Pseudonym Productions has launched a new digital experience that resurrects the fun of the haunt season by bringing the scares online with “Virtual Frights.”
This curated digital journey will take victims viewers through the best and biggest Halloween haunts of past and present, debuting first with five years of fear and frights from Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights.
The website’s video content will allow visitors to step into the digital fog and travel through years of haunted houses, scare zones, and theme park attractions – all through a custom-created website that’s easy to navigate.
“We deeply miss Halloween Horror Nights this year and share the disappointment of all fans who are saddened by Universal Orlando’s understandable decision not to open the event due to the ongoing pandemic,” said Ricky Brigante, vice president & creative technologist of Pseudonym Productions. “Virtual Frights is our way of bringing home the spirit of the event by featuring the best versions of Halloween Horror Nights found online – along with our own unique interactive and immersive twists still to come.”
The website, now in public beta, highlights the best videos produced by theme park media, websites, and vloggers throughout the years, starting with a comprehensive look at Universal Orlando’s annual haunt event from the years 2016-2019, as well as a look at their limited Halloween experiences this year.
Each visitor to the site has the power to control their virtual haunt journey, with options like full screen and “cinema mode,” creepy ambient music or the original experience sound, and even the choice to walk, hurry, or run through the scares.
With the website’s launch, Pseudonym Productions is now developing original and immersive Halloween- and horror-themed experiences for visitors, which will appear over time at Virtual Frights. After four years of creating live Halloween experiences, Pseudonym Productions will not produce an in-person event this year and will instead focus their efforts on producing new thrills that will roll out throughout the year.
In the spirit of Halloween Horror Nights’ icons, Virtual Frights will feature its own original characters—the Grin Reapers—who will tie together Pseudonym’s upcoming original horror experiences.
“The Grin Reapers are the real macabre minds behind Virtual Frights, always plotting new twisted tricks,” said Sarah A.S. Elger, president & creative director of Pseudonym Productions. “They like to remain in the shadows and will reveal themselves slowly. After all, everyone always loves a good ghost story – not just around Halloween but throughout the year.”
The lore of the Grin Reapers is already being teased on the site and will slowly unfold for those a part of The Order – a collective of those who are curious enough to venture into the unknown. Visitors to Virtual Frights can join The Order for free to instantly unlock the ability to leave their mark on the site’s “Ghostbook,” while also signing up to receive an email newsletter filled with plenty of frights that could evolve into something more.
In the weeks ahead, more event years, haunts, and other experiences will be added to Virtual Frights, including the curated history of Halloween Horror Nights and more expansions into other fan-favorite haunted attractions and Halloween events around the world. Haunt owners and creators looking to be featured on the site can reach out to Pseudonym Productions through the “Contact Us” form on the website.
“Virtual Frights aims to become the most comprehensive online journey into haunted attractions worldwide and a future hub for haunting new, original immersive experiences,” said Elger. “This beta launch is just the beginning.”
To enter the fog and experience Virtual Frights for free, head to VirtualFrights.com.