- Ocean Park Hong Kong Kicks Off Spooktacular Halloween Fest 2018
- 360-degree projections offer a full-surround AI mutiny experience to guests, while AR technology transforms them into exorcists to hunt down devils
Spook season is almost upon us, and the best way to celebrate the boos and the scares is definitely to visit one of the best travel destinations in Asia – Ocean Park Hong Kong for their Halloween Fest 2018! Packing up all the ghouls, spirits and out of this world craze, there’s nothing short of scary in this wonderful theme park!
Ocean Park Halloween Fest 2018 officially launched with a ceremony hosted on 26 September. The spooktacular launch saw the release of all the haunted ghouls at Asia’s largest Halloween celebration, which this year sees the launch of 13 unique experiences at 11 of the haunted attractions.
This year’s Halloween Fest will not let down any thrill-seekers, thanks to the use of advanced technology. Whether you are brave enough to visit the “Scary Attractions” or prefer just settling for the “Family Attractions”, this year’s event boasts many interactive elements that greatly enhance the blood-curdling excitement at haunted attractions, as well as add fun to the family- friendly attractions.
One of the highlights is the Park’s collaboration with the School of Creative Media, City University of Hong Kong, which presents Hong Kong’s first haunted attraction with a 360-degree projection and 3D mapping alternate dimension, X-Dimension presented by Yahoo! Hong Kong. Other advanced technologies include virtual and augmented reality technologies that create more realistic and interesting experiences for guests of all ages, for example Devil Seeker’s Tale presented by vivo.
Creative Media Offer Immersive and Interactive Experiences
X-Dimension is composed of two sections: the projection zone, where guests put on 3D glasses, before being drawn into a visually-shocking vortex of technology, in which Leap Motion technology precisely tracks hand movements allowing the projection scene to “interact” with them in all directions; once the 3D glasses are removed, guests will enter a maze with light and shadow illusions, where they will be trapped in the virtual digital realm and chased by humanoid robots, as they continue their adventure against the evil AI.
The team behind the projection technology, led by Professor Jeffrey Shaw, Chair Professor of City University of Hong Kong’s School of Creative Media, said, “This is our third time partnering with Ocean Park Halloween Fest. This year the team applied the most advanced technology to bring out a never-before-seen interactive multimedia haunted attraction experience. The 360 degree projection immerses guests into horrific scenes, which are more realistic than the single way projection, and way more shocking. The few minutes of projection videos inside the haunted attraction, took our graduates more than half a year to complete. The quality matches that of Hollywood movies, we believe guests will truly experience an extremely spooky real interactive multimedia experience.”
Hunter During the Day, Hunted at Night
Devil Seeker’s Tale is a high-tech attraction available throughout the daytime for kids and adults to show off their shooting skills. The attraction combines rich elements from Chinese ghost stories with supernatural exorcism. Guests will pick up a bow equipped with a smartphone device, and through the use of AR technology, will be able to see devils pop up on their device’s screen and shoot them down. They can even compete with their friends to become the best exorcist. However, when darkness falls guests will become prey to the Queen of Hell and her demons, and will need to escape from the Eighteen Levels of Hell at Infernal Spiral.
Leo Kung, Chairman of Ocean Park, said, “To advance with time and strive for innovation are the key winning factors for Ocean Park throughout the years. The annual Halloween Fest is a great example of how we do this. This year we have introduced a lot of advanced technologies, to enhance our guests experience. At the same time, we are glad to collaborate with School of Creative Media, City University of Hong Kong. They are applying their creativity and forward looking works, to create a very impressive Halloween experience for our guests. We also want to showcase the achievements from Hong Kong’s creative industry, and further strengthen Ocean Park’s status as ‘The Park for Hong Kong People’.”
Fun-filled Party to Create Happy “HELLO-ween” Memories
Another highlight for guests to watch out for are Sanrio characters with “HELLO-ween” theme. Hello Kitty, Kuromi, Pompompurin, Little Twin Stars, Cinnamoroll, gudetama and Bad Badtz-Maru have also dressed up in the “HELLO-ween” costume for the first time to host the magnificent “HELLO-ween” party at Ocean Park. In addition, to enjoying the three family-friendly attractions – Sanrio characters HELLO-ween Party, Sanrio characters Trick-or-Treat Trail and Sanrio characters HELLO-ween Meet & Greet – for plenty of interactive games and photo opportunities, guests can also feast on the Sanrio-themed gourmet at the Park’s restaurants and take home a series of limited edition themed merchandise.
Yuko Tsuji, CEO Asia / Chairman of SANRIO, INC. and Member of Board of Directors of SANRIO Co,. Ltd., said, “It’s our pleasure for Sanrio to take part in Ocean Park Halloween Fest, the largest Halloween event in Asia. Sanrio characters have been receiving love and support in Hong Kong. We hope to introduce these exclusively made ‘HELLO-ween’ costumes and experience and create a very special Halloween memory to Hong Kong this year.”
For an all-rounded experience, apart from the lovely F&B and merchandise items, Ocean Park also launched a special scary themed meal, ER Sensation. Guests can also join the Halloween Fest SkeleFun VIP Tour with their family and friends to enjoy priority access to Halloween Fest and all in-Park attractions. The tour includes an exclusive behind-the-scenes visit to the Entertainment Wardrobe and Make-up Centre, and exclusive discounts at the Sanrio characters “HELLO-ween” pop-up store.
Ocean Park Halloween Fest 2018 is already underway. The general public can experience the attractions and shows at Halloween Fest with their admission tickets on 16 selected dates from October 5 to 31, from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Premium Halloween tickets will be available for guests to enjoy priority access to designated Halloween attractions. For more details on Ocean Park Halloween Fest 2018, please visit http://www.oceanpark.com.hk.
