Spooky World is a park I had heard much about yet never got round to visiting but this year the opportunity arose. Along with myself was 2 other members of the PSG team(Dane and Pagan). One thing I never expected was the absolute mission of a trip from the main road to the park entrance, Literally, you will travel down a creepy road, across one car park, over a bridge before finally being met with the LED beacons that sit near the entrance to Spooky World. But once you do get to the park you are met with 4 full scare mazes, a haunted hayride” my first to be exact) and a final experience leading to the exit. So onto the reviews.
Carnevil
Clown mazes are the sort of bread and butter of a scream park, Most have them , Some do them very basic , Some go all out. Carnevil falls in the middle but this is far from a criticism. While it may not have the set design of a huge budget attraction its simplicity is what seems to make it scarier. Sometimes over theatricalized attractions can go so far that it no longer feels plausible. But there is something about how Spooky World does this show opener which really adds something special, Its hard to explain but it is almost like it just popped up out of nowhere and the maze is actually just a facade for killings. But set left alone the actors in this maze are just insane, honestly, you have no idea where there will pop left , right, up, down, or even above you. One special shout out has to be for the one we believe was called Brian or maybe Libra who crawled at speed along such unforgiving floors and sent Pagan running, It was quite a sight to behold.
Haunted House
The second attraction on the linear lineup was Haunted House. Again this is never a criticism, The attraction might not have the most intricate or elaborate sets but the details that the actors make into these attractions really just bring it to life. The opening actor/scene was not something I had seen before and on paper could really have flopped, however, When the actor in question plays the role so convincingly it really sets the maze up for quite dark interaction. One thing that has to be said for this maze was the creativity in jump scares and just really providing the audience with some very warped residents to interact with “Drill lady im talking to you”. Haunted House will get your heart pumping with bangs coming from all over, utilising such simple techniques but creating something really fun in the process. And just the warm-up we needed before heading into the next attraction.
Field of Screams
This was to be a first for myself, Id always wanted to do a corn maze with Children of the Corn being one of my favourite horrors, Not knowing what to expect except just hearing the odd screams within and no backing music set us all on edge. Entering the maze this attraction really came into its own, There is something very unnerving about being in a corn maze at night, however, when you enter a corn maze with no music and no lights except that of what’s outside the maze or the moon, That’s when things get scary. The actors in this maze worked together as a great team, Combining single scares, Group scares and even the rare but always appreciated Killer/Victim scare. Even when the actors simply followed us it created a level of unease which had us all heading to the exit with haste into one final trap. Escaping the corn we headed across a field to number 4 in the list.
Slaughterhouse
Wow, where do we begin with Slaughterhouse? Maybe by saying this is how you do a Hillybilly/Pig maze. The sets worked so much into the favour of Spooky World. In a scream park most mazes will fit its attraction area that’s been created but its a rare beauty when the maze you go into looks and feels like it was there before the scream park existed and this is what you get with Slaughterhouse. From entering the shed at the beginning to being drawn into an almost hypnotic soundtrack from some machinery which im still not sure what was causing it. Slaughterhouse ticks all the boxes, The actors are crude yet hilarious, Aggressive and sickening in equal measure and know their characters from the inside out but this can also be said to all the actors at this park to be fair. But the one thing that will always stay with me from Slaughterhouse is maybe one of the strongest strobes in a smoke tunnel leading to a scare I never saw coming and genuinely had me feeling like a GP in a maze for the first time, It was fantastic. Pagan got called Thundertheighs and Dane was propositioned by a pigman’s big sausage. Honestly such a highlight to the night.
It was now time for a quick break, Some chips and great interaction with one of the scare communities best duos , Flippy and Floppy of course aka The Evil Twins who were absolutely amazing, I could honestly sit there and watch them entertain all night, there is something about the way these two interact with the guests that are just hilarious and joyful to watch. Even when it came to enforcing COVID measures on guests they never left character, Such a great addition to have before heading to a first for us all.
The Haunted Hayride
Let’s just say that there is nothing that will prepare you for what will happen to you on the Haunted Hayride. If you watch/listen to ScareTrack you might have a slight hint to where Im going with this, I don’t want to give into spoilers but when you see your guide on the back of the truck hood up and duck down, you know something horrible is about to happen.
But other than this section of decontamination the Hayride will take you on quite the lengthy tour of different effects and interactions from props that at times may seem very close for comfort if you are sat on the right side of the truck. Just be prepared for some precipitation and don’t look the final actor in the eye or you might just end up like Pagan… MOIST! After the hayride, it was time for the final experience.
The Tunnel of Terror
This is a very strange attraction with some very polarizing views. From some a genuinely intimidating experience, To others something akin to boot camp but to us more a less being insulted by a chav after too much value special brew. The Tunnel is technically just that a straight tunnel into a very narrow corridor. It still provided a great point to banter with the actor but if we are honest and honesty is what we pride ourselves on at PSG , It did feel a bit of an anticlimax to what had been such a great night. Having not been through this before I can only assume maybe COVID restrictions caused this finale to be less intense than usually planned.
So the final note on Spooky World. Yes, SW might not have the most elaborate sets or the highest budget but what it does have is an amazing team of actors that will bring every attraction to life with absolute full determination and power. It is evident that all the actors love working for SP and live and breath the attraction they are in rather than just being in it for a paycheck and this is such a wonderful thing to see, But when lead by Flippy and Floppy could you expect anything less than 110% effort. We can’t wait to come back to SW and thank ALL THE STAFF who make this event such a success for welcoming us to experience the event. The Fastracks were a really nice touch too. To all the actors at SP, you smash it and we loved how even when you had left the mazes you stayed in character interacting with guests and making me feel like a cult leader!
Until next time
Dan
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