward to making amazing games together.”

First Strike Games joins a growing roster of renowned Western developers that have partnered with Nexon, including Cliff Bleszinski’s Boss Key Productions on its first title LawBreakers and Dallas Dickinson’s QC Games on its unnounced first title.

First Strike Games is currently entering full production on the new game by growing its team from 30 to over 50 developers. The yet unannounced title is expected to have broad appeal, with an E10+ rating, with more details to be announced later this year.

About First Strike Games – http://www.firststrikegames.com

First Strike Games is a game studio located in Bellevue, Washington. Founded in 2016, the company’s mission is to create gameplay focused multiplayer experiences and online services on PC and Console. The studio consists of over 30 developers with a pedigree of working on major releases from companies like Microsoft, Bethesda and Sony. First Strike Games is currently in development of their first IP and game with an unannounced release date.

About Nexon America Inc. – http://www.nexon.net
Nexon America Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of NEXON Co., Ltd. (“Nexon”) (3659.TO) a worldwide leader in online games. Based in Los Angeles, Nexon America was founded in 2005 to bring the best of online entertainment to the North American audience. The company’s growing library of titles includes fan-favorites MapleStory, the classic side-scrolling MMORPG, and Vindictus, an action-packed combat MMO. New titles now in open beta include Riders of Icarus, a mount-taming MMO that allows players to fly and fight on the backs of dragons; and First Assault, a first-person shooter based on the critically acclaimed “Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex” IP. Upcoming titles from Nexon America include LawBreakers, a Steam exclusive and the first title from Cliff Bleszinski’s studio Boss Key Productions; and an unannounced title from QC Games.

Planet Coaster and Elite Dangerous Coming to Retail

2017/04/24

Jennifer Paxton

Geek News, News, Windows PC News

London – April 24, 2017 – Sold Out Sales & Marketing Limited is delighted to announce a partnership with illustrious British developer and publisher, Frontier Developments plc (AIM: FDEV), to bring PC smash hit Planet Coaster to retail on May 23, 2017 and to bring Elite Dangerous: Legendary Edition to retail for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One later in 2017.

Planet Coaster is a runaway hit with unrivalled appeal, built upon over fifteen years of experience in simulation; crafting the next great leap forwards for the genre. Be inspired and inspire others as you Create, Manage and Share the world’s greatest coaster parks with friends and content creators around the world. Surprise, delight and thrill your guests as you build your coaster park empire, and let your imagination run wild with the future of coaster park simulation games.

Elite Dangerous re-creates the entirety of the Milky Way at its full galactic proportions, with an evolving player-driven narrative and connected multiplayer experience. Starting with only a small starship and a few credits, players do whatever it takes to earn the skill, knowledge, wealth and power to survive in a futuristic cutthroat galaxy and to stand among the ranks of the iconic Elite.

Elite Dangerous: Legendary Edition brings the epic Elite Dangerous to retail for Xbox One and PlayStation 4, featuring Elite Dangerous, Elite Dangerous: Horizons and 1,000 Frontier Points for use as in-game currency.

‘We’re thrilled to be working with Frontier Developments on two of the best titles created in Britain in recent years. Frontier’s creativity, passion and quality is something we admire, and we’re looking forward to working together to take these titles to retail stores around the world,’ said Garry Williams, Chief Executive Officer of Sold Out Sales & Marketing.

‘We want Frontier’s great games to be enjoyed by as many players around the world as possible.’ said David Walsh, Chief Operating Officer of Frontier. ‘We’re therefore delighted to be working with Sold Out on our retail presence for Planet Coaster and Elite Dangerous.’

Planet Coaster hits retail in selected territories on May 23, 2017. Elite Dangerous: Legendary Edition hits retail later in 2017.

SAG-AFTRA Video Games Industry Strike

2017/02/02

Jennifer Paxton

Geek News, Industry News, News

LOS ANGELES (Feb. 2, 2017) – During a major rally today in Los Angeles, SAG-AFTRA members called for the 11 struck video game corporations to end their bargaining standoff. Members contend the long-running strike can be concluded with a fair agreement benefiting both sides.

SAG-AFTRA’s approximately 160,000 members have been on strike against an 11-member bargaining unit, which includes video game corporations Activision Publishing Inc., Electronic Arts Productions, Inc. and WB Games, Inc. among others, since Oct. 21, 2016. The strike came after 19 months of negotiations wherein the corporations refused to alter their bargaining stance, or make any concessions. The rally in Los Angeles, which began at SAG-AFTRA Plaza and continued at the nearby La Brea Tar Pits, marks the two-year anniversary of the bargaining process on the interactive contract, which governs video game work.

“This is a crucial time. The video game companies are getting ready to start production on a slate of new titles. They need and want our members’ talent to be on their games,” said SAG-AFTRA President Gabrielle Carteris. “I urge these video game corporations to accept the industry-standard agreements that they know are fair and right so we can get back to work – together.”

Carteris on Thursday addressed a crowd of approximately 500, which included SAG-AFTRA members and members of WGA, DGA, Actors Equity, IATSE, UNITE HERE, SEIU, the Teamsters and AFM, which sent a New Orleans-style brass band to lead a march down Wilshire Blvd. Art Pulaski of the California Labor Federation, Rusty Hicks of the L.A. County Federation of Labor and Los Angeles City Councilman David Ryu also spoke to the crowd. Rapper Murs performed.

National Executive Director David White said, “Enough is enough. It’s time for the video game corporations to stop stalling and meet us halfway. Working together we can achieve continued growth for their companies along with fair compensation and safe sets for our members. Their continued stalling is only going to slow down their game production and hurt their bottom lines.”

SAG-AFTRA Interactive Negotiating Committee Chair Keythe Farley said, “I can’t believe we’re still fighting for this contract two years later. I thought we’d be done by lunch on day one. I figured we were all eager to update the substandard, 20-year-old contract that we’ve been operating under and start fresh with a modern, industry-standard agreement that protects, and fairly compensates, performers working on today’s video games. The one thing that keeps me going is our members’ dedication and commitment to a fair contract. It’s the same dedication they bring to their performances, so I guess it’s no surprise, really.”

Meanwhile, Interactive Negotiating Committee member Phil LaMarr announced that nearly a dozen games have been signed to SAG-AFTRA’s new interactive contract, which includes secondary compensation, transparency and stunt safety provisions. “These deals show that other companies see that what we’re asking for is reasonable,” LaMarr said.

Universal Studios Hollywood Chinese Lunar New Year 2017

2017/01/27

Jennifer Paxton

Geek News, Misc Review, News, Reviews

Universal Studios Hollywood is celebrating the Chinese Lunar New Year with a bang. In their central plaza you will find all manner of costumed characters from Universal IPs, such as Kung-Fu Panda, Curious George, and a whole lot more (my personal favorite was Woody Woodpecker). You will even find the evil Decepticon known as Megatron, arch-enemy of the Autobots, speaking Mandarin to guests in celebration of the holiday. Finally at the plaza area, you will find an assortment of Chinese-inspired foods and snacks, as well as be able to write your own message of hope to add to the beautiful, blossom covered archways. I give a ton of kudos to the park designers as the plaza area is beautiful – they did a terrific job.

On the day we went, it was raining cats and dogs, the height of the most recent Southern California storm system, but we didn’t let that stop us. We purchased some Wizarding World of Harry Potter themed rain ponchos and had a terrific time. The lines and crowds were short, allowing us to get into anything we desired within a few minutes of waiting. The world famous Universal Studios Tour was even considerate and had vinyl rain flaps deployed on each side of the trams (although for us in the front corner, the rain came in anyway, lol).

I highly recommend checking out the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in the rain and wind. Nothing says real English weather like gloomy clouds and downpour, and it adds to the overall effect of being in Hogsmeade. Also, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey has returned to its pre-eye strain 2D film mode. I couldn’t ride this enough! The goggles and 3D film during the attraction’s opening were not well-received and the park listed to its guests. The 2D ride film is plenty immersive, and waiting just a couple minutes to ride meant we could go on as many times as we could go through the rain to get back in, lol. It is not uncommon for the ride to have wait times in excess of 60 minutes – yet we rode the attraction seven times in a row! Thank you sweet, sweet rain!

I use any reason I can to get out to Universal Studios Hollywood. It is a terrific theme park and truly a Southern California treasure, reflecting our Hollywood history and providing hope for its future. The fact that the park is also culturally-progressive and forward-thinking enough to pay tribute to our Chinese American brothers and sisters with the Chinese Lunar New Year celebration is a testament to that way of thinking and yet another reason for us all to come together in unity. Get your butts out to Universal Studios and celebrate with them!

You can get ticket information and more at USH’s official website.

Photo Gallery

Mountain High Media Day 2017

2017/01/22

Jennifer Paxton

Geek News, Misc Review, News, Reviews

Mountain High was once again nice enough to invite us to their media day to kick off the ski season. The snow has been falling like crazy in Wrightwood over the past couple weeks and it is keeping quite nice on the mountain – so nice that, on the day we visited, they were able to open the other side of the resort as well as the Tubing park! Our day started off with a cold drive up into town which was stopped temporarily as CalTrans was requiring people to attach snow chains to their tires in order to go any further into town. If you have never put snow chains on before, I highly recommend that you practice before you get to this point! Thankfully, the chains I have are auto-tightening which made things pretty straightforward but, if you don’t have those you are in for a time of it. Once we arrived, we hustled into the lodge and met up with the Mountain High / Oster Ads PR crew who provided some light breakfast foods and lift tickets.

From there, we embarked on our skiing and snowboarding adventure in some seriously cold weather. We were at about 30 degrees and active snowfall while we were there, which caused “white out” conditions for a time. You can see how things looked in our photo gallery below. We are still new to skiing and so we spent a lot of time around the practice slope just getting used to our skis. Going up the lift to the higher slopes would have been mighty harrowing with that weather the way it was! Usually, our Southern California Winter seasons don’t offer the kind of snowfall they are seeing at the mountain right now. It is a great time to go skiing as the powder is fresh and your board or skis will glide very easily over it, making for some quick downhills. We eventually settled into an après-ski lunch and then headed on into Wrightwood proper for some sightseeing and sledding (unfortunately, there is no place to bring your own sled or toboggan into Mt High).

Be sure to check out the gift/pro shop in the Mountain High lodge for souvenirs of your day’s fun as well as any supplies you may have forgotten. We personally forgot ski gloves, so we picked them up in the shop. The resort also offers equipment rentals, so don’t feel like you have to bring your own skis, boards, poles, or boots. The rental process is pretty straightforward, just head inside the building and use the terminals along the wall first – THEN wait int the line for the rest of the gear. If you wait in line before using the terminal, you are wasting your time. Also located on the resort is the Bullwheel Grill, where you can get something to eat and drink. Unfortunately, the grill was closed on the day we were there, but we have eaten there before.

Also, parking is available on site but you will probably want to be there as early as you can as the lots tend to fill up quickly. There is additional parking at the East and North resorts but that might not be where you want to spend you time depending on your goals, skill level, etc so it’s your call. For my purposes as a beginner, the West resort was best as that’s where the lodge and practice hill are located. If you feel like doing some tubing, the Tubing area is located to the North of the resort and tickets have to be purchased on site. I would recommend doing this early as the tubing park will sell out for the day after a time. Tubing is a lot of fun for adults and kids alike – the experience is a total blast.

Overall, we had a great time visiting Mountain High and highly recommend it to any of you Southern Californians looking to get your skiing or snowboarding adventures on. Plus, once you are done at the resort you can head into Wrightwood and enjoy some small town shopping and dining experiences. Lift tickets, season passes, and more are available at the official mountain high resort website. Also of note is their M.A.X. Pass program, which is a shared annual pass between Mountain High and 38 other mountain resorts! If you are a ski buff who chases the snow throughout the entire year, you might seriously consider this.

Mountain High Official Website

Mountain High Media Day 2017 Photo Gallery

X-Wing Miniatures Game Review

2017/01/03

Jennifer Paxton

Geek News, Misc Review, News, Reviews

The Star Wars X-Wing Miniatures Games from Fantasy Flight Games is not only an excellent strategy game but, also, a perfect game for Star Wars fans in general. What’s cooler is that the game is played with small, detailed miniatures of ships from the Star Wars universe. Players send their X-Wings, Tie Fighters, and a whole lot more up against one another to see who is a better tactician. Starting out with X-Wing is fairly simple as all you need is the $40 dollar starter kit. This kit contains revamped (post-The Force Awakens) rules as well as two First Order Tie Fighters and one T-70 X-Wing fighter to throw against one another in combat.

Each ship, modification, and crew member costs a certain number of points. Usually, each side gets a pre-determined number of possible points for the players to work with in setting up their squadrons. In our office, we usually give 100 points per side as we have several people playing (but more on that later). After the sides are configured, the play space is agreed upon (usually a 3 foot by 3 foot area) and the miniature spacecraft get deployed.

A big battle we setup using additionally-purchased ships.

Each side selects maneuvers to be performed by each ship in their squadron. These maneuvers are selected via “maneuver dials” which come with each miniature ship purchased. Fast ships like the A-Wing can traverse greater distances, while more maneuverable ships like the Tie Fighter can perform sharper turns. Certain maneuvers are displayed as red instead of white, meaning that it is harder to pull off. These maneuvers cause your pilot “stress”, which prevents them from performing another red maneuver until an easy “green” maneuver is performed. The selected dials are placed face-down so that the other player cannot see what you are planning. Then maneuvers are performed in descending order of pilot skill (listed on the pilot’s card), always starting with the Imperial side. After each ship movement is complete, that ship can perform an action as listed on their pilot cards. These actions can be to “focus” for the chance at greater damage on the enemy in the forthcoming combat phase or “evade” which grants additional chances of dodging enemy fire (there are other action types, but you get the idea).

After the movement phase is complete,the combat phase begins and ships, in ascending order of pilot skill, can attack their targets. Targets have to fall within a ship’s firing arc and range to be eligible for attack. The starter kit will provide a measurement tool to figure out if a target is within range and arc of the player ship. Each ship has a different attack and defense rating – representing how many dice will be rolled for either action. The attacking player will first roll dice to see if any of their attack dice hit (can be standard or critical damage) and then the defending player rolls their defense die to mitigate that potential damage (or evade it altogether if they are lucky). After the combat phase, the game goes back to the movement phase and it starts all over again. This continues until victor conditions are met for either player.

These are just the bare basics of the game, but are enough to give you the general idea of how it is played. Most games are played force-on-force, winner take all. However, some creative folk setup scenario-based objectives. These could be anything from satellite capturing to protecting the Millennium Falcon so Chewbacca can make it to his annual Life Day celebration. Technically, the X-Wing Miniatures Game is meant for two players – however, you can easily play it, comfortably, with four players. Each player will control a subset of ships on their team. This method of play takes a bit longer for everyone to decide what they are going to do, but can lead to some great banter between players as well as teamwork and “strategery”! Overall, Star Wars X-Wing Miniatures Game is a terrific game of strategy and dice rolling that is sure to please not only Star Wars fans, but also fans of strategy boardgames and war games. The Force Awakens Core Set for the X-Wing Miniatures Game retails for $39.95 and is available now. Also available are a host of additional ships that you can purchase – even “large” and “huge” ships if you want to add an entirely new level of strategy to your games!

X-Wing Miniatures Game Review Score:

[mks_icon icon=”fa-star” color=”#2385db” type=”fa”][mks_icon icon=”fa-star” color=”#2385db” type=”fa”][mks_icon icon=”fa-star” color=”#2385db” type=”fa”][mks_icon icon=”fa-star” color=”#2385db” type=”fa”][mks_icon icon=”fa-star” color=”#2385db” type=”fa”] (5 out of 5 Stars)

Queen Mary’s Dark Harbor 2016 Review

2016/10/04

Jennifer Paxton

Geek News, Halloween, Haunted Attraction Review, News, Reviews

For the past few years the Queen Mary has set sail for Halloween with a sizable event to compete with local heavyweights Halloween Horror Nights and Knott’s Scary Farm. 2016 is no different and California’s most legitimately haunted Halloween event welcomed fans aboard yet again.

Full disclosure before we get into our review; I did serve as talent at a competing Halloween attraction for over a decade. Those days are long behind me now as I turn my enthusiasm towards a critical eye for the haunt industry.

Dark Harbor at the Queen Mary has long been one of my favorite Southern California haunts. The design team knows full well the massive benefit that their host location serves them and they play directly to its strengths year after year. The Queen Mary has a long history as one of the world’s most haunted places and the team at Dark Harbor takes this opportunity to throw you right into the middle of those hauntings, sending you through the cramped bowels of the ship, diverting you to some of the most notorious locations like the ship’s pool and boiler room, and bringing you face to face with some of the more recognizable ghosts at the center of the ship’s stories.

The mazes at Dark Harbor, for the most part, have character and it shows. One consistent that I enjoyed tremendously is that almost every maze starts with a private moment with a character that brings you into the world of what you’re about to see. Take Lullaby for example. Lullaby is centered around the ghost of ‘Scary Mary,’ a little girl who long ago drowned in the Queen Mary’s pool (true story). Guests are staggered and sent through in smaller groups and are sent down the dark stairs into the lower decks of the ship by themselves so that they can start their experience by coming face to face with the clergyman presiding over Mary’s funeral. He welcomes you, says prayers for Mary, and warns you of what lies ahead. In fact, every maze is built around the concept of a singular character. The aforementioned Lullaby with Scary Mary, Dead Rise featuring the Captain, or Intrepid with the all new Iron Master.

Dark Harbor breaks down like this; Three mazes aboard the ship, two mazes inside the nearby dome, one maze outside in the midway and a handful of upcharge attractions. Of all of the attractions, I would have to say Circus was my personal favorite. Circus features a new layout versus previous years and feels like an all new maze. Circus begins with a pair of clowns guiding your group into fake hallways and dead ends before allowing you into the maze proper which is full of interactive rooms like a knee deep ball pit to crawl through or a hallway full of moving floors. Circus is located inside of the dome right next to the all new Intrepid which has the distinction of being one of the biggest disappointments of the night.

Intrepid tells the story of the Iron Master, the man in charge of building the Queen Mary. You are invited aboard his train to take a journey to his scrapyards where demonic steel workers slave away over molten iron. Unfortunately a majority of this maze felt unfinished as we were walking past unpainted walls and barely decorated scenes. What did work, however, was the wide open spaces utilized in the maze to allow their sliding talent some room to breathe and do their thing.

As far as the up-charges go, they can be skipped over for the most part. Hex is a paintball shooting gallery, nothing more, nothing less. Panic 4D is a short animated film with in theater effects like smell and water featuring CGI ripped straight out of 1998 and an over use of a poking effect that left the center of my back sore after the film was done.

Some quick takes:

Intrepid: An underwhelming and bare bones maze, especially considering the theming found in the other attractions. C
Dead Rise: Loud and aggressive. Avoid if you don’t want to get wet. Otherwise a very fun outdoor maze to cool off in. B
Soulmate: As good as it ever was, although an odd choice to change up its always reliable ending scene. A-
Circus Big Top Terror: Highlight of the night. Excellent new layout and use of interactivity. A+
Lullaby: Classic Dark Harbor, even if its only in its second year. Excellent use of the ship. A+
B340: More great use of the interiors of the ship. A
Hex: Avoid. Instead, go shoot paintballs at a human at a real field. F
Panic 4-D: Avoid. F

Overall, Dark Harbor at the Queen Mary continues to be a standout Southern California halloween attraction. Its a great, and cheaper, alternative to other local Halloween theme park attractions and shouldn’t be missed, especially as it hits its stride in its seventh year

Fright Fest 2016 Six Flags Great Adventure Review

2016/09/27

Jennifer Paxton

Geek News, Halloween, Haunted Attraction Review, News, Reviews, Screenshots / Photos

This past weekend, Six Flags Great Adventure invited various media outlets down to the park’s annual Fright Fest event to check out this year’s crop of haunted mazes. We were lucky enough to be on-site for the media night and below you will find a quick review on each of the houses – as well as a photo gallery to follow!

Cell Block 6

As the name implies, this house is themed after a prison in lockdown. The inmates are running rampant and its your job to either help them escape or be locked in with them, forever.

The overall theme to this haunt was ok. Its the standard Prison setting with almost no gore or scare factor. The actors, while doing an admirable job of trying to scare people are just to few and far between to actually be scary. Most of the time I just felt alone, walking through a haunt that someone forgot to hire people for. It’s not horrible, but it’s also not worth the wait if the lines are long.

Story: 2, Scare Factor: 2, Theme: 3

Big Top Terror: Forgotten Carnival 3-D

This haunt is themed after a forgotten carnival that you stumble upon deep in the backwoods. The freaks and inbred horrors within need your soul to escape…will you help them?

Out of all the haunts at Fright Fest this year, I think this one is my favorite, which is surprising because when I see 3D, I usually think it is going to be hokey, assuming that the haunt is going to rely on that and not the scare factor. However, I am glad to report that this haunt was extremely well themed, the actors do a great job of embracing their surroundings, and the 3D effect actually works quite well. The only drawback is that because it is so brightly-lit, there are not a lot of areas for the freaks to scare you. Overall, this haunt is a must see.

Story: 4, Scare Factor: 3.5, Theme: 4.5

Blood Shed

Aside from the cute play on words with this haunt, the maze itself is pretty good. It’s themed after a backwoods farm inhabited by half-human, half-animal mutants who are looking to feed on your blood.

The maze is actually the longest of all the Fright Fest mazes at this year, at least it seemed that way to me. It has guests walking through a backwoods cabin and farmhouse, then out into a corn field. It has a nice finish inside a corn maze that has a lot of nice spots to scare people. Unfortunately, this is another haunt maze that suffers from too many gaps in the scares, as I found myself walking for a good bit before someone else would jump out at me. In some ways I enjoy it because I get to admire the set decoration of it all, but if I had to wait in a long line I would want to have just a few more scares thrown at me.

Story: 3, Scare Factor: 2.5, Theme: 3.5

The Manor

A dark, and eerie manor awaits you in this haunt as you have to traverse dark hallways and tight corners to escape from flesh eating zombies.

This haunt seemed extremely short to me, with very few scares. The theming was top notch and actually made me feel as if I was walking through some old forgotten manor. As good as the theme was, I was still let down by the little amount of times I felt scared. There are some decent jump scares scattered throughout, but nothing that’ll get your adrenaline going or make you run ahead from your group. If you have the time, check out this haunt, but if you have other things to see or do, you may be better off doing that.

Story: 1.5 Scare Factor: 2, Theme: 4

Total Darkness

As the name implies, this haunt plunges you into absolute darkness, with only a flashlight as your guide.

When you get to the entrance, you and your group are given a rope to hold on to. It’s not attached to anything, you just need to hold it so that no one in your party gets lost. The leader of the group has a very dimly lit flashlight (ours may have been broken, because when I shook it, it got brighter) with a red bulb that they can use to navigate the maze and figure out how to get out. As I mentioned, this maze is in almost complete darkness, save for a few exit signs here and there, and while there are no actual (maybe a few) jump scares, the creepiness is excellent. At one point while walking through, you feel someone breathing on your neck or just walking next to you. This creepiness really helps to sell this haunt, and I highly suggest walking through with your friends.

Story: 1, Scare Factor: 3, Theme: 4.5

Voodoo Island

This haunt has you traveling to a remote and mysterious island where the ancient art of voodoo is practiced.

This was another of the longer haunted mazes this year, but that does not necessarily make it good. Don’t get me wrong, this was a decent haunt, but with what they presented and what they could have based on the theme, it was a let down. The set design and decoration was, just like most of their haunted houses: Great. Unfortunately, the scares were just too few and far between, and the ones that do get you are so good that you wish there were more of them. Great premise, poor execution.

Story: 2, Scare Factor: 2.5, Theme: 3

Wasteland

Toxic spills, contamination and nuclear fallout await you in this haunt…

Another decent haunted house that plays out well with the theme it is working with. The actors were great, as they were all really into their roles and did a great job to sell the haunt and it story. The layout was nice, had a lot of open areas, and a lot of dark corners to hide the actors.

Story: 2.5, Scare Factor: 3, Theme: 3

Final Thoughts

Overall, Six Flags Great Adventure did a nice job with this year’s Fright Fest. The haunted mazes were all pretty good, and the overall decoration and theming around the park was great – I especially liked the bloody fountain that welcomes you. The monsters walking around do a great job scaring unsuspecting park guests and for the little ones who do not want to get scared there are several “Fright Free” zones for them, as well as a couple of nice trick or treat trails where the kids can collect candy. Another nice thing about Fright Fest is that all the coasters are open and running, some in the dark, which makes for a completely different ride than during in the day!

[easyreview title=”Fright Fest Six Flags Great Adventure Review Score” cat1title=”Overall Score (out of 5)” cat1detail=”” cat1rating=”4″ ]

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