Fright Fest 2012 begins Friday, October 5th at Six Flags Magic Mountain. Today, we have an EXCLUSIVE first look at one of the new mazes this year, Willoughby’s Resurrected, as well as some news on one of the other new mazes this year, Blackout.
Willoughby’s Resurrected
Willoughby’s Haunted Mansion was the long-standing permanent maze located in the former location of the Magic Pagoda in Samurai Summit near Ninja. This is one of the stand-out mazes for Fright Fest every year with a core group of talent that make sure guests would get a decent amount of “scares” in the maze. This year they have completely gutted the entire maze and rebuilt the experience, with little left that resembles anything from years past.
The first evident change at Willoughby’s is the facade, which actually looks like a haunted house.
After waiting in line, guests will enter a holding area inside of the maze. There is a surprise element that I won’t spoil for you, it’s that good.
Once inside, we are led by a butler into the Mansion.
In this corridor you will see some paintings of the Willoughby’s that give an
indication as to what is coming throughout the maze.
As we move further through the maze we start to see some of the technology that is being used with the level of precision normally only seen at Universal.
The set pieces being used throughout the maze are impressive
Anybody ready for some dinner?
Into the bathroom
Neal (Director of Park Operations) demonstrates one of the effects for us
Heading through another hallway we see additional images of ghouls that can’t seem to get out
The Music room was one of my personal favorite scenes
The detail is even shown on the wallpaper throughout the mansion
The Library was another strong scene
Up into the attic, more new effects are used.
Finally we are led outside into the garden.
The maze is one of the most well themed mazes we’ve seen, and not just at Magic Mountain. The park has transformed one of their most popular mazes into one of the marquee haunted attractions in Southern California. We can’t wait to see the maze with all of the talent this weekend.
Fright Fest Preparations
Willoughby’s Resurrected isn’t the only thing to look forward to at Fright Fest this year. The park has been pulling out all the stops to truly transform the event. Below, we will detail what else is coming for Fright Fest, plus different options for getting into fright fest and some of our suggestions on how to make the most out of your visit to Fright Fest.
Preparations for Fright Fest are happening around the park.
This year they are going to have a more permanent location for the Maze passes at the entrance to the park in front of Flags.
This should make lines go quicker for guests and make things easier on employees
Heading up to Baja Ridge, the maze Chupacabra is coming back for it’s second year.
This was a fun maze last year with lots of great talent.
Heading up to Roaring Rapids and Tatsu, the “Gypsy Hollow” scare zone is being prepared
Near Apocalypse, a new stage is being constructed which will be a dance area.
This Saturday (October 6) is Resident Evil night. You can get a special admission ticket if you pre-order the game at GameStop, they will also have demo’s of the game at the park for guests to play.
The Waste Lands outside of the breakout maze from last year “After Math” is taking shape
Since the After Math is a maze that is almost completely outside, we recommend waiting until it’s completely dark before experiencing this maze.
Lights and Lazers are being set up for City Under Siege in DC Universe
A new stage show is being set up in front of DC Universe. As you can see, the props being used are above and beyond anything the park has done for this show before.
More Haunt Themeing has been placed under Superman
The other new maze for this year is Blackout, placed in the former queue of Log Jammer. The backstory for this maze is that nearby construction has knocked out all power. The development of this maze may seem rather simple, but the execution of the maze is something that has us very excited.
From what we understand, guests will be placed in groups of 8 people and each person will grab a section of a rope. The lead person will have a pen-light and will attempt to lead the group of 8 through the maze. The switch-backs from Log Jammer have all been removed which means there is plenty of room for twists and turns along the pitch black path. Who knows what terror awaits before you come out the other side.
The Hearse is back at the front of the park
The last new maze for this year is Black Widow, placed in the former location of Bite II. If Willoughby’s is any indication, this should be another great maze.
Fan Favorite, Jokesters Hideout 3D is also coming back this year.
Jokesters as seen from the Sky Tower
There are still a couple of props backstage waiting to be placed near their respective mazes, including one for Jokesters.
Overall, this looks to be a huge step forward for Fright Fest and one that shouldn’t be missed for Halloween Fans. In addition, to all of the mazes and shows, the following rides will be available with the Fright Fest experience
- Colossus Backwards
- Thumper Bumpers
- X2: Area 19
- Terror Tracks (Batman, Goliath, Tatsu, Apocalypse, Viper, Riddlers Revenge) IN THE DARK!
Here you will find all the information you need for maze description, ticket options and prices, photo’s, videos and even how you can win tickets to Fright Fest.
There’s a new Fright Fest commercial the park put out earlier this week:
- Online tickets are $44.99 which includes admission to the parks but do not include the mazes once Fright Fest begins
- Maze Passes are $13 ($10 for Passholders) / Express Maze passes are $30 ($25 for Passholders)
- Fright Feast with the Willoughby’s is $24.99 (We did get a sneak peek at the location for Fright Feast and it’s going to be a fun time)
- Monster Pack is $99.99. This includes park admission, Express Maze Pass, Fright Feast and Parking (This is in our opinion the best value if you do not have a Season Pass)
- You can also get a 2013 Season Pass for only $64.99 (or $5.89 per month) that will get you in to Fright Fest (but does not include the Maze pass)
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