The Dungeon

Category	Skulls	Notes
First Impression		This haunt is located in the 1800 square foot basement of an old lodge in Wall Doxey State Park. I knew going in that there would be some activities in the upper part of the lodge, and that a hayride was available, but I have to admit, I never expected what I found when I arrived. The park is forested, which I always think is a good setting for a halloween attraction. The downside of the location however is that parking doesn't really support the size of the event, so most likely you'll need to park along the side of the road in the park, and you'll have a short walk to reach the lodge where the actual events are taking place. The lodge itself is easy to find however, with good lighting and a number of large scale inflatables outside to give a more halloween style atmosphere. Once inside the lodge, it was immediately apparent that the target audience of the overall event was families, with a number of children and teenagers in attendance. The events were very fitting for this demographic, with games like shuffleboard, a beanbag toss, a wheel of fortune, minigolf putting, and a dice game among the entertainment. An adjoining room had tables full of cakes of all kinds for the cakewalk, as well as a concession stand that had a fairly good variety of food and drinks at decent prices. The biggest event outside of the haunt I'd like to note is the hayride, which at a $3 price tag is a great bargain. The hayride which isn't scary or haunted, goes through campsites in the park that have been decorated for the occasion. I envisioned a few, or maybe a dozen campsites that would be driven past, so what I got instead was much more than I expected. There had to be at least 50 or so campsite decorated with lights, jack-o-lanterns, graveyards, inflatables, and other decorations that I'd expect to see at houses while trick or treating. People drive in from all around, to decorate their campsites and stay for the weekend, making for an impressive sight. I'm told that Saturday is even more impressive than Friday, since many people just arrived and don't get a chance to get decorated until the second night of hay rides. The fact that so many people drive in for this event year after year just for the fun is a great tradition, and one I recommend everyone go see. Oh, and for the kids (or those who still feel like kids), you get to trick or treat from the hayride, as many of the campsites give out candy to riders on the passing wagons. (I bet I made my $3 back just in candy, and I wasn't even trying to collect any.) The haunt is a little harder to find, as you need to go outside and around the side of the lodge to find it. (I had to ask around a bit.) It isn't well marked, but you'll be able to find it by the people waiting outside. Better signage, lighting, and perhaps a facade of some kind might help in the future. The throughput of the haunt was a bit low, with only two groups inside the haunt at a time (and groups maxed at 4), so if there is a long line, it could be a bit of a wait.
Actors		The actors generally did a good job. They had good timing, scared from the back to keep things flowing. The haunt relies on startle scares from actors as the core of the haunt and there isn't much dialogue or even roaring or growling. There is some physical demands on some of the actors with some of the prop usage through the haunt, with some of the props really attracting the attention of or startling customers. (Especially props used to make noise.
Audio/Sensory		The haunt does use background music, and actors props make some noise a few times through the haunt, but there isn't much use of sound outside of that. The basement area of the old building provides an aged smell to the environment, but that is mostly covered up by the smell of fog or chainsaw gasoline through the haunt.
Special Effects		I was actually surprised at the number of effects in this haunt. I was expecting this to be a totally actor based haunt with not effects before entering. Instead I was treated to a number of animatronics, the use of an autopsy table style visual effect, a monster showing it's teeth, the use of fog, and heavy use of black lighting effects. It certainly isn't the most high tech haunt you will find, but it actually uses more effects than many haunts in the area.
Theming and Storyline		There really isn't a theme to the haunt, with the costuming and rooms being pretty random. I would really love to see them embrace the dungeon as a full theme, as there are a lot of things that could be done with it, and no other haunt in the area has a similar theme.
Fright Factor		Althought the run time of the haunt is only around 5 minutes, they manage to pack in a number of scares from animatronics, props, and especially from actors. Although I didn't see anything over the top frightening, I did see a number of children come out in tears (even when I know that some of the scarier parts were being "easy" on them.) I'd still consider this a family friendly haunt, but do realize that someone who is very easily frightened might have some problems with it.
Gore Factor		With the exception of one scene, I didn't really notice any gore or adult themes in the haunt, and even that one scene wasn't done in an over the top bloody manor, instead being understated and letting the effect work. This haunt is definately designed towards older children and teenagers, with most of the actors being teenagers as well.
Value		At $5, this is the cheapest haunt in the area. The haunt itself is about a 5 minute run time, so it isn't a huge bargain for the price, but it isn't out of line either. The side events help make this attraction however, with the hayride actually being more of a steal than a bargain, as it's great entertainment for families and especially children, and priced below what I'd have expected for it's run time of around 20 minutes. This event also has a big advantage, as those seeking a haunt can head down to the dungeon, while the rest of the family plays games, tries to win cakes, or mingles with other guests and the volunteers running everything. The fact that the money goes to the park and to a local boy scout troop also helps make you feel that every dollar spent is well spent.

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