Six Flags

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​On Saturday, March 25th, I was invited out to Six Flags Magic Mountain to check out a brand-new after-hours event for this year: Scream Break. As the name implies, this event is a spring break haunt event, merging aspects of the two into what is best described as a monster-themed party. It’s a bit unusual in concept, but absolutely works, and led to one of the most fun evenings I’ve had at the park in quite some time.
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            Before the festivities began, we were invited to sample a few of devilish treats available during the event. On the menu was Monster Mac, a mac and cheese dish topped with your choice of Beef Brisket, BBQ Chicken, or Pulled Pork. As someone who generally finds fancy mac and cheese dishes to be overrated, I have to say that this one surprised me as it was really good. I tried both the brisket and chicken options, and while I preferred the latter since it seemed to blend a bit better, both were quite tasty. To drink, we were treated to the event’s signature beverage. Dubbed Spiked Skull on the Beach, it is a cocktail consisting of strawberry sprite topped with whipped cream, gummy worms, and cherries, and offered with or without a shot of soju. This was also really good, and came in a souvenir cup themed to the event.
​            Once we finished up with the refreshments, it was time to get the party started. For haunted attractions, Scream Break features two mazes and three scare zones. As we were released into Full Throttle Plaza, I decided to start things off with the mazes. Regulars who have attended Fright Fest will be familiar with Condemned and Vault 666, the two mazes in use for Scream Break, but both have been plussed up a bit for the event. The first, dubbed Vault 666: Initiation, is quite similar to its regular Fright Fest version, but has been given a few small tweaks. Despite its age, this remains one of the stronger mazes the park has done, and with the quality of talent it was probably the scariest thing at Scream Break. The other maze, Condemned: House Party, completely dispenses with the scary aspect of the maze’s traditional version and replaces it with a college party inside the decrepit house. Again, the talent in the maze sold the theme, making for an extremely fun maze that is enhanced even more by the crowd getting into the action.
            The park’s three scare zones were spread along front section of the park. The first (I think it was called Frat Party, but I missed a sign confirming it) was in the maze area near Full Throttle Plaza, and kept up the party vibe found within Condemned. Second was Bloodborne Hollow, a graveyard-themed scare zone along the path past Bugs Bunny World. Lastly was the Grave Rave, centered around a DJ stage right at the entrance to DC Universe. All three had a decent amount of scaractors present, with a few stilt walkers and at least a half dozen other ghouls roaming around to interact with guests. Unlike Fright Fest, where everyone is out to get you, at this event two of the three zones were less about the fright and more about the fun, with monsters dancing alongside guests or trying to entice them into joining their shenanigans (Bloodborne Hollow is closer to a traditional scare zone). Like Fright Fest, however, the quality of actors at this park combined with them being given a fairly long leash makes these interactions a delight, and the scare zones were consistently the busiest areas of the park for the evening. I do wish a bit more of the event’s footprint was occupied by scare zones (would have loved to see something in the Screampunk District or DC Universe proper), but what they had was sufficient for the size of the event.
            For those who want coasters, this park has you covered, with six of the park’s legendary thrill rides operating in the dark: Batman The Ride, Full Throttle, Goliath, Scream, Twisted Colossus, and Wonder Woman Flight of Courage. All six were open for the entire event on Saturday, all running at least two trains (Twisted Colossus and Wonder Woman had three), and as such wait times were minimal throughout the entire event. While coasters can be ridden any time of year, night rides with short waits make Scream Break worth attending even for those who may not care for the more traditional haunt aspects of the evening, and a majority of those selected do offer pretty good night rides.
            I went in to Scream Break with fairly modest expectations, but the event ended up exceeding all of them. It’s not a huge event, but is a good size for the three-hour duration, and what it lacks in quantity it certainly makes up for in quality. Many haunt-style events have at least one obvious weak point, but in my opinion every element of Scream Break was excellent and nothing felt like filler. This one is absolutely worth checking out, especially for Six Flags season passholders (who get free admission to Scream Break), but even for more general haunt fans who might not ordinarily venture up to the park (daytime admission is not required). I will say that those who are hardcore horror fans might find it a bit of a letdown if they need actual terror to be satisfied, as might those who don’t really care for the party atmosphere, but for most others it’s likely to provide a highly enjoyable evening. If Six Flags Magic Mountain can keep up this level of quality with their other seasonal events, they’re definitely going to be one to watch going forward.
For those venturing out to Scream Break, here are a few tips to maximize your time and enjoyment of the event:
  • If you’ll be in the park prior to the event, pick up your event wristband as early in the day as possible. This is especially true for passholders, as a limited amount of wristbands are available each night for the event (though they were still handing them out at 5 P.M. on a Saturday, so I’m guessing it’s a fairly large number). The bigger advantage is avoiding the line…I got mine with no wait around 4 P.M., but I heard others who waited until ~7 P.M. to pick them up were waiting ~20 minutes due to the slow process. Also, make sure to go to the correct location: Passholders need to get them at passholder services near the main gate, while those with Scream Break tickets redeem them at the stand next to Full Throttle.​
  • The rides open at 9 P.M., and you will not be allowed to venture out of Full Throttle Plaza until that time. The mazes, however, open at 8 P.M., so I’d recommend trying to do them once each before hitting the coasters. If you want to do the mazes a second time, wait until the second half of the event to return as lines will be much shorter. Condemned generally had the longer wait of the two mazes, so I’d probably do that one first.​
  • If you aren’t interested in trying the event-exclusive food offerings, eat before Scream Break starts. While food service is available during the event, it is pretty limited. I am not sure whether or not dining plans are valid during the event either.​
  • On a Saturday, the coasters weren’t walk-ons, but were generally only 10-15 minute waits. Wonder Woman was the longest wait of the coasters, with the rest mostly being a two or three train wait in the station.​
  • During the event, I was able to do each maze twice, ride every coaster once, and spend a half hour or so checking out the scare zones. There is enough time to do everything at the event, but you will likely need the full duration to do everything. I recommend getting to the mazes shortly after they open to ensure you can see it all without feeling rushed.​
  • Make sure to actively engage with the actors. This isn’t a haunt event where they’re just there to jump at you and make you run away screaming. If you play along with them, you’ll get some extremely fun interactions.
Scream Break at Six Flags Magic Mountain runs Friday, Saturday, and Sunday through April 16th. Tickets are $39.99, or free for passholders on a space available basis. The event runs from park closing until midnight, with admission beginning at 7:30 P.M. each evening.
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