It’s officially spooky season for us now thanks to the team at Scare City for inviting us along to their VIP preview night. It truly was a terrific way to kickstart our scare events.
We were kindly invited to the event; however, all opinions are our own. This blog will include spoilers along the way too.
Cutthroat – 3/5
This was a brilliant way to initiate the evening. The entrance is unique, with a slide! This is one of those mazes where you come across familiar faces from classic horror movies. We had a decent few jump scares. However, the batching was a bit of a problem, as it meant a lot of stop-starting, which made it trickier for the actors to deliver full scares, but this was sadly a recurring issue throughout the majority of mazes. One section that had me on edge was the Nightmare on Elm Street as the intensity was building and the group halted meaning I was right next to an actor’s hidey hole however nothing actually happened, and that was the horrifying bit for me. Freddie Krueger is truly my most feared horror character. However, it was fun and a great start to the evening!
Carnivalley – 4/5
This was really great! Last year the clowns were a delight as well. We really took satisfaction in the use of the old game stalls from Camelot Theme Park it’s just a nice reminder you’re actually in a derelict theme park. The clowns’ masks & costumes were brilliant and during the bouncy castle section, the scares came in intensely too. This was one of those really pleasant mazes and with it being outdoors, it was easy to get lost with your own group making the experience much more subjective too.
The Devils Orphanage – 2/5
This was our most anticipated maze of the evening but unfortunately, it just did not deliver for us. There are a lot of different levels to get up and down which caused a backlog of the groups making each likely spread out to around 10 people. The actors really did try their utmost best and it didn’t go un-missed but this really was the weakest of the evening. The scenes were well constructed, the facade was beautiful and it had a lot of potential just needs more spacing between each group. 
The Skinning Shed – 3.5/5
As you begin this maze you are given a glow stick for the leader of your group which is a fun but misleading way to find out what’s inside. However, you’ll be quite surprised how handy it actually is. The scares were really entertaining throughout by all means nothing too drastic. The way you lose those other groups around you in here is cleverly done. It’s a real great experience by all means not the most horrifying of this essence we’ve done but it was enjoyable nonetheless.
Rest Bite – Half Way Point:
This was very busy during our visit with the chicken shop queue from the entrance to the stall itself. It’s a lovely space to catch a break after 5 scare mazes and somewhere to have a rest after the queuing between each. We were kindly gifted food/drink vouchers we only got drinks as the food outlets were too busy. There’s entertainment in here as well. The roaming Jigsaw from the start of the event is within here too which he is hilarious! There’s music and all-around brilliant vibes. It definitely could do with being a smidge bit larger in here to help the crowd levels.
The Correction Ward – 3/5
The costumes in here were VILE and so were the smells too. The sets in here felt as if you were genuinely inside a hospital and the mattress flooring never fails to throw me off. I wouldn’t say we necessarily got many if any jumps in here not that I feel this maze is created to provide that given the sheer brightness of it. But it certainly delivered a creepy hospital experience beautifully.
The Settlement: 4/5
This was a brilliant maze last season too. The junkyard-like theming is always a pleasure and there are endless scare opportunities too. Each actor throughout here made it feel quite fierce. Again, the genuine setting it’s located within makes this style of maze pop off so effortlessly as the surroundings are just ghostly and neglected anyway but with the junkyard theming it just adds to it.
Thornveil Coven – 4.5/5
It’s a shame this maze was so brief as it was one of the strongest of the night! We got batched in our own group and the actors in here were fab. It’s all outdoors and it’s so spooky simply by the environment again, never mind the additional props and scenery! We had a tremendous surprising jump scare from the woods which I for one never would have foreseen happening. I truly wish this one was little longer than it was!
The Bunker – 4/5
It felt quite dissimilar to last year’s Bunker maze. The lift effect at the start really did feel as if it was a real lift with the wobbling and the screens on either side. There’s a lot of military shouting and rushing and it’s all a little bit feral. The finale is as intense as we recalled last year the actors are just too absolutely nuts. The strobes are really fierce and the noise is way above a regular level it’s all a bit chaotic but brilliant! It certainly gets you sweating from the sheer intensity!
Beacon Trial – 3.5/5
Again, the vision of this is brilliant. The initial individual separation makes you feel on edge as it is. Then again there’s that scurrying atmosphere. Each corner there’s an actor again I wouldn’t say we had any necessarily enormous scares but the overall vibes of ” run for your life” hold this one up for sure. It doesn’t strike me as a maze aimed to be jump-scare heavy more of a panic-and-get-out kind of style.
Overall:
This really is a fun and pleasant experience. It’s lengthy and there’s a lot to endure during your visit. The only thing that really could have been better is the batching and the queuing between each maze. Sadly, the group sizing and the prolonged queue of people do make it tricky for the actors to deliver and do take away quite an admirable amount of scares. I’m sure this will only improve the more the season goes on as this was the first night of the event so we’re bound to be finding our feet. However, each maze provided lovely sets and the actors/actresses all looked insane. The makeup, costumes, and masks were all absolutely disgusting but well done. This will always be an outstanding concept with the continued mazes then a break then continue. We had a really fun time and it was a delightful way to start our scare season.
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A massive thank you to the team for having us! We really did have a brilliant time as always.
Thank you for reading and the next scare event blog will be from Alton Towers Scarefest!
