‘Oh my god, I’m in the game’: inside The Last of Us’s horrible Halloween treat | Games | The Guardian
Fans of the video game and TV show can scare themselves silly in a live-action ‘haunted house’ spin-off at Universal Studios Florida theme park. Co-creator Neil Druckmann takes us on a tour
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Its latest adaptation achievement? A live-action haunted house for Universal Studios’ annual Halloween Horror Nights. Now in the event’s 32nd year of scares, and arguably the world’s premier event for horror fans, spooky season sees Universal theme parks transform into horror shows after dark – with experiences based on recognisable franchises, such as Stranger Things and
The Exorcist: Believer, as well as original concepts.
For me, The Last of Us haunted house – in Orlando – is the most exciting of all 10 haunted houses this year. It drops fans directly into the game. “It reminded me of when I first walked on 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’s also been heavily involved in the creation of this latest adaptation of his fungal-zombie brainchild. “I was just like, oh my god, I’m in the game.”
Druckmann is giving the Guardian a private “lights-on” tour of the horror maze at Universal Studios Florida, which guests can now experience under darker, less wordy and more scream-y conditions. Being transported into the game means being physically chased by skin-crawlingly horrible runner, clicker and bloater creatures, as well as being saved by lead characters Joel and Ellie, played by amazingly lookalike actors. The game’s original voice actors, Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson, recorded all-new dialogue for the house. Guests walk (or cower) through various detailed sets drawn from the Pittsburgh chapter of the first game, beginning where Joel’s truck crashes into a building in the quarantined city.
It all started, as many moments of horror have done, with a tweet. A longtime fan of the annual event, Druckmann tweeted in 2021: “I’d love a TLoU Halloween Horror Nights attraction! Who do I need to talk to?!” Meetings swiftly followed, and now, we’re standing against a wall of infected human remains, a few metres removed from the Orlando heat, admiring a faithfully recreated body of ill-fated Kyle, whom fans will recognise from the first game.
Human “scare-actors” perform their roles within the house, timed specifically to create the perfect jumpscares. The actors watch monitors to time the action exactly when guests are in the perfect spot to be spooked, working foot pedals to trigger sound and lighting. Special clicker costumes have been developed with lighting to look as if they’ve been doused in Molotov cocktails, while actors had to attend bootcamp to learn to act authentically as each stage of the Cordyceps-infected, we’re told.
This is live, immersive theatre. The guests are on a path and they’re experiencing show scenes, just like a ride
Universal’s senior director of entertainment creative development, Mike Aiello, explains: “This is live, immersive theatre. The guests are on a path and they’re experiencing show scenes, just like a ride. This is a ride attraction, but without the vehicle
