Terror in the Corn is a solid exercise in good fundamental scares, bolstered by a naturally creepy ambiance and some good set design. They have four separate haunts, each of which take about as long to get through as many regional haunts’ entire experience. On top of that, for an extra fee, you’re able to do an escape room, corn maze, axe throwing, and a few other bits of spooky fun. This haunt is way out of the way, driving for miles and miles down a dark and seemingly deserted road off of the highway, but it’s worth the trip for a spooky good time.
Across all four haunts I found nothing at all to complain about when it came to the cast. They were not the most interactive when it came to banter, sticking to their script, but standouts more than made up for it. One ghoul took a philosophical approach to being called “queen” by one of the members of my group, noting that even though he recognized the compliment for what it was he had always felt like more of a king inside. Reassured that no one could take that away from him, not even her, he leapt to threaten us with renewed energy, bellowing that I was right, she could not steal who he was. For a murderous bat-wielding maniac it was a surprisingly sweet moment.
The costumes for this haunt were decent but nothing to celebrate or really remember. I could not tell you any especially memorable or unique characters that I encountered, but other than a couple of masks where the skin was not blackened underneath there were not many mistakes. It was very dark, so any imperfections were hidden in shadow, the lighting giving just enough of a view of the various monsters to make out impressions and a few key details. It is a smart way to operate when you have a larger cast and exist in Arizona, where the heat could melt better and more professionally done makeup. It followed the general theme I noticed throughout, there was nothing especially novel or creative but everything that was done, was solid.
This haunt’s employees were unfailingly polite and engaged, with this sense of courtesy even extending to the creeps. Though they did their absolute best to scare and startle us, at one point a little girl I was walking with realized that she had dropped her stuffed animal after one particularly intense scare. Two costumed actors immediately dropped character and helped us look, making her night and restoring a sense of balance to her in a deeply unbalancing environment. It was great to see.
There are a few safety concerns I do need to spell out, unfortunately. One dark passageway had a barrel at about knee height that I stumbled on, not seeing it until the end. I also managed to slice my thumb open on something sharp in a pitch-black hallway that you must feel your way through. Neither of these incidents are major or a reason not to go, but an additional walkthrough should really be done to ensure that someone frailer or more panicked cannot hurt themselves.
This haunt takes full advantage of its isolated, dark farm area. Every attraction saved by the Funhouse is more a series of vignettes joined by a long walk through a dark, deserted cornfield. There is something inherently unsettling about dead corn, something in the way the leaves hiss in the wind that sends shivers down my spine, and this works very well to set the stage. Unfortunately, this trick is a bit overused. I easily spent as much time in the corn as in the vignettes, if not more, and after the initial tension passed, I realized that there are never any actors in the corn save for one attraction. Adding just one or two here or there so that you do not have the tension completely deflated would be a fantastic addition.
I do need to call out a few things they do very well. They use long wooden tubes filled with strobe lights to disorient you on your way out. It serves as a far more effective cooldown than the usual walk out the door you are done feeling of too many haunts. Each time it was like transitioning from one world to another, and it really impressed me. They also do a fantastic time spacing out each group. Despite the long attraction times we only encountered another group once, and that was because some in our party ran in fear.
The set design for this haunt is decent. There is not much in the way of special construction or expansive set pieces other than in the funhouse, but they use the old farm equipment to good effect. Crashed cars, old trucks, and empty basins provide a good foundation for the cast to attempt to their scares.
The special effects are a bit more hit and miss. Sound effects were good, albeit underutilized. There were great effects in the funhouse, but other places clearly had broken or askew effects. The spiraling tunnel was off when I went through it, and it looked like they were trying to set up a fog swamp, but the laser was not level and there was no fog.
21. How scary was it? (35% of score): 8
22. How well did they provide scares to everyone in the group? (15% of score): 8.75
23. How predictable were the scares? (25% of score): 8.75
24. How well did they provide a wide variety (types) of scares? (10% of score): 8.33
25. How strong was the ending / finale? (15% of score): 7
This haunt has a rock-solid grasp of scary fundamentals, and it shows. Cast members seemed to delight in startling guests, often coming from an angle that was not expected. Throughout the walk you must go through several large hollow containers, and it was fairly common for someone to be on top banging as you went. A decent variety of behavior can be found, though it tended towards louder and jump scares. A little bit more unsettling creepiness would go a long way to prevent desensitization.
Overall, I really enjoyed this haunt. With a $35 entry fee and a walkthrough time of 43 minutes 30 seconds you are left with a Minutes Per Dollar score of 1.24. This is an amazing score, though it is a bit inflated from long, uneventful walks through the dark corn. Still, you are going to feel like you got your money’s worth at this haunt, an important consideration given how expensive thing are nowadays. There is not much entertainment included with that ticket price, though there are a plethora of optional add-ons. If you find yourself in the Tucson area, please do yourself a favor and stop by.
13591 W Avra Valley Road, Marana, Arizona 85653