Final Scores – By Category:

Cast (20% of Final Score): 8.05

Costuming (10% of Final Score): 7.68

Customer Service (10% of Final Score): 8.61

Immersion (10% of Final Score): 7.26

Special Effects (15% of Final Score): 7.99

Scare Factor (20% of Final Score): 8.06

Entertainment & Value (15% of Final Score): 8.13

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Final Scores – By Attraction:

Dayton Scream Park: 8

One… Two… Freddy’s…. Coming… Ch ch ch…. Oh sh!t… It’s Jason! Are you daring enough to dive into a delightfully dark dream… or perhaps your worst nightmare?

In just its second season at this sinister location (but 22nd anniversary), Dayton Scream Park brings horrific sights, sinister sounds, and creepy characters to life before your very eyes. We were so deep into this nightmare that we had to pinch ourselves to be sure we weren’t actually asleep!

Clocking in at over 40 minutes in haunt time, this compound isn’t for the faint of heart. It had us running, screaming, and cursing until we finally stumbled out of the exit! If you don’t believe us, read on, and whatever you do, stay away from Stiches’ special sauce!

The cast at Dayton Scream Park had the energy cranked up to max during our visit, and their enthusiasm for giving us the scares we came for was impossible to miss. Once we got into the park, we met a friendly Plumber Joe, who couldn’t wait to share his wide assortment of gifts with us sourced from his bathroom; everything from a balloon with a cotton surprise (perfect for plugging wounds!) to the slurry in his toilet plunger that smelled concerningly spicy. It was the perfect balance of disgust and horror that sent us running straight out of there.

Clowns made up a large portion of the core of DSP, and they were clearly excited to come out to play with us that night. It was obvious the clowns were having a great time terrifying us because the more scared we were, the more they reveled in doing it. Whether it was stalking us menacingly, offering to share their snacks (which turned out to be real roaches), to having a pool noodle fight only to pull out a huge mallet to smash us at the conclusion, each and every clown was delighted to scare us in a unique way. Now that’s service with a smile – even if the smile is painted on and we were running for our lives from them!

There were actors everywhere we looked at the park. Rarely were we given a chance to take a breather while making our way through the various scenes and walkways. The DSP team did a great job at spreading the actors out through the haunt to maintain that same high energy from the beginning until the end. They did an excellent job of engaging with us too, always keeping us on our toes with guessing what they were luring us into or tricking us into doing.

The characters lurking in the halls were exciting to encounter. We were delighted to see Steamboat Willie, with one of us even running up to hug him. This isn’t the Steamboat Willie you may have seen in the past, though – we advise keeping a healthy distance from this one! There was an epic fight between Freddy and Jason, which sent us screaming and dodging to stay out of their way as they sent each other flying into furniture and slammed against walls. Other characters that stood out were the hillbilly with a chicken, Stitches, Leatherface, Samara, and the Jackyl.

Most of the costumes consisted of worn and ripped clothing. Some were distressed and covered in dirt and grime, while others were splattered in blood. However, one particular cast member appeared to be covered in poop. Poopsicle anyone?

The cast used a variety of masks and makeup. Most of the clowns had masks with giant razor-sharp teeth. Others had painted faces with splashes of blood. There was a wide variety of clown masks and costumes. The tooth fairy was memorable with their tutu and lit-up fairy wings. And we can’t forget those sharp teeth! The creepiest clown was by far the one in black and white with little beady white eyes! That one was pure nightmare fuel!

Some of the scary masks were paired with regular street clothes, making it appear that the costumes were not finished. But then we would walk into the next area and see a bada$$ costume such as those worn by Jason and Freddy! The nun, Bone Daddy, and Steamboat Willie were other realistically menacing looks!

The DSP website’s home page conveniently contains photos, directions, dates, prices, and other pertinent information for visiting. Getting information for this haunt was not difficult. Our GPS took us directly to their parking lot.

There was ample parking in a free, well-lit lot, and staff to help us nearly everywhere we looked. The only problem with parking was leaving. It was a little confusing. There should be additional signs or someone showing everyone the way out, as we took a wrong turn into the entrance and got about halfway out before someone told us we were going the wrong way.

Once in the haunt, the banners with the Xs helped guide us through the twisted halls. The haunt weaves in and out of trailers and different vehicles, which involves going up and down steps. But don’t worry; they provide rails to help you. There were many steps, but we had things to hold onto, and we could see them.

The folks at the entrance and inside the gift shop were helpful. They sell some pretty cool DSP swag, so stop by there!

As we neared the entrance, a towering facade, a spookily decorated vehicle, and a cheery clown let us know we had arrived at the right place! The clown was perched above everyone on a stage of sorts above the fence that lined the waiting area and could talk with and interact with guests! Plumber Joe could also get on top of his work vehicle so he could speak to and interact as well! After finally convincing one of us to take his special balloon from us, he really left us wondering what was in store for us inside.

The haunt did a pretty good job of keeping us immersed while in the haunt. For the most part, the actors kept our attention, but sometimes we could see feet beneath the haunt’s temporary walls, which took away from the experience. While there was no overarching storyline, the scenes flowed into each other, often connected by transitioning halls with temporary walls, and the actors matched their scenes. We did manage to spot a Bluetooth speaker with bright blue LEDs sitting on the bed in one of the scenes, though. For the most part, however, the details in the scenes were spot on and made everything believable for us as we ventured through.

The haunt exited into the parking lot, allowing customers to leave without returning to the gift shop or to the multiple booths they had set up selling various items. We continued walking back to the newly built gift shop to check out their merch. The gift shop has some awesome T-shirts and hoodies, among other things. Guests will have to keep an eye out for it, though, as at the time of review, there wasn’t any signage directing us to it.

Dayton Scream Park delivered a range of effects across its massive expanse. While we encountered a few high-tech animatronics, many scenes have a more old-school, rustic, and raw vibe, using natural items like old cars, vans, semi-trailers, school buses, water containers, RVs, jail cells, canoes, tents, and more.

Many different sounds were pricking at our ears. Some had our hearts racing, while others had us tip-toeing around corners. A loud ringing phone, creepy whispering, maniacal laughter, and a radio broadcast were amongst the most effective. There was also ice cream truck music, the Chicken Dance, rock, metal, fast banjos playing, and iconic slasher soundtracks. The sounds were so intense in one room (where Jackyl was) that we wanted to run out of there before the actor came at us! Some of the props also made realistic sounds that added to the mix.

Creative lighting cast eerie shadows over scenes lined with vines, camo, and pallets, often making us play a nerve-wracking game of “real or not.” Spoiler: we usually lost. Lasers added an extra layer of disorientation while water tanks glowed in various colors. The strobe lights on a few victimization scenes made them disturbingly realistic!

The scenes were highly interactive; we navigated ramps and many stairs, ducked through tight spaces, and stepped over weird textures on the floors, making it nearly impossible to find a comfort zone. Tons of layers filled the various vehicles we had to navigate through, with plenty of dead bodies and scattered parts adding to the chaos. Sometimes, it felt like we ended up in a run-down town or funky trailer park. You will need to walk a lot here, and this trail may be physically demanding for some.

The scene quality ranged. Some were fully fledged out and layered, while others seemed unfinished. The green toxic quarters fully encompassed us into something we didn’t want to touch with spewing fog, a farmland with a lively scarecrow had us high-stepping, and a blood-covered kitchen left us quickly flailing and gagging to the next scene. However, areas such as the tooth fairy room were large and mostly empty. There were also a few areas with mostly barren walls or lined with only banners. The jail cells we squeezed through were real, with old deteriorating paint flaking off them.

A few Distortions water-spewing animations added a layer of realism. Shingles for a sparking effect was an excellent touch – but they weren’t the only things that sparked! At one point, Leatherface’s saw became the star of the show as it set a vehicle ablaze with sparks flying everywhere, and later, it sawed someone, which resulted in blood spewing at all of us! Hell yea!

Now, in the Freddy and Jason scenes, these items are real, too. The metal lockers and the table we watched them break were also real! However, we wish more elements were interactive rather than just set pieces. Some additional flames, air blasts, randomly moving objects, slamming doors, or horns from the vehicles could enhance the experience even further.

Was it scary? Yes, it was! The haunted compound threw various scares at us, triggering shrieks, jumps, screams, and even running from our team of four! Yes, you read that right – running!

The scares were also tossed at every group member, not just the front or back. Although we may not have always wanted their poop-filled hopes and dreams, we got them anyway! They would sometimes scare the front, disappear, and reappear behind our last group member. They’re sneaky little buggers there – watch out! This also helped make the scares unpredictable. At times, we could see monsters moving ahead of us or their feet beneath the temporary walls. In a few of these instances, another cast member would dart out, providing a good distraction from what we initially saw coming.

During our grueling journey, we faced a barrage of twisted, chaotic clowns, real roaches, gross situations, and even more clowns! We came across some of the baddest of bad horror movie villains (in a good way), intimidating scareactors wielding all sorts of weapons, and a sneak attack from a very alarming four-wheeler. A fantastic Chucky surprise left us on edge, followed by gruesome growls, chainsaws, a loud blast, and acts of violence. They hit on many common fears, including dolls, heights, spiders, and more! We’d like to see a bit more scares from different angles. Most came from the front, back, or sides of us, and we’d like to see more from above and below.

For the finale, we got one heck of a murderous show from Bubba himself that we’re sure will leave many Gen Z’ers running for their lives out the exit! The Leatherface scenes of this haunt were some of the best we’ve ever seen!

General admission tickets were only $25.00, and we were trapped in their madness for 46 minutes!! This puts the minutes of entertainment received per dollar spent at 1.84, which is above average and excellent! This is a very reasonable ticket price for the entertainment we received! We’re already ready to go back! VIP options are also available.

Regarding additional entertainment provided with the ticket price, we had a few actors, as mentioned above, who engaged with us while we waited and made us feel welcome. There were also several spooky displays to take photos of and with.

We’ve been visiting DSP for quite some time, and we must say that this was their best show yet! This place gets better and better with each visit! If you’re in the Dayton, Ohio, area, you must visit this scream park! “It’s not just a walk in the park – it’s a nightmare come to life.” What lurks in your nightmares? They tapped into ours and sent us running!