Hmm........... I think what I'm afraid of is too much activity. The idea of the mansion seeming quiet and deserted as you approach it adds to the build-up of going inside and having things revealed slowly, until Madame Leota finally intervenes and the ghosts appear. That's the aspect I'm worried about losing, I think.
Weren't the original tombstones light-hearted to begin with?
This is one of the issues I'm worried with. I'm actually a little apprehensive about this change for a number of reasons...
1. Doesn't this mess with the story of the attraction? I believe the story of the Haunted Mansion is that we enter the mansion as mortals while the ghosts are invisible to us and unwilling to reveal themselves, but Madame Leota makes the ghosts "materialize," "come out to socialize," and otherwise make themselves visible to us. There's this gradual transition of the attraction getting more and more in your face, from invisible hands guiding things around the room, to seeing ghosts twirl spin distantly on a dance floor below you, to ghosts popping up from gravestones six feet in front of you, and finally joining you in your own ride vehicle. Doesn't having ghosts visibly interact with you
before you even board the ride sort of throw off the supposed chain of events and logic of the attraction?
2. Similarly, the mood will be disrupted. One of the most important functions of the queue is to set the tone for the attraction that follows, and the Haunted Mansion's, although less themed than some others, is very successful at this. When waiting in line for the HM, it looks like you are gradually approaching a typical (albeit older) New England mansion. As you draw closer, you notice more details - the horseless buggy, the creepy iron gates, the distant wolf howling - that set the mood and suggest this is not your average mansion. You find yourself further and further removed from the bustle and civilization of Liberty Square, and deeper and deeper in the clutches of the ever-closer house on the hill. As you move through the line, the mood becomes much calmer and more still - one could say, creepier. The tombstones at the end of the queue set the tone for the attraction perfectly - funny and bringing a smile to your face, but at the same time dark and just a bit morbid. Now how on earth is a guest supposed to be immersed in this atmosphere and pick up on all these carefully designed details if some ghost on a screen is talking their ear off??
3. Guest flow. The Haunted Mansion is an Omnimover ride system with two large elevators constantly swallowing up guests, and never seems to have a line that is holding still for very long. To me, it seems like encouraging guests to stop and play games will only disrupt the flow of an otherwise constantly-moving queue. See Space Mountain.
4. Finally, legacy. The gravestones have been there since the attraction's opening, and are a sort of the dedication/credits to the Imagineers of what is widely considered one of the greatest achievements in the history of theme park design. IMO completely removing those gravestones is disrespectful to the Imagineers that are largely responsible for bringing Disney parks to where they are today - akin to painting over all the windows on Main Street. Not to mention that Master Gracey's tombstone is a great and subtle way of introducing the story of the attraction. The tombstones really need to be kept in place when the interactive queue is added, or at least relocated.
After the successful refurbishment of the Haunted Mansion a few years ago, WDW and the Disney Imagineers can proudly say that the newly-enhanced Mansion is (once again) a treasure to be envied of the theme park industry, and a decades-old masterpiece of attraction design. I really hope the Imagineers know what they are doing when they are modifying it this time around.
I say spend the money where it is needed - turning on some of those fountains in Adventureland, refurbishing the Country Bear Jamboree AAs, or fixing the Enchanted Tiki Room. Or if the Imagineers really want to spend the money on an interactive queue, than using it on a queue that has no theming at all and a much slower-moving line, like Peter Pan's.
