Las Vegas during Halloween time is an interesting thing. Looking out of the hotel room, we saw the Sphere turn into a Jack-o-lantern and wink at people. The city is also getting ready for the F1 race. Children go trunk or treating, and there are many haunted houses located off the strip. Years ago, there was a haunted theme park at Adventuredome called Fright Dome. This year, Fright Dome was brought back from the dead with a new name and new owners, called Fright Zone.
During the daytime, families can enjoy the theme park and ride the nearby SpongeBob SquarePants ride. When the sun sets, Adventuredome transforms with a DJ, scare zones, and four unique haunted houses. The names of these haunted houses are Deep Containment, Hillbilly Hollow, Cotton Candy Carnage, and The Birth of Glass Eyes. Deep Containment is a zombie outbreak-themed haunted house. Hillbilly Hollow is a hillbilly and farm-themed haunted house. Cotton Candy Carnage is a blacklight clown-themed haunt. The Birth of Glass Eyes is a doll-themed haunted house. These haunted houses are spread out inside the Adventure Dome, although they are a little hard to find. While walking from haunt to haunt, there are roaming scare actors who are very interactive.
Fear Zone employs a lot of actors in both the scare zones and the haunted houses. Deep Containment had zombies lurking throughout the haunt, and some of the zombies even covered multiple rooms. Hillbilly Hollow had a good number of actors, but we noticed a few rooms were missing actors. Cotton Candy Carnage was filled with clowns, with some rooms having multiple actors. The Birth of Glass Eyes had creepy dolls in every room. The actors in Deep Containment stayed in character; they were shuffling zombies trying to eat flesh. The actors had the zombie sounds perfected, and we felt like we were in a zombie outbreak.
In Hillbilly Hollow, the actors did a great job of having a southern twang when they spoke. They also used some very creative dialogue. In Cotton Candy Carnage, the clowns brought the energy with the black light sets and makeup, helping the actors to pop out. In The Birth of Glass Eyes, we felt that we were among creepy dolls; the actors were terrifying with their doll-like movements. Deep Containment zombies were constantly trying to eat our flesh, and they did a great job of interacting with us and even communicating with each other. Hillbilly Hollow had actors with good improv skills, and we had many small back-and-forth talks with the family members. They also a few times either passed the conversation to another actor or guided us to the next room. The actors inside The Birth of Glass Eyes were silent, but the creepy doll-like movement was disturbing. There was also a contortionist who skittered along the floor.
Throughout all the attractions, there was a good variety of characters that all fit within their respective themes.
Fear Zone throughout the scare zone areas had actors in complete costumes. Deep Containment costumes were facility neon colored jumpsuits, as you would expect to see in a biohazard lab. The hillbillies in Hillbilly Hollow had complete costumes with plaid shirts and overalls with the right amount of grime. The clowns in Cotton Candy Carnage wore neon colored costumes that popped out in the black lights.
The masks and makeup in the scare zones were very well done. The makeup had layers and a lot of details added to it. The zombies in Deep Containment were very believable looking. The makeup showed the decaying flesh. The makeup in Hillbilly Hollow consisted of gore and wounds on the actors’ faces. The masks had makeup blended around the eyes and blended with the clothing. The clown masks in Cotton Candy Carnage perfectly fit the theme with color blending around the eyes. The makeup that was applied to the clowns was done in a blacklight-reactive style, allowing the expressive actors’ faces to pop out. The makeup in The Birth of Glass Eyes was a little more subtle with a white or grey color palette. The actresses also wore black or white contact lenses to add to the creepy look.
With the actors in the scare zones, the costumes were varied. The costuming on Deep Containment fit the theme since the zombies were wearing biohazard suits. The costumes in Hillbilly Hollow consisted of worn-out plaid clothing with overalls. CLOWNS IN Cotton Candy Carnage wore brightly colored clothing that popped under the UV lights. The dolls in The Birth of Glass Eyes all wore dark colored dresses that were very distressed. In our opinion, those were some decrepit doll costumes.
Circus Circus has several free parking garages on the property. Once you are parked, there are several large directional Fear Zone signs that will lead you to the entrance at the back of the Adventuredome.
The entire time we were in the Fear Zone, we felt safe. Before we entered, we went through metal detectors. Once inside, we saw security and managers throughout the amusement park. Every member of staff we encountered was pleasant and helpful. The website is easy to navigate with prices, a FAQ section, and directions.
The pre-haunt area of the grounds spread throughout the entire theme park. The whole dome was filled with a light fog; there were lasers and a DJ with roaming scare actors to keep the scares going.
The storyline for Deep Containment, from what we could understand, was that there was a zombie outbreak, and we needed to escape it. The storyline for Hillbilly Hollow was not quite clear; our conclusion was that we needed to escape a hillbilly family. The storyline for Cotton Candy Carnage was that we were trapped in a cotton candy factory that was overrun by clowns. The storyline for The Birth of Glass Eyes is that we are in an old dollhouse filled with decrepit dolls.
The scare zones and the DJ helped to keep the scares going, although we could hear the DJ in some of the haunts, which took away from them in those areas.
The soundscape of the scare zones was either the DJ playing or the soundtrack of the haunts. With the dome of the Adventuredome, you could hear the screams from the rides. The soundscape of Deep Containment was air raid sirens and noises of the equipment spread throughout. Also, some of the actors banged on metal drums. The sounds in Hillbilly Hollow were some banjo music as well as chicken noises in one room. In Cotton Candy Carnage, there was classic circus music. The soundscape in The Birth of Glass Eyes was the theme song from Dead Silence and creepy doll music.
The scare zones each had animatronics spread throughout, with a few scattered props; there were no large scenic pieces, likely due to the theme park operations. The sets in Deep Containment were painted black walls to look like a medical lab. There were barrels in several rooms. We did notice some of the hallways were just black with no decoration. The sets in Hillbilly Hollow had some great details. The hay bales lining a hallway that you have to duck under were a unique use of space. There is a barn and chicken coop, and everything you would expect to find at a farm, including the butcher shop. Sets within Cotton Candy Carnage were all blacklight-reactive, neon colors. There were clown-themed props and cotton candy strung across the walkways. The sets in the Birth of Glass Eyes were themed to a house with beds, dressers, and baby cribs.
In the scare zones, all of the animatronics were working with no issues. Within Deep Containment, we did not see any animatronics. In Hillbilly Hollow, we did notice a few animatronics with well-hidden sensors. Walking through Cotton Candy Carnage, we did see a few animatronics that worked without issue. We did not see any animatronics in The Birth of Glass Eyes.
The haunted attractions in Fright Zone are actor-driven haunts. The scare zones used fog and lasers to great effect throughout the entire event. In Deep Containment, there were some very effective strobe lights and fog effects. There were no sensory effects that we noticed in Hillbilly Hollow. The UV lighting in Cotton Candy Carnage was throughout the haunt, allowing everything in the haunt to pop out in vivid colors. The Birth of Glass Eyes was a dark haunt; it did not seem like there was any additional lighting other than the theme park lighting. If this was intentional, it did make it creepier, but it made it hard to see the sets and actors.
21. How scary was it? (35% of score): 6.19
22. How well did they provide scares to everyone in the group? (15% of score): 7
23. How predictable were the scares? (25% of score): 5.25
24. How well did they provide a wide variety (types) of scares? (10% of score): 5.25
25. How strong was the ending / finale? (15% of score): 0
The scare zones throughout Fright Zone had some great startle and ping pong scares. Deep Containment had several startle scares, and the zombies did come close to you; some of the jump scares came from zombies hitting the metal cans. The scares in Hillbilly Hollow were mostly jump scares from actors hiding in the sets or behind props. Scares within Cotton Candy Carnage came from everywhere; the clowns were climbing on top of boxes and even coming from the top of walls. They also loved to follow behind us. The scares in The Birth of Glass Eyes were actresses moving with stuttered, doll-like movements. All the actors had their long hair covering their faces. They also followed us in the back of the group, and the contortionist provided some great ground scares.
Throughout all the haunts, the actors scared all the members of the group; we even had a few actors following behind us for several rooms. The scares in the scare zones were somewhat predictable; some actors stood still and went for the scare when you passed by. There were a few actors who used props to hide behind. The scares in Deep Containment were mostly actors hiding behind walls or doors or shambling towards the middle of the room. Cotton Candy Carnage was harder to predict the scares due to the energy level of the clowns, with a diet of cotton candy, it makes sense, they were riding that sugar high.
The scares kept coming with a lot of the actors tag teaming their scares. The Birth of Glass Eyes used the creep factor for the scares, with most of the actors using statue scares or twitching standing in one spot; it was hard to tell when they would scream. These actors also embraced the darker environment to disappear and reappear from the darkness. The vibration from the roller coaster above also added to the tenderness.
At the end of Deep Containment, it just dumped you into the scare zone; there was no final moment that we could identify. With Hillbilly Hollow, it was a similar situation; there was a chainsaw towards the middle of the maze, but the ending was a hallway that dumped you into the scare zone. In Cotton Candy Carnage, we had a hard time finding an exit. The clown in character pointed to the door that had the word exit drawn into it, which exited into a scare zone. The Birth of Glass Eyes had a room that was empty that led out of the facade into a scare zone.
Throughout our visit to Fright Zone, the four mazes were very entertaining, and we loved that each haunt stuck to its theme. Since the admission price includes the haunts and the theme park attractions, you have a full night of frights and fun. With the admission price being sixty dollars, considering how expensive Las Vegas is, you get a great deal for the admission price. We recommend visiting Fear Zone to anyone who wants a good night of frights and screams.
2880 S Las Vegas Blvd, Las Vegas, Nevada 89109