A masterclass education in dark user experience pa...

A masterclass education in dark user experience patterns.

Let me start off first, by saying that the staff we encountered and interacted with at the lodge were fantastic. The folks working there seem to actually care about what they're doing, and it shows. Friendly faces, and eager to solve any issues we ran into.

For those of you who don't want to read the complete breakdown, I'll give you these tidbits:
1) Unless you're getting pizza, go offsite of the resort to save yourself tons of money (the pizza is tasty)
2) The lighting in the rooms will give you one of two experiences: too dark, or retina-burning bright
3) If you get a soft drink of any kind, be warned there are RFID tags on the bottoms of the cups, so there is literally no way to get refills
4) The on-site food is just okay, but the prices are premium
5) Be ready to be nickel-and-dimed for any of the on-site experiences while you're there
6) Pass on the putt-putt

I quickly learned that a LOT of what the company does, relies on dark patterns; not-so-obvious slight adjustments to your experience that, over time, add up. For example, there are NO notices or signs that the MagiQuest game for kids doesn't require a custom "hilt" - (there's one included with any wand that allows it to work) - so when you walk in, the first thing you (and your kids) will see are the "upsell" wands and hilts. Word to the parents - go in ALONE, ask questions, figure out what is required, and choose for yourself if you're going to buy into any of the additional charges before bringing your kids to the "store".

The up-sells were what pretty well ruined my experience. At one point, one staff member at the arcade LITERALLY reminded the other to push up-sells while we were waiting to get cards included with our "wolf pass".