Hauntfest Review by katie_kiesow13 (Review Crew)

Please note: this review is for the 2010 season rather than the current season.

Hauntfest

by katie_kiesow13 (Review Crew) after attending on Friday, October 8, 2010 at about 6 p.m.

Submitted: Saturday, October 9, 2010

Fun Factor: High Fear Factor: Medium

Review

I really enjoyed this haunt this year! We arrived pretty late on a Friday night (around 11 pm), so it was really busy and we had to wait quite a while to get into the house - we got in around midnight. However, there was plenty to keep us entertained while we waited - there is a concession stand, a DJ playing music, and scary movies playing on a giant screen. I actually feel like the wait made the haunt seem scarier because we kept seeing people coming out crying or screaming, so we were psyching ourselves out a bit.

Once inside the haunt, we were put in an elevator (creepy!!!) and moved on to a ton of really creepy and well designed rooms with some great actors. Some people may not agree, but I acually really love children actors since I think they're incredibly creepy, so I liked that in this haunt. And I got a lot of weary looks from actors, too - they relied more on a psychological thrill than jumping out and saying "boo" as often as possible, and I think that's great!

The haunt plays with the senses a bit too; it's difficult to explain how, but you'll understand when you go through. There's a few mazes in this haunt and WOW did we get turned around and confused, but it was pretty entertaining. I liked this haunt more this year than I did last year, so kudos for making it even better this time around!

Signage / Visibility / Location

Very easy to find - it's located at State Fair Park.

Wait Area / Line Entertainment

They use a ticket system, so you don't have to wait in line the whole time. You get into line once your ticket number is called, so that gives you time to walk around and check out all the other things going on. There's a lot of actors walking around scaring people, which is always fun.

Actors' Performance

I really thought they did a good job. Like I said above, it was more psychological and less jumping out and hoping they scare you, and I really like that.

Sets Scenes / Props / FX

I like the scenes that messed with your head - the elevators, the mazes, the tunnel!

Length

We waited to get into the house for about an hour and then it took us maybe fifteen minutes to get through the whole thing.

Crowd Control

They did a good job of crowd control. I'm not sure if they served alcohol here or not, but there were certainly a lot of drunk people and I think I saw a few bottles of beer... but I'd rather they didn't allow it since I saw plenty of vomit. I just don't think haunted houses mix well with alcohol. But they did have plenty of police officers on hand for any problems. Otherwise, it was all pretty well done since they used the ticket system and you didn't have to wait in line for quite so long.

Most Memorable Moment

I think the mazes (both red and white and cage mazes) were really disorienting and a great addition to this haunt.