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 Dr. Psycho's Haunted Estate is easily the most underrated haunt at Land of Illusion and always has the shortest line at the theme park. It's puzzling how the most high tech and over the top haunt is the least popular and has had the smallest ticket price over the years. Dr. Psycho's Haunted Estate is a true gem among the haunts at Land of Illusion.
Length-8: Your journey through the haunted estate will last around 15 minutes and after you exit you are begging for more. This haunt never lets up and always has something emerging from the darkness rather it be an actor or animated scare.
Design-8: Half of Dr. Psycho's Haunted Estate takes place outside while the rest of the haunt is inside an actual house. This is what sets this haunt apart from the other haunts at Land of Illusion. The first portion of Dr. Psycho's has you traveling through a haunted graveyard full of animatronics and pneumatic props popping out every which way you turn.
After you're done walking through the graveyard you'll then step foot into the haunted estate which has some very detailed sets with incredible lighting that dims off and on. Scenes include a haunted dinning room full of ghouls, a mad scientist's laboratory, a bloody slaughter house and much more. Dr. Psycho's Haunted Estate could be a perfectly designed haunt if more time and effort was put into the large graveyard in the beginning. It just feels that some of the graveyard was added so it would be a lengthier haunt.
Props/Animatronics-9: Words can't describe the amount of impressive animatronics that are in Dr. Psycho's Haunted Estate and they go perfectly with each scene they are in. The only downfall is that many of the props in the large graveyard are very similar and after a while they start to loose their impact and become repetitive. More variety could go a long way in improving the first half of Dr. Psycho's Haunted Estate. But once you step inside the haunted estate you will be blown away. Everything from a shaking Exorcist bed to corpses bursting out of walls can be seen. I would love to go into detail about some of the animatronics that you'll encounter, but I don't want to ruin some of the surprises.
Acting-7: This haunt's strong points are its use of high end animatronics and detailed sets. More then likely you aren't going to be blown away by the characters you come across. But that's ok since the rest of the haunt is that good. Most of the actors compliment the scenes well, but the impressive array of eye candy is the highlight of this haunt.
Scare Effect-8: Dr. Psycho's Haunted Estate achieves what many haunts can't create and that is the sense that you are in an a building that is actually haunted. Yes, the actors aren't very good, but this can be overlooked due to how great the rest of the haunt is. This is a creepy haunt you shouldn't miss out on.
Customer Service: Parking was $3 a car, but it all goes towards the Middletown Fire Department. The lot was large and seemed very safe because of all of the attendantants guiding the way with their wands. Once you pay for your ticket there are a variety of concesions such as fountain drinks, food, snacks and more. But it doesn't end there.
You will also find that there is a large gift shop that has Land of Illusion T-Shirts, hoodies, hats and more apparell to shake a stick at. But if you don't want to spend much money you can relax by the bond fire, play some arcade games or dance on the dance floor. There's always something to consume your time and the staff couldn't be any friendlier. Fright Value: Dr. Psycho's Haunted Estate used to be priced at $10, but this year the ticket price has been increased by $5 making it a $15 haunt. Although this is a great haunt, it's not worth $15 because of its short length and mediocre acting. You have to remember that if it takes you 15 minutes at the most to go through Dr. Psycho's Haunted Estate then you are paying $1 a minute which is pretty high for a haunt of this caliber. Make sure to purchase a combo ticket so you can go through all four haunts at Land of Illusion for only $30.
Final Stab-8.0: This is easily one of my favorite haunts at Land of Illusion, but nothing has really changed much since 2008. Most of the scenes are the same and not many new animatronics have been added. Either way you will be impressed by the incredible sets and animated scares at Dr. Psycho's Haunted Estate.
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City Blood-Ohio Haunt Reviews © 2010