2010 Event Reviews

I attended Fear several years ago when it was just know as the Shawano Manor. I must admit, it didn't do anything for me then. I'm just not a fan of 3D haunts. At the time, that was their claim to fame. This year, they advertise that they have gone back to more of a 'old school' style of haunts. Needless to say, I was very curious!

After you get your wristband, your journey starts out with a stroll along a wooded path. The tiki torches are a nice touch along the path! It creates a lot of shadows, and makes the dark seem that much more dark. There seemed to be only two actors working the woods when we went through. I'm sure this was because it was early in the night. I would hope that normally they would have several more, as there's a lot of opportunities to get some scares in there! Once you're out of the woods you wait in front of the house. If you upgraded to the RIP package, you get to sit by a nice warm fire with some hot chocolate. Not only that, but you receive a high quality T-shirt and there is a live band playing there. They looked a little cold while I was very content by the fire taking it all in. Despite looking cold, they sounded good!

The house itself looks great from the outside. It's very creepy looking as it hovers over you. Once you walk in, you're handed a pair of 3D glasses to put on. I was a little worried at this point. Again, not a fan of 3D. But my fears were scared away quickly enough! The first few actors were VERY impressive, a great little show that helped set the mood. There were many themed rooms, and I was impressed by how many actors they had in each one. Although there were 3D elements throughout the house, they helped enhance the rooms rather than take them over. We had many good scares, I loved it! I did not see one actor break character, they all did a great job!

I admit I was a little bummed out when we walked through a door and it brought us outside. I thought it was over, but to my surprise, there was more! As we started to walk back in another door, I turned around and saw many eyes staring back at me. Only a foot away and very quiet. Following us. Watching us. Now THAT creeped me out! I really do not want to give too much away, or is my memory blocking out the horrors we saw? None the less... we left the house smiling and laughing, thankful we made it out alive!

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This will be my 8th year visiting the ghouls and goblins at The Mars Haunted House and what I can tell you is that every year I have been impressed with the set designs and the actors performances!

The atmosphere starts before you even enter the haunt, the actors in line are ready to tease and taunt you to get you ready for the scares inside. The haunt does a very good job at making you feel afraid once you make your way into the first room and they tell you the history of the building REALLY being haunted as floor boards rattle violently beneath your feet.

As you make your way through the creepy hallways you can hear monsters lurking in the dark and getting ready to scare you. The great thing about Mars Haunted House is they build up your anticipation before the scare happens, and most of the time it will come when you least expect it! I love that the actors will follow you into the dark hallways slamming on the walls and yelling at you to make sure you are afraid, this is always that "little something extra" that impresses me in haunted houses.

There are very well designed rooms throughout the haunt that make you feel like you are in another world and keep you distracted from the scare up ahead. The make up effects and masks are top notch, even when they get in your face, which they are not afraid to do, and you see all the blood and decay! One of the best things in this haunt is halfway through they add a bit of humor to lighten the mood a bit, it is a great way to calm you down just before the last few scares! I recommend this haunted house to anyone who enjoys a great creepy atmosphere and good actors that are ready to stop at nothing to scare even the bravest of souls!

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Terror on Rural Street has always been one of my favorite haunts to go to. Right from the beginning they bring out the scares and the fun. As you are creeping around the completely dark hallways you just never know what to expect to be lurking around. From all around you, you hear whispers and someone breathing down your neck. They have different scenes set up bringing out everyones worst fears. Their scenes are also interactive making you a real part of the scene.

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The Haunted Barn is a haunt that I feel is a must see. This was my first time attending this haunt and I was left very impressed. The use of their space is simply amazing to me. They have you going in and out of building, through the woods, past graveyards, you just never know what to expect around the next turn. It truly makes you feel like you are inside of an eerie haunted farm.

The house portions of this haunt have very detailed and creative scenes. They had scenes set up that I haven't seen really anywhere else. There were monsters lurking in all the right places.

The wooded portion was one of my favorites. Although it did start off kind of slow it definitely picked up speed as you wondered further into it. As I walked further into it not only did I have the actors scaring me but the atmosphere did as well. There is just something about wondering in the woods not knowing where you will end up that has always creeped me out.

It isn't over yet when you walk out of the woods, you are then led back into the house for more nightmares that came to life.

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