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SoCal Independent Haunts 2023

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Freak

Freak

Jan 10, 2013
7,726
13,218
No man's land: SoCal
Since October is basically here, I think it would be wise to make a thread for this. There are other great haunts out there besides KSF and HHN, so let’s recommend or bring up some SoCal Haunts here!

There’s a new one I’m curious to check out! Fearplex Presents Lights Out: Fearplex Presents: Lights Out Halloween | Fairplex in Pomona I’m curious to check it out since there hasn’t been a proper haunt at Fairplex since Rob Zombie’s a decade ago. I don’t expect it to be amazing but I’m curious nonetheless.

I did Castle Dark in Riverside last year. Don’t do it. Not worth the drive. Lol horrible experience there. Took literally an hour to get inside the park and the mazes were freaking AWFUL. Made Fright Fest look like HHN in comparison. Im
Dead serious.

I also recommend the Cornfield maze at Frosty’s in Chino. It’s REALLY good.

Coffin Creek seems to have new mazes this year so I’ll check that out as well.

C’mon what other recommendations do you have? There are some really good home haunts as well!
 
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Freak said:
I did Castle Dark in Riverside last year. Don’t do it. Not worth the drive. Lol horrible experience there. Took literally an hour to get inside the park and the mazes were freaking AWFUL. Made Fright Fest look like HHN in comparison. Im
Dead serious.
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Seconding this so hard. In 2021, there was a clown maze I think that was legit 15 seconds, no roof, one scareactor in the entire thing. I was baffled they had the audacity to make people pay for it. Then their big maze, I can't remember what it was called (Phobias, maybe?), started with some type of dentist scene, had maybe 2 other scenes and then was just darkness for what felt like 5 minutes where you literally get lost -- and I don't think on purpose. You're just wandering around tight spaces in the dark but on the other side of the flats being exposed to the real nails and sandbags on the ground. I've seen videos of other people getting lost in there too and it's a freakin' hazard. At some point, you randomly just stumble upon the right way after realizing nobody has been scaring you for a minute or two, just deducing which way is the right way by following the sound of other people's voices who went the "right" way. Why they have a labyrinth of behind the scenes walls in the dark is beyond me. And if that is the intended product, OSHA would have a freakin' field day, because there's no way that structure was approved.
 
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DTH said:
Seconding this so hard. In 2021, there was a clown maze I think that was legit 15 seconds, no roof, one scareactor in the entire thing. I was baffled they had the audacity to make people pay for it. Then their big maze, I can't remember what it was called (Phobias, maybe?), started with some type of dentist scene, had maybe 2 other scenes and then was just darkness for what felt like 5 minutes where you literally get lost -- and I don't think on purpose. You're just wandering around tight spaces in the dark but on the other side of the flats being exposed to the real nails and sandbags on the ground. I've seen videos of other people getting lost in there too and it's a freakin' hazard. At some point, you randomly just stumble upon the right way after realizing nobody has been scaring you for a minute or two, just deducing which way is the right way by following the sound of other people's voices who went the "right" way. Why they have a labyrinth of behind the scenes walls in the dark is beyond me. And if that is the intended product, OSHA would have a freakin' field day, because there's no way that structure was approved.
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This is hilarious because I went to Castle Dark in 2021 and I enjoyed it lmao. It wasn’t great but I took it for what it was and let me say, the ribs are surprisingly delicious! Lol

I want to check out LOH at the Fairplex so hopefully Sharp Productions pulls up to do a vlog for YouTube.

Also, please check out Reign of Terror in Thousand Oaks. Dark Harvest in Garden Grove is starting as well.
 
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Jake S said:
Co-sign this. They do a great job.
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For the price is it worth it?

I lived in TO most my life and never went because its 40 bucks (with the fee added on) and 60 for skip the line


Also never done it but at the Janss Market Place, there is a Walkthough Maze at The Best Halloween Store Ever! (pretty cool store...I've been in it just never the maze)
 
Jerroddragon said:
For the price is it worth it?

I lived in TO most my life and never went because its 40 bucks (with the fee added on) and 60 for skip the line
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I'll confess that's double what I paid for VIP Line back in 2016. So, for $30 and no line ... yes it was absolutely worth it. I'm not sure if I'd bite at $60.
 
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I saw SoCal Pals, post there is some sort of Five Nights at Freddy pop up coming to Hollywood
But no details yet. Of anyone sees details, please post there here
 
Jerroddragon said:
I saw SoCal Pals, post there is some sort of Five Nights at Freddy pop up coming to Hollywood
But no details yet. Of anyone sees details, please post there here
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, I'm not sure there's going to be an actual experience inside, in part due to the ongoing SAG strike. Any participation in a promotion for a struck company would be considered scabbing, which prevents them from using (most) non-union actors.
 
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I usually love doing a ton of Independent haunts, but with all the season passes my husband and I got this year (HHN's FFP, Knott's Season Pass, and I have a membership so I can visit FF an unlimited number of time), we just wanted to maximize the use of those.

I did get to do Angel of Light in DTLA. I did enjoy it, but it's more about creepiness and atmosphere... no real jump scares at all. But it's part maze (again, just creepiness, no real jump scares), part interactive theater, and part show. It was a unique mix, and the production value is high, and it's very cool to explore the theater. Think of it as Delusion/CreepLA lite, or being inside a Twilight Zone episode. They do have to work on their crowd control a bit, but otherwise a cool experience. There's a moment about 1/2 through where you can explore different rooms on your own timeline.

Speaking of which, after years of avoiding it due to cost (about $200), I think I may finally see The Willows with CreepLA in November. I've been a huge fan of all their other shows, but I haven't done this one yet, and I keep hearing rave things.

If you enjoy the more theatrical haunt events, I suspect Fangs! from Downtown Repertory Theater Company at Heritage Square will be good. Though I haven't done it, I did their show Witch! last year, and had a great time. More a play, but it's interactive, moves around, and you will get separated from your group and typically get a one-on-one moment with an actor.
 
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So the Haunted Hayride is pretty good! I think they really miss their old location. It seems like they’re still trying to figure out exactly how to stage and present everything on this new route because it still does feel like there’s a lot of empty space. It’s also just so dark back there, it can be very difficult to see what’s happening sometimes. However, they added a few elements I won’t spoil that make things more kinetic and it’s definitely a step forward in the right direction.

The rest of the event is also a lot of fun. The mazes are extremely solid. A couple facades are HHN level and then inside they make up for a lack of resources with some really inventive sound and lighting. The actors were hitting; the animatronics are good. Super fun.

And I think they’re also really elevating the overall theming. The Falls Lake here feels more fleshed out than it did in their previous location, and they really do make it feel like a small town Halloween festival with the carnival food and stuff. Also the Monte Revolta show is great. Having the actors around you while you watch the show is fun, they do a good job.

All in all it’s a fun night. We just had regular tickets and didn’t have any issue getting to do each thing, so I’m not sure that VIP is necessary. It doesn’t get you anything express entry so easy to live without.
 
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viking_wizard_eyes said:
So the Haunted Hayride is pretty good! I think they really miss their old location. It seems like they’re still trying to figure out exactly how to stage and present everything on this new route because it still does feel like there’s a lot of empty space. It’s also just so dark back there, it can be very difficult to see what’s happening sometimes. However, they added a few elements I won’t spoil that make things more kinetic and it’s definitely a step forward in the right direction.

The rest of the event is also a lot of fun. The mazes are extremely solid. A couple facades are HHN level and then inside they make up for a lack of resources with some really inventive sound and lighting. The actors were hitting; the animatronics are good. Super fun.

And I think they’re also really elevating the overall theming. The Falls Lake here feels more fleshed out than it did in their previous location, and they really do make it feel like a small town Halloween festival with the carnival food and stuff. Also the Monte Revolta show is great. Having the actors around you while you watch the show is fun, they do a good job.

All in all it’s a fun night. We just had regular tickets and didn’t have any issue getting to do each thing, so I’m not sure that VIP is necessary. It doesn’t get you anything express entry so easy to live without.
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I think I’ll hit up the Hayride the last week of October. They’re open basically every night that week which leaves more room for other haunts.
 
Been hearing a lot about this one. Right down the street from six flags so might be worth it if you’re in the area. Opens next week!
 
Castle Dark definitely needs improvement in the maze/scare zone department (no fault of the actors) but it has good bones I think if the park invests more into it.

Glad to hear LAHH is good this year. Monte Revolta is amazing and I love that he’s so in demand and active still.

This is the time of the year when we start generally checking out some local yard displays so I’m looking forward to that!
 
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