The Empty Grave Review

 From the Empty Grave

On the same evening I went to Sinister Pointe, I decided to check out the Empty Grave, located in the not-so-empty Anaheim Garden Walk that is across the street from Disneyland. While The haunt is located inside of an empty department store complex, it is also located right next to the parking structure. You can park and walk right towards the haunt. Talk about convenience, huh? It was easy to spot with the fog and the monsters around the entrance.

Because of this location, the rooms felt a bit broad and not really claustrophobic. This would be great if there was more detail and sets in the environment but because the haunt mostly consisted of some sets and several black plywood walls, the intimidation factor was hurt and affected most of the scares. There were not very many hiding spots for the actors and it was mostly dependent on corner and pop-out scares rather than some clever hiding spots. Empty Grave should take a hint from Reign of Terror and use some more sets for the actors to hide in like drop-doors, closet doors, and things of that nature.

Despite these factors, the talent was good with the few scare spots they had to work with and used them to the best of what they could do. The house was very dark and foggy but it felt like the designers depended too much on this for the scare factor. There were also some obstacles along the path that had to be pushed aside or ducked under to help enhance the experience.

The Empty Grave was, overall, an interesting haunt checking out. While not worth a long drive from Glendale or the greater Los Angeles area, it is worth checking out if you happen to live in the O.C. area or are there for Disneyland or Sinister Pointe.

Sinister Pointe 2011 Review

From Sinister Pointe

 

The drive to this Haunt was very interesting as I have been through a part of L.A. that I had never seen. There were several Vietnamese restaurants and shops, a gorgeous view of Orange County while going over a hill, and several drivers who had poor judgement of where they were going. If there was anything scarier than a kid on his bike who almost rode out in front of me or almost crashing into a badly rear-ended car on the way, it was my final destination--a haunt located in a cul-de-sac of an industrial area called Sinister Pointe.

The haunt itself is located inside of a warehouse, with the movie Trick 'r Treat playing on a screen at the entrance and several monsters scaring patrons to keep them entertained while waiting in line; there are even some monsters at the side of the building where the tickets are to keep everyone on their toes. Never a dull moment at this place.

As soon as I entered the warehouse, I ended up waiting in another short line that took place indoors like what Reign of Terror in Thousand Oaks did (Read my review on that haunt here). Unlike that haunt, the indoor queue was set in the middle of a foggy swamp with monsters scaring patrons and a large house-like facade that resembled something like it was out of the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre or House of 1000 Corpses. It's pretty obvious that the haunt was influenced by those movies considering that the official theme for this year is "The Texas Hills House Massacre has 1000 Corpses Eyes".

Though I prefer to call these kind of places haunted houses, I think the term "maze" would be more appropriate considering that the whole experience was just that: a literal walk-through haunted maze. This is where I highly recommend buying the All-Nite Scream Pass. Unlike most haunts that you will see on the West coast, there were some spots in the maze where patrons have to pick which way they want to go and do certain things in order to proceed. The interactive elements were alone well worth the $28 dollars I had to pay for the All-Nite pass and the drive down there. Though the scares and the sets would be almost on-par to what you would see at Universal, a major theme park haunt like that or Knott's would never be able to pull off anything like what I saw for crowding reasons; that's the luxury of being an independent haunt.

Sinister Pointe's theme for this year, "The Texas Hills House Massacre has 1000 Corpses Eyes" definitely had about 1000 great effects and scares inside the house as the talent did a frightful job at trying to make me feel like they were going to massacre me before my eyes. See this while you can because next year, there will be a completely new theme like they have every year. That's one thing that makes Sinister Pointe one of the best haunts of the West.

Reign of Terror Review

After hearing wonders about this haunted house, I decided to take the drive from the Glendale area (Where I live) all the way to Thousand Oaks to check it out. Even though I knew ahead of time that it was located in an outdoor mall called, "Janss Marketplace", I had a bit of trouble finding it as I was expecting to see a large facade in a parking lot with crowds lined up for it. After doing some wondering and asking around in the shopping area, I finally found the ticket booth - but where was the house?


The people at the booth (Who were wearing make-up to add to the experience) told me to walk down the pathway behind it and then turn right. I did just what he said only to come upon some really dark ally with a small door to the side. Hoping not to get mugged, I approached the door hoping that was where the attraction was. I asked the guy standing there if the house was in there and he said, "Up the stairs".

As soon as I entered the room, I was blown away at what I saw! The entire room was set up like a graveyard with props that jumped out and scared people while they were waiting in line. All of this was brilliant and I'm pretty sure this was a first for a haunt. I really did feel like I was outside when I was really in a giant room on top of a gym (Quite an odd place for a haunt, isn't it?).

Unlike the houses at Knott's or Universal, they only let one group in at a time. It could be a large group of friends, a couple, or in my case, one person. Even though this makes the line a bit longer than it usually should, it's worth it since each group can get all of the scares in the attraction.

As soon as I entered the haunted house, I was stunned with all of the set design, detail, and the scare tactics used. It was so well-done it actually looked (And even smelled) like a Universal haunted house; I'll even go as far as to say that they could've easily dropped this in Halloween Horror Nights and it would have been very well-received. It makes me wonder if the main inspiration for this house was from Universal's event since there were a few scenes that felt like they were inspired by past Halloween Horror Nights mazes like Saw, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Alice Cooper, and House of 1000 Corpses.

With the maze being professionally done with sets and scare tactics, the end product was astounding and was well-worth the forty-five minute trip up there. Whether you're a fan of Universal's event or haunted houses in general, Reign of Terror in Thousand Oaks hails as one of Los Angeles' best haunts.

Old Town Haunt in Pasadena Review

   Image from Old Town Haunt's website

In the middle of Old Town Pasadena is a bank building. Underneath that bank is a basement that is not only said to be haunted, but contains probably one of the scariest haunted houses in Southern California. Though it is small and right in the heart of Old Town, one should experience it before judging the haunt by its size.

Before I tell of the terrors that I have experienced at the haunt, let me address the issue of getting there. If you're trying to find parking, note that there is a public parking structure right next to it. That way, you won't have to walk for several blocks to get there, which is great. If they tell you to park in the lower level of the structure, you will notice that all of the spots have signs on them that read, "RESERVED".  Do not let this concern you. I parked in one of the "reserved" labeled spots and asked the attendant about this and said that it's totally fine. Even though all of the spots are labeled, they're apparently open to the customers for the haunted house.

Now let's talk about the cost: Parking is $7 and it does cost $15 to get into the house, making it a grand total of $22 for the experience. They do provide a VIP pass for $5 more than the general admission, but it's really only for the front-of-the-line privilege. I have gone on a Friday night (Which should be its peak night) and I was the first one in line. Even if the line is a tad long, I would say it's not worth the extra five bucks.

Before entering the haunt, the attendant gave us the spiel that some of the sets that we were about to see down there were used in the television show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and Rob Zombie's movie: "House of 1000 Corpses". Afterwards, he ushered only five of us down the stairs into the haunt. The setting was very dark, tight-spaced, and eerie, giving me and the other four people behind me a feeling of discomfort. Not only that, but the fact that they only let a handful of us in at a time made the experience all the more terrifying. Though much of the maze contained material that looked familiar from last year, the features they have kept were the best parts of the maze that set itself apart form the other haunts on the west coast like the dark crawling tunnel, the actors making you lost in there, and the pitch dark tight hallway.

Overall, Old Town Haunt is one of the scariest, if not THE scariest haunted houses I've ever been in. It's so scary, I would say that it is the closest thing one could ever get to an extreme house in California. The actors and even the props and effects in the haunt received some very good screams out of me. While Bigger haunts like Universal's Halloween Horror Nights, Knott's Scary Farm, or Queen Mary's Dark Harbor are bigger-budgeted and offer much interesting content, they just cannot pull off certain effects or scare techniques because of their size, which gives them a disadvantage. Though they all are great events, I have never gotten as scared as I did in Old Town Haunt. It may not have the vast movie-set quality or otherworldly feel of Universal Studios' haunted houses, but the intense scare factor is what really sets itself apart from any haunt. If you do not live too terribly far way, I suggest you get down there as soon as you can and check out this amazing haunt. If you do live a bit of a drive from there, have dinner at Old Town afterwards to make it worth your while.

AppleAreGood's Overall Review of Halloween Horror Nights 2011

Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios, the Western United States' premier Halloween event, has returned for the 2011 haunting season--except this time, the event has grown to seven haunted attractions since its return in 2006. Though it may be bigger than ever before, is it actually better?

First of all, what I like about this year is how they have expanded their horizons by delivering original content to the variety of haunted attractions. The wonderful thing about original theming is that the haunted house designers are not restricted to just scenes in a movie. Though in certain cases, they may be able to "go outside the box" and do some original scenes specifically for the house (Just like they did with Hostel), they have to abide by the film's world and stay within that realm; this gives patrons a sense of predictability before they enter. With original theming, the designers are free to do the sets and scenes the way they want.

Secondly, This year has the most diverse line-up by far. When I go to an event like Halloween Horror Nights, I not only want to get a good scare, but to be immersed in rich, detailed environments to escape reality; just as if I were in a horror movie. With places ranging from a haunted Mexican village to a ruined Antarctic research outpost containing a loose space alien, this event provides great diversity. In fact, this year is so diverse, I fear we may not have another year with this much variety in quite a while.

With Universal's Halloween Horror Nights stepping up their game this year, there are some flaws that need to be addressed. The scarezones feel like complete rehashes of past ones and are really nothing new. Same old props and some new costumes. After seeing how Halloween Horror Nights Orlando's scarezones look, the ones here need improvement...very badly. Secondly, the Terror Tram is has grown stale and repetitive. The attraction really needs to be relocated somewhere else on the backlot in order to stay fresh. Maybe next year they can utilize Six-Points Texas or Little Europe. If they do insist on keeping the trail at the same location, at least be creative and add some more sets, mini mazes, or anything of that sort. Another thing that bothered me was the return of House of 1000 Corpses. I will admit I had a good time experiencing that house once again this year, it was disappointing to do all of these new haunted houses and then go through a repeat from last year. Though the repeat is forgivable since they have added a sixth house, I do not wish to see Universal rehash another one from this year. Lastly, the House of Horrors overlay feels like the same thing as it always has been. To be fair, I will give the designers some credit for putting some effort into adding some things, but the house needs to be redressed.  Hopefully in the future they will add more sets, props, effects and lighting to the overlay without having to interfere with the daytime experience.

Despite the event's flaws, 2011 is Universal's best year for Halloween Horror Nights. With its improvement on variety, originality, and diversity, this event sets itself apart from all of the other years it's been around. Anybody who enjoys horror, haunted houses, or even Halloween Horror Nights should not miss out on this year.