California Great America (CGA) Discussion Thread

Vortex was actually open most of the day, and I got on the second to last train, only followed by those who won the social media contest

omg there are no seatbelts on mass effect

The transformation has begun.

Photo from CGA's Twitter.

Such a striking blue. Has Vortex closed yet?

Such a striking blue. Has Vortex closed yet?

I assume they're painting it in between dispatches.

Such a striking blue. Has Vortex closed yet?

I assume they're painting it in between dispatches.

 

Yes, Vortex closed for good a couple days ago.

 

I also have to say that the new paint looks great!

Such a striking blue. Has Vortex closed yet?

I assume they're painting it in between dispatches.

 

This made me but to be fair they did paint Mantis almost entirely before it closed so it's a reasonable question to ask.

 

 

These are just some pictures from the CGA Facebook, they've really sped along with this and wasted no time on getting it painted. The blue really pops out, I like it a lot.

That is looking very good!

That looks excellent.

That looks fantastic. Wow.

Anybody gonna be at Haunt opening night? I'm mainly curious as to how Fear 5150 VR is going to work. I know it's a separate purchase, but I'm willing to try it out.

So pretty! While riding Vortex it's last weekend reminded me how relatively boring it is, even if it isn't a lot more exciting it sure will look better.

We'll be there on Friday night. I'm not into the Halloween stuff but that VR wheelchair business does sound intriguing.

Anybody gonna be at Haunt opening night? I'm mainly curious as to how Fear 5150 VR is going to work. I know it's a separate purchase, but I'm willing to try it out.

 

Going to Knotts tomorrow and will try their Fear 5150 and then give CGA's a shot when I get back on Sunday. Hope they're both killer. Saw this inside the old mirror mirror building over the weekend

I'll be at the Media Preview for Haunt this Friday too. Looking forward to the VR. Did anybody else hear how crazy the VR is supposed to be?

Looking forward to the VR. Did anybody else hear how crazy the VR is supposed to be?

 

I just read about it, each of the will be unique to themselves having different real life scare moments such as,"feeling like an actual needle is going into your arm." I just can't wait, this is getting me excited.

Anyone know the price for the VR?

 

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk

Anyone know the price for the VR?

 

It doesn't say on the site, but all that I know is that it's first come first serve. I'm sure that it'll be cheaper in the beginning of haunt and get more expensive as it gets closer to the 31st.

Here you go, $10.

Here you go, $10.

Thank you! I'm going on the 8th, I can't wait!

 

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This past Friday, Theme Park Review was invited to California's Great America for the 2016 Haunt media event! This event gets better and better every year and this year was no exception! This year, there are 6 mazes, 5 skeleton rooms, 3 scare zones, 4 shows, and 2 experiences! This is a must see event, and is worth every penny. They seem to be investing more time and money into this event every year as it's getting better and better! The mazes are looking very good, with great decorations and great theming. The shows were professionally done, and the skeleton key rooms were a lot of fun! They really seem to be stepping up their game! The lines weren't too long, but I absolutely recommend getting the Fright Lane Plus. Not only do you get to go to the front of the line for each maze, but it also includes the skeleton key rooms. The upcharge for the plus versus the regular Fright Lane works out to about $2 per skeleton key room, and that is definitely worth the price! I won't give anything away, but "Dominated" was one of the funniest and best things I've ever done at a Haunt event. It had great acting, and was a lot of fun. That was worth the $10 alone! I know a lot of people complain about all the extra charges, but if it's your only visit, it's definitely worth the money! The Boofet is also a great deal with some great food! It's only $14.95 (which is amazing when compared to food prices in the park) for all you can eat delicious food, and some possible visits from some monsters.

 

We also got to preview the new addition this year, FearVR! According to CGA, FearVR is

A groundbreaking virtual reality horror experience, FearVR uses Samsung Gear VR powered by Oculus to come face- to-face with the paranormal chaos unraveling around you. Disturbingly vivid sights and sounds invade all of your senses. Encounter the darkness that has taken over the medical staff during your fully immersive hospital stay.

The cost seems reasonable at $10, and it's a pretty unique experience. I was also surprised at how well the "moving" portion worked. They can take up to 16 people at a time, but with anything VR, it can take a little time to get through so make sure you plan accordingly. However, when we went by later in the evening, it didn't seem to have a long line at all. Also, it may be better to do it at night since the hospital takes on a more sinister tone when it's dark outside.

 

The mazes this year are:

 

Wax Museum Chamber of Horrors (Our favorite)

Roadkill Roadhouse

Dia De Los Muertos

inSanitarium

Zombie High

Toy Factory

CornStalkers

Madame Marie's Massacre Manor

 

The skeleton rooms are:

 

Bone Crusher

Dominated (Our favorite)

Vanity

Sorority Slaughter

Hoarder House (Disgusting, but really good)

 

The scare zones are:

 

Evacuate

Killer Clown Town

Lockdown

 

The shows are:

 

Academy of Villains

Blood Drums

Nytewalkers

Ringmaster's Sideshow

 

The experiences are:

 

FearVR

Haunt Boofet

 

DISCLAIMER: The mazes do not allow any photography or video at all. We were given special permission to take some pictures in Madam Marie's Massacre Manor for the event. Please respect the rules and do not take any photos or videos in the mazes.

Waiting to get into the parking lot for our first Halloween event of the season!

Here for the media day!

We got our ticket, map, and Fright Lane Plus pass with a really nice skeleton key that will be added to our keychain after the event!

Patriot looks really nice, and the spiderwebs add a nice touch to the death of Vortex.

When the fog really kicks in, this place is pretty creepy.

The skyway was closed for winter, and to use the area for mazes.

We will be trying this out later!

After we entered, they took us straight to FearVR for a preview. It's the orange building to the right.

Getting ready for FearVR!

The is were you "sign in" for your appointment and pay the office visit co-pay.

While waiting, Amy does the scarecrow pose.

Inside the hospital, waiting to be called in to see the doctor.

Amy's a little nervous about what they'll find during her checkup.

You can tell how much I love hospital visits!

This is one of the skeleton key entrances. They were really easy to find with flashing lights. This one was Hoarder House, which was absolutely disgusting, but really good!

This is the somewhat recently renovated picnic area. It's used for 49ers games as well, and is a huge upgrade over what was here before. They said there are over 50 big screens!

There is also a nice photo op for Flight Deck. Unfortunately, they weren't testing it yet, but it was running at opening.

I'm pretty sure this is where the Boofet takes place as well, but tonight it's for the media preview!

The food was really good!

Elizabeth served some amazing lemon chicken!

Prime rib for the media event! I don't think I'm going to be leaving!

They had some nice cookies and desserts

I loved, and fully support, the Vortex tombstones! a

These cookies were amazing!

You know Haunt is about to start when you see the fog.

Finally getting dark, bring on Haunt!

First up was Madame Marie's Massacre Manor! (TPR was given special permission to take a few pictures inside. Please respect the rules and do not take any photos or videos in the mazes)

First maze of the year! They did a great job and we jumped quite a few times!

The theming was top notch!

One of the ghosts is ready for the next victims....I mean guests.

Just a normal room. I'm sure there's nothing scary in here.

Uh oh, it looks like we disturbed the maid!

Run!!!!

Lots of creepy voodoo/séance stuff.

And of course, a murder victim.

Next up was our first skeleton key room! This one was Sorority Slaughter. It was pretty fun and scary. We've never done these in the past, but won't be skipping them anymore!

Here's a general overview of the rules.

These "Phantom" characters are at the entrance of all the skeleton key rooms.

This was the Lockdown scare zone. They did a great job, and the guy in the wheelchair was really fun to watch!

Is that a propane tank I see? That must mean.....

FIRE!!!!!

I love the fog that they have here sometimes, but fire is much better!

It's looks really cool with the fire bursts going all night.

Obligatory entrance picture.

The lighting and decorations were really good.

Next up is Insanitarium! It was a good solid maze.

The scare zones had some great lighting and fog effects.

Here's our favorite scare actor of the night!

Next up was Dia De Los Muertos. The guy under one of the market stalls scared me more than anyone else that night!

Roadkill Roadhouse was another solid maze.

This was the Dominated Skeleton Key Room. Definitely the highlight of the evening!

The Nytestalkers put on a great show.

This guy would swing out over the audience on these Mad Max style poles.

They also had acrobats and trampolines (like the La Nouba WDW trampolines).

Good riddance to Vortex and hello Patriot!

This was the Bone Crusher skeleton key room. Not our favorite, but fun for those who have never experienced the effect inside.

The blood drums put on a good show as well.

The drummers had a zombie Mad Max style about them.

And they had fire!!

It was a very well done show, and was a lot of fun.

This was the Vegan Maze, also known as the Chicken restaurant.

Evacuate was another scare zone. There were a ton of hiding places to scare the crap out of people.

One of the scare actors ready to do his best to scare some unsuspecting victims

This group couldn't get through the area fast enough.

Cornstalkers is a classic CGA maze and had some good scares.

One of the better drop towers around!

Toy Factory was really good! While the song alone is scary enough to drive you insane, they had some great decorations and some great scare actors.

Amy liked that CGA coordinated the lamp light colors to match her shoes.

We finally got to ride Mass Effect and we loved it! They did an amazing job with this attraction, and we were really surprised at how good it was.

Sorry for the blurry picture, but this is why you get the Fright Lane pass! This line was one of the longest of the night and we got to walk right in with no wait!

Going back to high school is definitely a nightmare!!

Wax Museum was our favorite maze of the night! It's a great concept that worked very well, and it was really interesting seeing all the exhibits!

This was one of the Sideshow performers. He did a great job!

Unfortunately, we didn't get to see Academy of Villains. I guess we'll just have to come back!

They should keep the blood fountains around all year!

The Nytewalkers closed out the event and gave everyone a high five goodbye!

The fog was really creepy and cool at the end of the night!

It was actually creepy walking out at the end of the night with pretty much everyone gone.

Luckily, Amy's shoes will light the way out.

Thanks for following along! This was an amazing event, don't miss it!

Edited September 26, 2016 by jray21

Welp, I'm happy I got on Fear VR while it lasted. It'll be sad if they don't bring this back any time soon.

We can't have nice things.

^Am I missing something? Why do you two say that? If there's some sort of news, you should post the news instead of just commenting vaguely about it.