Haunted Attractions & Horror Galore Podcast (HAHGP)

Podcast E9 Sanctum of Horror, The Slaughterhouse & Scarizona Scaregrounds AZ Review 2023

Episode Summary

Haunted Attraction Review of Sanctum of Horror, The Slaughterhouse & Scarizona Scaregrounds Arizona 2023. Special Guest David Reeve. We go through each attraction and do Pluses and Deltas for each part and if this is a hit-or-miss haunted attraction this year. People share the pluses from the event—what went well and should be continued or taken further going forward—and the deltas, or what they would recommend changing for future events. https://www.sanctumofhorror.com/ https://slaughterhousetucson.com/ https://scarizona.com/ usahauntsearch.com hallozona.com https://qrco.de/beJjEa

Episode Notes

https://www.sanctumofhorror.com/

https://slaughterhousetucson.com/

https://scarizona.com/

usahauntsearch.com

hallozona.com

https://qrco.de/beJjEa

https://fearfarm.com/

https://13thflooraz.com/

usahauntsearch.com

hallozona.com

https://qrco.de/beJjEa

Episode Transcription

Syd (00:02.168)

All right. So we talked about the Midway and how horrible their icons were and how great that was. But now we're going to talk about actually entering. So once you finally actually get inside the attraction, let me just say this. When we were waiting in line, I was watching the employees that ticket take or check your tickets or whatever it is. And they were yawning.

David (00:29.898)

which was four times.

Syd (00:31.428)

Yeah, they were yawning a lot. They did not look like they wanted to be there. They were yawning. They looked bored out of like, they look bored out of their minds. So this is your staff before you even enter. And this is what they look like. Cause there was two girls there in the doorway. And then there was one guy that was like in front of the line who would let you in. He was okay. He was interactive and David asked him some questions and stuff.

He talked and he was a nice guy, but the other girls they just didn't want to be there You could tell they didn't want to be there you felt they didn't want to be there again, so Just like I said from coming in to this attraction Piss-and-shit Bo and then the staff is not even wanting to be there That's all what you come in contact with before you even enter the haunt so then we finally get into the haunted attraction or what they call and you go

David (01:16.743)

So, I'm going to go ahead and start the presentation. first item, which is the

Syd (01:26.096)

You're still in line in a way, but now you're going into a little room. They had about five or six of them. These little rooms that you went in and each room looked identical. They had a camera person and then they had a wall that was kind of painted or whatever, and then they had a door with a bunch of wives coming out that looked like zombie arms. Each one of these rooms looked exactly the same and your group gets split into these rooms, you go into one of the rooms and then they take your photo.

Rob Zombie did something like this, but they actually had an air cannon and stuff. And it was more interactive. Like the photo opportunity was a whole lot better than what they did. So me and David are standing there and the girls, you know, Oh, whatever. And she takes a couple of shots. And then David asked how much are the photos? And she's like, I think they're like five to $10. And we'll tell you that later. They were not. So then after that, then you go back.

Oh yeah, and they check your ticket three times because the guy checked our tickets and those two girls checked our tickets. And then right after we get our photo taken, we get in another line and this guy came up and he wasn't like polite or anything like that. He's just like, can I check your tickets? And me and David were like, again? It was like, you guys have already checked them twice. How many times do you have to check the damn tickets? Come on.

So me and him had to get in our pockets. Cause again, we thought we were entering the haunts. So we put our phones and stuff away. So now we have to get our phones back out and open them and find the freaking RQ code and all that. He looked at David's and he didn't barely even look at mine. And I was like, so I kind of looked at David and I was like, what really?

David (03:05.384)

And I figured out what that was for, too.

Syd (03:08.401)

What?

David (03:10.562)

Your Fastpass or your regular tickets? When you got inside.

Syd (03:14.58)

Ah, well they should have done that out before.

That's stupid. They shouldn't have to check that many times. Or what they should do is some of those photo rooms that they have should be with a fast pass. So they don't even have to check that. That's just... So yeah. So then after that, then you're standing in line in this hallway. And again, it's painted. It's like a gray hallway with a red stripe or something. And again, it's not like over detailed or anything like that.

David (03:39.55)

and the immersion factor was pretty bad. You can look up and you saw all the building lights, AC vents, wires coming down for the electronics of the haunt.

Syd (03:57.784)

Yeah, it was, it was, it was bad. So yeah. So then you're there doing that and you're standing in line some more and you're kind of looking at the hallway because again, what else is there to look at? And again, it's not anything overwhelming for how long we had to stand there. They should have put detail or something. I mean, frick, we were there for a long time, even waiting in that. And so you're standing in the hallway and then they're there had like, uh, their orange shirts walk back and forth. And there was another girl who was an act, uh, one of her, not actor.

employee and she was walking up and down the hallway and again she did not look happy to be there She didn't look like she was having fun or anything So again, it's like why the heck are these people working for you guys if they're not even happy to be there What is the point and then finally you kind of go around the corner and you see? There's like a facade of a house or something. I'm not exactly sure what it was supposed to be and then on the other side It's just a giant black wall So we're standing there and we're looking at this and waiting in line some more

So since you're waiting there so long, again, you have the opportunity to look around. And like David said, we noticed there was wiring and there was things that you noticed. There was speaker wire coming out of the wall and stuff like that. So you can notice those things. And then...

David (05:13.135)

And there was a group ahead of us, you know, having fun taking pictures with their phones, stuff like that. Girl comes by, uh, put your phones away, you're in the haunt!

Syd (05:16.296)

Yes.

Syd (05:25.816)

Yeah, she was like no photos you guys are in the haunted house and again me and david instantly looked at each other and we're like We are Seriously, this is the beginning. I thought this was a queue line It's like this is if this is the beginning of the haunt That is really sad. So when she said that it just was like I was in shock. I was like, are you you're joking right? And me and david are just like, oh my god so she

David (05:50.779)

And this is a...

And this was a new thing too.

Syd (05:55.864)

Yeah, so she yelled at him and she had an attitude too. She's like, I took a photo and it was like, it was like, oh, okay. She didn't say it nicely or anything. And again, how are they supposed to know that was the beginning of the hunt? Because to me, I thought it was just a queue line too. Because we were in a line. So.

David (06:12.974)

Well, here's the thing too, because, you know, it's been several years since I've last done 13th floor when they're at their old location. But, when you went to their other location years back, you were outside in the line. When you entered the building, you were in the hunt. Here, you're outside in line. You enter the building.

Get a quick photo opportunity and you're back in a line.

Syd (06:40.72)

in a line.

Syd (06:44.272)

Yeah, so how was anyone else supposed to know that? And most haunts have a facade or something for you to take a picture while you're waiting in line. So I don't blame those people at all thinking that that's what that was because I thought that's what that was. So when she came in, again, she had an attitude or anything, wasn't nice about it, like, oh, by the way, you're in the haunt. She made a big deal out of it and she yelled it loud enough that everyone could hear and it was just like, okay. But as soon as she left, the people were back on their phones taking photos. So.

Whatever. And there was another employee there, but he was more monitoring, entering actually the beginning of the haunt. So he wasn't really paying attention or I don't think he really cared as much. But once she left, they did, they pulled their phones out and were taking pictures again. So again, their security is like, yeah, okay, whatever. But it was just disappointing again, standing there because yeah, they have this facade on this side, but on the other side, there's just a fricking black wall. And me and David are like, they could utilize this and have like a laser show.

David (07:18.478)

The Fast Pass.

Syd (07:43.772)

Or even a projection or something. They could have done something on that side of the wall. So again, you have you're entertained while you're waiting in line and people that would give them the oh-ho factor like, oh wow, look at that. They're they're doing a laser show or oh wow, look at there's you know, a projection. No, they didn't have crap there. So you're just standing there and then the facade wasn't anything that was like outstanding or really cool. And I think that was one of the new things that they added. And it was just

It was just like a, it kind of looked like an adobe church kind of a, but I don't, I really don't know what it was supposed to be.

And the lighting was, it was alright. So then finally we get up there. And I noticed right away that there were stairs, because you have to go up like three or four stairs to get to the little facade opening. So I looked at Dave and I was like, so this is not handicap accessible then because they have stairs. And then after that, then we finally enter the attraction. Took forever.

But yeah, then we finally get inside and it's just like, the first half of it was again, some more of the gray walls with the red or whatever. And then eventually you enter like a, like a, what was it? It was a bunch of pipes and stuff. I don't, it was, it was almost like a sewer-y kind of a thing, but I'm not sure for sure. Yeah.

David (09:14.558)

So it looks more like a sewer area, which is a new sets they haven't used before. So this is a new part. So you go through.

like a sewer type area, a tunnel, whatnot. And then you run up against, you know, there are some actors there, but again, not really scaring so much.

Syd (09:41.316)

Yeah, it wasn't, yeah. And then after that, you passed by some zombies and a clown or something, I don't know what the hell it was. And again, you didn't even really pay attention to the actors and actresses because they were just kind of there. There wasn't anything, again, outstanding or really cool. It was just kind of like, okay.

David (09:42.478)

The only...

David (09:50.925)

Yeah.

David (10:02.826)

Or there weren't any usual of your pop scares or anything like that. They were saying everything you're not supposed to say in the haunts. Keep moving, keep moving!

Syd (10:06.542)

Uh-uh.

Syd (10:13.412)

Yep. Get out. What are you doing here? Wanna play? Yeah, there was a lot of keep moving. And again, there was people in front of us and people behind us. And actually, it was funny because there was a family behind me with a little boy and he was five. And he was talking and interacting with me because he too wasn't liking the haunt. He was like, this isn't scary. And it was funny because he looked at me and he was like, this isn't scary and I'm five. He was really cute.

And I was just like, but he was just there and he was like, yeah, this is, he wasn't impressed with it at all. And he also noticed that a majority of the haunt was just zombie land removed. And we'll get to that in a minute, but it was just, yeah. So even they couldn't even scare a fricking five year old. So come on. So yeah, we're walking through and whatever. And a lot of it was things you already saw, but like the only kind of new thing was there was a giant spider animatronic. That was pretty cool. And then you kind of enter a spider web ish.

kind of haunt, but again it wasn't anything like, oh wow that's amazing. I mean the animatronic was cool.

David (11:15.155)

I mean, and it was old school, it was the old school spider webbing, which was just like a white cloth with tears in it.

Syd (11:25.36)

Yeah, it was whatever. And then after that, then you pretty much enter, pretty much zombie land. And that's what a majority of it was. If you've ever been to 13th floor, there's usually the 13th floor part of the haunt. And then on the other side was like the zombie or zombie land or whatever. They called it different things every year, but it was pretty much the same. So yeah, that's what they built. So...

David (11:47.506)

and Zombieland is what they built themselves for personal use.

Syd (11:52.932)

A lot of it was just that and again it was really disappointing and really stupid. And like even the little boy noticed that it was pretty much the same exact sets just moved around. They maybe added like some posters or something. But it was I was pretty pissed off because the whole time I was like are you kidding me? This is Zombieland and I know because I worked there. I was there the first year and I've gone through a lot.

And I know what zombie land looks like. So when we were walking through, I was like, this is just zombie land or whatever you want to call it. They've always changed the name, but it's pretty much zombie land. There was the garage, there was the gun shop, there was the bar. It was just the same thing, just put in a different order. So again, why did they push back their opening? That's what I'd like to know because...

They didn't add anything new except that one facade and the spider thing. Pretty much everything else was zombie land and a little bit, little pieces and parts of the haunting and, uh, rocky point. Like I said, the mansion and the graveyard and the beginning of the asylum and the pirates, that was all rocky point. And again, they didn't really change much. They just, they just changed a little bit of the, how it was put together, but it's pretty much the same fricking thing.

And that's what really pissed me off because it's like you guys actually have an opportunity to show us what you're made out of what you have, what you can do from scratch, and they use the same damn sets.

I'm just like, seriously? Like there was nothing that stood out that was really cool or changed. Like I said, just the Rocky Point stuff was cool to see that it's still holding up, but I don't know. It was just, they even had a swamp part and they had like the stupid walls. So, you know, it's like a maze, but not really. Cause you could see them and they have like carpet on them or whatever, so if people run into them, they can't get hurt.

David (13:45.632)

Not to mention, you know, some of the...

Syd (14:00.892)

But they had like, yeah, they had the swamp area and it didn't have enough fog. And it just, it didn't look good. And the actors and they were, again, a lot of them just said, move, keep moving, keep moving. So again, it's like how, they were more there for like, what would you call that? Like pushing cattle than actors.

David (14:19.962)

They're more for their crowd control than anything else.

Syd (14:24.344)

Yeah, like they weren't there wasn't any actors that really stood out and was like wow that was actors or actresses There wasn't anything was like wow that really stood out or they were really good in character or anything it was more of just again a lot of yelling and just get keep going and Literally, it was just like they were there to move cattle it was it was sad The whole thing was so and I was expecting to be disappointed but not this bad Like I thought at least we would have saw a little bit of new stuff

David (14:50.546)

Oh, they did do like a tipped over ship part where the floor went to like, again, a 45 degree angle. So definitely not.

Syd (15:02.288)

Yeah, like what they did with the Frankenstein. Yeah.

David (15:05.658)

Yeah, it's definitely not ADA accessible, but anyways, you have to like walk up this 45 degree slope, you know, which, I don't know, is not smart. They had an actor at the top too, trying to scare people. He even almost slid down the whole thing himself and had to catch himself. I was thinking, if you got like a teenage girl or something like that really good at this angle and they'd fall.

They would get severely, severely hurt, uh, spraying an ankle, breaking ankle. I'm like, WHAT?

Syd (15:43.312)

You know, at least I can say when they did the Frankenstein one, they had railings. So people could at least hold on. This one, they did not have any railings. It was just like set pieces that you kind of fell on. But also it was kind of stupid where they put it because again, you're not really paying attention to the Kraken, which again, this was Rocky Point sets. You weren't paying attention to like the ship and stuff that was actually kind of cool because you were just trying to get out of it because it was stupid.

And again, they didn't really have any railings or anything. So it was unsafe. And it was just, and it kind of didn't really make sense either. Cause it's like, why are we walking this way now? Like, I don't know. It was just, they just did a really bad job and it almost felt like me and David are saying it felt like they just threw something together like they always do. And that's why I don't understand why they pushed the opening back because all I heard is, oh, well we're, we're making it so really cool. And we want to, and it's like,

But nothing in there was, nothing except for like that giant spider thing. That was pretty cool. But everything else was pretty much exactly the same. And there was nothing that really stood out or that was really cool. So I have no idea what they were working on.

because like I said, it was pretty much all zombie land. They maybe added a couple of things here and there for detail, but it was the same sets. And I mean, even the fricking five-year-old behind me knew that.

David (17:09.282)

So, all in all with this particular hunt, and especially like, they had some pirates out front, but that was maybe like, 15% of their set?

Syd (17:21.392)

Well, that didn't make sense either. So here let me tell you what the themes are. Okay, so they had the Deadlands which is a Post-apocalyptic blah blah, whatever. Again, Zombieland and they have like a character that looks like a deformed mushroom thing I didn't see that character so Again, they have these icon characters that are on their website and you don't freaking see them So that was one of the themes of the Deadlands and that was pretty much all Zombieland then they have repossessed

which is a nun theme. And like they only have, they have a church. Once you enter the graveyard area, eventually you end up in a church and it's not like a big church or a big area. It's just a church. They have a huge animatronic and a person giving their baby away or whatever. And I didn't see a nun at all. David said he saw a nun. I didn't even see a nun. Yeah, I didn't see no fricking nun. So again.

David (18:14.338)

It was an animatronic or just like a... Yeah.

Syd (18:19.868)

Where the hell are your characters and why are you putting this stuff if it and again, so that's a whole theme was just that church area. I don't know that doesn't make any sense and then after that it's depths of darkness and that was the. The sea themed. Which again, like even David said it wasn't big or anything, the majority of the hunt was pretty much zombie land.

David (18:46.027)

If it was a-

Syd (18:46.256)

and then parts of the haunting and... But I mean it was just... So yeah, those are the themes for this year. So I did not see the main character for Deadlands and I did not see Hunan. I maybe did see the animatronic, but again, it didn't really stand out. And then Depths of Darkness, they have this girl with sharp teeth and I don't remember really even seeing a girl in the pirate area. So again, it's kind of like false advertising. They have these characters that aren't even in the haunt.

And the stories didn't even make sense or anything. I would say like the transitions were horrible then. Like you couldn't tell you were entering one hunt into another.

They kind of all just bled together.

David (19:26.443)

Nope.

Syd (19:30.425)

Anything else David?

David (19:32.942)

No, and then you go out into their merch area and whatnot and very little of 13th floor stuff, a lot of other merch. The pictures were actually like $15 and they even did it in such a way that it's like to make sure that you had to buy their picture.

was when they showed your group on a large TV screen to make sure that was your group, do you like the picture, blah, blah. They had watermarks throughout the entire picture, so you can even take your phone and snapshot it or anything like that. Which I guess, all right, that may be a good thing and stuff like that, but $15 worth. And.

Syd (20:17.272)

Mm-hmm.

David (20:31.35)

But all in all, we were in line for 40, 45 minutes and going through the actual Haunted Self, 10, 15 minutes.

Syd (20:46.896)

Yeah, and for how much, thank God we got them on sale. Cause their tickets, again, and they didn't go down in price or anything. So you're paying for less and it sucks. And the experience I would say is even worse than it was. It's like, it's just, it's bad.

David (21:06.002)

And lions going through so much that actors can't even do pop scares or anything like that. They just had to act like animatronics themselves. So I'm like, they don't even have to pay actors. Just give a lot of animatronics and send people through a haunted walkthrough.

Syd (21:19.74)

Well, that's the thing. They had, they had quite a few animatronics. Some of them worked and there was a lot of them that still didn't work. So it's just to me, the whole thing for how much they're charging and for how horrible it was, and it's just, like I said, it's pretty much the same damn haunt just rearranged. It's, it's pretty sad. Cause a lot of people that I've talked to are thinking, Oh, it's, it's moved. It's going to be brand new. And we're going to get to see these sets that we've heard that 13 floor can put out and whatever.

And you go through and it's the same damn thing. I mean, come on. You guys are world famous and all this stuff that you claim you are. And then you go through something like that. And it's like, you guys may be world famous, but not for what you guys are thinking that you're world famous for. Again, fear farm, there's no fear at that farm. And 13th floor should be called 13th snore because even your fricking employees were yawning and couldn't stay awake. So it's like.

To sum it all up, pretty much the first smell that you smell before you enter the attraction is how the attraction is the whole way through. Shit and piss.

David (22:22.702)

Well, I will say this, they did hit the mark for their target audience, which is middle school to high school.

Syd (22:34.18)

Oh yeah, again, you look at the demographic and we were probably the oldest people in life.

Cause yeah, majority of them is your middle school, high schooler age kids. So, but if you have, if you're someone who's actually looking for something that's entertaining and fun, I would say skip 13 floor. If you think that it's going to be different than last year, or if it's new, it's not, don't bother. It's not worth the money. And it's funny cause I even had one of their employees or one of their people attacked me online. One's like.

shut your mouth, you don't even know what you're talking about and this and that. It's the same exact size and all this stuff. And I'm like, first of all, I did the research and I know the area very well. And I live around here and I know the sizes and stuff. Cause I know and, and look it up.

David (23:20.971)

And you can go online and check out those buildings and they'll tell you the exact square footage.

Syd (23:25.828)

Yeah. And not only that, all you have to do is drive by with your eyeballs and you can see that there's a significant difference in size, so I thought it was cute. It's like, Oh, so you guys have your little actors or whatever protecting you. But it's like, I'm sorry. I speak the truth and your walkthrough is significantly smaller for the same amount and it is not worth what you're paying for. I would say your farm is better.

David (23:53.47)

I mean, the.

Syd (23:55.108)

and 13th floor, they both aren't that great, but if you're gonna go through one of them, Fear Farm is a lot better than over there.

David (24:01.966)

And not to mention the fact that their old location, we're looking at maybe 20 to 30 minute walkthrough and you're actually doing it in your group, however large your group was, there wasn't anyone really in front of you or behind you.

Syd (24:23.216)

Not as much as this one.

David (24:25.601)

Yes.

Syd (24:27.624)

Seriously, it was just like a line. It was kind of like a fear farm when we went through the The last haunt that they had and it was just a solid Congo line. It was the same thing And again, there was the five-year-old behind me as a little boy and then a little bit more behind us There's two little girls and they came out and even they were like you could tell they weren't impressed So you guys can't even scare freaking children. I mean, come on and children are easy to scare I'm not saying that you should scare kids because again, if you know me, you know that I don't like scaring kids, but

just to show you that even the little five-year-old behind me wasn't scared. And he's like, I've been here before. Because I talked to him a little bit. He's like, him and his family have been there before at the old location. Because even the dad was like, it was funny because he told me he's like, yeah, it was funny when we were going through. He's like, it felt familiar. And I said, yeah, because it was Zombieland. And he was like, yeah, that's what it is. He's like, it was just so even people who are just your regular customers even knew that it was the same.

David (25:25.874)

Yes. And they went from mediocre to less than mediocre.

Syd (25:25.948)

So, I don't know, I would just say.

I know it's like, how could you, it was funny because I am writing a review and I'm like, how could you, you know, go from being a really bad haunt to the worst haunt in Arizona? You guys did it. I don't, maybe that's what your world famous for is like disappointing people every year. It's like, I don't know. Or like, cause you could, you kind of could think how could they go any lower from where they used to be because it was always the same and no one likes it, blah, blah. So me and David are like, well, it can't be any worse because you know, it's

in a new location and supposedly they're gonna have new sets, no, they've actually made it worse. Which I didn't think was possible, but no, somehow they went from being a really bad haunt to probably the worst haunt in Arizona. It's like, how is that even possible?

David (26:04.98)

Yeah.

David (26:16.693)

Yeah, and I'll say this, like when First Chance of Horror first came to Arizona or whatnot after purchasing it from the other hunt, their actors were pretty good and everything was top notch and what have you, but over the years it just keeps on getting worse and which has ruined our

Haunt industry as I'd like to call it because a lot of people that enjoyed doing haunted houses like being a part of them or what not no longer will do it because they've just been jaded so much by this company.

Syd (26:53.04)

Yeah, they really- Fear Farm and 134 again, they're owned by the same company. And since they're like the bigger haunts here, well-known haunts, and Fear Farm used to be really cool before it was owned and whatever, it did used to be really cool. But ever since they bought it, it's just the standard of haunts here are so sad. And I mean, it really does it. It jades the company for everybody because again, like David said, actors and actresses kind of give up after a while. And it's sad because-

When you love working at haunts, you have a really deep passion for Halloween and haunted attractions. But I mean, I can totally understand if you keep getting jaded every year by not being paid what you're worth or they just treat their people really horrible, you know, and it's like for them, for people to give up what they love because of how they've been treated is really, really sad. But then on top of that, it just, it makes our whole industry look bad because

Like David said, nobody wants to work at Haunts. And there's a lot of people who are not even really going to them anymore here because they're like, well, we've been to 3Farm, we've been to 13Floor, it's the same every year, it's not good. But there are some good things here. There are good haunted houses and attractions that are in Arizona. You just have to stop going to the ones that are big here, well-known, because even though they might have a well-known name or whatever, like again, Fear Farm was here for a long, long time.

before it was owned by 13 Snore. And it was really cool, but it's just ever since they've gotten in, it's gone downhill. And because of all of this negativity in the industry, it affects everybody. But there are good haunts out there. So I'd say if you love Halloween and haunted attractions, don't give up hope. There are still some good ones out there. Just do your research, listen to the podcasts, you know, or look at different reviews. Go to...

HauntWorld.com, go to USA Haunt Search, go to Scarazona, I mean not Scarazona, go to Halizona, don't go to Scarazona, and look up these different, you know, articles and stuff so you know what you're getting into before you get into it. Because again, I don't know about you, but I'm not a wealthy person, I don't have millions of dollars to just spend on haunted attractions and then going through and getting very disappointed. So save your money and your time and do your research before going.

Syd (29:18.52)

Anything else you'd like to add about 13 snore before we move on? All right. Yeah. So to me, I'd say that's just a skip. And even though they've moved in stuff, nothing's new. Nothing's really changed. So.

David (29:32.113)

Nope. Yeah. And that one, you may just have it be this review for that one because unless they, you know, actually start doing something.

It's probably gonna remain the same too. So because like I said 13th floor for it being a corporation. They do not spend the time nor money to Change things up year by year. They just Pull out the same set it up. Okay guys already. Let's get our actors Let's train them somewhat and then let's make some money

Syd (30:08.868)

Yeah, it's not, you're not missing anything. Seriously. You're not. So it's, yeah, don't worry about not being there. It's, you're not missing anything. Don't bother. It's like, like I said, a lot of people are gonna go to it because it's moved and they're thinking it's gonna be new. But I'm telling you right now, it's not. It's, I mean, just cause they maybe added some posters or some little things to Zombieland, it's still the same exact thing.

So yeah, so our next one, and we went from like two really bad haunts to now getting just some good ones, like I said, so this is good. So our next one is Sanctum of Horror, which is a really good haunt. And like I said, we're going to break it down. So we'll go ahead and talk about the Midway first. And we'll do plusses on the Midway first. So for the Midway, it's really good. They have lighting. They've...

I know previous years they didn't have lighting and signage and stuff, well they've changed that so they do have signage, they have lighting. Sanctum of Horror almost is like going up the hill every year. It's just getting better and better. They have vendors out there, I believe they even had food out there. They have the ticket box office and they have now a new escape game that you can play.

David (31:25.021)

I'm going to go ahead and turn it over to you. So, I'm going to go ahead and turn it over to you. So, I'm

Syd (31:32.464)

So they just, they keep getting new things. And I know that they also are working with, like I said, different vendors and different activities and things that they're doing throughout the month. So they're really, their midway is rocking it. The characters, when we went, I saw two, I think there was only two when we went, but they were really good. There was like a nurse and then like a guy with a mask or some kind of serial killer or something. They interacted with the crowd. They were approachable.

They stayed in character. They came up to people, everybody, even if they couldn't scare you, they interacted with you. So they're midway actors, know what they're doing. The costumes are great, the makeup was great. The acting was fantastic. So they did have some entertainment. And not only that, they also have a stage. Then they have every, I don't know, maybe 15, 20 minutes, something like that. They have a little show that goes, and there's a drummer and he plays along.

to some cool music and again the song choices are really good it's like Halloween themed and Rob Zombie stuff like that. So there's entertainment why is there and you can the cool thing is you can hear the music from everywhere there.

David (32:39.311)

And it's... And they have a guy that, you know, does the drumming with the music.

Syd (32:51.776)

Yeah. And he's really good. So it's, it's yeah. Their midway is awesome. The ticket line is obvious. Their line is obvious. They have signage. It's well lit. They have facades that you can take photos of. They have photo opportunities. You can take photos with the midway actors. They also have some actual sets that you can go and take photos of. They have a merchandise booth where they have t-shirts of their stuff.

and hats and cozies and buttons and all kinds of things. And like I said, it's like every year they just keep adding and getting better and better. But yeah, the Midway, I would say, is fantastic. Do you have any positives about the Midway?

David (33:35.924)

Oh yeah, Midway is definitely, you know, with everything that they have going on there with the merch, food, and all that, it's definitely great. And you know, you can hang out there.

Syd (33:53.092)

Yeah, yeah, that's true. 13th floor, you can't, once you go through, you can't really do anything because, or I guess you could stand around the porta potties if you want, but yeah. Sanctum, you could actually spend some time there. You could play the escape room, get some food, look at the vendors, you know. There's things you can do. You don't just have to go home right away, which is nice because usually you kind of want to spend time, especially when you're with friends and stuff. You want to take the time to really enjoy your experience.

So yeah, I don't know if I really have any deltas for the Midway. I guess the only thing I could say is I wish they maybe was another icon character. But I mean, I don't really have any deltas really for them. I think they did fantastic this year in the Midway. Their facades are beautiful. They're lit beautiful. You can see the detail. You can.

David (34:43.821)

Yeah.

Syd (34:49.776)

You know, the lighting really sets the tone for the haunt. The facade set the tone for the haunt. So I would say as always, the midway to me is like A plus. They did great.

So yeah, so we'll go ahead and talk about the first haunt, which is Sanctum of Horrors, what you go into. And there's a story that goes along with it about, I think it's Lenore, something like that, the name. And you get to hear kind of, you know, a little bit about the story and all that. And then they tell you the rules and then they let you in. This haunt is handicap accessible. We were able to let our member that's in a wheelchair go through.

And they even gave us extra time and stuff. They were very patient with that. So it was great. The first haunt was, I mean, again, lighting was good. The makeup was fantastic. And again, kind of like with the Fear Farm thing, it was very cohesive. It looked like it went together. It was very detailed. The lighting was good so you could actually see the makeup. They had some great effects. They had amazing sets.

The floor was pretty leveled and even if it isn't, at some points they had it lit up so you can see. But I mean, Sanctum of Horror was just, it was phenomenal. The actors are great, they stay in character. Like I said, we were there a little bit longer because of the wheelchair. So because of that, the actors, you know, have to stay in character longer, but they did great. They really did. They stayed in character, they interacted with us.

David (36:07.81)

So, I'm going to go ahead and start the presentation. So, I'm going to start with the presentation.

David (36:24.244)

Oh no, definitely everything was spot on.

Syd (36:27.936)

Um, at one point there are two of them that were kind of chanting spells together. And I mean, it was just, to me, the experience was great of, of sanctum. What if, what about you? Do you have any, uh, pluses for sanctum of horror?

David (36:50.555)

uh well executed so yeah i mean definitely a good one to go to

Syd (36:57.316)

Yes, and building off of jumpscares, what I noticed in both of their haunts, they have really good hiding spots, but they also have distractions. So like, when you're going into a set, you're looking at stuff like you're like, Oh, look at that. Or you see a dummy or you see something. So your attention is going, you know, on the sets and stuff, because they actually have sets and things you can look at. So you kind of look at that. And then the actor comes from somewhere you're not even expecting.

So I would say, yeah, their jumpscares and how they do their logistics and their, how they build their haunt is really smart because there's a lot of distractions to keep you from not knowing where they're coming from. So I would say they, out of all the haunts, I would say pretty much, like with a slaughterhouse, they know how to place.

items and things so it gets your attention. So I'd say yeah they do great on jump scares and scares alone because you're always there was like I remember when we first walked into Sanctum there was an area and I was looking at something and an actor came out and actually got me I was like damn that was good so they do they do really good with um

how they place their actors and where they place their props and stuff so you're paying attention to that and your guard goes down. So they're good at that. And another thing is I love the ending of their haunt. Every year they do it. But I love the lighting and I just I love how they end it. It's just so good. I love it. I even told the owner I was like, man, I don't know how you do the ending, but it is fantastic. So yeah.

David (38:39.777)

Yeah. All right.

Syd (38:48.052)

It's great. So yeah, you don't have any more pluses? All right, do you have any deltas? I don't.

David (38:52.219)

Nope.

David (38:56.85)

A few deltas and that they are doing what none that I've heard from other people as well talking about it is one they are a Haunt that's on the smaller end. So it doesn't take much time to go through them and What not They you know do it on a parking lot at a mall

Syd (39:12.017)

Yeah.

David (39:26.454)

which is not really much like a delta, but you know, it just, it's one of the contributing factors. You know, and uh, they have their theme or whatnot, what they like their sanctum of horror to be, you know, with the storyline. And they did change a few things around, but if they don't change, if it's not, if they don't do it drastically, you know,

or whatnot or have like maybe cycle through several themes or several storylines and not to stick with the same one, then they'll do a lot better off because a lot of people who go and like, oh yeah, it's just the same story. It was only a quick little thing, you know, and whatnot. And I had to drive all the way down to Mesa for it, you know, kind of thing. So that's one thing they need to work on is having like several different

stories in mind and changing it up yearly even if it's like three stories you know if they just like okay this year we'll pop and do this one this one we'll go back to that one or whatnot changing it up so it's not something the same year by year would be great

Syd (40:41.328)

Yeah, I would say probably the only delta I have is I wish it was longer. Because it's so good.

David (40:46.498)

Well, like I said, it's because it's in a parking lot or whatnot. If they can find a better location that's a little more of a permanent location and actually set up a good shop, they would do better.

Syd (40:59.376)

Yeah, oh yeah, I wish I guessed I'd be my deltas. I wish it was longer because it was like once you once you like Get to the ending where you're like, oh Like I wanted it to keep going So I would say that's mine. So then the next haunt because this is a two-part they have um The breach which is kind of like a toxic zombie chemical experimental Haunt and again, the facade is beautiful. It's great

David (41:28.36)

So, I'm going to go ahead and start the presentation. So, I'm going to start with the presentation.

Syd (41:29.064)

And let's see, pluses, there's so many pluses. They do really well. The characters were great. The sounds were great. The, the lighting was perfect. Again, they do such a good job of directing your attention and having the actors come out at the perfect time. The actor staying character. And again, we had the wheelchair, so we were a little slower than regular customers and they gave us extra time. The actor stating character. It made sense.

I mean, they have some really beautiful sets and they also have some really awesome effects. Like they have these spider eggs that move and stuff. And they have a couple of animatronics that are really cool in there. They have a gun that I actually finally got to see this year and it was really cool. But yeah, they have the, I mean, I love both of them very much. They're both really good, but I would say the breach this year did really, really good.

David (42:25.718)

And a lot of their sets, especially the...

few that you know do something to catch the eye are in-house, built in-house and not like purchased.

Syd (42:39.852)

Yeah, yeah, a lot of their stuff. You can tell they put their heart into it. You can see it because the detail is there. Like I said, how they put the distractions. There's a lot of thought and care and love that go into these attractions because you can tell the difference between going through like that to going through Fear Farm and 13th Floor. You can actually see the effort that's put in and the love. And I mean, again, it's a family-owned haunt, so.

that makes it special than just corporation owned. But I mean, it was just, it was, it was just beautiful. And the breach was just great this year. There was even an actor that did such a great job that even got David a little bit off guard. And that was really, it scared the crap out of me because David jumped back and made a noise. And I was like, what the heck's going on? Because he never does that. So I was terrified because he was terrified. So I mean, it was really cool. Eddie was the actor and he did a great job.

David (43:35.517)

So, I'm going to go ahead and start the presentation. first item, which is the

Syd (43:37.936)

He always does, but I mean, he's just, they're lucky to have Eddie. They really are because he's one of the better actors out there. But it just, I mean, the bridge was great. The lighting, they even have a smoke effect when you're going through and stuff. So I mean, they do, they have great effects. They have great lighting. The makeup was terrific. And again, their timing was great. The distractions were great. That haunt, again, you can tell there's love in there.

Which is great. Do you have any, um, pluses David?

David (44:11.153)

Oh, like I said, uh.

Definitely a good hunt and the second one is in line with the first one. So you have to do the first one. You have to do the other one first and then this one to really, you know, understand the storyline and whatnot. But it is great. Very well done.

Syd (44:34.552)

Yeah, and he has to give a shout out to Eddie too. Oh, Eddie's so great. He's just, he's a big dude too. His size is intimidating. He's just, he's a great actor. And again, his timing was perfect. If it was a little bit, like if it was a little bit off, I don't think they would have got David as good, but I mean, his timing was, was great. I mean, like I said, their whole thing is really good. And again,

David (44:38.124)

Yep.

Syd (45:01.984)

I would say for me the only Delta is I wish it was longer. Because again you get to the end and you're like aww. Like you're like sad. You're like man I wish I could go through some more that was so much fun. So I mean yes they're haunt. Sanctum of Horror I would say is a for sure must see this year because it's fantastic. Do you have any Deltas or anything for the breach?

David (45:23.364)

Yeah.

David (45:29.052)

Nope, just that even though they changed a few things around, if they stick with the same theme for too long, people aren't going to want to continue going.

Syd (45:40.568)

Yeah. But it is a good haunt. It's a must see. I would say they do put a lot into it. And they have a lot going on this year. They also have started doing light on tours, which is with no actors and the lights are on. So for people who are scaredy cats or little children or anything like that, they can actually go. I've heard that those have been doing really good and even been selling out. So.

Again, they're trying to be more accommodating to families and scaredy cats and stuff. So again, kudos to them. They are pushing the envelope. They keep trying new things and they keep adding new things. So I can't wait to see what they have next year and what they'll be adding. So for Sanctum of Horror, yes, it is a must see haunt. You guys did amazing and a great job and we love seeing you guys every year. We can't wait for next year. So for sure, check out Sanctum of Horror. It's a good...

David (46:35.402)

Definitely.

Syd (46:35.696)

It's a good attraction. It's worth it. And their ticket pricing is fair and not bad at all. And I know that they do discounts and stuff as well. So just follow them and for sure get tickets to see them this year. They've been doing a lot. They've been at cons and stuff. And they've been promoting really hard. So for sure, check them out. Support them. They're a good haunt. So.

David (46:43.617)

Yep.

Syd (47:01.544)

Talking about great haunts, now we're going to go to, I would say, Arizona's best haunted attraction is the Slaughterhouse. Yes, the Slaughterhouse. That's what we're talking about next. Hands down, the best, my favorite. And okay, yeah, this is going to be fun to talk about. So yeah, their parking is a little bit difficult because they are so popular.

David (47:09.654)

past twenty some odd years.

Syd (47:29.188)

It's hard to get a parking place and stuff and it's in a little bit of a weird location, but whatever. You don't even care about parking because of how good it is, it doesn't matter. But yeah, the parking isn't fantastic, but you know, whatever. And they even had some charged parking this year.

David (47:45.358)

Again, it's one of those things too where it wasn't really meant for anything because it was an actual slaughterhouse. It wasn't meant for large parking areas or anything like that. More industrial kind of deal.

Syd (47:53.096)

Yeah.

Syd (47:59.48)

Yeah. Yeah, yeah, it's a very industrial area. So yeah, the parking isn't great, but whatever. But yeah, we'll go ahead and talk about the line in the Midway. Again, their line system is amazing. We didn't have to really go through it this year because we were special guests. But the line is awesome. Again, you get a text message, you don't have to wait in line that long, you get to go in and actually enjoy the show and all that. So

Again, Slaughterhouse kudos to how they do that is absolutely beautiful. And their midway this year was rocking it. They added more stuff. They had a giant game where you like kick a ball onto, um, like a dart board. They had some kind of clown game. I don't know exactly what it was, but it was something with lights and a, and a clown, and then they had their ax throwing and they had a, um, like a bow and arrow kind of a game.

And then also they had their escape room was back. They had one of their escape rooms that was open. They have the shop there. And then new this year, they had a giant inflatable screen that played different horror themed music videos and videos. And then it also played some clips from Ghost Adventures because they were on it. So.

The Midway was rockin' and again, they have their photo opportunity, their Midway characters are absolutely amazing. We love the one at the chainsaw, he's our favorite. He's awesome. He's really good at what he does and their Midway characters are, I mean, they have the stilt one. They have, it's fantastic. Their Midway is so much fun. And they don't discriminate, they go after everybody equally. And they stay in character.

And even some of the owners and stuff walk around with like props and stuff. So they even get into it. So the slaughterhouse is like a completely different feeling. I would say from any other haunt here, especially in the midway, it's more alive. It has a life of its own. It's, it's very.

David (50:00.348)

Yeah, and it's one of those hunts midway wise is.

You can go and check out their merch. You can go and play some games, get something to eat. And even for those who need it, they do have a little bit of liquid encouragement. So yes, they can sell alcohol there.

Syd (50:26.012)

Yeah, there's a bar. There is a couple of food trucks. When we were there, there was like a barbecue one and I don't know what the other one is, but they have food trucks. Like I said, the Midway, you can actually spend a whole night at the Slaughterhouse because they have...

David (50:40.47)

Have your kid go through the Salada house while you hang out in the midway.

Syd (50:43.332)

Yeah, they have a lot going on. You can sit there and watch the screen with your friends, or you can play games, or you can eat, or you can just hang out. There's a lot of people who will just hang out afterwards. They go to- because they're seating areas and stuff. And the Midway is very open, which is also really cool. So yes, that- the Midway is awesome. The characters are awesome. I don't think I have any deltas for the Midway. No, I don't. I don't think I have any. I don't- yeah.

I don't really have any deltas because it was just fantastic. I love, I love how they do things. I even love how they do their line. When, once your number gets called, you get in line, but it's not really, you don't stand there that long. You go through the old stocks where they actually used to keep the cattle and stuff, which is kind of funny because you're in line and that's where the cattle would line up. And so you're going through the actual like historical, uh, slaughterhouse part. So you're in the

you know, you go into the lines or whatever, and then you get your picture taken, and you get a card, and you can buy your pictures at the end. And it's a green screen, so I know, I think it comes with like three or four different backgrounds, and then you get them, and then you kind of get in line again, but not, again, it's not like, it's not a line line, you're not there for probably more than 15 minutes. It's not long at all. And then you go through...

David (52:05.771)

Yeah.

Syd (52:07.74)

this area, which is still the line, but they have, uh, like props and different things that were in the slaughterhouse. So you can take pictures of and with, and the time goes by really fast. And I think there's like four lines. There's like four entry lines and they'll call you. So they'll be like, okay, number one, it's time for you to go through number two. It's time. So, I mean, how they do it is so organized and professional. Like you can tell that how they do it is the right way. And they have been around for over.

A long time. They've been there for a long time. And the building, I believe itself, what I heard from the last time, it was over 80 years old. It's around 80 years old itself, the slaughterhouse. So again, when you talk about locations, they have a perfect location in a lot of ways. It's actually haunted and the history and just the layout of it is like perfect. So yeah, so that's the lion area.

Do you have anything to add about the loan?

David (53:09.509)

Nope, they have the line is spot on

Syd (53:12.496)

Yeah, they do great. I love it. Like, you don't even feel like you're waiting in line. Like, it's fun. And they even have characters that will even come out while you're in line and stuff. So, it's great. And then, we'll talk about the first part of the haunt, which is, um, like their graveyard-y area that you enter. Do you remember what it was called?

Syd (53:34.908)

Something with an N. Yes, there it is. So you enter that, and that's their outside haunt. And it's like a graveyard. So you're going through, again, how they place things are great. They kind of do the same thing that Sanctum does. They have a lot of great opportunities for scares because you're looking at something, and then the actor comes out where you're not expecting it. They also have a lot of boo holes and stuff, which

David (53:37.902)

Nicopolis.

Syd (54:01.444)

You will see the same actors more than once because of how they laid it out. The actors can actually move around. And it's, I don't know how they do it is just perfect. I love, and I love the graveyard area. It's, it's so cool. It's, it's an easy, in a way it's an easy thing to do, but the actors, again, really good spot on, and the sets are really cool. A lot to look at the lighting is really good. So yeah, the first, the first haunt is fantastic. And

I love it. Do you have anything to add for pluses for that?

David (54:35.068)

Nope.

Syd (54:36.02)

Yeah, it's hard to add, I mean it's just great. Like I don't even have any negativities. I guess the only delta I would say is the gargoyle wasn't there, but it wasn't his fault something happened and he wasn't able to be there. So it was kind of sad because I love that part, so I was a little bit sad, but I understand. So even though it's a delta, it's not really a delta in a way. But yeah, it was great. I love the characters. I love the acting. They stay in character very well. They follow you.

They, they, you know, even if they don't scare you, they for sure have the creepy factor. Because they're really good at doing the, the like behind you very quietly. And that's another thing too, is they don't all yell. They're not just a screaming haunt, which is nice. So, I mean, there's maybe.

David (55:17.975)

Yeah.

David (55:24.254)

And the best part too is the actors definitely know how to play the crowd and whatnot. Like if you're there just taking a picture and they see that, they'll creep up behind the one you're taking a picture of and kind of like photobomb be a part of it. And when the picture is done, they'll then do something to kind of get the person they were behind.

Syd (55:31.266)

Mm-hmm.

Syd (55:54.692)

Yeah, it's great. Slaughterhouse is great at a lot of that. So yeah, the first half of their haunt, the outside part is great. It's well put together, the maze is well done. It's fantastic. The actors are really great. Like I said, they don't just scream in your face or whatever. Some of them project loudly, but there's no just like screaming and yelling, and you can actually understand what they're saying. So whoever does their training and all that is fantastic.

They do a great job on makeup and it's just, it's like a well oiled machine. Every part is working perfectly together, which that's what you need. And then after that you actually enter city meets or the slaughterhouse. And yeah, pluses were there again. The slaughterhouse is just, it's great. It's, it's so well put together. It's. And again, the coolest part of it is the building itself.

That sets a lot of the tone and the energy is just the building. They just have like the perfect location. And again, they have great animatronics, the animatronics work, the actors were amazing. Even if they didn't scare you, they stayed in character and they did a great job. They had the creepy factor, they had the entertaining factor. It was just, again, lighting is great. You can see the makeup.

You can see the sets. They keep it dark where they want it dark. They light what they want you to see. So yeah, the slaughterhouse is just, it's amazing. The inside is just, I love it. It's one of my favorite parts. What about you, David?

David (57:36.7)

Oh yeah, totally, everything is all spot on. Nice long walk through. You're definitely getting what you paid for.

Syd (57:46.56)

Oh yeah, there's so much to look at too. Like I said, they actually still have parts of the slaughterhouse. So you're seeing history as well as, you know, the monsters, the makeup. So I mean, like I said, the location is just... When you can get a location like that and you put a haunt in it, it's just like perfect. It's like, it's just great. And then the actors... And you can tell that the actors really, really care about what they do and they put everything into it. It is...

so refreshing to actually have actors that have a passion like they do. Again, there's a reason why they're Arizona's scariest and best haunted attraction because they put everything into it. And like me and David will tell you to we're blue in the face. What really makes a great haunted attraction is your actors and your cast. And they have it. They have it like they're also very nice because we've been backstage and stuff.

David (58:34.446)

Definitely.

Syd (58:42.868)

They're all so kind and friendly, but when you see them in character, you would never know that. They're so good at what they do. I mean, you can see the passion. It's so obvious. Like you can feel the love and the passion and you can see the drive and the energy that they put into their roles and their acting. Like they take it on like personally and they have a backstory. Cause

When we are backstage, they're talking about, hey, remember your character's backstory. So it's like they take it to the next level in a lot of ways.

David (59:17.518)

And they even tell their actors, if your character doesn't have a backstory, think of one.

Syd (59:22.456)

Or they even say, come up to one of their people and they'll help them. So it's, they'd really take it to the next level. It's, and you can see it. I mean, you can feel the energy as soon as you step on to the property. It's, it's a completely different feeling than any other haunt here. It's like you, you don't want it to ever end. That's how great it is. But yeah, the slaughterhouse is just.

The city meat part is just fantastic. The boiler room, of course, it's actually haunted. So that room is always really fun to go through. And then that's the other thing too, is like when you hear stuff or you see stuff, you don't know if it's an actor or if it's something else. So you always have that in the back of your head too. Like, was that actually real? Did I see something that was maybe not, you know, on the other side? Kind of a thing. So again, great location, great energy.

And I can't give kudos enough to their, to their cast. Their cast is outstanding and their crew is outstanding. They actually care about everything running perfectly and they care about safety. That's one thing that we heard a lot about when we were backstage was safety, safety. They even said, know where your exits are, know where your fire extinguishes are. And they even said like, if you have any problems or this is that go get security right away.

David (01:00:24.991)

Yeah.

Syd (01:00:46.48)

So I was just, we were blown away from just how, how much they really do care about all of their staff. It's, it's so great. Oh, I love it. Do you have anything else to add? And I don't have any deltas for the slaughterhouse, except again, I wish it was longer, I wish I could stay there for a lot longer cause it's awesome. That's my only Delta. So yeah. So then after that, then you enter the circus, the clan area. And again.

David (01:00:59.844)

nope right

Syd (01:01:16.868)

Amazing. They did a great job and also the slaughterhouse added some new things this year. I don't really want to give it a whole a whole lot away, but they did add some new things and let me just say fantastic

David (01:01:29.923)

Yeah, the slaughterhouse is the one that once their season ends, they redesign the whole thing and build it anew for the next season.

Syd (01:01:39.16)

Mm-hmm. And like I said, I don't want to give away what's new, but they have some really, really cool new things. I mean, oh my gosh, and it actually worked and there's this one haunt that was known for what they added. But there's actually works! So yeah, it's again, must see they completely change things in the slaughterhouse. You're not gonna want to miss it for sure go the effects the animatronics beautiful.

David (01:01:54.38)

Yep.

Syd (01:02:05.912)

And the circus one is just as good. Again, they use the 3d aspect, which is really fun and it's a cool environment. They have the vibrant colors. They have the characters. They have the clowns. I mean, fear farms known for their clowns, but slaughterhouse. They have probably the best clowns I've ever seen in Arizona. So.

David (01:02:29.89)

Yeah.

Syd (01:02:32.4)

Maybe Fair Farm was known for their clowns, but I would say Slaughterhouse is taking that away from them because their clowns are fantastic. The makeup again, the makeup is awesome. It's black light. It's 3D. The walls are awesome. They changed a lot of stuff and the circus haunt this year. There was a lot of new set design and change and paint and stuff. It was, I loved it. It was great.

And again, the puppets, the animatronics, the effects, everything worked. The clowns, even if they didn't scare you, they had high energy. They were fun. They laughed. They said funny things. They interacted with you. I mean, like, and as a 3d haunt goes, it is, it is close to terror vision. It really is. And if you don't know what terror vision is, it's St. Louis's old 3d haunt that they used to have. And it was like the best 3d haunt.

in the world and I would say they're pretty close. They do a great job and it's hard to pull off a good 3D haunt. Anything else David you want to add? I mean, that one was, there's so much to add to that.

David (01:03:38.306)

No.

definitely spot on.

Syd (01:03:42.9)

Because they did, they changed a lot this year. Like we were, we really took our time and was like really looking because they, the sets and the painting and the light. And that's the other thing, they actually have really good lighting. So you can see all the details and everything that they put into it. The paint job is, it's just, it's so good. It's well done. Everything worked. I just love it. And again, they still have things on the ceiling, on the floor, everywhere. It's just, it's the costumes are great. The clowns.

Again, awesome. Great job. Actors are amazing. The crew is amazing. They really bring the whole place to life. You can hear laughing and all kinds of different sounds, even when you're not in the room yet. So you're anticipating like, oh my gosh, what's coming up next? It's great. I loved it. Again, the only Delta I'd have is I wish it was longer. I was like, oh, it's gone. It's gone.

So yeah, that was fantastic. Do you have any deltas for the circus?

Yeah, they do a great job. Again, there's a reason why they are the best haunt in Arizona. And you- all these other haunts that claim to be the best or world famous and all this crap. They're- Slaughterhouse has it and none of those haunts have anything on Slaughterhouse. Slaughterhouse is kickin' butt by far. And then after that, once you leave the circus and clown area, then you enter Apocalypse.

David (01:05:05.068)

Yeah.

Syd (01:05:17.404)

which is a experience in itself. It's not just a attraction. You get guns and stuff once you pass the first part of the maze and you go upstairs, then you get guns and you get to shoot at the zombies and stuff. But the downstairs, again, perfect. They changed some things up, I noticed. And again, they're zombies. I wanna say this year, my favorite part, because I've always usually liked the clowns in the slaughterhouse, but this year I'm gonna say Apocalypse.

was my favorite. The zombies did over and beyond great this year and I'm really hard on zombies. Trust me even David knows I'm not an easy critic when it comes to zombies because zombies are really close to me but they did great. The sounds were fantastic, the energy was there and it was funny because afterwards one of the heads of that area said well we were down a lot of people tonight. I didn't even know that.

You couldn't even tell because it felt like they were full. But he said, Oh no, we're down like a handful. And I was like, no way. Like I didn't, you could not tell. You could not tell they were down people, but again, how they, how they make their haunt is where actors can get to different spots fast and stuff. Again, they have like boo holes and different little passageways. So you see the actors more than once, but sometimes you don't even notice because

David (01:06:18.047)

Yeah.

Syd (01:06:44.764)

They're just so good. Like you don't even know I've seen that guy before. They're just, I don't know. The apocalypse this year was, it was amazing. I had my camera on me, so I didn't get to do the shooting part necessarily or a different kind of shooting, but it was great. I mean, I didn't want to leave. There was one point where all these zombies came out of like all these different areas. It was like a, it was a big room. It was part of the inside. When you get to the shooting part.

But there was all these zombies. There was one with a walker. There was some little children ones, or they just all came out and they were all going different ways. And I was just like standing in the middle and I was like, this is like one of the coolest things I've ever seen. I looked at David and I was like, it feels like a family reunion. I was like, it was perfect. Like I loved it. They were everywhere. You didn't even know where to go because they were just like, it was almost like a, like a mob. It was so cool. That's not.

You guys, the zombies, if you're hearing this, you guys did a great job. Fantastic. I loved it. I didn't again. My only Delta was is when it was over. Yeah, it really isn't. That's actually more of a positive, but you know, that would be the only thing I would say with, which was sad is that, you know, when it's over and you're like, man, but I didn't want to leave because the zombies did just so good and the soldiers did too. There was a lot of.

David (01:07:47.915)

Yeah, hand down.

David (01:07:54.474)

I don't know that's much of a delta though.

David (01:08:09.932)

Yeah.

Syd (01:08:12.236)

interaction and communicating with our group and talking, you know, are you going to survive and all this? I mean.

David (01:08:20.518)

Oh, and they play up the customer so great because I took my niece along with this one and she was just being snarky right back and stuff like that and they were loving it.

Syd (01:08:25.634)

Mm-hmm.

Syd (01:08:33.168)

It was great. It really was. I mean, again, from beginning to end, it was just- the zombies did fantastic. The makeup was good, the acting was good, the sounds- again, I was super impressed with the sounds this year. Because again, zombies, everyone thinks it's easy to be a zombie and they're all, it's just an easy haunt to do. But it actually really isn't. If you do a really good zombie haunted attraction, you can tell the difference and they did great. I- the apocalypse this year was-

by far my favorite. It was fantastic. And I mean, I would say the other delta is shooting them. I don't like shooting zombies, so I'm glad I didn't have a gun because I did not want to shoot them. I was more like wanting to hug them. Again, I'm weird and I really like the zombies. It's like, oh my God, they're so cute. It did so good.

David (01:09:19.782)

That's because she's always a zombie when she does her haunts.

Syd (01:09:22.664)

Well, yes, but also I'm just- I'm a harder critic because I really like Night of the Living Dead, The Old Zombies, and all that, but they did so good. They really did. Like, it was just- Oh, I loved it. I didn't want to leave. I was like, I could die here. I'd be perfectly happy with that. But yeah, they did change some things up and it was just- I don't know, it was fantastic. I just- I- Again, the slaughterhouse as a whole is just-

David (01:09:28.779)

Yeah.

Syd (01:09:52.828)

It's amazing. It's a haunt you do not want to miss. It's worth the money. It's worth the drive. It is totally worth it. Even if it's not like, oh, you're terrified or scared. It is so much fun and entertaining. And they do such a good job. They stay in character. Like I said, you can feel the love and the energy. Do you have anything else to add?

David (01:10:15.179)

Nope.

Syd (01:10:17.368)

Yeah, fantastic. Again, I am going to say by far, Slaughterhouse is the best haunted house, haunted attraction in Arizona. It's worth the drive. It's worth the money. It is a great haunt. For sure, check the Slaughterhouse out. If you want to be scared or entertained or have a good time, that's the haunt to go to. I can't even tell you more than that how great it is.

David (01:10:45.858)

Definitely.

Syd (01:10:45.892)

So yeah, exactly. So now from going to the best haunted attraction in Arizona, now we're going to another one that was not that great and very disappointing and that is Arizona. I would just call it Zona. It was not scary at all. There was not one part that was scary. The only part, I would say the scariest part of the whole haunted attraction is the safety and the parking, trying to get out.

But the Haunted Self, and this was my very first time going through ScareZona. And I've heard multiple things. So I didn't really know what to expect, but I was expecting a little bit better than what we came across. So we'll talk about the parking first. So positives of the parking was they did have people invest in stuff and overall I think it was pretty decent how they parked and stuff. Again, it was kind of dark.

And they did have a actor out there or a character out there that was going up to the cars and interacting and stuff. That was kind of cool. And he did a good job. So that was that was pretty good. But I would say, yeah, Delta's for me was a little bit dark. And Yeah, I think that was it for me. What about you for the parking?

David (01:12:10.172)

Um, well, the parking was dark. They did have people, you know, uh, do the parking properly. We're to make sure you got parked. Uh, my other Delta is they at least, I mean, yeah, the actors went out to the parking area, which is interesting in itself and could be a positive, but.

I also see it as a big negative because those actors go right up to the car before you even get out of your car. So that's extremely dangerous for them because you know you don't know what the hell they're doing. You're just parking, you're in your thing and there's this guy there. It's like what the hell? I mean it's... he could get shot!

Syd (01:12:42.704)

Yeah, that's a little dangerous.

Syd (01:12:47.636)

Mm-hmm.

Syd (01:12:59.632)

Yeah, and well, driving in Arizona is a lot scarier than it's ever been, so that's the other thing too, you don't know. But yeah, so the other parking, whatever. And then when you get to the entrance and the ticket part, the box office is like one of those containers and they just have a banner over it, so like vinyl. So I mean, I guess it was okay, but I don't know.

just whatever and then even if you bought your ticket already you still have to go to the box office because they give you a wristband. I did like the wristband idea a lot better than having to pull your phone out all the time. I did like that because they just marked off what you went on or whatever. So I would say like Fear Farm and 13th floor or anybody they should do that because then you don't have to pull your phone out as much because they get mad at you when you're on your phone so it's like they should just so the wristband thing I would say was actually pretty smart.

David (01:13:37.116)

Yeah.

Syd (01:13:54.84)

I did like that, but yeah, you have to go to the ticket booth to get your wristband and they scan your ticket there. And then we also were purchasing a couple there. And I also noticed the price difference. If you actually buy your ticket at the box office, it's a lot cheaper than buying it online. So if you are going to go there.

David (01:14:13.759)

Especially if you go to any Circle K and get a coupon.

Syd (01:14:17.648)

Yeah, Circle K and I think Taco Bell has a $3 off coupons. But yeah, don't buy your ticket online. I got ripped off. We paid like twice as much or we paid more because of all the freaking fees that are online. It was only like $27 or something for the ticket when we went and bought it. And when I was looking online, it was gonna be like 40. So yeah, get your tickets at the box office. Don't get it.

Online because that's ridiculous. They charge way too much and make sure you go to circle K or Taco Bell to get that coupon That's just crazy. So yeah the ticket booth whatever and then as you enter we'll talk about the midway So as you enter the midway, let me okay the positives about the midway

They had food. They had a couple of seating places.

David (01:15:08.716)

Something about food. Wasn't a great setup for food.

Syd (01:15:12.504)

No, it wasn't. And actually, we didn't really even go look over there because like it wasn't enticing. But yeah, they had some kind of food thing. They had the lines of the two attractions and then they had a photo opportunity, but it was dark. They had no lighting on it. There was like a really cool coffin car, like a little bug car and then something, another car. And you could take your pictures there, but it was so dark they didn't have any lighting on it.

They didn't have anything highlighting it or anything like that. So if that was a photo opportunity, it was done very, very poorly because you could barely even see it. A lot of people didn't even go over there. They just walked by because they didn't know that was even really a part. Again, there was no lighting at all. Uh, in the midway. And there was also very, very loud music. It was very loud. And even some of the speakers sounded like they were blown.

David (01:16:04.898)

Yeah.

Syd (01:16:08.756)

because they had that staticky weird sound like when you blow a speaker. But yeah, they had really loud music in the midway and they had a couple of port-a-potties and stuff, but there wasn't anything like wonderful in the midway. Their actors were pretty good. They stayed in character, their makeup was good, they had the false teeth, and one of them was a slider. He did pretty good. But again, there wasn't anything really like fantastic.

about the Midway. They didn't really have facades. They had the little buildings that you went through or whatever, whether it was containers or actual wood. They had vinyl wrapped on them. Everything was like vinyl wrapped. So I didn't really get any good pictures because it was like I wasn't going to take a picture of vinyl. Because also if you know vinyl it's hard to take photos of because of the reflection. So yeah.

They didn't really have like great photo opportunities or even the facades were really lame. What do you have to add about the Midway?

David (01:17:16.664)

Yeah.

Oh, not much. You nailed it all.

Syd (01:17:24.472)

Yeah, it was really sad. Again, lighting, and not to mention where ScareZone is, the flooring is all dirt and little slabs of concrete and rock and stuff, different rocks of different size. So it's not extremely safe. And the first attraction we went into, let me see, I have to pull it up because I don't remember the names. Do do do. Again, there wasn't anything outstanding where it was like, oh, you're going to remember any of it. So the first one we did was startled.

darkness and it is pretty much just a black dark haunted attraction. It was pretty dang sad and we also had a brand new member with us who hasn't been through a lot of haunted attractions and stuff and he also has a form of autism so

David (01:18:03.563)

Yeah.

Syd (01:18:16.464)

We were also helping him so he wasn't too afraid. But I mean, really, this was the perfect con to take him because it wasn't scary at all. The only, like I said, the scariest part of the first maze was the safety. The flooring was horrible. It was unleveled, it was unsafe, and it was dark. We did use our phone flashlight just because we didn't want to get hurt on the flooring.

David (01:18:42.653)

But you're not supposed to. They don't like when you use, they didn't want your phone out or anything.

Syd (01:18:45.092)

Yeah, you're not supposed to, but we did because of safety. And we mainly had it on the ground. We didn't have it like on the walls or anything. Cause we were just watching our, our footing because my dad also went through and he's older and stuff. So it's like, but the flooring was, it was bad. If you're going to do a dark like hot like that, you have to have flooring that's perfectly straight and slick and stuff.

You can get away with doing a dark attraction like that, but they... it was just bad. The... and you could tell, like, it was just black walls. They had some vacuum-formed black walls. And it was just... there wasn't even really, like, a soundtrack or sound or anything. They... I think throughout the whole thing there was only two actors. But it was just... it was... it was bad. It was not scary.

in the fact of like being scary. It was scary for safety reasons because it would have been really easy to like either uh, twist an ankle or slip and fall because again, the flooring was not leveled. There was even parts like me and David were saying that was like slabs of concrete and stuff. It was just bad.

David (01:20:01.576)

And stuff. Yeah and the whole thing.

not very well all that put together. They use a board for a lot of their flooring so when you stepped on it would cave in because it wasn't structured to handle any weight.

Syd (01:20:18.684)

Mm-hmm.

Syd (01:20:22.724)

Yeah, that was kind of scary. Whenever you walked on any wood planking or anything, you could feel the... it underneath you, like, not in a, like, oh, this is a scary fun way, but more like, oh my God, I'm gonna fall through this. So yeah, again, it was... The only part that was scary about the startling darkness was the fact that it was actually very, very unsafe because of how the flooring was. Again, you can do a dark haunt, but you have to have...

You have to have safety precautions and the flooring is not made for a haunt like that where they're at. And there was even a part where the, the ceiling comes down at an angle. So like, as you're going, you get, it's like, you're going smaller and smaller. And again, they didn't have any padding or anything on it. So if someone was running and didn't see that they could very easily just wham right into it. So.

David (01:20:58.634)

No.

Syd (01:21:19.12)

It was very, and it was funny because the new member we took with us hated it and even he said, this is just stupid. It's not scary as in like, oh, haunted house scary. It's scary more as in safety scary. He was not happy.

David (01:21:31.886)

Yeah, and it's also one of those things too where because of the fact that it was so dark and where their emergency exits were, you could accidentally go out on the emergency exits and not be able to get back into the hot just because you have no idea where the heck you're going.

Syd (01:21:42.483)

Yeah.

Syd (01:21:46.64)

Yeah, it was just, it wasn't scary. I mean, again, if they had like the flooring and stuff, I'm sure we wouldn't have had our cell phones on and it maybe would have been a little bit more fun. But it was just, it was, it was terrifying in the fact that you could get hurt. Cause even my dad a couple of times was, you know, struggling with the footing and stuff, because it was just, there was big rocks, there was slabs of cement. There was wood. I mean, it was just, it was, and again, they didn't have a lot of actors or anything, even just to help you.

or just to say creepy things. And again, it was very quiet. It was just, I don't know, to me it was like a very sad attempt at trying to do a dark haunt. And it was just, and again, there was a lot of missed opportunities because you had a little bit of anticipation, like, oh, there's gonna be an actor over here, or you're gonna hear something. And there was a lot of just nothing. It was just.

David (01:22:39.554)

Yeah.

Syd (01:22:40.356)

Yeah, and like I said, the new member that was with us hated it, and he just, he couldn't even understand that people would pay to go through that because of... There were like a couple of parts where there was light and some sets, but again, it wasn't anything spectacular that I even stood out or would remember. It was just bad. So yeah, that was the first part. And then the second part, and see, I thought there was more than two mazes too. There's actually only two mazes.

in this haunt so for 40 bucks not worth it sorry especially the first one the first the first maze shouldn't even count as a maze because it was so not well done and stupid so then the second one is mayhem in the madness and again when we entered this haunted attraction the actress was really good in the beginning she was trying you know she had good makeup and whatever she was doing the best she could

David (01:23:34.689)

Yeah.

Syd (01:23:39.816)

But again, there was no facade. It was just fricking vinyl wrapped on a box. It was, again, it was just, it was very underwhelming. And then you enter, but as soon as you leave like her area, there's a huge dip. And I almost twisted my ankle because I didn't know that. So when you're stepping off of that platform, then there's a huge dip there. And no one said anything, I can't watch your step or anything, or there isn't anything there to like.

David (01:23:47.63)

Whoa.

David (01:24:09.239)

Yeah.

Syd (01:24:09.564)

like light up the way or anything so you know that there's a dip there. So immediately entering the attraction, I was already pissed off because I almost got hurt. And then there was an actor there or something. I didn't really pay attention to him. Cause again, I was pissed. I was like, I almost twisted my ankle. This is not cool. And

David (01:24:26.538)

Yeah, I definitely, you know, going through that one, I did something to my knees and it hurts to walk.

Syd (01:24:34.652)

Well yeah, again, the flooring was pretty much, it was the same there. The flooring was not very secure, it wasn't safe. Uh, the second maze... Okay, so, well, I'll save pluses for the second maze. So the pluses of this maze was they did have actors and actresses, they did try, the makeup was pretty good. They tried the best they could with what they had. But, yeah.

We'll talk about that in a minute, but yeah, they were pretty good. There were some sets that were pretty decent. They had a couple of really cool animatronics that worked and they did have some good sets and effects. There was some interesting things in this maze. Do you have any positives?

David (01:25:21.966)

Oh, for the maze. It was a good attempt for everything. All the animatronics and what have you, and the actors did a decent job. But all in all, even when you end up paying $27 with the, you know.

discount and whatnot or the coupon it was you know very underwhelming.

Syd (01:25:58.904)

Yeah, it really was. There was a part where you walk under a car and they had some cars and stuff. Like I said, some of the sets and stuff were pretty cool. But, I mean, again, there was more deltas, I would say, than pluses. And the deltas were like, lack of lighting. Again, the flooring wasn't safe. There was a lot of animatronics that didn't work.

And there was like some really detailed sets and stuff, but there was no lighting, so you couldn't even see it. And again, the actors and actresses did the best they could, but with how the sets and all that are, it doesn't add anything for the actors and actresses. It just, it was like a really sad attempt at trying to do.

David (01:26:45.117)

Now.

Syd (01:26:50.636)

I almost feel like a purge kind of a feel. But it was, I don't know. And see, that's the other thing is like, you didn't really know if it was a clown maze or a junkyard.

David (01:27:01.92)

Well, that's another thing too I noticed.

David (01:27:08.166)

Uh, you go in to the second one and they're supposed to be, you know, like the carnival, you know, fun house is what it said on there. And it was very mellow.

Syd (01:27:17.342)

Yeah.

Syd (01:27:21.028)

Yeah, there wasn't a whole lot of energy. And again, there wasn't a lot of sounds or music or anything. But yeah, it was just very, like he said, it was very underwhelming. And you're just kind of like, and again, it was confusing because it felt more like, to me, it felt more like a junkyard than it actually did a circus-y theme. So again, the theming was kind of confusing and they needed to do something more to bring it together.

than to just be like, cause like there were some parts where we were like in a junk yard and then kind of a graveyard-y feel. And then all of a sudden you were in like a 3D-ish kind of blacklight haunt. And then you'd end up back kind of in the industrial. So it was, it was, I don't know, to me it was just very, there was no cohesion bringing it together.

So.

David (01:28:14.205)

I mean, there's a lot of good attempts with this hunt and whatnot.

in the grand scheme of things, it is definitely a lower quality venue to go to, which is fun in all of that, you know, if you're okay with that, you know, because they're trying, they're trying. But, you know, when you go to a haunt or whatnot, and you're wanting like...

Syd (01:28:28.369)

Yeah.

David (01:28:47.87)

you know, the best quality, say like how Slaughterhouse is. This one was a step above black tarps and ketchup mazes.

Syd (01:28:51.184)

Yeah, this is like complete opposite of that.

Syd (01:28:56.436)

Thanks for watching!

Syd (01:29:01.036)

Yeah, well, like me and David said, it kind of felt like a high school put on this attraction. But I mean, I've even seen high schools put on a better attraction than this. I mean, it was just to me, it was just poor quality. And again, I felt really bad for the cast more because it's like they were they really were trying, but it's just hard to be scary when it doesn't make sense. And again, they didn't really have like how slaughterhouse or how.

Sanctum has those really great distractions and stuff. They were lacking that. And the other thing that really, really bothered me was there was a frickin' ton of vacuum form wall. I mean, they painted it a little bit and customized it, which was nice, but there was a crap ton of frickin' vacuum form. And if you don't know what that is, it's a wall that you can buy. And it's pretty much, they can make them by like,

thousands and thousands of these. And they're made out of plastic.

David (01:30:01.323)

It's one of those things. It's a, you know, you take a plastic and you have it at a certain temperature and you heat it up and you press it against an object you want.

to create, it creates an outline of that entire object, a mold, and you just continue doing that. But back and forth has its...

Syd (01:30:17.58)

Yeah. So, yeah. So it's like they have a mold and then they just plastic and they, and again, you can paint them or sometimes they come painted. But again, it's just the same wall over and over and over.

David (01:30:33.194)

Vacuum form does have its places and is very useful and whatnot, especially for a low budget, but not what you would like to see in a haunt. You want to see a little more detail and what have you. And you didn't really get that.

Syd (01:30:52.484)

Yeah, because again, when it's vacuum formed, it's exactly the same. So you're just walking and you just see the same thing over and over and over and over. And they relied heavily on vacuum form and vinyl like banners. Because there was like a couple of rooms that were just vinyl. And I'm just like, you know, you can very easily paint something like that. It's not really that difficult. So. I don't know, to me, it was just like a kind of like a cheap.

inexpensive way of trying to do a haunted attraction. And again, I've heard about ScareZona and stuff, and it's supposed to be ScareZona Scream Grounds and all this stuff, and it's supposed to be really big and popular and cool. So the things that I've heard about it, I've heard good and bad, so I was kind of expecting like a decent-ish haunt, but to me it was just, like David and me said, it's like a step up above a high school put together attraction in a way. And it also seemed like they didn't have a whole lot of actors and actresses.

David (01:31:28.282)

I think that would be really funny.

Syd (01:31:49.552)

Because in the very first maze, like I said, we only saw like two. And then the second one there is maybe five. Maybe six, seven-ish. There wasn't a whole lot.

David (01:31:54.01)

Yeah.

Syd (01:32:02.76)

So yeah, I don't know, to me, ScareZone is a... It's not worth it. Like, I don't even ever think I really want to go back because it was just so disappointing. And like David said, there wasn't the energy, there wasn't the storyline didn't really make sense. And like when you go through the dark maze and that's the first maze you go through, again, that sets the tone for everything. So after being so...

underwhelmed by that and then also being definitely afraid for your safety because you don't want to you don't want to split You know like hurt your ankle or anything So coming from that and then doing the second one. It was just I don't know It was just to me. It was just it was a big letdown

I would even say 13th floor does have some better sets than them, but again that's mainly rocky points and stuff, but I mean at least they didn't just use vacuum form for most of their haunts.

Syd (01:33:03.32)

And if you know me saying anything positive about 13 floor is really hard. So the fact that I even did that is quite amazing, but yeah, I would say they're even a step up a little bit above scare Zona and that's a cool name to scare Zona and it just, do you have anything else to add about that one?

David (01:33:08.678)

Yeah.

David (01:33:25.103)

Nope.

Syd (01:33:26.344)

So yeah, I think that's pretty much all our haunts this far. We have Terror in the Corn coming up. And I want to try to hit some of the home haunts and displays. I might even try to do some of that tonight. We'll see. But yeah, other than that, that's pretty much our haunt tour. So I would say, in a nutshell, must go to is Slaughterhouse and Sanctum.

Fear Farm's alright, but those are the ones I would hit.

David (01:33:55.034)

Alright.

David (01:34:00.968)

Alright, I gotta get going, so... Excellent.

Syd (01:34:03.484)

Yep. Nope. We're good. You are good. So I will text you and talk to you later.

David (01:34:08.429)

Alright, bye.