- September 15th, 2012, 3:13 pm
#50054
Okay. I'm going to be as fair as possibly with these reviews. I'm very hard to scare, as I worked for SCarowinds last year (I will not disclose where in this review). Unfortunately, I couldn't return because I went to college, but that didn't stop me from being a guest! Anyways, I will tell you a bit about each attraction, what I liked, what I disliked, and a score out of ten. Remember, it probably didn't scare me, but I will still review it fairly. The mazes are also reviewed in the order in which I went through them, the last one being very late at night.
Defex:
This was my first maze of the night. We were greeted in the queue line by the Scare Force actor who bears a toy unicorn. He was quite entertaining. I recall him saying "I have a body bag big enough for each of you" as my group walked into the line. It was hilarious. The line moved fairly fast. We were waiting for a good 5-10 minutes. Seeing as how my group is a bunch of wimps, I went first. The thing that always bothers me is that noisemaker in the front room. Gosh, it was loud! That, and all the air blasters that attack your ankles. The partial inflatable tunnel thing was also awesome. I had a friend get stuck in it. Anyways, nothing really changed from last year. There were some new actors, and everybody did fairly well considering we were the one of the first groups of the season to go through the maze! Overall, I'd give it 8/10
Defex In short: Same design. Loud, but fun!
The Playground:
This is my favorite scare zone theme-wise. I love the idea of evil children. It really shatters the thought of innocence. The layout stayed the same as last year, and there wasn't really that "toxic" feel that SCarowinds claimed they were going to have these past two years. However, it was the actors that stole the show. They have a good balance of straight-up scares and back-story/character development. To get the most out of this area, do not run through it. Every actor has something fun to contribute. It looks like they really upgraded the props, too. Instead of having the shaker cans, there were things like severed heads with spinal cords, butcher knives, and fake chainsaws. Honestly, for a scare zone, I really enjoyed it! 7.5/10
The Playground In short: Same design. Different props and characters. No toxic theme evident. Lots of fog.
Mass Acres:
This is immediately across the Playground's covered bridge. It's in the area of the Boo Blasters haunted ride. Basically, it looks like somebody took the graveyard decorations from last year that generally go in that area and threw in a couple of actors. I was highly disappointed with the scenery. The actors were pretty good, though. They all had unique costumes (zombie chef, zombie cowboy, etc.) and all felt like they had a huge back-story to share. However, they didn't really express this story. They just kind of got tried to pull off some pop scares accompanied with some irrelevant dialogue about the person they were trying to scare. I'd like to see them get into character more. Heads up, you probably won't even realize you're in Mass Acres, but I believe it has the same music as The Cemetery if that helps. Overall, 4/10. It needs work, but has potential
Mass Acres In short: Weird location, too big, feels recycled, and not enough actors.
The Dead Inn:
I went through this maze twice throughout the course of the night. It was much better the second time. I could feel that the actors were getting into their groove. Keep an eye out for an actor or two in the queue line. After being greeted by the bellhop doorman (who I happen to be friends with in real life), we entered the maze. I don't think it changed a whole lot from last year. My favorite room was definitely the mirror room. I won't say much, but the actors in there were fantastic and they made my emotionless friend scream. Bravo. With that being said, the rest of the maze was just okay. There were some good pop scares, but it was nothing mind-warping. I thought it was pretty good. I'll give it a 5/10 for my first go, and a 7/10 for my second visit
The Dead Inn In short: Same design. Has good moments and good pop scares.
Cornstalkers:
A friend of mine in the group, a former SCarowinds employee himself, used to work in this maze. He knew all the twists, turns, and crevices in it. He told me that it was pretty much identical to last year, except there were new actors. If I had to take a look at it from a stance of somebody who never went through it before, I'd say it was pretty intense. It's definitely one of the longer mazes here. The actors were also really good. One actor actually began talking to us, which distracted us from another actor who jumped out. Great ping-pong technique. The people here really got into their roles. I thought it was a more positive hit for the night. I recommend you go through this, even if the line seems long. Overall, 8.5/10
Cornstalkers In short: Same design. The actors do a great job.
At this point of the night, we met up with the second half of our group at the entrance to explore the other side of the park.
The Cemetery:
This maze basically feels like an enclosed Mass Acres. I think even the music is the same as Mass Acres here. Regardless, I liked it a little bit more because it kind of feels like a maze. The actors, however, didn't really seem to care all that much about scaring people. They just kind of looked at you. I know this freaks some people out, but a lot of people don't get scared by looks. It needed a little bit of "oomph," like a slider, a bungee cord person, or some kind of extra effect. It didn't really make me want to say "Oh, we're heading that way? Let's go through The Cemetery!" It was just okay. 5/10
The Cemetery In short: Same design. Lacked enthusiastic actors. Felt like a confined Mass Acres. Nothing special.
Silver Scream SINema:
I really like the queue line and entrance in this. It feels like you're really entering a movie theater at first; there's a ticket booth, red velvety curtains, and a photo opportunity (a friend later ordered the picture at the end). Once we actually began the maze, I noticed a distinct lack of fog. It was also at this point that I realized the other mazes didn't really have fog either.I'll discuss this issue later. The maze was a lot brighter than last year. It used to be dark and suspenseful, but this year, it was filled with strobe lights and other effect lighting. Like, there were A LOT of strobe lights. Probably too many. It almost ruined the effect. The vortex tunnel was definitely cool, but too short. The movie scene at the end was nice, but the actors didn't sell. One actor in the whole maze did well because he had an amazing evil laugh. The rest of the people were smiling, not trying, or trying too much. In the end, it was a mixed bag of good and bad. I'll give it a 6.75/10
Silver Scream SINema In short: Same design. Too many strobes. Actors are okay.
Feeding Frenzy:
Definitely a more intense scare zone. The music playlist is chosen by the vampires themselves, which I thought was cool. The strobe lights go off like lightning, which is also cool. It still has that "bad part of town" feeling to it, which I enjoyed. Not much has changed here, either. The actors really sold it, but there's only so much a vampire can do before it's not scary any more. The metal-plated walls make for a good pop scare if an actor hits them with their gloves or a prop. The feeling overall is very unified and good. I liked it quite a bit, so 7/10
Feeding Frenzy In short: Same design. The actors do well, but aren't scary repeatedly. Nice music.
Fury:
This was my first time in Fury since I actually worked at SCarowinds the previous year. I didn't really know what to expect. Let me start off by saying the queue line is amazing. It displays an amateur video about how Fury goes about experimentation to create a super soldier. It was painfully obvious that it was edited in iMovie, though. There were two actors walking around the queue line (that I could see): One was a deranged secretary who welcomes you to Fury. The other was a soldier with a prop gun, guarding the entrance. I was very impressed by the overall feeling so far... Then I got in the maze. It was definitely very cool inside. The theme was awesome! I loved the UV light effects and the props. However, it wasn't too scary in my opinion. The actors were basically telling you to "Move" or "Get out" instead of genuinely trying to instill fear in you. This maze has huge potential. HUGE potential. But it needs a little something. Maybe it was too short? I don't know. 6.5/10
Fury In short: Same design, possibly some small changes/additions. Huge potential, but didn't sell it.
Last Laff in 3D:
To be able to give a fair review, I went once with the 3D glasses and once without the 3D glasses. The line was pretty short, and I wasn't sure why. In the line was a few clowns trying to scare you. They were really funny to watch. The first time through, I wore the glasses. Trust me when I say that it makes a big difference. It is at least 15% more effective with the glasses on. The colors really pop out at you, and the actors feel like they can potentially kill you. Without the glasses, the maze it pretty dang boring. Not going to sugar coat it. Definitely get the glasses. Some actors in there specifically target those with glasses. One guy had a prop mallet thing that looks AMAZING when he swings it around, but only with the glasses. Oh, and they also brought the bungee guy at the end back. He startled me a bit because I forgot about it! In conclusion, I'd give it a 4/10 without the glasses, and a 7/10 with the glasses.
Last Laff In short: Same design. Clowns are awesome. Get the glasses.
Camp Killauee:
The queue line here was pretty good, being in the woods and all. It has the same "new" location as last year as well. Anyways, on to the actual attraction. Where do I begin... It was pretty bad. I think it was because it was reaching the end of the night on the first day of SCarowinds, but the actors weren't trying. The girl on the bungee cord was cool, but I almost got smacked in the face by her feet. It was really close. There was one girl in the dark tunnel area that scared me, but it was with a shaker bin that she was using on everybody, and I could hear it coming. When I reached the end, I was expecting some kind of grand finale, but I just walked out. Meh. 4.5/10 probably because it was late.
Camp Killauee In short: Same design. Not too good this year.
The Asylum:
Best for last, right? Sort of. The park was about to close by now, and I'm sure everybody wanted to go home. I know the feeling, and I could see it in the actors' faces. However, they still managed to do a good job. The maze felt like something was missing, but I think this was because they haven't changed it much in the last four years. The inflatable tunnel always freaked me out, mostly because of the thought of the germs of the people who go through it before you. I got over it, though. I don't really know what else to say except for it really did not change a whole lot. 7/10.
The Asylum In short: Same design. Has a repetitive feeling. "Missing something."
Scare Force:
It's only fair that the Scare Force gets a review, too. If you didn't already know, the Scare Force consists of the actors that roam the park. I saw a lot of familiar faces, and a few new people who replaced older people. From who I saw, a lot of actors got really into it (The Puppeteer, Lila, The Overlord, Barnacos the Monkey, The Narrator, Barb-y, The Chainsaw Man). However, a few people just walked by you, growled, and kept moving. It's always a pleasant surprised to encounter the Scare Force, though! I was just upset about The Chainsaw Man's electric chainsaw. I'd give them a solid 9/10
Scare Force In short: They rock.
Final Notes:
I don't know what SCarowinds was thinking when all they decided to do was add a ridiculously open scare zone, take away fog inside the mazes, and remove chainsaws from the park. The poor Chainsaw Man used an electric chainsaw with speakers wired into his jacket. I felt really bad for him. There was a lot more sliders, though. That was a plus. But I think of all the years SCarowinds has been open, this year had the least improvements and additions. It felt like it actually downgraded a little bit. For year #13, the least the could have done was add in a new maze instead of using a recycled idea and call it a scare zone. For a first timer, SCarowinds this year is awesome. For somebody who has worked there and been to SCarowinds for years, it wasn't too good. BUT... It was only opening night, and the actors always get better from there. They might decide to make a few changes throughout the season as well. For now, though, I give my SCarowinds experience on opening night a 6.5/10
Defex:
This was my first maze of the night. We were greeted in the queue line by the Scare Force actor who bears a toy unicorn. He was quite entertaining. I recall him saying "I have a body bag big enough for each of you" as my group walked into the line. It was hilarious. The line moved fairly fast. We were waiting for a good 5-10 minutes. Seeing as how my group is a bunch of wimps, I went first. The thing that always bothers me is that noisemaker in the front room. Gosh, it was loud! That, and all the air blasters that attack your ankles. The partial inflatable tunnel thing was also awesome. I had a friend get stuck in it. Anyways, nothing really changed from last year. There were some new actors, and everybody did fairly well considering we were the one of the first groups of the season to go through the maze! Overall, I'd give it 8/10
Defex In short: Same design. Loud, but fun!
The Playground:
This is my favorite scare zone theme-wise. I love the idea of evil children. It really shatters the thought of innocence. The layout stayed the same as last year, and there wasn't really that "toxic" feel that SCarowinds claimed they were going to have these past two years. However, it was the actors that stole the show. They have a good balance of straight-up scares and back-story/character development. To get the most out of this area, do not run through it. Every actor has something fun to contribute. It looks like they really upgraded the props, too. Instead of having the shaker cans, there were things like severed heads with spinal cords, butcher knives, and fake chainsaws. Honestly, for a scare zone, I really enjoyed it! 7.5/10
The Playground In short: Same design. Different props and characters. No toxic theme evident. Lots of fog.
Mass Acres:
This is immediately across the Playground's covered bridge. It's in the area of the Boo Blasters haunted ride. Basically, it looks like somebody took the graveyard decorations from last year that generally go in that area and threw in a couple of actors. I was highly disappointed with the scenery. The actors were pretty good, though. They all had unique costumes (zombie chef, zombie cowboy, etc.) and all felt like they had a huge back-story to share. However, they didn't really express this story. They just kind of got tried to pull off some pop scares accompanied with some irrelevant dialogue about the person they were trying to scare. I'd like to see them get into character more. Heads up, you probably won't even realize you're in Mass Acres, but I believe it has the same music as The Cemetery if that helps. Overall, 4/10. It needs work, but has potential
Mass Acres In short: Weird location, too big, feels recycled, and not enough actors.
The Dead Inn:
I went through this maze twice throughout the course of the night. It was much better the second time. I could feel that the actors were getting into their groove. Keep an eye out for an actor or two in the queue line. After being greeted by the bellhop doorman (who I happen to be friends with in real life), we entered the maze. I don't think it changed a whole lot from last year. My favorite room was definitely the mirror room. I won't say much, but the actors in there were fantastic and they made my emotionless friend scream. Bravo. With that being said, the rest of the maze was just okay. There were some good pop scares, but it was nothing mind-warping. I thought it was pretty good. I'll give it a 5/10 for my first go, and a 7/10 for my second visit
The Dead Inn In short: Same design. Has good moments and good pop scares.
Cornstalkers:
A friend of mine in the group, a former SCarowinds employee himself, used to work in this maze. He knew all the twists, turns, and crevices in it. He told me that it was pretty much identical to last year, except there were new actors. If I had to take a look at it from a stance of somebody who never went through it before, I'd say it was pretty intense. It's definitely one of the longer mazes here. The actors were also really good. One actor actually began talking to us, which distracted us from another actor who jumped out. Great ping-pong technique. The people here really got into their roles. I thought it was a more positive hit for the night. I recommend you go through this, even if the line seems long. Overall, 8.5/10
Cornstalkers In short: Same design. The actors do a great job.
At this point of the night, we met up with the second half of our group at the entrance to explore the other side of the park.
The Cemetery:
This maze basically feels like an enclosed Mass Acres. I think even the music is the same as Mass Acres here. Regardless, I liked it a little bit more because it kind of feels like a maze. The actors, however, didn't really seem to care all that much about scaring people. They just kind of looked at you. I know this freaks some people out, but a lot of people don't get scared by looks. It needed a little bit of "oomph," like a slider, a bungee cord person, or some kind of extra effect. It didn't really make me want to say "Oh, we're heading that way? Let's go through The Cemetery!" It was just okay. 5/10
The Cemetery In short: Same design. Lacked enthusiastic actors. Felt like a confined Mass Acres. Nothing special.
Silver Scream SINema:
I really like the queue line and entrance in this. It feels like you're really entering a movie theater at first; there's a ticket booth, red velvety curtains, and a photo opportunity (a friend later ordered the picture at the end). Once we actually began the maze, I noticed a distinct lack of fog. It was also at this point that I realized the other mazes didn't really have fog either.I'll discuss this issue later. The maze was a lot brighter than last year. It used to be dark and suspenseful, but this year, it was filled with strobe lights and other effect lighting. Like, there were A LOT of strobe lights. Probably too many. It almost ruined the effect. The vortex tunnel was definitely cool, but too short. The movie scene at the end was nice, but the actors didn't sell. One actor in the whole maze did well because he had an amazing evil laugh. The rest of the people were smiling, not trying, or trying too much. In the end, it was a mixed bag of good and bad. I'll give it a 6.75/10
Silver Scream SINema In short: Same design. Too many strobes. Actors are okay.
Feeding Frenzy:
Definitely a more intense scare zone. The music playlist is chosen by the vampires themselves, which I thought was cool. The strobe lights go off like lightning, which is also cool. It still has that "bad part of town" feeling to it, which I enjoyed. Not much has changed here, either. The actors really sold it, but there's only so much a vampire can do before it's not scary any more. The metal-plated walls make for a good pop scare if an actor hits them with their gloves or a prop. The feeling overall is very unified and good. I liked it quite a bit, so 7/10
Feeding Frenzy In short: Same design. The actors do well, but aren't scary repeatedly. Nice music.
Fury:
This was my first time in Fury since I actually worked at SCarowinds the previous year. I didn't really know what to expect. Let me start off by saying the queue line is amazing. It displays an amateur video about how Fury goes about experimentation to create a super soldier. It was painfully obvious that it was edited in iMovie, though. There were two actors walking around the queue line (that I could see): One was a deranged secretary who welcomes you to Fury. The other was a soldier with a prop gun, guarding the entrance. I was very impressed by the overall feeling so far... Then I got in the maze. It was definitely very cool inside. The theme was awesome! I loved the UV light effects and the props. However, it wasn't too scary in my opinion. The actors were basically telling you to "Move" or "Get out" instead of genuinely trying to instill fear in you. This maze has huge potential. HUGE potential. But it needs a little something. Maybe it was too short? I don't know. 6.5/10
Fury In short: Same design, possibly some small changes/additions. Huge potential, but didn't sell it.
Last Laff in 3D:
To be able to give a fair review, I went once with the 3D glasses and once without the 3D glasses. The line was pretty short, and I wasn't sure why. In the line was a few clowns trying to scare you. They were really funny to watch. The first time through, I wore the glasses. Trust me when I say that it makes a big difference. It is at least 15% more effective with the glasses on. The colors really pop out at you, and the actors feel like they can potentially kill you. Without the glasses, the maze it pretty dang boring. Not going to sugar coat it. Definitely get the glasses. Some actors in there specifically target those with glasses. One guy had a prop mallet thing that looks AMAZING when he swings it around, but only with the glasses. Oh, and they also brought the bungee guy at the end back. He startled me a bit because I forgot about it! In conclusion, I'd give it a 4/10 without the glasses, and a 7/10 with the glasses.
Last Laff In short: Same design. Clowns are awesome. Get the glasses.
Camp Killauee:
The queue line here was pretty good, being in the woods and all. It has the same "new" location as last year as well. Anyways, on to the actual attraction. Where do I begin... It was pretty bad. I think it was because it was reaching the end of the night on the first day of SCarowinds, but the actors weren't trying. The girl on the bungee cord was cool, but I almost got smacked in the face by her feet. It was really close. There was one girl in the dark tunnel area that scared me, but it was with a shaker bin that she was using on everybody, and I could hear it coming. When I reached the end, I was expecting some kind of grand finale, but I just walked out. Meh. 4.5/10 probably because it was late.
Camp Killauee In short: Same design. Not too good this year.
The Asylum:
Best for last, right? Sort of. The park was about to close by now, and I'm sure everybody wanted to go home. I know the feeling, and I could see it in the actors' faces. However, they still managed to do a good job. The maze felt like something was missing, but I think this was because they haven't changed it much in the last four years. The inflatable tunnel always freaked me out, mostly because of the thought of the germs of the people who go through it before you. I got over it, though. I don't really know what else to say except for it really did not change a whole lot. 7/10.
The Asylum In short: Same design. Has a repetitive feeling. "Missing something."
Scare Force:
It's only fair that the Scare Force gets a review, too. If you didn't already know, the Scare Force consists of the actors that roam the park. I saw a lot of familiar faces, and a few new people who replaced older people. From who I saw, a lot of actors got really into it (The Puppeteer, Lila, The Overlord, Barnacos the Monkey, The Narrator, Barb-y, The Chainsaw Man). However, a few people just walked by you, growled, and kept moving. It's always a pleasant surprised to encounter the Scare Force, though! I was just upset about The Chainsaw Man's electric chainsaw. I'd give them a solid 9/10
Scare Force In short: They rock.
Final Notes:
I don't know what SCarowinds was thinking when all they decided to do was add a ridiculously open scare zone, take away fog inside the mazes, and remove chainsaws from the park. The poor Chainsaw Man used an electric chainsaw with speakers wired into his jacket. I felt really bad for him. There was a lot more sliders, though. That was a plus. But I think of all the years SCarowinds has been open, this year had the least improvements and additions. It felt like it actually downgraded a little bit. For year #13, the least the could have done was add in a new maze instead of using a recycled idea and call it a scare zone. For a first timer, SCarowinds this year is awesome. For somebody who has worked there and been to SCarowinds for years, it wasn't too good. BUT... It was only opening night, and the actors always get better from there. They might decide to make a few changes throughout the season as well. For now, though, I give my SCarowinds experience on opening night a 6.5/10
Last edited by Wolf on September 16th, 2012, 6:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.
I <3 Scarowinds!
