El Artista: A Spanish HauntingHalloween Horror NightsHauntHaunted houseThis house was elegant and awesome with so many elaborate and interesting details. I felt it also had the clearest storyline of all of the haunted houses. This was a huge hit for me.
Cinema SlasherKnott’s Scary FarmHauntHaunted houseThis was one of my top 2 haunts at Knott's this year. I thought the storyline and sets were super coherent and filled the space well.
TerrifierHalloween Horror NightsHauntHaunted houseI enjoy Art the Clown more than I do the actual Terrifier movies, and I liked the free roaming / queue line actors who seemed to really get his spirit. The cut out sideshow style entrance to this haunt is excellent. I would have made some different story telling choices inside, but I like that this was clearly made with affection for the source material.
Mesmer: Sideshow Of The MindKnott’s Scary FarmHauntHaunted houseThis is one of the first haunts I've encountered where standard elements like the dot room or a terror tunnel flow naturally into one overall theme. This was one of my top two haunts at Knott's this year -- it was visually interesting, it made me rethink elements I have seen before, and the storyline made sense.
Gàlkn: Monsters of the NorthHalloween Horror NightsHauntHaunted houseI liked the set detail and characters of this original haunt. It echoed general folk horror tropes (e.g. Wicker Man burning creature, Midsommar vibes) but with a more interesting ending.
Jason Un1v3rseHalloween Horror NightsHauntHaunted houseFans of the franchise will probably like this one. I thought there were some great set pieces / character choices, but overall my "issue" with this haunt is the same as with the series -- slashers often tend to be kinda one note jump scare fests and that doesn't connect as well with me as atmospheric horror or elaborate creatures do.
CarnEvilKnott’s Scary FarmHauntScare zoneThe actors had the most fun and personality in this section. Most talked in squeaks and noises but a memorable one rode around on a rascal heckling people. I generally think clowns are plaid out but this was adorable.
WidowsKnott’s Scary FarmHauntHaunted houseThe concept and exterior were better than most of the execution on my opinion. I thought they could have done a lot more with small realistic spiders or projections, rather than really fake looking super spiders. I liked a few of the elements -- actors bent at odd angles blended nicely with people cocooned in the walls -- a pulsing egg -- a spidora like figure -- but overall it felt really hokey to me instead of either campy or scary.
Film NoirEscape Games PDXEscape roomIRLGreat theming, fair & cohesive game play, interesting communication system with the game master
Eight Fingers Nine: The BoogeymanKnott’s Scary FarmHauntMazeThe storyline is super muddled on this one.
