Darkside Haunted House Review (2017)

Some of the liveliest ghouls around roam this haunt, bringing to life the roles they portray. Be it a wailing victim, or a hissing spider person. The cast is a diverse mix from subtle greeters to hellbent hillbillies. They all worked amazingly with their surroundings, taking full advantage of various hidey-holes and secret doorways, as well as props and sets. A number of cast members really stand out. They included Mr. Z, the main greeter who kept guests entertained as they waited in line while still providing rules and guidelines, ‘The daughter,’ who eagerly awaited someone to play with her, ‘The fence guy’ who listened to guests as they passed by and timed his scares purposely for maximum effect, incorporating what he heard to really creep out guests after the initial scare and ‘The nurse’ who looked like she was ripped right out of a WWII era infirmary and had such an icy stare that it stopped me in my tracks.

Down a dark and winding road sits a sinister looking fa������������������ade with a demon on top. His wings flapping in the chilly autumn air. A hearse is parked on the lawn, waiting for the haunt to provide it its next ‘Customer.’ A worker helps guide guests into the parking lot, while Halloween music plays out front. Out back there is a wide expanse of open land, open sky, and a creepy silence broken only by the screams of guests in the haunt. You can definitely tell you are at a haunt. Mr. Z provides the line entertainment, asking guests riddles, finding out their names and other information and overall just messing with the guests, all the while in a very sinister and grin-grinning way. A few other ghouls pop their heads out for fun banter with guests, or just to stare occasionally. The staff here are extremely friendly, talking with guests occasionally as they exit.

Hidden doors and hidey-holes are everywhere in this haunt, meaning that most of the time you won’t see the scare coming. If you do, you are most likely being set up for a bigger scare to come. This meant that most of the scares were unpredictable and very effective. The use of distractions is great, and the scaractors work very well with each other. They also made sure to spread their scares across the group. We caught the tail end of the finale, as they scared a different group, but you can’t go wrong with a clown with a chainsaw!