Final Scores – By Category:

Cast (20% of Final Score): 9.08

Costuming (10% of Final Score): 8.69

Customer Service (10% of Final Score): 9.63

Immersion (10% of Final Score): 8.83

Special Effects (15% of Final Score): 8.84

Scare Factor (20% of Final Score): 7.76

Entertainment & Value (15% of Final Score): 8.56

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Final Scores – By Attraction:

Attraction 1: 8.69

Our 2024 tour found us back in Rockford, Ilinois, for some family business. Twisted Crypt has been haunting the area for 10+ years and is a unique experience. What’s great about this attraction is that there are no conga lines due to the way the haunt runs, which provides guests with a very personal experience. We are excited to report on what the Duson family has been up to and the trouble they brought to Rockford.

The cast at Twisted Crypt are heavily relied on to assure the haunt runs the way it’s supposed to. Actors are meant to hold guests in each scene for a few minutes and give them an interactive dialogue. This means scenes are rotated at a certain time and have guests stop at appropriate times to progress.

Inside the attraction, we had some great interactions all around. Schmitty is a big name thrown around through each scene as he wants to assure the family is eating their food. When we eventually come across them, Schmitty is very physical and has a demanding presence. Another great encounter inside was running into Uncle NJ. Uncle NJ is a skeptic in the highest regard and provides a very compelling argument on guests becoming “true believers.”

Outside in the queue, we have signature characters to Twisted Crypt, like Mama. Mama is constantly getting involved in anything she can for the queue. We have witnessed guests running in fear just from Mama being Mama. There is an area of the queue where the security team no longer allows Mama to roam into what’s known as “the safe space” for guests. It is humorous that security has gotten involved and told Mama to hold back due to guests running the other way. This speaks volume on her character and the level of commitment she gives.

Twisted Crypt is known for having a hillbilly look, which is executed perfectly with their use of makeup and costumes.

The makeup is shown to be of high quality, showing detailed, deranged features. While actors wore full face makeup, some actors showed textured skin to show skin conditions.

Continuing with the hillbilly look, this was also executed perfectly by using everyday clothing. The clothes though, were a bit on the sinister side. Sally is a character who was wearing a light-colored dress with a matching bonnet, making her look like a doll. She wore a facial mask that gave her a similar look to the condition of elephantiasis.

In the hospital scene, the doctor wore a matching black leather apron and gloves. I am sure general practitioners do not normally wear this especially when they do not have a stethoscope since they were actively looking for one. An assistant was present, wearing a tight and weathered leather face mask with multiple skin cracks. The exposed skin under the eye openings was painted red which made it look as if the skin was pulled down from the eyes and the leather skin mask was dead skin.

We cannot forget to mention NJ. NJ looked like a conspiracist straight from the CTA at 2 am. Hopefully, you do not get to see his birthday suit underneath his green trench coat. Not sure how he was able to keep his aluminum hat while rummaging through the room to find his books. I was even gifted my hat for being a true believer!

Showing up to the haunt is easy with using GPS, especially if you are not from the area. The ticket booth is near the entrance, with actors on the lookout for unsuspecting victims. Sometimes, they will even harass you while you are still in your car. We were gifted a male external catheter. Thanks!

There is security placed by the outside queue line. While they are not officially Twisted Crypt acting crew, they do play a crucial role in both keeping everyone safe and helping the actors execute their scares. You can either catch them dancing to the music or setting the customers up for the actors to use their props or simply distract them. We were happy to see that they were part of the end-of-season cast picture.

While the majority of the floors in the haunt are flat, there is a moment where it guides you to the 4 steps up and 4 steps down. Exit signs are listed throughout and the actors are tentative throughout.

Something to keep a lookout for is their social media. Some great promotional videos are using well-known horror movie scenes. There is also a mock Dating Game show segment using some of the family members. They also had an FAQ video in which you can hear our names used as those customers who ask some weird questions.

Twisted Crypt is located in an old strip mall. TC is the only attraction on this mall strip during operating hours. Pulling up to the building, we can tell we are in the right spot based on the hearse in front as well as the sign above. There is a ticket booth to the right of the building that plays music for entertainment. Roaming queue actors all around also provide a fun time.

Once inside the building, there is a theme in the inner queue with a great build. The inside queue becomes a sort of “outdoor” vibe with a moon and thunder and lightning occasionally lighting up the sky. The Rule room provides a good amount of details to allow immersion to set in. Once past the rules room, we find ourselves in front of the haunt entrance which is built to look like an old creaky home. The facade here plays a big role in immersion as we enter the family’s home. With the doors eerily opening by themselves, the tone is set for the actual attraction.

This haunt does an excellent job when it comes to setting up a variety of special effects to create complete immersive settings.

In between scenes, there are loud sounds that are disorienting. Since there are a lot of actors interacting, it makes sense why music is minimal in scenes. Fog is also in use in between the scenes while it is denser in certain areas such as the beginning and the swamp.

The transitions between scenes were more detailed than your basic black plastic flaps. A variety of clothes hang up from above prompting us to use our hands to move them away from our faces. This is appropriate since we are technically inside The Family’s house.

The rooms are highly detailed and that makes their scenes elaborate and clear of what is going on. The kitchen is set up with a sink with dirty dishes, disorganized cupboards, and a bloody refrigerator. The dining room table in the next scene is not any better with a spread of mush from what might be body parts. In the doctor’s office, medical posters are on display, and an examination table is still being used. The bloody walls were not inviting though, and the beeping of the medical equipment was unsettling.

A very cool scene is the locker room, with the path lined up on the side with gray lockers. An actor hides behind a metal fence and uses a device to create sparks. The lights are flashing continuously which another actor uses to their advantage to move around creepily.

Since this is an actor-driven haunt, the majority of the scares do come from the actors. They form a relationship with you, learn your name, and make you feel uneasy. Their expertise in improv gives them an advantage to give their group customized scares. They work the room from beginning to end, never leaving you alone.

The actors also use their environments to create effective scares. One that stood out to us was the actor who was behind the flexible black fabric that looked like it was part of the hard wall, which did not keep us safe from her reaching out.

With the way the groups are strategically sent in a timely manner, customers are able to see the scenes and interact with the actors fully without catching up with the group in front of them and catching a preview. The actor interactions are intense, and they will not let you leave until they have completed their scene. They also use this to their advantage to distribute their interaction individually or as a whole, leaving no one excluded.

At the end, an actor comes out with a loud hand-cranked siren, which is unsuspecting since we already had an encounter with a chainsaw beforehand, which we thought was the end. It’s always fun to hang out for a bit and see groups of people stampede from the exit door, back into the lot where the queue line actors continue to terrorize them.

Something to point out is every day will be a different experience due to actors being placed in different rooms. Some of the rooms require 2 actors to tag team the scares and interact with everyone. This is definitely a haunt to experience that is on their own level.

Our walkthrough time for the attraction was at the 25-minute mark. With tickets priced at $20, the Minute Per Dollar value comes to 1.25, which is easily one of the highest in our area. This ticket price is worth it due to how entertaining the show is from top to bottom. The efforts are appreciated as this haunt is so unique in itself. The whole point here is entertainment, and Twisted Crypt provides this tenfold. Everyone should check this haunt out just to experience a special attraction!