By Eros ViDemantay
While some people think of pumpkin spice lattes and autumn wreaths for fall, others think about gory monsters and terrifying frights. That’s why, on September 23 at 6 PM I found myself at the Universal Studios front gate, eager for them to open up for their annual Halloween Horror Nights. With 8 Mazes Plus a Terror Tram, the forthcoming night was sure to be packed with haunts and nervous laughter. That being said, Halloween Horror Nights is a very popular event in Southern California, and the closer it gets to Halloween, the more packed it will be. I bought a general admission ticket; because I purchased it online, I was able to get early access to the park. While it is possible to go through every maze in the event, your night has to be planned with diligence. Here is my review of the haunted houses in Halloween Horror Nights, in the order in which I went through them.
The Weeknd: After Hours Nightmare
If there is one tip to get the most out of your $75+ ticket, it’s to go to the back first and make your way to the front. (Of course, it should be noted that this “tip” has become popular not just at Horror Nights but at all Halloween events, so there is the possibility that it may not be as effective anymore.) Thus, we headed straight for the Lower Lot, where the Weeknd Maze was located behind the Transformers Ride.
While one may not think of the Weeknd as source material for a haunted house, the maze turned out to be quite the thrill. Fans of his album “After Hours” will be delighted to see his music videos come to life, complete with deranged plastic surgeons and mutant reptiles. Best of all, After Hours Nightmare is genuinely scary: with pulsing synths and blinding lights (tee hee hee), you’re bound to jump in fright at least once.
Killer Klowns from Outer Space
Our second maze of the night was derived from the 1988 cult classic. While not as scary, it was exciting to see how faithfully the haunted house recreated the scenes from the film. This one is located on the other side of the Transformers ride. There was minimal gore, and the clowns were mainly animatronics.
Universal Monsters: Legends Collide
Located behind the Mummy ride in the Lower Lot, this maze featured Dracula, Werewolf, and the Mummy as they faced off in an epic midnight massacre. This haunted house was very atmospheric, with lots of fog and eerie music to accompany you as you make your way through desolate London.
Terror Tram
Having finished all the mazes in the Lower Lot, we headed upwards to the Terror Tram, located in the space where normal tours of Universal Studios are located. For Halloween, the back lot was turned into a mix of frights and delights: you were met with clowns and fake chainsaws early on, before getting attacked by evil feral cats.
What made the Terror Tram so cool was that you got to walk through the sets, which included the original Bates Motel from ‘Psycho’, a real crashed plane from ‘War of the Worlds, and Jupiter’s Claim from Jordan Peele’s most recent movie, ‘Nope’.
Universal Horror Hotel
Located by the ‘Secret Life of Pets’ area, the Universal Horror Hotel is one of the few haunted houses with air conditioning, a treat given the recent sweltering heat in Southern California. While the story of a haunted hotel was interesting to follow, there were ultimately no real scares to any of the characters.
The Horrors of Blumhouse
It was basically a walk-in to enter this maze, and it’s easy to see why. Being the shortest maze, The Horrors of Blumhouse is also unfortunately the most disappointing. It features two movies - 2020’s ‘Freaky’ and 2021’s ‘The Black Phone’, and it basically serves as a promotion for said movies. This one also featured the least set design, which made it less immersive. If there is one maze to skip, this would be the one.
La Llorona: The Weeping Woman
Luckily, things got better towards the end of my Halloween Horror Nights experience. By far the scariest maze of the event was ‘La Llorona’. While the previous Haunted Houses I had been to were based on IP from Universal Studios’ horror movies, ‘La Llorona’ was an original haunt.
With narrow corridors and excellent animatronics, every room was packed with scares. It was one of the few times I had to close my eyes as a horse-headed man on stilts came racing towards me. Atmospheric and memorable, this was one of the highs of the night.
Scarecrow: The Reaping
From ‘La Llorona’, it was a long walk to a place tucked behind the Hogwarts Area, which houses two additional mazes: ‘Scarecrow’, and ‘Halloween’. Both lines were over two hours long, but for both of them, it was worth the wait. ‘Scarecrow’ was the only other original haunt, and once again, the atmosphere was incredible. From smelling like a rotting barnyard to hay being scrambled all over the floor, it actually felt like a nightmare.
And the scarecrows, darn those scarecrows. Covered in blood and body parts, these scarecrows would lunge at you from every corner, hidden behind a wall of wood disguised as a mannequin. With the incense strobe lights, ‘Scarecrow’ was a disorienting but fully immersive haunt. It went well with the two-hour-long wait.
Halloween
Our final haunted house of the night was based on the iconic franchise (ironically enough it was situated next to the kid-friendly Curious George parking lot). Seeing so many Michael Meyers in one place was certainly creepy. The iconic soundtrack played and we waltzed through the maze. It was special to see so many reenactments of the original movie. All in all this maze was very nostalgic and fun.
Closing Thoughts
If you have never gone to Halloween Horror Nights, I definitely recommend you give it a shot. It might not be for everyone, as its strobe lights and gruesome imagery may turn some people away. But more than it being a scary haunt, Halloween Horror Nights is an ode to the haunted house and the craft that it takes to build something so immersive and memorable.
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