After a spectacular Halloween event last year, Twisted Attractions Hellfest was easily one of my most highly anticipated events this Halloween. Unsurprisingly, I can now confirm Hellfest is a real winner! The range of attractions has been well thought out, with scares that are varied and often! They’ve gone large this year, with street entertainment, a fabulous bar area that serves food and even themed toilets! Congratulations Twisted Attractions, you’ve done yourselves proud!
Panic Unlocked
Panic Unlocked is effectively the sequel/prequel to this years Panic escape experience. You’ll be visiting the lair of a deranged mad man, whose victims have become crazed and are looking for new playmates. It’s easily the most intense attraction at Hellfest and is truly exceptional!
From start to finish you’ll be traipsing through numerous insanely detailed sets featuring the remains of the gruesome games. Each room is beautifully designed and totally immersive, and because this is Twisted we’re talking about, there are numerous hiding spaces! This attraction is incredibly jumpy and terrifying! Serious praise must go out to the actor placement in this one. Numerous times the actors in Panic caught me off guard, so much I was almost convinced one room was empty until the actor was already upon me!
One thing that is worth noting is how interactive this experience is, multiple scenes relied on audience participation, with created some truly chilling scares! One such scare involved me filling a toilet with water, which proceeded to spray my group with a rather loud bang, and another involved me being trapped in a furnace for a couple of minutes.
On top of the unique scares, the attraction is chock full of talented and extremely enthusiastic scare actors. There are certainly moments to build up tension, but you’ll spend most of your time jumping from the numerous actors and air cannons. This is definitely the most jumpy attraction at Hellfest this year.
Now the brilliant acting wouldn’t help much if the theming wasn’t spot on, thankfully Twisted have pulled it out of the bag yet again! If you’ve visited one of their attractions before you’ll know how talented the team are! From the moment you step into the moving lift till you’re trapped deep within the games, you’ll be fully immersed in the world of Panic. Oh and the ending is pure genius. I don’t want to spoil anything, but one of your group may get… abducted in the final scene.
It’s definitely one of the strongest attractions Twisted have produced, and works extremely well as a scare maze.
Ward 78: Unrestrained
Now anybody who knows me will know how much I loved Ward 78 last year, lets just say I received some very special treatment and it had a lasting impression on me. Needless to say, I have been very hyped to see how the ward would fare this year with its numerous changed. I am glad to say this year really is spectacular, and certainly an improvement on the original, which is by no means an easy feat!
Your journey through the ward is very long, and completely dark. Thankfully for you there’s a lantern to guide your way. That being said, it doesn’t always work in your favour, from time to time it will start strobing, which is insanely effective and will totally disorientate you. If you’re uncomfortable in the dark, bad news… It really brings the attraction to another level, and I can’t wait to see how these lanterns could be used in the future by the Twisted team!
The actors in the ward this year as lively as ever! I would honestly say they are some of the best I have ever seen! There were multiple times I was driven to cold shivers as some disturbing scene played out in front of me! This year Ward is very character driven and you’ll meet some extremely…’unique’ characters. I don’t want to spoil anything, but one scene immediately after the crawl space literally stopped me in my tracks. It was a brave decision to include said character in the attraction and it really paid off!
Now not only are the actors very talented, but they’re also rather hands on! You will be touched, pushed and your legs are likely to be grabbed! It’s very different to Panic Unlocked. Whilst there are numerous effective scares, this one seemed to be very focussed on shocking you and giving out very psychological scares. It brings something rather unique to the table at Hellfest and really rounds out the selection of attractions very well!
Do I prefer Unrestrained to Ward 78? Hell yes!
Terror on the Streets
Terror on the Streets is something entirely new for Twisted, it’s a totally theatrical experience with heavy characterisation and some great scares hidden throughout! It’s very story focused and they’ve done a fantastic job with the attraction! You’ll find yourself totally absorbed in Jack the Rippers Whitechapel.
There’s a real level of immersion in this maze, the theming is top notch and it’s extremely atmospheric! You’ll journey through the seedy underbelly of Victorian London, roaming through the streets and sewers, encountering numerous menacing characters. The costumes are on point, and everyone from the Prostitutes to Jack the Ripper offer numerous scares. Like Ward 78, I found this attraction to feature some rather unsettling scenes. It’s rather disturbing to come face to face with a prostitute mourning her dead husband when you know Jack is just around the corner. I loved these touches in Terror on the Streets!
It’s not the most intense attraction at Hellfest, but it doesn’t need to be. You’ll get your fair share of impact scares, but the real terror comes from the characters and the looming sense of dread knowing you’ll be coming face to face with the infamous ripper. The anticipation is well drawn out, and when you’re finally in front of him… lets just say you’ll be in a rather claustrophobic situation. The finale works incredibly well, and is a perfect send off to a well thought out maze!
Terror on the Streets is very reminiscent of an extreme edition of the dungeons attractions. It’s very theatrical and has some particularly unsettling and dark scenes within. It’s incredible to see Twisted produce something like this, and makes me really excited for their future!
Carnage Scare Zone
Twisted Attractions are incredibly brave for attempting a scare zone for the first time. They can be incredible, but they are very easy to do wrong. Thankfully I can honestly say they’ve done a good job with this one!
Carnage is entirely outside and is set out as a quarantine zone where the infected test subjects of the facilities experiments roam. The theming is creepy, with fencing and sheet plastic looking very much like some out of control military quarantine. The theming is up there with Alton’s attempts at scare zones and provides many opportunities for scares. Piles of discarded tyres and seemingly abandoned caravans act as perfect hiding spots for the actors lurking within.
The route you’ll take is very well thought out, it’s rather long and there are many twists and turns throughout the course. You’ll genuinely be scratching your head as to where you’ll be heading next!
If I had one criticism for Carnage, I’d say it could do with some more actors throughout its route. There’s some really great interaction with the existing characters throughout the route, but there are some moments I noticed which could do with a couple more scares. I have heard that this is being looked into, and trust me, with this alteration; this will be one kick-ass scare zone!
Carnage is a really fun addition to the Hellfest line-up! With some minor adjustments, which I hear are being implemented as I write, it will easily be up there with Alton’s scare zones!
Overall, Twisted Attractions have really hit the nail on the head with their first scare park. From the moment you step through the curtains, you’re immersed in their own twisted (excuse the pun) funfair full of fantastic scare attractions! I feel they’ve really thought carefully to ensure each attraction fulfils every horror niche from the theatrical, to the psychological, to the downright jumpy. I can easily recommend visiting. It’s easy to get to and is in the heart of Birmingham. Trust me, if you’re used to the theme park haunts, you’re in for an extremely pleasant surprise!
Also if you’re unlucky enough, you may even bump into me! I may be doing a shift in one of their attractions over Halloween.
Twisted Attractions Hellfest is operating on the 2nd, 3rd, 8th, 9th, 10th, 13th, 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th, of October then will run solidly from the 19th of October to the 1st of November, ending with a run from the 6th to the 8th of November at Twisted Attractions Terror Park on Hurst Street in Birmingham
Entry is £19.00 OffPeak and £24.00 OnPeak
http://twistedattractions.co.uk/
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