The Alton Towers Dungeon

General discussion regarding the UK's No.1 Theme Park. Talk about anything and everything Alton Towers here.
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Swarm Chris

As reported on TowersTimes social media, whilst the Dungeon will have a later opening, the attraction will typically operate the same number of hours a day, with operations continuing after park close on certain days.

This change means that guests will have greater choice in managing their time between the Dungeon and the rest of the Resort. :)
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MakoMania
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It seems on most days they've taken two hours off the morning and added an hour in the evening, so an hour less overall on the majority of days.

Cutting hours just over a month after opening is unusual, even by Merlin's standards! I actually thought the Dungeon was great, better than I expected, but it just won't work long term as an upcharge in a theme park, especially one with opening hours as short as Alton.

Why can't Merlin just invest in sensible long term attractions like a normal theme park company!? I mean, you expect one or two failed attractions every now and then, but Merlin seem to be scoring own goals every year or two :lol
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Coaster Chall
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It will be a scarefest thing. They will call it a "new scare experience". It will have a shorter life span that Nemesis: Sub Terra
Swarm Chris

MakoMania wrote:It seems on most days they've taken two hours off the morning and added an hour in the evening, so an hour less overall on the majority of days.
Guests booking hotel stays can opt to purchase a Dungeon ticket with timeslots starting from at least 11:30am, so the total number of operating hours should remain broadly the same. :)

For me, it kind of highlights that perhaps this attraction isn't in the best location. I enjoyed it, but felt it would have been an even better Resort level attraction nearer the hotels that could be done in an evening. But of course, then they wouldn't have had access to the ride system.
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GregH94
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Remaining open after park close might actually make more people want to do it, as they won’t see it as taking up time from their day 
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lewis97
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Leek Signs have posted some photos of new posters which have been added to the exterior black walls. Also, if you look closely, it appears that the permanent fire torches have now been installed on the entrance facade - I'm not sure how recent a development that is.

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Justin
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As seen in the photos above, the torches have also been installed, but they are currently not lit.

Here is a picture that I took today...

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Nickolai
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They definitely took their time with that one!
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Robert.W
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It is surprising how something so small and so simple as that can take so long to install, to the point where they actually have to use CGI to feature them in the advert. That is very bizarre. 
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Morgan
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Seeing as we're at the end of the year, and as I haven't already done one, I thought I'd do a bit of a critical review of The Alton Towers Dungeon.

A bit on my views on the Dungeons "brand" and this style of attraction first. Anyone who knows me will know that I adore horror and theatre, and with the Dungeons promising to be a combination of both in a fully immersive environment, I should enjoy them. Unfortunately, that isn't the case. I've only experienced two other Dungeons (Warwick and London), and my main frustration with them is that the vast majority of scripts and shows between the two are identical, and sadly I don't really find the scripts that entertaining. You know at some point there'll be a fake out guest-selection, the rats will run under your seats, and the Torturer will demonstrate a rather cheeky instrument- to name just a few. Very little changes between attractions. Once you've done one, you've kind of seen them all- and it feels that way with the Alton Towers version. 

After a re-arranged intro sequence (gone is the Jester, and the Judge is moved to the start rather than their usual appearance towards the end), we start the attraction with arguably the most unique, and anticipated part of the experience with The Black River, which uses the old boat transit system that's been SBNO for the past few seasons. The boat ride starts off promisingly with a delicious haze and projection effect- but before you've really had time to appreciate it, there's a very cheap-feeling animated jump from above that feels like it has no relevance. I can't help but feel it'd work better with a slower start before progressing, and that it'd be nicer focussing more on atmosphere rather than jumps. The rest of the ride actually follows suit in that respect- we sail past various grisly torture sequences and screens of men literally being severed- but there's... something lacking. I can't quite put my finger on what it is. Is it not dark enough? Does it feel too cheap? Is there a lack of narrative and direction? It feels like the answer to those are, sadly, yes.
What follows is fairly standard Dungeon stuff- and unfortunately, I don't believe there are any truly unique shows on offer. Whilst the scripts have certainly been polished, the general structure of each speech remains and scenes generally play out in the same way as before.
One thing that seems to be lacking in The Alton Towers Dungeon that divides opinions are the incredibly sparse incidental corridors that link scenes. To get to the next room, guests briefly pass through an unthemed corridor. Whilst the flow and pace of the experience is greatly benefitted by transitions being quick, it's a shame to see the omission of the larger sets seen elsewhere. My favourite parts of London are in-fact the pathways between as they feel like a much more traditional walkthrough attraction. I can understand why these don't feature at Alton Towers, but just leaving them blank means the experience isn't truly "fully-immersive" as promised. 
Despite the lacking sets and the dated scripting, I will commend the cast and crew. Perhaps it's because I've only experienced this Dungeon within it's first few months, but all the actors felt really fresh and active, which is a far cry from the other two Dungeons I've sampled. I've done multiple runs of both Warwick and London this year, and it always felt like the cast were either over-worked, or couldn't really care about their delivery. Thankfully the cast at Towers seem like they always have energy to spare, and at no point did it feel like there was a weak link in the chain.

The most important thing of any piece of media or entertainment is whether it's enjoyable or not, and... well, it pains me to say this, but I don't really enjoy The Alton Towers Dungeon. Whilst the acting quality is incredible, the scripts and stories themselves are the issue- they just aren't funny or scary. I stand by my original thoughts on the attraction- if I wanted to do a Dungeon, I'd just go to one that's closer, or included in my annual pass. There's no unique scene that makes the Alton Towers one a "must-see", and with the short operating hours of the park, it'd feel silly to try and squeeze in a Dungeon run. Whilst I can appreciate that the attraction was very last-minute, I can't see myself giving it another go. Perhaps my biggest frustration is there's a yearning for more entertainments and street theatre at the Resort, and the only time we get it during main-season is in an up-charge format that we can see elsewhere.
Swarm Chris

I was pretty against the upcharge of this before it opened, regardless of the reason being due to its terrible throughput, and at the end of the season I'm still heavily against it.

Even on a cold day with nothing much else I wanted to do, I felt no inclination to go back into the Dungeon.

In terms of the script, I've seen videos of practically the exact same script and rooms used at The San Francisco Dungeon. So yeah, it's definitely something that has been thinly spread across the however many of these things Merlin seemingly operate now.
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Not sure I can ever feel anything but bitterness to this ride. At the expense of sounding like a broken record, closing a family ride (something that's an endangered species at the park) and then putting an up-charge in its shell was a terrible move. I pity the poor member of staff who had to keep turning people away telling them they had to purchase pre-booked tickets endlessly all day.

Convert the acted segments into a higher capacity walk through experience with props and interactive elements (without any expensive actors) and make it a normal theme park ride. Suspect it'll go back to being mothballed again though.
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Dom
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Do you think we will see any changes this year? I know the majority or Dungeon attractions don’t tend to change their scenes for a few years and only really change when they add seasonal shows.
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Dan
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Dom wrote:Do you think we will see any changes this year? I know the majority or Dungeon attractions don’t tend to change their scenes for a few years and only really change when they add seasonal shows.
I don't think we'll see any major changes to the Dungeon. Maybe the odd tweak to the script but that's about it.
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Owen
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Maybe they’ll finish theming the black walls and push for ‘brand new 360 degree immersive storytelling’ :O :lol

In all seriousness, I’d agree with Dan here. I don’t know how regularly the Warwick Castle Dungeon is refreshed but I’d expect a similar rate here. That or it’ll stay the same until/if they feel the need to expand Walliams.
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Mango18
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Robert.W wrote:I don't think it'll be a replacement of Sub Terra, although, I also don't think it'll be part of the retheme of Cloud Cuckoo Land either. I could see them maybe using part of the area of CCL, but having the attraction entrance be through an entrance into the Towers or Fountain Square, so that they could redevelop CCL with a more light hearted theme (rumoured Walliam's World etc.). I also have a feeling that it may just be a new maze for Scarefest. Guess we'll find out at some point! :)
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