The Terror Fest-“Blood in the Brewery”
Genre: Haunted House
Location: 447 S. Front Street
Columbus, OH 43215
Runtime: 20 min
Website: www.theterrorfest.com
The Terror Fest will be celebrating its second year in downtown Columbus, OH. For a few years The House of Nightmares used to call this building home and before that it was the haunt “The Bloody Brewery”. This year there have been many new changes made to The Terror Fest including a jaw dropping 3D attraction.
This is City Blood’s 2010 review of The Terror Fest.
What’s Good About The Haunt?
The Terror Fest is a large haunt with amazing decor and some incredibly detailed sets. The haunt is comprised of 2 different sections. The first is called “The Butcher’s Realm”. This section of the haunt focuses on many different themes such as a haunted library, an insane asylum, a hall of mirrors, a cursed temple, an ice box, various crypts and catacombs and more.
The second section of The Terror Fest is called “Brewery Butcher 3D”. The majority of 3D haunts in America use wall panels that have been painted to make images come alive. This is far from the case with Brewery Butcher 3D. The entire haunt is almost entirely comprised of props and sets that have been painted to make them come alive with the help of 3D glasses. It’s a real unique experience seeing large rocks move above a cemetery or see windows move by themselves. This is 3D at its best.
While you walk through Terror Fest you’ll notice that there are some quite unique props that can’t be seen anywhere else. Co-owner Keith Corner uses his skills in building props and making vacuform wall panels. He used to own the company Scare Parts in Columbus, OH, but now has a brand new company in Cleveland, Ohio called North Coast Scenic. Much of what you’ll see is made in house. This includes the brand new 3D Vortex Tunell that features 3D flashing faces. Terror Fest introduced this vortex tunnel last year, but it’s been revamped so it looks great in a 3D setting. The large realistic tombstones in the graveyard are also custom.
Not all of the props at Terror Fest are custom. This haunt uses the latest in haunt technology. This includes a tight Claustrophobia Tunnel from Oak Island, a CGI Ghost Bust from Night Frights, CGI potraits, custom animated creatures hidden in piles of bones and more. There is a lot going on at The Terror Fest. The decor at The Terror Fest will make your jaw drop, but the actors are what truly makes a scene and the actors at The Terror Fest are pretty incredible. Some use bungee cords to lunge at you while others fly overhead. It reminds me a little of the actors at Netherworld Haunted House in Atlanta, Georgia. They really are spot on.
What’s Bad About The Haunt?
I was put through the haunt by myself and I eventually would catch up with another group who walked very slowly because they were petrified of what was around the next corner. They allowed us to walk in front of them, but once again we caught of with another group of people and had to wait in between scenes because of how congested it was. This caused us to miss some of the actors jumping out and instead they had to scare us without being in their hiding spots
The Terror Fest has some state of the art animatronics and special effects, but with many of the animated scares, you are able to see their sensors which can be a little distracting. The sensor lights are dim, but it’s very easy to tell when the props will be activated. The sensors need to be hidden from the public in order to create a more realistic experience. People know that what they’re experiencing is fantasy, but they still want to feel like it’s a living breathing nightmare.
Customer Service:
I only have a few complaints concering customer service and the major issue I have with The Terror Fest is congestion. You might go through in a small group, but eventually you could meet up with a larger group of people and end up waiting between scenes. Hopefully this issue is resolved in the future.
$20 isn’t an outrageous price to pay for a quality haunt with two distinct sections. Please visit The Terror Fest website for $2 off general admission or $4 off VIP admission. The parking is a little pricey at $5, so you may want to park on the side of the street and just pay the meter. It saved me $4 and I was within a few feet of the place.
There are concessions available on site, but I didn’t notice if the concession area was open yet or not. It was very dark in that area. If it’s anything like last year, then there is a variety of food and snacks available.
Final Thoughts:
The Terror Fest is a state of the art haunt from the way it operates to how it’s designed. The price may be a little expensive, but it’s still well worth the price of admission. I had a great time and I think you will too. It’s one of the best haunts in the Columbus area.
Length-9 Design-9 Props/Animatronics-9 Acting-9 Scare Effect-9
Official Score – 9.0
Fun Facts:
At the height of the Brewery District’s success, there were five breweries located in the area. As the years passed, consolidation of the breweries took place. However, the market went south when in 1919 the 18th Amendment was approved.