| rev:text
| - (10/05/12) Hmmmm, where to start....how about; is it worth the price? I'd say due to the attention to detail, the special effects, the quality of the actors; yes probably. It's not something that I'd want to do every month. But for the 20 minute tour, the quality of the haunted house is worth checking out. We went early (about 7:30p) and there was absolutely no wait. We were also a small group of 5 people.
First I'll do the bad critique: I'm saying this only because of what I was EXPECTING. The back story on the website is great but it didn't carry through into the rest of the scare. There are a couple newspaper type stories and pictures posted (about 4) that you can read while waiting in line that explain the details of the back story and set the mood. There wasn't a line, so we read them pretty quick- don't miss the special effect! The first room even goes through a quick talk about the couple that owned the place with portraits of them (The 'situation' was supposed to have taken place in the past yet the pictures were modern looking - oops!). There could've been MORE set up in the queue area to really set the stage of the run down casino/hotel.Just a little more is needed to set the stage and the mood. Something to prepare your chills and make it seem like you're taking a real museum tour before things 'go suddenly wrong'. It just wasn't a complete set up. We never did get to see anything about the family that used to run the hotel/casino, only the workers. The final story you read while waiting in line is about 'vicious vic' who is missing...so I half expected to see him in the house, nope. Too bad, it could have been an excellent turning point for the 'tour'. So basically the back story doesn't quite match inside, aside from people getting dismembered and eaten. If the owners were doing the killings and are now dead (except for Vic) then who are these people doing the killings? Ok, I'm being over analytical; but this is the kind of detailed stuff that makes me crazy. Oh and there is no climatic finale room...No final 'guy with a chainsaw' so to speak. They need to work on the lighting...it was lit like a movie set and not like a stage set. This is a minor complaint, but the lighting needs better direction and could really add some theatrics to an already well done environment.
Was it scary? No, but I rarely find haunted houses scary. Did I jump? Yes, once Intriguing? very much so. Bloody? oh my yes. I'm not going to give away much about the scares. I want you to have your own experience.
How about the good stuff? The attention to room detail; wonderful. Everything from the chandelier in the foyer to the wallpaper in the lounge at the exit. Don't forget to wash your hands in the bathroom! The elevator is great fun. After the elevator, the first two rooms were probably the creepiest to me- very fun. The first two 'rooms' were disorienting and a great way to get everyone on edge. During the walk through, you are literally in the middle of everything- just stay on and follow the narrow path. Take your time and take it slow; enjoy the scenery, the actors, the special effects, and all the humor thrown in. There is stuff everywhere. There are people EVERYWHERE and anywhere...are they real? Are they fake? You never know. You will probably miss some things on the first go- From phantoms breaking through the glass in a slot machine to a severed hand pointing from the sign that says "report all injuries".
The makeup is excellent (though I wish they would actually bite and tear off flesh from each other, instead of just pretending to- but that is another of my 'things' that make me crazy). The special effects are simple yet highly effective. The rooms give you a feeling of total immersion into each scene. Did I mention the amount of blood? ;) The actors were 95% perfect, which is difficult to do. There was one zombie girl in the mall area who was damn near wonderful and Bloody Mary in the front bar that was entertaining, the buffet chef, there was so many fun people...(can't really mention much more without giving it away!)
Would I recommend it? definitely yes. Give it a go, especially if you can find a groupon or discount. I'm almost interested to go again after Halloween, to see how each visit varies. I am also interested to see how it evolves and changes over time; after all it is a year round attraction. We know that the Stratosphere got rid of the rollercoaster because people didn't have a need to go on it more than once, The shows have to change and evolve to keep upgrading, so what will happen after everyone's 'been there and done that'? I wish them well because I had a very fun time. Please go check it out and let me know what YOU thought? I'm keeping an eye on them because I hope they do well.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)
![[cxml]](/fct/images/cxml_doc.png)
![[csv]](/fct/images/csv_doc.png)
![[text]](/fct/images/ntriples_doc.png)
![[turtle]](/fct/images/n3turtle_doc.png)
![[ld+json]](/fct/images/jsonld_doc.png)
![[rdf+json]](/fct/images/json_doc.png)
![[rdf+xml]](/fct/images/xml_doc.png)
![[atom+xml]](/fct/images/atom_doc.png)
![[html]](/fct/images/html_doc.png)