The Slasher Review
Whatton House of Horror: Purgatory is a new attraction this year set in the grounds of Whatton House and is a collaboration with Area51 Events, The same company behind Road 2 Hell and Satans Slammer. The attraction is more of a theatrical walkthrough/immersive theatre than a scare attraction. Although to some younger guests (12+) it could be intimidating at times. The attraction is heavily scripted and lasts around 40 minutes over around 1mile in duration. Whatton House of Horrors also features a good selection of food and drink open all night.
Top Tips for the event - Arrive early if you can and wrap up warm as the entire event is outside.
Things that bite - The entry time on your ticket is the entry to the queue line which at times can exceed as much as 40 minutes.
Value for money - Yes
Scare Rating - 2/5
Do we recommend - Absolutely
FOR A MORE IN-DEPTH REVIEW PLEASE READ BELOW
The Stalker Review
Whatton House of Horror: Purgatory is a fully outside 40 minute, 1-mile immersive walkthrough attraction that takes you on a pathway through many scripted scenes with just the light of an LED Lantern to guide you. After a 40 minute queue, our group of 6 was handed the lantern and told to knock 3 times on the door, An expected scare technique was coming we were sure but the lack of anything left eerie suspense. The first of many characters was the enigmatic Gatekeeper who told us the rules to follow and most importantly if you see another lantern to hold back, This was great to hear especially as some groups had gone in as a 12. After the Gatekeeper, we met the second but possibly most iconic character of Purgatory, Don Dante. The actor who played Don Dante did so with such professionalism that it felt like we were watching a small stage production, his accent was on point and his short but sharp scares well executed. He told us of the 7 deadly sins that we might encounter before sending us on our way. This was such a great start to the show leaving us all excited for what was to come.
What follows is an extremely story lead immersive walkthrough experience with multiple stop and start narrative sets, all designed with a great eye for detail. From the Pagan/Viking stage with giant tarot cards to a lone actor on a boat turning the lake into his own version of the river Styx.
Further down the line, we met the promo featured statues with some absolutely stunning make-up and believe me they really blend in with the surroundings and provide some good sharp scares, especially when they start following you, If you like the Weeping Angels this is for you. It's such a shame though that these actors were used so early into the attraction as they were easily one of, if not the most, intimidating characters along the mile walk. These actors could have provided such a great addition to the finale which we will come to shortly. Other scenes included a musical wench demon who made us sing to pass by and a bridge troll. Interspersed between these scenes were cloaked hooded demons who stalked us like prey never getting too close but yet close enough to have us looking over our shoulders to where they might be next.
After being judged by Anubis in the second to final scene we were told to look for the "mirror of souls". This was achieved in the form of a small but effective mirror maze built around a central pedestal featuring many dead-end/fake mirrors and one exit that was only to be revealed after we felt like we had lost our way looping round and round the central statue. One member of our group was separated and was left screaming as she was cornered in one of the fake alcoves by a collection of hooded demons. On leaving this section we come to find if we made it to Heaven or Hell and guess what it's not looking good as we walk into a tunnel bathed in red light and creepy cherub statues. We were expecting one more scare in this area but sadly found ourselves just walking out into the main plaza area. Leaving the attraction it was time for a beer and some amazing cheesy fries by the Snobby Burger Co.
Whatton House of Horrors: Purgatory has now ended but for more information you can visit The Whatton House of Horrors website.