deathbydinn

Anything by the water or on a beach is great, but I can't think of anything that comes close to those, the sprawling water and the mountains are beautiful. Hopefully the rides are great as well and allow you to take in your surroundings. And here I thought Cedar Points coasters had a nice view being on a lake...how I've learned.

The last Fright Fest preview photos have been uploaded, with the event opening this Saturday. I'd say the theming aspect of the event looks to have improved from last year. Hopefully the scare actors (both in quantity and quality) will improve as well. New retheme for Fiddlers Fling. This will be a more extensive retheme than Fiddlers Flung with lights, fog and music. Hurricane Harbor will be home to the new 17+ Club Fright. Nice to see the old raceway cars being used. Queue line theming for La Maison d'Obscurite (Rue Le Dodge) Mausoleum of Terror. Wicked Woods. Full album here.

^Terror Twister is a full retheme of the tea cups. If nothing else, I'd say that alone is worth a 20 minute drive. Great America has a similar set up on their teacups and it's one of the biggest highlights of Fright Fest. Tons of fun.

It doesn't seem like he was their for very long. Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't he only come in after Mark Shapiro left in 2010 to be the interm CEO until Anderson was hired?

^ Hades needs topper track and possibly Timberliners, not a full blown Iron Horse treatment. The ride already has an awesome layout, it just needs to be smooth.

I've heard that friday nights at Fright Fest aren't too bad, and that's usually when the actors are at their best. As for the weekends, the later you go the more crowded it will be. During last years Fright Fest, Raging Bull went from having a line not even half way down the staircase on the first saturday, to nearly reaching Viper two weeks later.

^ Larry is the gorilla.

I can't decide if its a good or bad thing that the park is using their time to plan a funeral for a blow up spider.

I'm assuming he's talking about the Gatekeeper used at the announcement. Its around 2:20.

From Screamscape. Despite how popular backwards Eagle was, I'd be shocked if there is even the smallest sliver of truth to this.

Great Escape has a bobsled.

More Fright Fest setup photos have been released. Looks like the new Deadline attraction will consist of the train as well as a short walk through where Iron Wolf once stood. Full album here.

Happy Junction is a car ride, not a train.

^ The ride descriptions are just typed once and then copied to other parks. Last years site had similar mistakes such as Jokers Jinx listed as a wooden coaster and Boomerang as a drop tower.

Full Fright Fest details released! Same scare zones as last year. New name for Rue Le Morgue and a new retheme for Fiddlers Fling. Fearful Frights New! Wicked Woods Few have survived the haunted forest, where terrors hide amongst the dark trees. Locals usually report hearing the wind's eerie whistle and hiker's bloody screams. New! Manslaughter Manor Only the brave will survive the haunted hallways of Manslaughter Manor, while the weak will succumb to the terror that has surrounded the house throughout it's history. New! The Dead Line Take a trip aboard the Sector 7 Railway to visit Fun Haven, Illinois’ only Zombie Free Attraction! However this haunted train ride may also be a trip to your death. Massacre Medical Center Enjoy a nighttime tour of the asylum – originally known for its innovative techniques, but now remembered for the night the insane inmates ran wild and attacked everyone in sight. Mausoleum of Terror These hungry zombies have returned from the ground to seek revenge on the living and terrorize those who travel through the Mausoleum of Terror. Entertainment: New! Fright Club: NC-17 There’s a party at Fright Fest this year. Get ready to dance the night away in a club where being dead is hot! Love at First Fright Head over to the stage to see ghouls rocking out this Halloween. These monsters may look harmful, but the friendly creatures are just a bit serious and sensitive about their music. Dead Man's Party The freaks gather for the biggest party of the season, and the costumed real-life zombies are looking for other guests to join their clan. Full Moon Rocksplosion The zombies have risen from the ground and this undead army is ready to rock. The chaotic demonstration of song and dance will liven the mood and prey on the living. Zombie Jamboree Day Parade It looks like a friendly parade, but it's really a funeral procession where real zombies wander the streets. Stay out of the way or you could join the march next year. Fantome Last Stop Stage (The Last Stop: Burn 'Em and Burried Circus) - This bizarre sideshow circus is demanding their time in the spotlight, and they'll do whatever it takes to make you squirm in amazement. Susan Rosen: Mistress of Mesmerism Pictorium (Carousel Plaza) - Returning this Fright Fest, witness the marvels of hypnosis or volunteer to fall under a spell yourself during this astonishing show in the Pictorium. Face 2 Face County Fair Stage (County Fair) - Come watch our talented make-up artists as they are challenged to create a monster in 20 minutes. Scary-oke Mission Stage (Tinseltown Terror) - Sing your favorite songs if you dare but remember to stay on key. Hitting a wrong note really angers the monsters. Don't let this be the last tune you sing. Scare Zones: Necropolis Formerly The Picnic Grove - A zombie infection has taken over the city of Necropolis. Blood-thirsty members of the undead and other evil creatures lurk throughout the city with several scouring the area for their next meal. ... Bayou Du Vaudou Formerly Orleans Place - Enter the gates to Bayou du Vaudoo and find yourself in the deep dank swamps of Louisiana. The Last Stop: Burn 'em and Burried Circus Formerly Mardi Gras - A troupe of circus performers where on their way back home from their summer performances in 1973 when fate had a different plan. Port Dread Formerly Yankee Harbor - Port Dread is the Sea Side docking station for some of the most notorious and evil the sea has to offer. The Ruins of Fenrir Formerly County Fair Train Station Area - On the outskirts of every town, in the darkness beyond the safety of neighborhoods and street lights, strange things happen that can only be explained by folklore and nightmares. Hellmouth The Demon Area in County Fair - The first Demon arrived in 1980 transforming the Turn of the Century ride, since then he has recruited other demons to watch over the ride when he is unable to satisfy his appetite. Tinsletown Terror Formerly Southwest Territory - Visit this long abandoned movie studio back lot possessed by the deadliest stars of movie history. The movies have never been so “reel.” Will you survive your Horror Screen Test? Sector 7 Formerly Hometown Square - A terrible industrial accident resulted in all of the residents turning into zombies. The town was cut off from the rest of the world and labeled Sector 7. No one from the outside world knows what Rethemed Rides: Demon Formerly Turn of the Century - Demon may be one of the most celebrated roller coasters in the world, but it is also the premier residence in the park for angry, disillusioned spirits whose only joy in death is tormenting Terror Twister 2: A Turn for the Worse Formerly Chubascco - A Fright Fest favorite! With enhanced lighting, equipment, and effects, Terror Twister 2 – A Turn for the Worse, will be sure to disorient riders as they spin through DJ Terror’s club. The Birds of the Bayou Formerly The Condor - It may seem like the safest place at the park, but it isn't. Condor is the home of the Sirens, beautiful, captivating creatures who quickly and painfully inhabit your soul. La Maison d'Obscurite Formerly Rue Le Dodge - In the heart of the bayou lies its dark soul: the House of Darkness. The Dying Trapeze Formerly King Chaos - The performers from one of their star attractions were lost in the Great Last Stop Fire while their trapeze sat dormant most of the summer. New! Valhalla Fyre Formerly Fiddler's Fling - One of the original ride operators from the park back in 1976 sold the soul of the fiddler to an ancient norse mythology god, every October that firey cycle starts all over! The Pit and the Pendulum Formerly The Revolution - Hear the slashing blades of the pendulum? The Black Widow Formerly The American Eagle - In this part of Illinois the convoluted surfaces of some of our rides are unfortunately an attractive nesting place for insects. Giant Drop of Doom Formerly The Giant Drop - This is not the same ride you are used to during the summer. The ghosts of past Tinseltown Studio employees have taken over the ride. Ricoslay Formerly Ricochet - The local butcher has come up with one easy way to grind up all of his meat. Snakes on a Train Formerly The Viper - Colonel Peabody for years has been breading snakes for his infamous elixir. BioHazard Formerly The Whizzer - A secret toxic dump right behind The BioHazard has now leaked into the water supply of Hometown USA, now known as Sector 7. Reactor Core Formerly The Hometown Fun Machine - The Reactor Core is the base of the Sector 7 disaster. http://frightfest.sixflags.com/greatamerica/attractions/

Great America posted a huge update of lots of Fright Fest prep. For the whole album, go here: Walk the Roaring Rapids in the new for 2012 Wicked Woods. Guests will face various urban legends of the forest. All the pipes used to create the rapids will be removed. This is where guests will exit. A ramp will be built to take them to ground level. SWT will transform once again into Tinseltown Terror. Replacing Studio 13 is the new for 2012 Massacre Manor. Six Flags Scientific Investigation team is trying to unravel the mysteries behind the Massacre Manor Massacre Medical Center returns for 2012. Last year, this room had a great effect in it. Necropolis taking shape. Mausoleum of Terror returns once again. I believe this has been here since year 1 of Fright Fest. Hometown Fun Machine becomes Reactor Core. It looks like the Fright Fest budget has been upped, as this all looks great! Look for more photos to be uploaded every Monday.

The upside down white house is a walk through attraction of...the white house upside down. I know the wonder works chain use a similar facade, but don't be fooled, it's nothing nearly as cool. You basically walk through rooms to find out why the white house is upside down and it all leads up to an incredibly anti climatic finale. It has one of the worst attraction ratings in the dells, as it should. The only way I could ever reccomend going through it is if you have a coupon, your with a fun group of people, and that you realize the most fun you will have in the place is making fun of how much it sucks.

Little Amerricka is a great park, but it's clearly not meant for people who are only looking for big thrills. It's a small family park that serves a small town in the middle of nowhere. Sure the rides aren't anything amazing, but they're fun for what they are. The train ride is one of the best anywhere and the mini golf is pretty good as well. I'm not sure what you were expecting that left you so disappointed, but people should go to the park with the mindset that it's a very small park in a very small town. Even if its nothing more than a credit stop for some people, it's important to support smaller parks like this to keep them alive.

^ Does Thunderbolt no longer count as a wooden coaster?

More details about Ignite and how it will change Hometown Square. http://www.suntimes.com/entertainment/14854630-421/ignight-will-ignite-six-flags-nights-in-13.html

Something that I've noticed is that a lot of the parks you report on seem to have a few rides and buildings that look really nice and well themed, but most of the other rides just kinda sit out on the midway with no real effort to theme them. Also looks like they might have been inspired by the swings in the orange that once stood at DCA.

^^Maybe it's just my way of thinking, but I don't really get how this was hyped more than X Flight or Riptide. With those, they were releasing clues and hyping it every day. For this we only got clues once a week. Granted, they were much more creative this time which might have lead to people to believe it was something big, but the clues themselves revealed much less than the X Flight or Riptide Bay ones did. ^ Yes the cars are still there. Honestly, I think the original designers would much prefer our park as even though it's changed a lot, ours is so much closer to the park they built than Californias Great America is. Cali's only has two of the original themed areas left, their train is gone, their trolley tracks are gone and I believe we have more original rides left. The only Marriott thing Cali has that we don't that I can think of is the lighthouse.

^ What was wrong with how they announced it?

^ This isn't math though, the two negatives of Skrillex and a Boomerang don't cancel each other out to make a positive.

This "video mapping" element thats part of the show actually looks really cool. I'm looking forward to this so much more now. Go to 3 minutes in for the second one.