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GeekNights Thursday - Real Haunted Houses

MrPeriodMrPeriod
edited October 2012 in GeekNights

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider what it would take to make a haunted house to actually cause a fear response in the likes of us, while Rym recalls his experiences at The Terror on Church Street. But before that, Rym survived Brazil (a.k.a. New York State income tax), The GoPro3 Black exists, and we debate the ramifications of arresting people who attempt, but fail at, terrorism.

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  • RochelleRochelle
    edited October 2012
    I have yet to challenge Scott in Dr. Mario. I've beaten you in Tetris, however.

    I throw my hat into the ring.

    Also that Dr. Mario video was awesome. The skills it takes to know how to build chains like that is most impressive.
    Post edited by Rochelle on
  • PilitusPilitus
    The Rake.
  • wryterrawryterra
    edited October 2012
    We don't do the haunted house thing over here in the UK much but I've always had this idea for the haunted house. It's basically the stage an accident idea but with a twist that you specifically not show everyone a big production but hide it.

    You could stage a 'boo' where the employee goes after a plant in the crowd who 'reacts badly' and tragedy ensues. Or a choreography mishap between two employees. The details aren't important. What is important is as soon as it goes wrong just drop the pretence. Turn the lights on, kill the music, send for a first aider.

    This is where you scare the crowd by acting very hard like you're trying not to scare them. Apologise to them, profusely. Usher them into a side room. Have some actors dressed as EMTs turn up. Even fake an ambulance if need-be. Hey, sports entertainment does it on a regular basis.

    Meanwhile have a flustered employee try and keep the crowd distracted, but the EMTs go back and forth past the doorway (which doesn't have a door because decrepit haunted house). Offer to get people drinks. Get them drinks. Try and distract them from anything happening outside. Then apologise and send them out with people stood blocking the view of the EMTs dealing with the victim.

    It changes the parameters and the trick is to not look like you're trying to show anyone anything. If you try and hide it, they'll want to know what it is.
    Post edited by wryterra on
  • MATATATMATATAT
    Holy shit, Rym making that ghoul noise is the best thing I've heard this week.
  • AriaAria
    What you can also do is have someone be thrown out of the haunted house. No gory knife stabbing, just escort a person out and continue as normal. Then people will actually question the locked hallway thing. Also, if you do a thing where the floor opens and you go "boo", someone might stab themselves on the knifes above. You have to do it slowly, where the floor opens, and you know you're gonna fall, but spikes are also coming towards you.
  • Anthony HemanAnthony Heman
    Regarding beginning of podcast with federal reserve bombing guy, I wonder if there's a reversed bell curve related to the severity of the crime. For a trivial crime (say, steal a candy bar) where someone is presented with the opportunity, I'm going have a hypothesis that a lot more people will steal the candy bar than stealing (say) a thousand dollars. But then when that amount reaches an arbitrarily large value, the number of people that are willing to goes back up.

    That's just conjecture obviously, but I wonder about it, also relative to violent crimes.
  • DylanDylan
    I think this is pretty informative on the whole entrapment deal.
  • Anthony HemanAnthony Heman
    edited October 2012
    I don't know if #2 makes total sense because of the money being exchanged. It's not necessarily getting paid to transport heroine that's the crime you're going after, but just literally transporting it. You offer almost anyone enough money on the first pass (assuming they genuinely think they know a dealer and genuinely think the trip will be of no consequence) and they'll probably do it. That one struck out to me as quite possibly entrapment. You can't judge how reluctant a person is to do the actual illegal thing, it's quite possible for some $ value less they wouldn't have done this thing.

    I could be completely wrong in a court of law, but this is something I can't easily measure.
    Post edited by Anthony Heman on
  • WalkerWalker
    edited October 2012
    I think I'll make some sort of hip-hop beat with samples of Rym making the ghoul noise and Scott saying "we're just so smart."
    Post edited by Walker on
  • lackofcheeselackofcheese
    I don't know if #2 makes total sense because of the money being exchanged. It's not necessarily getting paid to transport heroine that's the crime you're going after, but just literally transporting it. You offer almost anyone enough money on the first pass (assuming they genuinely think they know a dealer and genuinely think the trip will be of no consequence) and they'll probably do it. That one struck out to me as quite possibly entrapment. You can't judge how reluctant a person is to do the actual illegal thing, it's quite possible for some $ value less they wouldn't have done this thing.

    I could be completely wrong in a court of law, but this is something I can't easily measure.
    A reasonable point, but perhaps the amount of money involved would also have legal significance in deciding such things?
  • DevilUknowDevilUknow
    edited October 2012
    So, according to Cracked (a paragon of scientific reporting), the human mind and body reacts naturally to vibrations of 18.9Hz with intense feelings of dread, panic and even hallucinations. The theory is that it is a vestigial survival trait from when humans had to worry about big jungle cats, who's growls are measured at this psychic brown note.

    This could both explain "real" haunted houses and be an affective way of making the eponymous Real Haunted Houses.

    They cite a couple dubious sources (like the Journal of Psychical Research) who, in turn, cite a few less dubious sources (like NASA), so who knows if it's legit, but it's at least interesting.
    Post edited by DevilUknow on
  • AprecheApreche
    So, according to Cracked (a paragon of scientific reporting), the human mind and body reacts naturally to vibrations of 18.9Hz with intense feelings of dread, panic and even hallucinations. The theory is that it is a vestigial survival trait from when humans had to worry about big jungle cats, who's growls are measured at this psychic brown note.

    This could both explain "real" haunted houses and be an affective way of making the eponymous Real Haunted Houses.

    They cite a couple dubious sources (like the Journal of Psychical Research) who, in turn, cite a few less dubious sources (like NASA), so who knows if it's legit, but it's at least interesting.
    Yeah, for more information on this search for infrasound. I have heard and read various bits of info about this over the years. If it actually works, I consider it cheating to use it in a haunted house.
  • MattMatt
    edited October 2012
    As I remember saying in a haunted house thread a month ago, I remember going through a 2009-era version of what has now become the sex and torture house. It wasn't actually scary, but I thought it was a cool and well done piece of horror theater. Sad to hear the creators have gone off the deep end. I have zero interest in this new one w/ the waterboarding and such.

    As for the rest of the episode, gaming at NYCC has gotten even worse. Scott mentioned WotC being there but they haven't had a presence in 2 years now. Last year they only had tournaments (no booth) and decided to fly their community guy out at the last minute. This year: zero involvement with NYCC. As far as I can tell, the only tabletop gaming was Luke Crane, and a booth shared by Steve Jackson Games and the Compleat Strategist. I also declined my pass, but probably would have gone for 1 day just to mingle if I wasn't so damn busy the past few weekends.

    The whole story about the bomber sting operation is fascinating. You absolutely have to listen to this episode of This American Life where the FBI pays a guy to become a muslim convert and stir up trouble in an Orange County, CA community. Things just get crazier from there.

    As for whether you should charge people for crimes if they attempt them but do not actually commit them, I recently had one of those moments where someone you look up to says something incredibly stupid and you realize that they are smart or good at one thing, but can be incredibly stupid outside of their area of expertise. The case in point here was Ben Kuchera from Penny Arcade, who I respect to the highest degree as a journalist. He veers off into politics and life on Twitter fairly often, and wound up saying something along the lines of not believing in attempted murder or manslaughter, and that everyone should just be charged with murder.

    Edit: Oh and I forgot to mention, on the discussion of a possible 3D Dr. Mario: Tetrisphere for N64 was awesome.
    Post edited by Matt on
  • lackofcheeselackofcheese
    2009-era? XD
  • MattMatt
    edited October 2012
    OK. So 2009 does not constitute an era. I can nail it down, it was June 2009! It was the first haunted house that those guys had run. They conceived the idea in a bar earlier that year and rented out some crappy theater space in Chelsea to put it all together. I only found out about it b/c I was checking out the (hilariously small) Fangoria con in the Javitz, and they had some flyers on tables.
    Post edited by Matt on
  • Totally GuyTotally Guy
    There are those scary computer games like Slender and Amnesia. Would it be cheating to make haunted house visitors play them (or something custom made for your haunted house) for a while before going in? Then you could use the haunted house to mimic the game situation to give the participants a very similar sense of horror while their minds are weakened by the game.
  • MattMatt
    Photos of people losing their shit in haunted houses
  • VichusSmithVichusSmith
    This was Rym after he got that IRS letter in the mail

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