Matt N
CF Legend
Hi guys. Within the past few weeks, some rumours have been swirling about Duel at Alton Towers, or more specifically about its future. Building upon this, Theme Park Worldwide today posted a video speculating on potential changes coming to Duel for 2023:
Now I’m not just citing a YouTube video without any good reason. There are a couple of reasons why Shawn thinks that changes may be on the way, and why I’m posting this rumour, including:
I know that there is a big movement that would like the Haunted House to be reinstated in its original 1992 form, but perhaps controversially, I’m not a huge fan of this idea.
I can see why people would like HH bought back for sure, but I’m not sure such a move would be overly successful. The Haunted House hasn’t been around in its original form for 20 years, so I’m not sure if the average visitor would care that much about it “returning”, and even with all the will in the world, a “return” of the Haunted House would inevitably not be the same ride as the 1992 original. Technology has progressed so much in 30 years, and even in the 20 years since the Duel refurb, that any attempt to revive the Haunted House would inevitably make it differ from the original to a certain degree. I feel like that would disappoint many of those whom such a move would be aimed at (enthusiasts) because “it [wouldn’t be] enough like the 1992 original”. Also, I’m not 100% sure if the concept in the way it was originally designed would still stand up today; the world is a very different place, and modern dark rides are fundamentally very different to dark rides built in 1992 even when putting aside the aforementioned technological advancements.
As such, I would like to see something completely new put in Duel’s place. As much as the ride is still perfectly fun, and I don’t personally find it to be as terrible as many make out, I think the fundamentals of the ride are showing their age a bit now, and you could do a lot with that space if modern dark ride technology were to be used to build a brand new attraction there.
But what do you guys think?
Now I’m not just citing a YouTube video without any good reason. There are a couple of reasons why Shawn thinks that changes may be on the way, and why I’m posting this rumour, including:
- Various people, Shawn included, have commented on how the standard of maintenance seems to have considerably slipped on Duel in 2022 compared to previous years. Effects that might previously have been fixed are now being left unfixed, various targets and guns are not working, and places like the queue, exit corridor and shop are not being cleaned/maintained. Shawn says that this kind of thing is usually a sign that an attraction is going to be undergoing significant change very soon at Alton Towers, from his years of experience, and that this seems far more apparent on Duel in 2022 than it has in previous years.
- Away from the video, John Burton, Merlin’s head creative for Resort Theme Parks, was recently sighted around Duel with what appeared to be clipboards with plans on them. I know that this could be for anything, but he was sighted around Nemesis in similar circumstances not that long ago, and look where that led…
- One personal observation of mine is the fact that I find Shawn making a video on the subject very intriguing. Shawn doesn’t usually do speculative videos unless a rumour is very rampant and/or he has some sort of insider information indicating that something is happening. As I had previously heard no concrete rumours of anything happening to Duel, my thought was; could Shawn know something we don’t here? With him having worked at the park for 8 years, I don’t think it’s obscene to suggest that he might have some inside connections.
I know that there is a big movement that would like the Haunted House to be reinstated in its original 1992 form, but perhaps controversially, I’m not a huge fan of this idea.
I can see why people would like HH bought back for sure, but I’m not sure such a move would be overly successful. The Haunted House hasn’t been around in its original form for 20 years, so I’m not sure if the average visitor would care that much about it “returning”, and even with all the will in the world, a “return” of the Haunted House would inevitably not be the same ride as the 1992 original. Technology has progressed so much in 30 years, and even in the 20 years since the Duel refurb, that any attempt to revive the Haunted House would inevitably make it differ from the original to a certain degree. I feel like that would disappoint many of those whom such a move would be aimed at (enthusiasts) because “it [wouldn’t be] enough like the 1992 original”. Also, I’m not 100% sure if the concept in the way it was originally designed would still stand up today; the world is a very different place, and modern dark rides are fundamentally very different to dark rides built in 1992 even when putting aside the aforementioned technological advancements.
As such, I would like to see something completely new put in Duel’s place. As much as the ride is still perfectly fun, and I don’t personally find it to be as terrible as many make out, I think the fundamentals of the ride are showing their age a bit now, and you could do a lot with that space if modern dark ride technology were to be used to build a brand new attraction there.
But what do you guys think?
And he wouldn’t personally be uploading things to right move for marketing reasons, that would be the job of marketing. Even if he were to, I very much doubt he’d be putting his own personal name on it! 
…… 
