Duel: The Haunted House Strikes Back!

Duel: The Haunted House Strikes Back took riders on an adventure deep inside Alton Towers' Haunted House.

The house's owner, a genetic surgeon, had vanished after conducting experiments attempting to bring the dead back to life. His work appeared to have succeeded, as the undead were rising from their graves and inhabiting his former home. Guests were sent inside as part of a crack team to find out exactly what was going on. There were up close encounters with zombies, who were not happy about being disturbed. As the ride's slogan went, riders had to "Prepare to Duel!"

Alton Towers' original Haunted House was opened in 1992 as one of the first major investments in the park made by Tussauds, and was created by renowned ride designers John Wardley and Keith Sparks. It was an instant hit, and remained one of the park's most popular rides for years. However, by 2002 various effects were in need of refurbishment, and Tussauds made the decision to retheme the ride as Duel: The Haunted House Strikes Back.

The retheme added the new storyline revolving around zombies taking over the house, with ride cars having laser guns fitted to allow riders to shoot the living dead as they toured around the various haunted rooms.

Ride scenes were covered in small green LED lights. When these were shot at, they turned red and the rider's score displayed on their individual scoreboard inside the ride vehicle was increased. Hidden in some less obvious places throughout the ride were yellow lights which were worth extra bonus points. If they were after a high score, riders had to look out for those!

While retrofitting laser targets to existing dark rides often makes for a cheap and tacky disaster, Duel was one of the more successful attempts. It was hugely fun and provided a greatly re-rideable experience (and a welcome sit down after a march uphill through the gardens!). Thanks to its huge capacity, there was rarely too long a queue. While riders were now too busy shooting targets to appreciate much of the theming, it still gave a somewhat immersive experience.

In 2008 and 2009, Duel was converted into Duel: Live! for Scarefest, with the laser targets turned off and actors placed at various locations within the ride. This brought back the atmosphere of the old Haunted House.

During the 2022 season there were hints that Duel would be closing, with a sign appearing near the ride's exit in late August teasing "06 + 09 = The Duel is over. This is my house." This was interpreted to be a message from Emily Alton, the ghostly little girl that could be seen inside the doll's house in the ride's queueline. The 06 and 09 turned out to refer to 6 September, which was the final date before Duel was closed. For the rest of the season the house was fenced off with signs indicating that the property had been repossessed. The ride reopened in 2023 having undergone a substantial retheme into The Curse at Alton Manor.

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