ratings/reviews

[clash]

This year has been a lot better than the last 3 years, I know it has to do with being the 25th anniversary and all (Uni trying to do the best) but it still has to be said (only because this year shows us how HHN should always be, not just because of being an anniversary year) 
This year is probably a 5/5 overall. 

Houses.

25 Years of Monsters: sets: 5/5 scares: 5/5 costumes 5/5

probably the Best house of the year. They did a lot and they did it very well. I loved everything they chose (cannot remember disliking anything at all) the scares work well and everything looks beautiful. I almost wish this house would just come back as it is for next year (yeah,  I do. That's how much I like it, just bring it back the way it is lol) I was surprised how well everything fits together. 

Freddy vs. Jason: sets:5/5 scares:5/5 costumes:4/5

A really fun, scary and wild house. The actors are really good at playing their characters, and they look really good in their costumes too (the best ones are Jason. Freddy looks good.... but some of the masks looked a little weird)  they did a good job at capturing both worlds and make it cohesive (Believe it or not, this house does kind of follow the movie faithfully in a way. Not an exact adaptation but it does follow the plot of the movie..... even having the demon freddy in it) I like the Jason actors more just because they feel more intense.

The screens are a little cheesy but I let that pass since everything else is so good.  

Body Collectors: sets 4/5 scares 5/5 costumes 4/5 

Creepy, but not as intense as some of the other houses (Yet that works for its advantage since it makes it feel creepier than the other houses ) The sets are good... but I don't think there is anything that memorable besides the entrance. The gentlemen are very creepy and work well. Can't say too much about the mental patients (I am not sure how many there are, can't really remember any) I do Love the room with the gentleman in red. (overall the house has a sense of dread) 

Insidious: sets:5/5 scares:4/5 costumes: 4/5 

I did not find any of these movies scary so that affected the way I saw this house a little bit. (I don't find anything scary about women in thick make up pointing at you and yelling) The actresses in the house look just like the character from the movie, but again, Can't see what's scary about that. (They do recreate all the ghosts from the movie very well so I do give them praise for making a very good adaptation) They really did a great faithful adaptation of the movies. The other actors are very scary (red demon guy and woman in black) those are really creepy. (the Hallway made me scream which I almost never do so yeah..)  the house is definitely 10 times more scary than the movies ever were. 

The Purge: sets: 2/5 scares:4/5 costumes 2/5 

they did the best they could (with such little notice) so what can you do. yeah the graffiti walls sucks, the black covered walls suck... I am actually surprised  we got such a decent house (all things considered) the actors are doing very well though. This house has a lot of intensity and energy that other houses don't have. That alone makes this NOT the worst house of the event. (A little nitpick... but I was expecting different masks used in the house... I only remember seeing smiling masks and people without any masks. I wish there was more variety with the Purgers.)

Walking Dead: sets: 3/5 scares 3/5 costumes 2/5

yep, We are all tired, everyone is very tired by now... But... to be honest  This house was scarier (for me) than last years was (I do think it has to do with how dark this house is)

and While The sets are not bad at all... it is just all the same stuff we have already seen before. (Same environments. same woods. same warehouse, same barn... the costumes are all the same, the scares are the same. etc)
And Seeing how this house is getting some of the shortest lines of the event,it might be the last time we see it

I still think Walking Dead could come back next year as ONE of the scarezones, just for old time's sake lol

American Werewolf in London: sets:4/5 scares:2/5 costumes/puppets 5/5

This house is still pretty good... just not as scary (Not as it was before) I Still love those wolves, I love how faithful the sets are... but you can tell people are not getting too scared in this house. For me the wolves are still scary but in all my runs I can tell people are just staring at everything around them an not necessarily getting scares . (The missing actors are definitely noticeable) Having 9 houses is nice and all (and i am glad they brought back one of the Good houses)... but this house just makes me wonder about the future.

(what will they bring back next? what will they repeat?) I was really hoping this was going to be awesome (those wolves are still very impressive to watch) and I was rooting for this to be as glorious as it was. But it just isn't.  
This house now feels more like some kind of museum or show than a house. 

Asylum in Wonderland: sets: 1/5 scares 2/5 costumes:5/5 

great Property...funny characters... in a 3D house full of painted walls and Christmas lights.

Not much else to say about it really (It  just made me wish they had done a regular Alice house instead) The actors are having fun and they do have nice costumes... but It just feels like so much wasted potential.  Nothing about the rooms really says "Alice In Wonderland" to me. (Nothing stands out as actually being "Alice" related besides the Mad Hatter room, the Queen room or the end) So I don't even know how to rate it since it is mainly a regular 3D house that just happens to have some Alice in Wonderland characters inside it.  I give the house a 1 out of 5 and the costumes a 5 out of 5

Run: Blood, Sweat, and Fears: sets 2/5 scares:2/5 costumes 4/5

 The house feels too disjointed ( I do know what the premise is and I do know what's supposed to be happening) but It just didn't really work for me. I think the idea looked better on paper and I am not sure it translated well. The sets are pretty creative but the house wasn't really scary.  It needed to flow better. (I hated the intermission rooms, that felt awful) the translation from room to room is not very good.

not funny enough to be a good comedy house, not scary enough to be a regular house.....It feels like they were trying to have both things going and neither works. (It did not feel like it was taking place in a prison Either, so that's one more thing that wasn't working)

Streets

All Nite Die-In: Double Feature: black and white cast: 5/5  modern cast 3/5  

the zone is definitely too crowded with all the people going by... but I can't help but love this zone. Loved it in 2009, Love it again this year (I love the concept of movie characters out of the screen) really wish the zone was on a bigger street. (sometimes the actors cannot even walk) As for both casts, the Modern cast has more energy and scares more (The black and white cast is less aggressive) But I enjoy seeing the black and white cast a lot more. They have more recognizable characters and I just love the effect the make up creates. it is really cool to see all those B/W characters walking around among the normal crowd.
The modern cast does not have as many memorable characters. (some I didn't even recognize) the vampires, cheerleader, where are those from? (The Purge characters feel out of place) pretty much what I love about the modern cast is Freddy and Jason out in the open. 

 Scary Tales: ScreamPunk: 3/5

very nice costumes, Nice variety of characters. Lack of good props hurts the zone (lack of something hanging in the air)  The characters are very cool but the zone feels incomplete. (it didn't even need to be anything extravagant, Just better use of their budget for multiple props instead of just one) 

They created this One giant prop, but I think it would have been better to have multiple smaller props instead. the one big prop almost feels out of place with the rest of the zone. (this really needed something hanging from above) the actors are great

Evil's Roots: 4/5

I loved what they did here. the zone with the best atmosphere. (much better than the zone last year) great costumes, a lot of fog, good music, really nice props. I loved it.

Icons: 5/5

one of the best zones (And yes, that's because of the stages and the icons) I loved the sets, this is a good sequel to the Icons zone of 2010. I love seeing characters from past years and I love how the Icons each have kills. The only one little nitpick I have is that I saw too many 7 characters around, Maybe I am mistaken but I think I saw 4. overall this zone is a lot of fun, and it can get scary. 

Psychoscareapy - Unleashed: 2/5

The zone feels kind of empty (Im not talking about props) it just feels spread out and not as full as the Purge felt. I am not sure why but it feels like it is lacking something. 

The actors are having a lot of fun in here, but I don't think Psychoscareapy works as a zone. The patients are not scary out in the open (Nor are they really that interesting) They act the part very well, but it is just not that great without the sets that a Psychoscareapy house would have. The idea for the zone sounded good on paper but I don't think it works as well as they hoped. (The music in this zone totally fits the theme, but it makes it feel even less scary) That was something Else I noticed, the Music kind of kills any change of the zone being scary. 

Clown Chainsaws: 4/5

they don't have any props, they are basically a horde, but they are a lot of fun! That Springfield area was always empty (even before they made it into Springfield) so it was really great to finally see a lot of actors around this part of the park. (that was something that had always bothered me about this area) but having actors here really does make a difference (for the better) and they fit with the cartoony look of the area. this was a very pleasant surprise. they are killing it. very happy and i hope they get to come back. 

 

Edited October 3, 2015 by clash