13th Floor

OVERALL RATING :

Scare Factor

Actors

Set Design

Length

RAW SCORE : 8.78125

RATING

REVIEW

13th floor is the newest haunt by the people who created the Asylum haunted house up by Boondocks fun center. Arriving at the haunt, it is a bit deceiving; it is certainly not tall enough for 13 Floors. It may be two stories
tall. Our expectations for a tall building are quickly changed when we were greeted by one of the haunt’s “Hosts”. We were asked, “What’s wrong with this building?” Obviously it’s too short. Then the English accent let us know that it’s not above ground as we were ushered through the door.

Once in the building you are given the option to go through a “Sideshow”. This obviously campy section had quite a few strange and classic things you might expect at a circus freak show or state fair. They had an alien body,
bearded lady and other strange sights. For people interested in such things it may be a great way to pass some of the time while waiting in line for the main attraction.

Once finished with the freaks the haunt attempts to transport you to a different plane of existence. You are first placed into a creepy elevator supposing to take you to the non-existing 13th floor. After a creepy ride down with some strange “Workers” you are let out on Floor 13. This floor looks like it’s under some sort of construction, but there are a lot of things you would never expect. There are tons of things from old cars with rednecks working on them to specters. There are also parts trying to play on phobias from claustrophobia to bugs and snakes.

The characters are really the spotlight of this attraction. They have some really scary and twisted people hanging around to give you a few scares. A couple of note able mentions are the woman in the dress and the guy with the strait jacket. I also liked the room with multiple doors where there is a creepy person trying to get you to go the wrong way.

Not everything is fantastic however. There were a few items that for my tastes were not hidden enough. I saw speakers and fog machines that could have maybe been concealed a bit more for instance. There are ways that these items could be hidden into the environment by hiding them in the wall or building them in to a prop. Also, I could in a couple of places hear the music from the freak show. This may be a bit more difficult to remedy likely because of the areas not being sealed off completely.

Overall, for a first year new haunt this was really great. It’s a fun haunt that proposes that the hidden 13th floor of a building is hidden for a very good
reason.

PROS

Atmosphere, a few good actors, cool but strange idea for line entertainment

CONS

Some things should be more concealed, some environments need to be separated

RATING

REVIEW

The second venture by the minds that brought you The Asylum, their new haunt is based on the quadruple decade long urban legend about the haunted house that pays you your money back if you make it all the way through all 13 Floors. Finally, teenagers can rejoice at the urban legend coming true - at least in some parts. The premise is that of being brought down 13 floors into a basement and having to work your way back up to the surface, which is an excellent twist. You even get an elevator ride down to the basement as a courtesy - although it feels as if the elevator might lose its cable at any moment.

The actors/actresses have definitely seen or taken some cues from The Asylum, as they are all very convincing and energetic, and of course, some are just downright creepy. The girls in the white creepy wedding dresses who float and tease you in the absolute dark was a great idea, as was the guy in the straight jacket who pulls a "Ring" or Grudge" ghost crawl on you in a hallway. Most of the set design seems to be a work in progress, which is typical for a new haunt. But their limitations on sets are balanced with their great F/X and scare tactics. Translate: Fog and Strobes from Asylum. I expect this haunt to get better and better with each year as they have a permanent arrangement in that building and have lots of potential for growth.

Did I mention the sexy Goth woman dancing with a live boa constrictor to techno music? I felt like I was at The Church nightclub on Sunday night. The optional Sideshow is also a great way to make the waiting in line go a bit faster.

PROS

dark, dark, and more dark, and strobes, and fog, and just plain creepy monsters

CONS

First year haunt with first year expectations

RATING

REVIEW

What a cool haunt! I don’t know if all the rumors of the ghostly activity inside the actual warehouse are true, but certainly the haunt itself held up to its expectations. It is a dark haunt. Not literally speaking, but there is a very ominous feeling about the warehouse itself. The setting is awesome! As you walk into the warehouse to get in the cue line, the scene reminded me a lot of the first “Blade” movie where the vampires are all dancing to their techno Goth like music in an abandoned warehouse under showers of blood. Unfortunately, there were no vampires slaughtering all of us unsuspecting victims, but there was a hot Goth chick doing a hot dance to entertain you while standing in line! There also a freak show, but I will let the other critics mention something about that and cut to the chase.

With a name like the 13th floor, I was really curious as to how they were going to pull that off and make it feel like you're climbing multiple floors. Well… they did it! You step into an enclosed elevator room and suddenly you feel like
you really are in an old rickety elevator that could drop at any second. The actors here did a terrific job making you believe that you could too. Once on the 13th floor, the scenes began to unfold. One thing that really stood out in
this particular haunt, were the props looked very movie quality real. There was a severed head in a container that was awesome! I thought the coolest gag, which I am sure all the critics also dually noted, was the ghostly bride. She
slithered in and out of the rooms in the dark and was really creepy the way she moved. Just like if you were to really see a ghost, she was there for a split second, and gone the next.

The acting I felt was fantastic. The little scenes I thought were great! The smoke was perfect! I like it when you can’t see much in front of your face and don’t know exactly where you are going. Over all, I really loved this entire haunt. I felt it really held up to all the others that have had the benefit of running for years. I can’t wait to see the adjustments made and how much further it goes in years to come.

PROS

Scary haunt, very original, great theme, great props and acting.

CONS

Some areas were too dark and couldn’t see the scenes. Could have more action.

RATING

REVIEW

I think nearly everyone has heard the old urban legend about the haunt that gives you your money back for every floor you make it through successfully. This haunt is not intended to live up to that urban legend. There is no way they could unless they wanted to break nearly every law known to man. The haunt is based on the burning question of, “Why isn’t there a 13th floor in most high rise buildings, and what happened to the missing 13th floor?” Well, some of those answers can be found in the depths of this haunt located in an industrial neighborhood that in itself is quite creepy. Once we entered the building I immediately noticed the Goth dancer on a platform that was performing with a live snake draped around her shoulders. She seemed almost trancelike while she danced, lending some eeriness to the atmosphere. Our group went into the Sideshow area that is there as a means of que line entertainment and I enjoyed it. It was campy and nostalgic in design and not meant to be scary, but amusing with a creepy element. The bearded lady was definitely putting out the creep vibe.

Once we entered the haunt itself we were greeted by Armpit the safety manager and initially he seemed as though he was quite safe as he took us to the elevator. After a couple of moments with him, he gave me the feeling that he could snap at any moment and become my worst nightmare. The elevator ride was great and lasted longer than others I have experienced which really worked for me. Once we were off the elevator we were on our own to navigate our way through.

We found some interesting souls on our journey and there were a couple that really stood out. Watch out for ghostly ladies that waft their way through the dark halls and the insane members have a language all their own that you really must hear to believe. There was just the right element of fog and lighting the night we went through which was great. Spiders, snakes, rooms with multiple doors leaving you wondering where to go were all a part of the fun here. This is a great first year haunt with great ideas and creativity happening. I look forward to the coming years.

PROS

Acting, creativity, ambiance

CONS

Some dead spots, ended abruptly

RATING

REVIEW

I really enjoyed the 13th Floor. I thought it was a great haunt because all the rooms were foggy and very mysterious. The fog gave the rooms the right kind of feel for a haunt—tension! The elevator ride down to the main “floor”
was cool. They had the strobe lights going and sent a couple of friendly, scary workers with you; I thought this worked well for the theme. Once on the main floor, I found the rooms great. They had some of the rooms look like they were still under construction, but yet weird stuff was happening. The floating brides gave my skin goose bumps. Wow, those actresses did a good job being creepy without saying much. You see them and then they just vanish—the fog helped with this illusion. Also, they added some humor to this haunt by having some actors fool you by telling you to go the wrong way. This was made especially cool because the actors had evil laughs and acted like crazy people.

I though some actors did a great job being the creepy, crazy people. One actor was just amazingly disgusting, chewing “something” and making these weird noises as if it was a great piece of yummy steak. Another actor gave me the creeps when he was in a straight jacket very still, and then went crazy on me. I didn’t like seeing some open spaces where you could see speakers and some other things that were not part of the props, so maybe they need to cover a little better to keep the illusion. Also, some actors could improve on being creepier to make the scare better. Overall, though, I thought it was a great haunt.

PROS

Good scares, some actors did a great job playing their character, good set up

CONS

Some open spaces where you could see speakers; it takes the illusion away

RATING

REVIEW

The thrilling and new 13th floor was an exciting haunt. The theme of this haunt is that you are taken 13 floors under ground and you must find your way back up to get out alive. Snakes, spiders, roaches and crocodiles are some
of the many phobias that they cover, they actually have a girl with a live snake as you wait in line.

The haunt begins as you walk into the building and a fog filled room with double doors. You see actors inside but they vanish into the smoke before you arrive. From there you are taken on an elevator ride to the “13th Floor”.  Once on the floor, dark rooms and bright rooms filled with bloody sheets disorient you creating the perfect places for the actors to hide giving them a better chance to scare you.  The sets were detailed fairly well, especially for being a new haunt, and it seemed fairly long to me.

I felt the actors of this haunt could of played there roles a little better, most were great, although some of them at times made me lose the believable feeling of being on the 13th Floor. All in all, definitely a must see haunted house for the 2008 season.

PROS

Good length and creative with props

CONS

Some lack of energy from actors

RATING

REVIEW

13th floor is an amazing experience that leaves you wanting more. I was truly amazed by the acting of the characters.  They had so many different scenes, some awesome, and some I wish were a little more elaborate.  Characters coming at you in costumes like the dead brides who follow you around so quietly that definitely gave me a chill up my spine. There were characters crawling on the floor that made you feel like they where going to grab your legs, it made me want to run and just get away from them. This haunt gives you a frightening feeling with snakes and spiders that are difficult to tell if they are real or not, I think some of them are real for sure. You’ll find excellent rooms and great actors, like the ones portraying dead safety workers. Some things to watch out for are the elevator, you won’t know what is about to happen, and rooms that spin.

I think this haunted house could have been longer.  However, I was frightened and excited by the way they laid out the haunt.  It would have been cool if the actors brought you more into their script, and if it were longer so you felt that it was never going to end.

PROS

Awesome acting and scares

CONS

Wish it were longer

RATING

REVIEW

I’m glad that this haunt finally came into existence…maybe some of the myths surrounding it’s name will hopefully die out. To begin, I think this haunt was excellent for its first year up and running. It had some really nice features, and of course, a great story line with a lot of potential for growth.

I really like the interaction that this haunt provides while waiting in line. There are dead folks creeping through the line of people, sneaking up behind us, and even talking to us. Their make up and costumes were great. This just got
me pumped up for what was to come.

When entering the building, it’s pretty dark and foggy inside. I loved this, darkness and fog when done right really get to me. I hate not being able to see what’s in front of me. These features were utilized well throughout the haunt. I didn’t really understand the point of the girl dancing on the platform with the snake, but it was entertainment while we waited. The Sideshow freak show was a cool idea too. The chicken and the bearded lady cracked me up.

For those of you who remember the haunt called “The Dig” from a few years ago, the beginning of this haunt reminded me of it. In this, Arm Pit was a great actor, who told the story of the haunt well. The elevator was great too.
Some cheesy elevator music would have been a nice touch.

I applaud all of the actors in this haunt. I like how each character was different, and used different scare tactics. Some laughed, some crawled, some danced, some stared, some shouted, some screamed, but each was good at what
he/she did. My favorites were the girl in the white dress, and the guy in the straight jacket on the floor.

I also liked the idea of there being real creepy, crawly animals throughout the haunt. Snakes, spiders, and cock roaches, oh my! The air bag at the end rocked too! If you’re claustrophobic, this will rock you!

Overall, I had a good time going through this haunt. I felt it could have been a tad longer, with a few minor improvements on the set. I wish the ceiling had been covered, at least in some parts. I feel that this would add to the effect and story line of which this haunt was trying to capture.

PROS

Great theme and actors!

CONS

Minor adjustments on set would be beneficial.