This attraction was reviewed on October 23, 2021 by Team White City Devils.

Final Scores:

(15% of Final Score) Cast: 8.83

(15% of Final Score) Costuming: 8.81

(10% of Final Score) Customer Service: 9.75

(10% of Final Score) Atmosphere: 9.48

(15% of Final Score) Special Effects: 9

(5% of Final Score) Theme:

(15% of Final Score) Scare Factor: 8.88

(5% of Final Score) Entertainment & Value: 9.23

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While completing our 2021 schedule, we found ourselves back in Wisconsin to visit Abandoned Haunted House Complex (AHHC). During the 2020 season, AHHC only offered a rotation on two attractions between the three types offered. 2021 was a definite come-up as all three attractions (Ambush, Hysteria, and Stalker) were open for a wild evening. With an additional attraction to cover this review along with plenty of new noticeable details throughout the other two, we have plenty to talk about this season.

Cast Scores (15% of Final Score):

(20% of Cast Score) Did it seem like there were enough actors?: 8.67

(30% of Cast Score) How creative, believable and convincing were the actors?: 9

(20% of Cast Score) How interactive were the actors (verbally and physically)?: 8.7

(15% of Cast Score) How creatively & appropriately did they use dialogue?: 8.95

(15% of Cast Score) Was there a good variety of characters?: 8.73

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AHHC has a fantastic group of actors roaming throughout to make light work of guests trying to get from one attraction to another or even the guests looking to warm up near a fire pit with a cold beer. There seemed to be no shortage of actors roaming the area on one of the busiest days we have witnessed as onlookers and all actors were working to cover such a wide area of a midway. There is plenty of success measured through constant random screams provided by these queue actors. Let’s break down some from each attraction.

Hysteria:
Hysteria was the first attraction we found our way through during our visit. The actors in here worked so well with their environment and used all sorts of props and such to their advantage. We dealt with a good amount of dialogue from plenty of actors throughout and each interaction seemed to work well with the given scenes. From the first character warning us about the time machine being out of whack to all the individual timelines we visited (more on that soon) everyone did great to provide an answer for the question we had, When are we (time machine talk)?

Ambush:
The cast at Ambush is just as intense as the cast for Hysteria but also seems to provide darker themes throughout. From the Nuns that still make it their objective to hurt your behind (literal paddling) to every actor inside, there was no one lacking creativity for their roles and even dialogue. One of the more memorable characters we had seen was an inmate in the prison near the end. We had walked out of Ambush and into the ticket area and this guy climbed the fence to run his mouth at a group ahead of us that were talking smack to him. It was very entertaining to see and rather creative as they surely let their guard down at that point, even though the inmate wasn’t finished with them. It was pretty great to see the reactions all around.

Stalker:
Stalker, unsurprisingly, also had a dedicated cast that did well being as cold as it was during our visit to this outdoor attraction. The dialogue here was very appropriate depending on the scene we were walking through, and some was very creative. One of my favorite parts of AHHC was the presentation of the ‘ghost hunting tour’ when we reached the mausoleum scene. Scarlett was our tour guide and gave us a deep history of the cemetery we currently found ourselves in, including information about the Tall Woman who has been known to appear at night wondering the graveyard. It was super creative and also kind of threw us off in the sense that a cemetery tour would be super exciting to us. Tis’ the season after all. Overall, the cast of AHHC did a fantastic job this season.

Costuming Scores (15% of Final Score):

(15% of Costuming Score) How complete / finished did the costumes appear to be?: 8.88

(25% of Costuming Score) How creative / detailed were the costumes?: 8.75

(20% of Costuming Score) Was their makeup creative? Detailed? Realistic?: 8.78

(15% of Costuming Score) How effectively did they use masks (if used)?: 8.7

(25% of Costuming Score) How appropriate were the costumes for their scene/s & theme/s?: 8.9

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Hysteria:
The costuming throughout Hysteria was all appropriate through given scenes and themes of rooms. There were several great quality-looking masks throughout as well that did indeed fit with scenes. There were plenty of makeup applications throughout that worked just as well. What is unique as a whole is the fact that the scenes we are transitioning to and from are all different and require such different costumes throughout. A great example here would have to be the jungle-like swamp area that gives actors costumes almost replicating something along the lines of headhunters. We also eventually find ourselves in somewhat of a medieval-type setting where we find our way to a blacksmith creating weapons. Given there being so many different scenes to provide so many different costumes and makeup applications to, I could only imagine the makeup department having to work extra hard to create appropriate costumes for each scene.

Ambush:
Trying to avoid a sense of repetitiveness, Ambush also provides a great amount of detail throughout costumes, masks, and makeup. There are plenty of great face gashes throughout and some great freaky-looking masks throughout as well. One of the more memorable costumes we noticed would have to be in the Strip Club scene when we pass by the pole dancer. The outfit the actor was in hilariously gave the character depth. We noticed plenty of crazed doctors and patent outfits that worked well in scenes to add extra gory details throughout. It was easy to tell that the applications were added throughout and worked well to add to scenes accordingly.

Stalker:
A great example of some unique costuming took place in the mausoleum as we previously mentioned. We eventually ran into the Tall Woman, and she had a great looking almost Victorian-era dress that gave the impression she is 100’s of years old. Pairing with a pale white-looking skin tone and deep chilling eye contact put the character into perspective and was frightening. We also had a fair share of classic corn field character costumes such as bloodied overalls and flannel costumes. This worked well as some of the portions of Stalker gives sort of a backwoods, southern feel. Overall, AHHC provided some great costuming throughout the entire attraction.

Customer Service Scores (10% of Final Score):

(25% of CS Score) How easy was it to locate the attraction, park, and navigate the premises?: 9.25

(30% of CS Score) How safe was the attraction?: 9.8

(25% of CS Score) How professional, helpful and friendly were the staff members?: 10

(20% of CS Score) How easy was it to find their information before* arrival?: 10

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Abandoned happens to be a pretty easy attraction to navigate considering it is directly off the I-94 highway. While on the haunt grounds, there happens to be plenty of staff available to direct any questions too. AHHC is very active on social media sites as well and responds in a prompt and timely manner. With such large crowds, safety remains a focal point throughout, and staff tends to any issues immediately. Nothing out of the ordinary here as AHHC tends to hold itself to high standards and it shows pretty clear.

Atmosphere Scores (10% of Final Score):

(60% of Atmosphere Score) How obvious was it that you were at a haunted house before entering?: 9.4

(40% of Atmosphere Score) How well did the atmosphere prepare you for what you experienced inside?: 9.6

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The atmosphere almost starts off the highway, as we can see the AHHC logo from there. When pulling into the lot, there is a thick fog covering the haunt that adds to the sounds and music coming from the other side of the walls. AHHC has a considerable amount of space they use to their advantage. Walking onto the complex is always a great experience as they sort of built this town, so we have optional built-in concession stands, merch stores, and photo ops. They have a few areas for warming with firepits and places to sit for a moment as there is plenty to take in and do.

Each attraction does have its fa������ade that stands out and gives a good representation as to what we are about to see inside. There are no timed tickets here, so the cool thing is hanging out as long as we wanted before making our way to a line or even hanging out after to talk about the experiences.

Special Effects Scores (15% of Final Score):

(20% of SFX Score) How effective were the sound effects?: 8.87

(20% of SFX Score) How creative / original were the scenes & props?: 9.08

(20% of SFX Score) How well were the scenes detailed?: 9.03

(25% of SFX Score) How well did they achieve & maintain the suspension of disbelief?: 9.03

(15% of SFX Score) How effective were the SFX at providing scares / entertainment?: 9

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Hysteria:
The effects at Hysteria are visual and sound heavy to throw one off their senses. They take a pretty unique approach on some effects we have seen everywhere such as the use of their laser lighting cutting a room in half at an angle that makes it difficult to see what we are walking into altogether. Most utilize a laser to create a swamp, this usage is what we see after being told the time machine is out of whack, so it’s supposed to create a feeling of falling through dimensions.

Hysteria (along with Ambush) is a multileveled attraction so footing can be tricky at times. But what is creative about this is making use of windows to see what we have been in from a different point of view. What I mean by this is when we enter a sort of medieval castle area (where it was snowing inside), we noticed these high walls and arched castle windows creating the scene that we are in a different time. When we enter the castle and eventually go to a different level, we find ourselves able to look out of the arched windows to the area we were once at. It doesn’t happen instantly as we make our way through plenty of other scenes between, but it is a rather great approach to make use of as much as possible. There also is a great deal of some higher-end props that are larger than life and will pop out to scare. Overall, the sets are fantastic, and the effects used are very impressive.

Ambush:
Ambush, as we mentioned before, could be described as the darker theme of the two with more demonic and church-like themes that can be enough to freak out many who believes in such. We have mentioned Ambush being multileveled just like Hysteria. They also have similar effects using grated floors to show previous rooms from a different perspective. Ambush also makes use of an old CTA ‘EL’ cart to create some great effectiveness as if we were on the red line (as dirty and gritty as it is). We have made mention of the strip club inside Ambush to describe an actor, but the scene as a whole is creative as we go from the bar area to the pole dance and finally the VIP area where we see a man stabbed by a high heel, probably more than he bargained for. The overall effects for Ambush are high quality with some great scenes altogether.

Stalker:
What makes stalker so enjoyable is the old-school approach giving a classic corn maze walkthrough amped up to a more frightening effect with higher quality materials. One scene I appreciate so much pays homage to the classic spook houses and carnivals of yesteryear and that is the Dark Ride. Granted we walk through it instead of ride it, this doesn’t take away from Abandoned’s dark ride being a great tribute to a dying art form. We briefly touched on the mausoleum during other categories, however, it is worth noting here as well due to the detail. It feels as though we are walking through an old graveyard with all the crypts surrounding and being a cold moonlit night helps add a natural ambiance to the scene altogether. Stalker took a different approach from Hysteria and Ambush that I’m sure has a lot to do with being outside, however, it also is a standout in the sense as not as intense in an in-your-face type of way yet have some of the scarier parts at times (more on this soon).

Theme Scores (5% of Final Score):

(30% of Theme Score) Could you tell what the theme was?:

(50% of Theme Score) How well was the theme carried throughout the attraction/s?:

(20% of Theme Score) How well does their location authenticate the theme?:

This score is left “N/A” when we believe the haunt is trying to target a random variety of themes or phobias, rather than a single overarching “Theme” or “storyline.”

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Though we have mentioned a sort of time machine storyline from Hysteria, there was only really that opening scene that loosely ties all of the different scenes together. The AHHC website does not mention any sort of standing theme or storyline, so we will not score this section

Scare Factor Scores (15% of Final Score):

(30% of Scare Factor Score) How scary was it?: 8.83

(15% of Scare Factor Score) How well did they provide scares to the entire group?: 8.9

(25% of Scare Factor Score) How predictable were the scares?: 8.92

(15% of Scare Factor Score) How well did they provide a wide variety of scares?: 8.88

(15% of Scare Factor Score) How strong was the ending / finale?: 8.87

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Hysteria:
Hysteria uses some creative effects to gain scares throughout its walk-through. They find some creative spots to place some of the giant props to scare accordingly. Actors tend to use the lighting to their advantage as it can be a quick misdirection that can leave anyone an easy target. It seemed as though no one in our group was safe, as we went in with others who were screaming for most of the attraction. I feel a big advantage Hysteria has is sort of sensory overload. There is just so much being thrown at once that it can be difficult to focus on one particular thing. The finale to Hysteria is the classic vortex tunnel of course which can trip up just about anyone.

Ambush:
Having been the darker of the three attractions, Ambush does provide a very actor-forward approach with some realistic scenes to scare. There is plenty of gore throughout and the actors play well into this. We also previously mentioned the religious aspect Ambush touches on, so it can also play into one’s senses when there is a preacher overheard on speakers praying during the church scenes. The train scene of course we mentioned does a good job of having some loudspeakers playing to further disorient. Looking around at the group we were in, you can tell they had their hands over their ears and heads down during a good deal of this’ cowards, lol. To add to the sense of tension Ambush provides, we can touch on the prison and the inmates inside. The actors in here really give a sense of ‘being about that life’ and can get right in your face to intimidate. Ambush does a great job at keeping pressure on guests and that is successful for this category.

Stalker:
Stalker does have a direction for scares that differs from the previous two attractions, and it works here. One of the creepier and uneasy feelings I had at AHHC would have to be the interaction with the Tall Woman. For someone to have such a presence without saying a word and following closely behind was enough to send chills down the back. One of the more panicked moments I saw for crowds as a whole would have to be one of the final rooms in Stalker. The low amount of visibility in this room is enough to panic for sure as I heard someone in a group ahead state ‘I’m pretty sure we are just going in circles, what the hell do we do now?’ Needless to say, it feels like we are in this area for an eternity, and I have no clue how any actor can stand it for so long.

Entertainment & Value Factor Scores (15% of Final Score):

(30% of E&V Score) How satisfied were you with the entertainment received during the main attraction/s?: 9.2

(25% of E&V Score) How satisfied were you with the entertainment that’s available with* the ticket price, excluding the main attraction/s?: 9

(30% of E&V Score) How appropriate is/are the ticket price/s?: 9.4

(15% of E&V Score) Have they effectively used their available space?: 9.35

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We clocked in a few different times for our walkthrough on each attraction, but the total is just insane. Hysteria took 14 minutes to get through, Ambush was 16 minutes, and Stalker was 29 minutes. This brings the total walk-through time as a whole to nearly an hour!

General Admission starts at $35 giving our Minute Per Dollar value at 1.69, one of the highest we have been to, and one of the highest on the site! Breaking this down even further to show the extreme deal that comes to $11.66 per attraction. For something of this great quality, it’s kind of unheard of.

I would highly recommend opting for the fast pass ticket as you need a physical ticket from the ticket booth to enter attractions that they will stamp out, and the fast pass also includes a VIP section to receive your tickets, not just for attractions. We later found out during our visit it was a record-breaking night in terms of ticket sales, and rightfully so. I cannot stress how great of a time this attraction is and well worth the trip to Wisconsin.

How Did We Get These Scores

Promo Images:

Click to Enlarge

Awards:

2024

2023

Highest Rated Haunt in Wisconsin

2020