Horror Night brings the fright

Hannah Sonberg / Managing Editor / The USD Vista

As the winds get colder, nights get darker, and fall sets into full swing, Halloween is on everyone’s mind. For those looking for a scare, the search for the best haunted attraction is on. Just two hours north of central San Diego lies a world of ghouls and goblins: Halloween Horror Nights. Hosted at the beloved Universal Studios in Hollywood, Halloween Horror Nights offers nine themed and spooky attractions with unexpected twists and turns in between.

The entrance to the park sends a shiver up the spine, as the distant sound of chainsaws and screams warn of the danger ahead. The first attraction, open during normal park hours and at night, is an ode to the cherished series “The Walking Dead.”  Queued in the post-apocalyptic setting of a scavenged shell of a hospital, park-goers wait patiently to run from the grasps of walkers inside of the attraction. Within the maze, zombie after zombie come into view, followed by survivors with guns fighting off the walkers so that everyone else can rush to safety.

A notable attraction is the Terror Tram which, at night, replaces Universal’s Studio Tour.  Patrons believe they will sit through what should equate to a haunted hayride, but instead are greeted with a video from a “serial killer clown” that describes exactly what they will endure after a four-minute tram ride. Once off of the tram, Koodles the Clown is seen standing at the entrance with a black balloon and a disturbing smile. Past Koodles, participants must go through about 10 minutes of torture-themed mazes, including depictions of skinned humans, people wearing pig heads, and killer scarecrows. It features quite unsettling images.

The longest wait time of the night was for the attraction depicting themes of the skin-crawling and hyper-realistic movie series “The Purge.” In particular, because of its recent release date, the attraction mainly  focuses on “The First Purge.” The line zigzagged around some of Universal’s outdoors sets, giving those waiting an inside look at movie sets that may be familiar. After an excruciating hour and a half, the built-up fear was heightened when entering the maze, only to be let down by the predictable tactics of the actors dressed in Purge-like masks.  The settings of the maze did not seem to encapsulate the most terrifying parts of the series, and the jumpscares seemed tired, even though there were still three hours left until closing time.

At the top of the list for many Horror Night goers was a maze inspired by the Netflix Original “Stranger Things.” Speculation occurred while waiting in another far-too-long line: how can they make a show that isn’t traditionally scary into an attraction that is meant to be scream-inducing?  Here’s how.

The scene is first set with a dark forest and a bike turned to its side with the wheel ever-spinning — a classic. Continuing through, patrons reach the house, where you begin to hear demogorgon whispers and the screams of Joyce Byers.  One of the most impressive features was the living room wall covered in the familiar wallpaper bulging outward from unknown hands.Universal was sure to incorporate actors that portrayed characters such as Joyce Byers and Nancy Wheeler, and provided statue replicas of Dustin and Eleven.

The maze advanced from the Byers’ home into the forest again, where actors dressed like demogorgons surprise visitors around every turn. The attention to detail was truly magnificent, especially for fans of the show. They even included the scene in which Eleven battles a demogoron into oblivion before the maze ended with a few demogorgons jumping out of the dark and the recognizable theme song.

With many truly spooky options to choose from, Halloween Horror Nights is not one to miss when living in Southern California. Though some attractions may be off-putting, unsatisfying, or simply too scary, there is a maze for everyone.  Too bad visitors will have to suffer through them all to figure out which are best.

Halloween Horror Nights will be open until Nov. 4. General admission ranges from $75 to $97 dependent on weekends, prices may vary.