Last week was the opening of Knott's Scary Farm 2016 which features 2 new mazes, 4 new Skeleton Key Rooms, an all new Hanging, a new scare zone and a revamped Infected that makes it much easier for fans to experience the attraction. This is the first of a few updates we'll be having from Scary Farm as we outline the mazes and share our videos. Written by Gregg Condon Welcome to Knott's Scary Farm 2016 This year in lieu of an opening ceremony they had the headless horsemen come out which totally fit The Hollow scare zone. After a short wait, the gates were opened and the monsters unleashed. Our first stop was Infected which is much improved and much easier to experience this year We decided to try a "Gun POV" of the experience and think it turned out pretty awesome. Be sure to check it out. Due to time we didn't get a chance to see Elvira on opening night but we'll be sure we do on a future visit. Carnevil is always amazing ... more on that below. One of the new mazes for 2016 is Shadowlands and like Paranormal Inc last year it includes an awesome pre-show, amazing sets and a unique story that we haven't seen at any haunt. Highlights of Shadowlands ... we say highlights because this doesn't include the entire maze. We're going about our maze videos a bit different this year so were still working out the bugs, and unfortunately the two new mazes are the ones we had issues on. Go figure. We do have the bugs worked out (we think) for future events this season. Usually Dia De Los Muertos is kind of a quiet scare zone, but not this year. There was so much talent here it was incredibly awesome. One of our favorite returning mazes is Trick or Treat For some reason Voodoo never had a line on opening night which is great because the maze is always incredible. Because there were no Skeleton Key rooms attached to the mazes they've incorporated the previous ones into the mazes which is awesome. Toothfairy is always disturbing, especially when you need to get your wisdom teeth removed ... so this was kind of painful. Unfortunately the video was way too dark to get any kind of good footage in this maze, but it wouldn't be surprising if this was the last year for this particular maze. Last years breakout maze Paranormal Inc is back and with a few added changes that we noticed and you may too in our video below. No Haunted experience on the Calico Mine Train this year, but the outside always looks amazing. Last year was the first year for Dead of Winter ... and it was met with mixed results. It was great because it was Air Conditioned but it wasn't particularly scary. Fast forward to this year and they've "gored" it up a bit which makes it a bit more scary. They've also recycled some old props from some long ago mazes that work well in the maze, does that make it better? We're not sure. Always love walking through Ghost Town during Scary Farm The other new maze this year is The Red Barn and it's kind of a throwback to some other mazes that used to be at Scary Farm. A couple of pictures of the awesome clowns in Carnevil. Lastly, we had a great spot for the final show of the Hanging on opening night. The show really works well on the new stage and we're sure there will be some tweaking (there always is) as the run goes on. Below are some pictures of The Hanging in "slideshow" mode ... but they do contain some spoilers. Overall this is another amazing year for Knott's Scary Farm, the new stuff is great and is already in mid-season form which is awesome. Some of the returning mazes like Toothfairy are probably nearing their last days while other returning mazes like Paranormal Inc, Voodoo and Gunslingers Grave are hitting on all cylinders. We'll have much more from Scary Farm in the days and weeks to come. Have you experienced Knott's Scary Farm 2016? Vote in our poll and let us know what was your favorite maze of 2016 Related Updates: Last night was the annual Knott's Scary Farm preview event. After going through the scariest part of the day (3 1/2 hours in traffic to get to Knott's) we spent some time in the park (that will be a separate update) prior to the event. After checking in we made our way to the Ghoul Time Theater to see what's awaiting us all in the fog this year. Written by Gregg Condon It's not quite dark or foggy enough yet The Season Passholders waiting to get in. Seriously, is there a more dedicated fanbase anywhere? What's in the box? Fog slowly fills the theater as the monsters come out to play As the clock struck midnight, err, 8pm, it was time to see what horror was awaiting us in the box. To the horror of all it was none other than the master of scaremonies, Jeff Tucker. With that it was time to get on with the show. First up, the two shows coming to Scary Farm 2016. Elvira is back as well as the Hanging in it's all new location. Just the name of the Hanging made us want to see it. "Finding Gory". Perfect. Next up was the scare zones, and what would Scary Farm be without these 3 amazing area's. But could there be another Skywalker, err, scare zone? We'll have to wait and see. Mazes First up was the returning mazes. We've also included our maze video's from last year to get you familiar with what's waiting for you in the fog. First up, the fan favorite "The Toothfairy". Back again is "The Gunslinger's Grave - A Blood Moon Rises". This was actually one of our absolute favorite mazes last year. The addition of the Werewolves was awesome. Down on the bayou isn't just a song anymore, it's a curse waiting for you in "Voodoo - Order of the Serpent". "Trick or Treat", you don't want to smell the feet of the Green Witch. Trust us. The maze widely considered the best maze of Scary Farm 2015 (and pretty much from any event in Southern California") is back. Do you dare experience what "Paranormal Inc" has to show you? Back again is "Dead of Winter" but this time the Queen is dead and the Windigo is here to have his revenge. As announced at Midsummer Scream they are doing Skeleton Key rooms different this year with 4 separate interactive experiences - Slasher, Prey, Visions and Zozo. With Prey, you're on your own, not even the maze designers will save you, heck, they didn't even save the little girl. Then it was on to the new mazes. First up, Black Ops Infected is no longer taking over Camp Snoopy, but now is fully backstage which allows more sets and close quarters action. No more return time, just get in line and shoot some zombies!! Based on Japanese folklore, "Shadow Lands" is a new maze designed by John Cooke. Knott's has always had a Red Barn that has mazes in it, so why not use that as a theme for the maze. Beware of the chainsaw killers in "The Red Barn". And lastly, since Camp Snoopy is no longer being used for Infected, an all new scare zone called "The Hollow" will be haunting you. We'll be in the fog in less than a month ... After the announcement it was time to eat, and eat we did. These guys are the real MVPs Jeff did an amazing job as always They are waiting for you ... So what do you think of Knott's Scary Farm 2016? Are you ready? Let us know your thoughts on what's new and returning in the comments below. See you in the fog ... Related Updates: August is usually a transition period for Theme Parks and nowhere is this more evident that at Knott's Berry Farm. Not only are they wrapping up the summer of the rebuilt Ghostrider, but also wrapping up the run of the WILDLY successful and amazing Ghost Town Alive (be sure to catch it before it ends). But this also means that Knott's Scary Farm is coming and so you've got the winding down of things and new things springing up all over the park. Pictures by Matthew Nelson Written by Gregg Condon We'll start off with some amazing pictures of Ghost Town and around the park. Nothing really "update" here, just enjoy. Be sure to catch the Hoedown in Ghost Town Knott's is still one of VERY few parks in the US with a Stagecoach attraction. Actually, off the top of my head can't think of any other ones. If you know of one let us know in the comments. One of the most beautiful rides ever. (no, not that green thing) Xcelerator!! Looking at this picture it's hard to tell if Silver Bullet was going forwards or backwards. Note ... let's have Silver Bullet Backwards, that would be amazing. From the Sky Cabin Seriously, how about a golf clap for Matt's amazing pictures. Go ahead, do it at your desk. Nobody is looking. The new stage, going to be quite interesting to see this decked out for The Hanging soon. Ghostrider was running great!! Alright, let's move on with Scary Farm stuff. A new maze is being built near Xcelerator. This is definitely not Black Magic. At first it appeared that they were maybe building one of the Skeleton Key rooms here, but it's definitely two sides of the same maze (using the warehouse in the middle). And it looks to be a very good sized maze. Some very tall walls here Moving over to the Windseeker spot, something is being built here, not big enough to be a full maze, but looks like one of the Skeleton Key rooms. Considering the normal Dia De Los Muertos maze we are thinking this is maybe ZoZo? But we'll certainly have to see. I know a little German ... he's sitting right over there Remember, the Scary Farm preview is next Thursday and we'll be there to bring you all the news for Knott's Scary Farm 2016 including new and returning mazes. Also don't forget, Scary Farm Tickets are on sale NOW and this includes the Scare Pass which is an amazing value. Related Updates: |
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