Lucinda

Curse of DarKastle was a shockingly short lived dark ride in Busch Gardens, Williamsburg. Shocking because it was expensive to make. It was the same ride system as The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man at Islands of Adventure. So you had vehicles on a track with physical sets and props all around; 3-D screens; and water, heat, and wind effects. The film used for these rides is notoriously difficult to keep clean and maintain. Whole scenes are ruined if it gets dusty or is knocked off- kilter. But that's just the tech stuff, let's get into the story.

You're touring the grounds of King Ludwig, which is an icy garden full of wolf statues and home to a foreboding castle. Once inside, you're trapped, and a tapestry comes to life to show you the story of the King. He was an evil brat granted lycanthrope-esque powers so he could murder his whole family and take the throne. What follows is you trying to escape the grounds via sleigh while he and his ghostly wolves chase after you. His mother pops in to save you.

In the ride's early years, there was a scene where you're in a ghost-filled ballroom... Yeah. I don't know if they changed it for lawsuit fears, but that's a shame. It was prettier than the fireplace room it was replaced with. The ride has a very definite Marc Davis, Rolly Crump, and Haunted Mansion influence. Disney gets to steal from a myriad of other sources without fear of reprisal.

Ludwig was such a fun villain! I loved him. "I'm getting AHEAD OF MY SELF!" Shows off his own decapitated head on a platter. He was a homicidal, pun- spewing ghost werewolf. With an adorable German accent. Sheer perfection.

My fiancé and I loved this ride so much that years ago we tried writing a HM/CoDK cross-over fanfic. It no longer exists. I don't even remember if we had any kind of plot for it, except for the ghosts visiting the castle.

Sadly, it was closed with no warning, no fanfare, and no opportunity for people to get in last rides. No goodbye merch. Nothing. BG did that ride dirty.

Here's a ride through video

Here's Expedition Theme Park's documentary about it.