games
Fans of the video game and TV show can get their fill of fear in a live-action “Haunted Mansion” spin-off at Universal Studios Florida theme park. Co-creator Neil Druckmann takes us on a tour
Bex April May
Wed 25 Oct 2023 1.10pm BST
We can confidently say that The Last of Us is the most successful video game adaptation of all time. Not only is the game considered one of the greatest of all time, but this year’s big-budget HBO TV adaptation starring Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey also won awards. It was HBO’s second-biggest premiere since 2010, averaging 32 million viewers per episode.
His latest adaptation effort? A live-action haunted house for Universal Studios’ annual Halloween Horror Nights. Now in the event’s 32nd spooky year and arguably the world’s premier event for horror fans, Universal theme parks transform into horror shows after dark during the spooky season – with experiences based on well-known franchises such as Stranger Things and The Exorcist: Believer as well original concepts.
For me, The Last of Us haunted house – in Orlando – is the most exciting of all 10 haunted houses this year. It brings the fans right into the game. “It reminded me of the first time I walked onto the set for the HBO show,” says Neil Druckmann, co-creator of The Last of Us and co-president of the studio behind it, Naughty Dog. He was also instrumental in developing this latest adaptation of his mushroom zombie idea. “I just thought, oh my God, I’m in the game.”
Journey … Actors play the roles of Ellie and Joel in the Halloween Horror Nights attraction. Photo: Rich Polk/Getty Images for Universal Studios Hollywood
Druckmann gives the Guardian a private lights-on tour of Universal Studios Florida’s horror maze, which guests can now experience in darker, less wordy and more screaming conditions. Being transported into the game means being chased by fearsome walker, clicker and bloater creatures that crawl across your skin, and being rescued by main characters Joel and Ellie, played by strikingly similar actors . The game’s original voice actors, Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson, recorded all-new dialogue for the house. Guests walk (or crouch) through various detailed sets from the first game’s Pittsburgh chapter, starting where Joel’s truck crashes into a building in the quarantined city.
It all started, like so many horror moments, with a tweet. A long-time fan of the annual event, Druckmann tweeted in 2021: “I would love a TLoU Halloween Horror Nights attraction! Who do I need to talk to?!” Meetings quickly followed, and now we stand against a wall of infected human remains, just meters from the heat of Orlando, admiring a faithfully recreated body of the ill-fated Kyle that fans saw in the first game to be known.
Creepy…one of the detailed haunted house sets. Photo: Bex April May
Human “scary actors” play their roles in the house and are timed precisely to create the perfect jump scares. Actors watch monitors to time the action just when guests are in the perfect spot to be startled, and press foot pedals to trigger sound and lighting. Special clicker costumes with lights were developed to look as if they had been doused with Molotov cocktails, while actors had to attend a boot camp to learn to authentically act like each stage of the Cordyceps infected, it is said .
This is immersive live theater. The guests are on a path and experience show scenes, like a ride
Mike Aiello, senior director of entertainment creative development at Universal, explains: “This is immersive live theater. The guests are on a path and experience show scenes, like a ride. It’s a ride, but without a vehicle.”
That means including horror tricks that video games or television can’t afford. “We build these huge environments, but as you walk through you’ll notice that we put a lot of emphasis on how we light things so we can draw attention to areas of a room knowing that you’re in a particular one Number of seconds,” says Aiello. “We want to make sure that these guests immediately attach themselves to certain things in this space. Some because we want them to actually notice, and others because we want you to look somewhere so we can distract you and scare you from an angle you’re not expecting.”
For Druckmann, that also meant adding to The Last of Us verse in a way that screen media simply couldn’t. “You can argue that the players are already in the game – they play as Joel, they turn the camera, they decide where to go, yes, but they see it through a 2D frame on their wall. What if you broke that frame and were now surrounded by it and could touch it, feel it and smell it?”
Universal’s Mike Aiello (left) and Neil Druckmann, co-creator of the Naughty Dog game. Photo: Bex April May
The award-winning HBO series has brought The Last of Us a new audience beyond the legions of fans who played the original game when it was released 10 years ago, but this experience is based directly on the video game. “It’s an emotional experience – a big part of it is the jump scares, but then when you add Joel and Ellie you really feel like you’re on a journey with them,” explains Druckmann. “I think it’s great that it’s only available for this limited time.” . People have this special experience and then it disappears.”
The Last of Us III game currently only exists in rumors, but we can safely assume that it will be released in the distant future and a second season of the HBO television series is planned. After this haunted house, what will be the next adaptation? “Interpretive dance,” Druckmann reveals with mock seriousness, before clarifying: “I honestly don’t know, but if it comes up again, our approach at Naughty Dog will always be: Is it a new experience?” It’s excellent ? And will our fans enjoy it? And if the answer to all of these questions is yes, we will do it.”
• Universal Orlando Resort’s 2023 Halloween Horror Nights is now open through November 4th
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