Whenever a maze comes along that folks deem "the rookie maze", it seems almost certain that it will be met with distain and doom - that has to be a hell of a cross to bear for enthusiastic new talent coming in, doesn't it?  TerrorVision was a "rookie maze" the year it debuted at Knott's - and it kicked everyone's ass, including the much-touted and played-up Red Beard's Revenge, which was apparently going to be THE ultimate maze because of the quality and vet status of many of its monsters.

And if you're a long-time Haunt fan, you know how Red Beard's Revenge went over.

Yeah.

So, let it be known that we thought that Alien Annihilation was just fine.  The maze was well-designed, the talent was always very enthusiastic and we always had fun whenever we would visit.  Though we never coughed up the cash for laser tag guns, we did see guests occasionally going through the maze, engaged in heated shoot-outs with the crew; and everyone - especially the talent - seemed to have a literal blast doing it.

Now - here comes the rant about up-charging for laser guns.  We refuse.  Not because we're cheap bastards, but because Theme Park Adventure takes a dim view on any up-charge attractions at any theme park.  And truth be told - the immediate response could be, "Yeah - nicely said from people who don't pay to get in to events".  And that would be accurate; TPA covers these events and so the parks usually waive our entrance fees in exchange for the work we do and the promotion we offer them.  It's a business relationship.  That doesn't stop us from having opinions.  And we have always felt that up-charging guests for anything that should be included in the theme park experience anywhere is corporate nickel and dime crap that has really taken a lot of the fun out of theme park experiences for families and people visiting on limited budgets.  It doesn't matter whether it's paying a buck at Magic Mountain for mandatory lockers before riding each coaster or $5 for a laser tag gun to fully experience a Haunt maze's design/elements.  We hate it and always will.  But apparently, the up-charge for laser tag guns at Alien Annihilation makes Knott's money - and if that is the case, we would much rather see people paying for that than BEER at the event.  Unfortunately, people shell out ridiculous amounts of cash for a stupid glass of beer as well - so it looks like our rant is going to fall on deaf ears regardless.

We digress.

The alien theme has been around Knott's Halloween Haunt for a long time now - and doesn't show any signs of retiring.  We have personally never been over-the-moon excited about this theme, but it's definitely not the worst that has ever come around; there's just nothing scary to us about... weird alien things.  They just don't do it for us that way.  However, the guests we watched going through this maze each night seemed to have a great time - and as we stated earlier, the crew always seemed to be having fun and getting into the whole shoot-out thing.  For that, we give them all props!

Alien Annihilation doesn't have that "something" that other mazes such as Doll Factory or Slaughterhouse have - but it definitely is a LOT better than some of the mazes we have seen come and go over the years.  Will this be a five-year maze at Knott's Scary Farm?  God, no.  Probably no more than three or so, if that.  However, we feel confident that even if Alien becomes a "rookie maze" again in 2009, that the men and women that do find themselves assigned to it are welcomed and encouraged by the rest of the Haunt family - because it doesn't matter whether you're a Doll, Vamp Dancer or an alien in a mask - you're all part of the same team and same overall experience that is Knott's Halloween Haunt.

The soundtrack within Alien Annihilation is fairly forgettable and that's okay - because it is not the kind of maze that needs a strong soundtrack.  The scenery is very bright and very vibrant (almost too vibrant - we would like to see it darker like in the Alien movies, etc.) - and the monsters popping out and running around with weapons drawn is the main focus of most guests anyway.  This maze can get away with not having a kick-ass soundtrack, because it's more about action and scares than ominous darkness, etc. 

We don't feel that the designers or Build folks skimped on this maze; in fact, we thought that a lot of the props and elements that went into Alien Annihilation were creative and very "old school" Haunt.  Actually, it would be nice to see more old school props and visuals brought to Alien and other mazes - creatures, mechanical effects, etc.  It's something that Knott's has kind of gotten away from in the past years - but God, when they do add little critters and weird props... it reminds us old-timers of the grass-roots days of Haunt and its mazes.

Alien Annihilation was one of the 3-D mazes at Haunt in 2008, and while we're completely over the whole 3-D thing, guests seemed to enjoy it - and the one time we did wear glasses going through the maze, we thought the 3-D paint jobs were nice and worked well.  That said, we just don't like the whole wearing 3-D glasses in mazes thing much anymore; it's very '90s and early 2000s.  Rather than a unique tool used sparingly and effectively - Knott's as well as everyone else in the dark industry has gone way overboard with it making everything 3-D.  The truth about the 3-D glasses is that they are uncomfortable to wear, are another up-charge and make it fairly difficult to see in the mazes because of the "smoky" tint of the plastic.  Never have been huge fans of them.  But it looks like the 3-D mazes aren't fading away any time soon.  Maybe those more professional Real 3-D glasses from the movie theater will work?  Hmmm....

Again, props to the men and women of Alien Annihilation.  You did a great job with an unnecessary stigma to deal with from the beginning.  If you are returning a second year to Alien in 2009, then bring it hard and let the negative vibes and words roll off.  If this maze is as nicely done in the 2009 run as it was in '08, it will be just fine.  Much love to our Alien brothers and sisters!  Lock and load!

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