ScreamPark-“A Haunted Park of Terror”
Genre: Haunted Theme Park
Location: 903 Manchester Street
Lexington, KY
Runtime: Over 30 min
Website: www.scarylexington.com
ScreamPark is back for its second year of preying on your fears. When we parked the car we noticed right away that a new electric sign is being used to point the way to ScreamPark. Last year it was very confusing as to where to go, but now it’s very apparent where the haunt is. The new sign is great, but adding eye catching Halloween props on both sides of it would help people realize that this is a haunted attraction. Advertising that the cost is only $16 for 3 haunts would also help bring a larger crowd. We walked down the hill and entered the ScreamPark building. We were ready to get the pissed scared out of us. Are you ready?
Scroll down the page to read individual reviews of each haunt.
Castle of Fear-“The Dungeon Dwellers Wait.”
Genre: Haunted House
Runtime: 10-12 min
Location: 903 Manchester Street
Lexington, KY
Website: www.scarylexington.com
Evil dwells in this Castle of Fear. No one dares to enter its doors because they may become its next prisoner. Are you ready to step back into medieval times and risk your life in the pursuit of fear? This is Castle of Fear and you will never be the same after you exit.
What’s Good About The Haunt?
Castle of Fear is a high quality attraction. It reminds me of a haunt you would experience at Kings Island Halloween Haunt. The walls are realistic and detailed and the lighting is some of the best you’ll experience at any haunt in Kentucky. Castle of Fear uses what is known as Mini Spot Lights (companies: Darklight, Mini Spot Lights). These are small led spotlights that use very vibrant colors and can be easily hidden in scenes. They also last much longer than traditional lights. They are well worth the small amount of money invested. Great lighting is what really brings a scene to life.
Scenes you’ll experience involve a large graveyard, a mummy’s tomb, various corridors, castle dungeons and more. The majority of rooms are decorated with some great props from Unit 70 Studios in Columbus, OH. This includes dungeon creatures, skeleton warriors and a few animated surprises. These great detailed props blend in with scenes perfectly.
Not only are the props great, the actors are also exceptional. Most wear elaborate costumes and look like they are straight out of medieval times. The best costume of the night goes to the actor who wears a silicone Orlock mask from the company Composite Effects. Silicone masks have only been used for a few years in haunts, but are great if a haunt wants an character to have a realistic look while not having to spend hours in a makeup chair. The actors are the highlight of Castle of Fear.
What’s Bad About The Haunt?
Castle of Fear is a short haunt lasting around 10 minutes. It’s a quality attraction, but most people will want more after they exit. The actors are also great, but the timing was off just a bit. I was only with another person and they seemed to target the person behind me instead of scaring the middle where they would be able to startle both people at the same time. Considering it was their opening night, I’m sure this problem will be fixed.
Many of the scenes are highly detailed, but aren’t exactly innovative or surprising. Numerous times I came across a room that had great looking walls and exceptional lighting, but lacked decor or anything that was really eye catching. The addition of some animatronics in a few lackluster scenes would help alot. A room that needs some big improvement is Castle of Fear’s Graveyard. It’s large and full of great tombstones, but much more could be done to make this scene more realistic.
The addition of a low lying fog chiller would add some much needed fog to make the graveyard more spooky and intimidating. Sounds of crickets chirping and howling wind would also help improve the authenticity of the graveyard. To make this room more dynamic, a synchronized lighting machine that makes lights flash on and off to storm sound effects could help with making this scene realistic. I’m assuming that fog isn’t used throughout this haunt because the creators are worried that the fog will leak into other scenes. This is also probably the reason music is used sparingly.
There are a few areas that need to be fixed, but overall there’s not too much to whine about.
Customer Service:
The staff at ScreamPark are very passionate about haunting and are very organized. When you arrive at ScreamPark you’ll notice that the ticket booth is more detailed and includes an animated CGI ghost bust from the company Night Frights. TVs can be seen hanging from walls as they advertise for ScreamPark and its brand new T-Shirt. Club lighting flashes on and off as it adds to the haunting atmosphere ScreamPark is trying to create. Unfortunately the concession bar was closed the night we visited, but I’m sure it had plenty of good food and drinks to choose from.
There are also many more actors scattered throughout ScreamPark and even a unique costume from Nightscream Studios where the actor opens a door inside a huge monster head, sits in a wheelchair and then chases customers as He looks through the eyes. It wasn’t being used at the moment, but it’s still one of the coolest costumes you can buy. If you have to go to the bathroom don’t worry. There are plenty of port a potties outside with an antibacterial station so you can wash your hands.
You’ll have a hard time finding 3 individual haunts in one place for only $16. That’s a crazy price for some great attractions. So if you are low on cash and are looking for a lot of bang for you buck, then ScreamPark is the haunt for you.
Final Thoughts:
What Can I say? Castle of Fear is a high quality haunt that you would expect to see at a major theme park. It’s not perfect, but with time if could be pretty spectacular. This is the second best haunt at ScreamPark and an immersive experience that you won’t soon forget. Will you become at prisoner at Castle of Fear or wil youl escape in one piece?
Length-7 Design-8 Props/Animatronics-8 Acting-9 Scare Effect-8
Official Score – 8.0
Fun Facts:
*Part owner Tyler Barnett used to work at Kings Island Fear Fest and Halloween Haunt as a makeup artist and actor.
Insanity- “Don’t Take The Blue Pill.”
Genre: Haunted House
Location: 903 Manchester Street
Lexington, KY
Runtime: 10-12 Min
Website: www.scarylexington.com
Insanity is the most intense haunt out of the 3 attractions at ScreamPark. It’s a combination of a chain link maze and a twisted mental hospital. We were ready to enter the sick and twisted world of Insanity. Are you ready or will insanity take over?
What’s Good About The Haunt?
Insanity is exactly what the name implies. It’s insane to the tenth degree. The entire haunt mimics a run down insane asylum that has been taken over by the most sick and twisted mental patients you can imagine. You’ll enter various scenes such as a long and winding chain link maze, an X-Ray examining room, an outdoor telephone booth, asylum rooms with stained walls and everything you would expect from a mental hospital. My personal favorite is the X-Ray examining room. You’ll enter a scene where a cut open corpse lies on a hospital table. You are expecting an actor to suddenly emerge, but instead an actor’s head pops out of the corpse’s open wound. It’s startling and humorous.
There are many surprises at Insanity like a breaker box that pops and has blue sparks that fly off it. Insanity is also full of impressive props such as a realistic phone booth, a spinning vortex tunnel and of course Pale Night Productions Asylum Door. In recent years this has become one of the most popular CGI animatronics around and for good reason. It’s very innovative and a showpiece for many haunts. You’ll have to experience it yourself when you visit ScreamPark.
But not only does ScreamPark have great design, it also has a great cast of characters. They are all on their A game and never come out of character. It’s very refreshing to come across actors of this quality with elaborate costumes and great dialogue. You’re in for a treat when going through Insanity.
What’s Bad About The Haunt?
Insanity may be over 8,000 square feet, but the experience just isn’t long enough. The entire haunt can last 12 minutes depending on your pace, but it’s more like 10 minutes if you’re lucky. It’s a quality attraction, but you are just beging for more after you’re finished. Insanity has some great scenes, but there are a few here and there that are pretty lackluster because they rely heavily on the stained asylum walls as their backdrop. It becomes a bit repetitive.
Customer Service:
The staff at ScreamPark are very passionate about haunting and are very organized. When you arrive at ScreamPark you’ll notice that the ticket booth is more detailed and includes an animated CGI ghost bust from the company Night Frights. TVs can be seen hanging from walls as they advertise for ScreamPark and its brand new T-Shirt. Club lighting flashes on and off as it adds to the haunting atmosphere ScreamPark is trying to create. Unfortunately the concession bar was closed the night we visited, but I’m sure it had plenty of good food and drinks to choose from.
There are also many more actors scattered throughout ScreamPark and even a unique costume/chair from Nightscream Studios where the actor opens a door inside a huge monster head, sits in a wheelchair and then chases customers as He/She looks through the eyes. It wasn’t being used at the moment, but it’s still one of the coolest costumes you can buy. If you have to go to the bathroom don’t worry. There are plenty of port a potties outside with an antibacterial station so you can wash your hands.
You’ll have a hard time finding 3 individual haunts in one place for only $16. That’s a crazy price for some great attractions. So if you are low on cash and are looking for a lot of bang for you buck, then ScreamPark is the haunt for you.
Final Thoughts:
Insanity is much improved from last year. It has improved lighting, more intense actors and some unique scenes that set itself apart from the other haunts at ScreamPark. Insanity is on its way to become a classic haunt if the right changes are made. It’s definitely worth your time and for only $5.33 ($16 for all 3 haunts) you can’t beat the value.
Length-7 Design-8 Props/Animatronics-8 Acting-9 Scare Effect-8
Official score – 8.0
Fun Facts:
Tyler Barnett was inspired by:
Cydney Neil- Rocky Point Haunted House
Ben Armstrong- Netherworld
Kelly Allen- Raycliff Manor
Daniel McCullough- House of Torment
Larry Kirchner- The Darkness
Allen Bennett- Bennetts Curse
Ron Doherty- Frightworld
The Abyss-“Don’t Look Behind You.”
Genre: Dark Maze
Location: 903 Manchester Street
Lexington, KY
Runtime: 10 Min
Website: www.scarylexington.com
People have many fears. Some fear tight spaces while others are petrified of complete darkness. No one knows what lurks in the shadows and the tight spaces of the unkown and the creators of The Abyss know this. We were ready to enter the dark world of the Abyss and we had a haunting good time.
This is City Blood’s review of The Abyss at ScreamPark.
What’s Good About The Haunt?
The Abyss is new and improved for 2010. Last year the actors could be seen before they jumped out from their hiding spots, but now they are perfectly hidden from the public. The Abyss is also much darker and scarier than ever before. The actors are more intense and the entire maze is better designed. The Abyss is one of the better dark mazes you’ll experience this year.
What’s Bad About The Haunt?
The Abyss is a great dark maze, but a lot of improvements could be made. One of the biggest downfalls of this haunt is its design. It’s just not very confusing. A good dark maze has confusing twists, turns and dead ends. The Abyss is just too easy to navigate. A lot more could be done with this haunt and this includes adding the element of sound. Many areas of the haunt that are completely silent could benefit from creepy sound effects or whispers from beyond. Adding dynamic lighting that flashes for a split second would also catch customers off guard for a short amount of time before they are introduced back into the darkness.
Unfortunately because of how most dark mazes are designed, there are few ways you can incorporate scenes. If the designers were to add scenes, it just wouldn’t work. A customer would walk through a scene, get confused because of a dead end, turn around and walk through the same scene again. This could go on and on all night long. But just because a haunt isn’t able to have scenes doesn’t mean The Abyss can’t have things flying overhead. Not having ceilings can work to ScreamPark’s advantage since now they can have actors on zip lines or bungee cords flying above their customers. Adding this element would truly set The Abyss apart from many dark mazes in America.
The Abyss doesn’t have many props besides a long and tight claustrophobia tunnel, but this doesn’t mean that they couldn’t incorporate some frightening effects. Adding shock skinz that shock customers as they touch walls or spray people with water as they walk past a dark room would really make this dark maze something special.
Customer Service:
The staff at ScreamPark are very passionate about haunting and are very organized. When you arrive at ScreamPark you’ll notice that the ticket booth is more detailed and includes an animated CGI ghost bust from the company Night Frights. TVs can be seen hanging from walls as they advertise for ScreamPark and its brand new T-Shirt. Club lighting flashes on and off as it adds to the haunting atmosphere ScreamPark is trying to create. Unfortunately the concession bar was closed the night we visited, but I’m sure it had plenty of good food and drinks to choose from.
There are also many more actors scattered throughout ScreamPark and even a unique costume from Nightscream Studios where the actor opens a door inside a huge monster head, sits in a wheelchair and then chases customers as He looks through the eyes. It wasn’t being used at the moment, but it’s still one of the coolest costumes you can buy. If you have to go to the bathroom don’t worry. There are plenty of port a potties outside with an antibacterial station so you can wash your hands.
You’ll have a hard time finding 3 individual haunts in one place for only $16. That’s a crazy price for some great attractions. So if you are low on cash and are looking for a lot of bang for you buck, then ScreamPark is the haunt for you.
Final Thoughts:
The Abyss has improved since its 2009 debut. It’s darker, more intense and is all around fun. There are areas it could improve upon, but it’s a horrifying experience that has some hair rasing moments. It compliments the other haunts very well and is well worth your time and money. Will you make it out alive or will you drowned in the darkness that is The Abyss?
Please Note: Props are not rated since most mazes don’t include them.
Length-7 Design-7 Acting-7 Scare Effect-7
Official Score – 7.0
Fun Facts:
*ScreamPark has people trying to work out a college program that would allow theatre students to get credit for performing/working at SCREAMPARK. These would be everything from actors, make-up artist, house managers, “stalkers”, line attendants, concessions, etc. etc. etc.