SIX FLAGS MAGIC MOUNTAIN FRIGHT FEST 2019 REVIEW
Six Flags Magic Mountain’s Fright Fest has always been a must see attraction for us. Roller coasters in the dark, hideous monsters roaming the park and 6 fun mazes and all for a phenomenal price! We always have a blast!
Below is our thoughts of this years event from their opening night. A huge thank you goes out to the entire Fright Fest team for putting together a phenomenal experience for all the guests attending that evening.
Sliders of the Night Slider Show
Hands down, this was our favorite addition to this years event. The talented scare actors from each zone come together in City Under Siege to put on a high energy and incredibly impressive slider show. Each moment was choreographed and tailored perfectly!
We were highly impressed with their ability to keep up the tempo and energy of the show while still being able to pack the show with character driven moments. We cannot say enough good things about Sliders of the Night and truly hope SFMM realizes what they have on their hands with this amazing show! We hope to see it return for years to come!
UNLEASHED
Unique to Fright Fest in SoCal, all the monsters from each scare zone are “unleashed” upon the unsuspecting guests at Six Flags Magic Mountain. This opening moment of the event is very popular so make sure to get a seat early to witness it! We actually love this opening moment because it really sets the tone and gets the event started with great energy. Since the park never technically closes, it is a great ceremonial start to Fright Fest! The scare actors who take part also seem to really enjoy this moment and help propel them through the long nights.
SCAREZONES
Witches Lair
Introduced last year, Witches Lair bring a lot of scares and attitude within a small space. Last year we were pretty impressed with the talent and sets and we are in the same place this year but actually love it more! A big part of the reasoning here is the talent. They kicked so much ass in terrorizing the guests in and around each and every corner. The four legged ghillie suit creatures were the most unnerving part of the entire area. When you turn a corner and see these monsters running at you full speed, it almost makes you want to turn and run away!
We would love to see this area expanded even further out from where it currently sits. Bringing the wonderful lighting and fog out into the walkways so each and every guest must endure the same scary fate!
City Under Siege
Bring in the clowns! City Under Siege is back with its humor and scares! We love the lighting within this scare zone because it really helps add to the zany nature and high energy monsters.
This is also the home of the Sliders of the Night Slider Show! So make sure to get your seats quickly before it gets too packed. With that being said, if you want to enjoy this scare zone in all its glory, make sure to plan around the show because the entire street is taken over during this time.
Terrortory Twisted
This year, this was our least favorite scare zone. Where each scare zone brings very specific theming and characters, this ones hits the mark the least. It felt like the area wasn’t very populated with monsters and the sound design really didn’t lend itself to helping build the world.
With that being said, we do love the projection on the theater in the zone and the massive set prices scattered throughout. We do think the area in which this scare one is located does it a disservice. As guests approach, all you see is City Under Siege. This demands attention and unless you divert your eyes and look to your right, you can easily miss this scare zone. It is tucked away in a corner with very little foot traffic, so the zone just seemed very low energy. If you aren’t aware it’s there, from far away it doesn’t look like a zone since it’s low energy isn’t eye catching. We think this scare zone would do wonders for Fright Fest if it was moved to the pathway in front of Goliath! More foot traffic, energy, and it really makes it so the guests can’t escape the monsters!
Exile Hill
The quintessential scare zone of Fright Fest (in our opinion)! Exile Hill is dark, fog filled and completely packed with extremely talented monsters. We liken this scare zone to GTS at Knott’s Scary Farm. As you enter each plume of fog, you are hit by a monster on the other side. They can see you but you can’t see them! This is also home to the talented Innocence Willoughby! SHE IS TERRIFYING!
Demon’s Door
In previous years, we felt that the intense nature of Demon’s Door was the perfect introduction to the event. Nothing like some blood thirsty demons swinging their axes at you as a welcome to the park! This year felt a little odd.
The music choices for the zone didn’t lend itself to that chaotic high energy zone that we know and love. No matter what the great scare actors do, if the music doesn’t help the cause, it’s usually all for naught. Even with that being said, we love the black light makeup on the demons faces. It’s unnerving being stared down by a glowing eyed demon as you try to escape the zone to make it to your favorite ride or maze.
Nightmares
Hands down our favorite scare zone of the event, Nightmares brings scares, whimsy and fun all in one spooky package! The black light makeup almost acts as a distraction from the scares! You’re so entranced in looking at the makeup that you forget about the monster looming behind you!
This zone is also filled with some very talented scare actors! One that comes to mind is Lorain Lorain the Witch! Last year she was trying to get us to try her chunky pumpkin latte , but this year she had a new proposition. She had a new chiropractic technique that she promised would alleviate all our back pain. It was something called…THE RACK! You know…the medieval torcher device!
It is interactions like these that really make a difference in guests experiences in scare zones. Allowing the monsters interact and create unique experiences for the paying guests is something we love!
The scare zones are the reason we go to Fright Fest. The make up created by Scott Ramp and The Scream Team is second to none and really brings a level of immersion to each zone. Not even that, each piece done feels very specific to each zone and we love every second!
MAZES
Sewer of Souls
A highlight from last year, Sewer of Souls brought some imaginative fun to a maze at Fright Fest we hadn’t seen before. This year, Sewer of Souls brings the same bright imaginative scares as it did last year. One notable illusion that comes to mind is where guests walk on top of a narrow board where it seems to be balancing over a body of water. This is very convincing and I found Nikki screaming each time I nudged her! It was rather hysterical.
We really love the usage of the chroma depth paint within this maze and would love to see some additions in future years, really developing the chroma depth and pushing it as far as possible.
Willoughby’s Resurrected
The highlight of the night, Willoughby’s Resurrected blew us away more so this year than any other year. We felt as though the talent was completely on point and the minimal sound design really lent itself to creating great suspense. If the talent weren’t on point, everything would fall apart and the quiet would be awkward. While not choc full of scare actors, we didn’t feel that anything was lacking. each actor had a role to play and they pulled it off very effectively.
This maze is dark, gory and downright fun. Especially if you are in the front of the pack peaking around each and every corner. This maze, more than the others, has phenomenal set design that isn’t just beautiful to look at but also services the scares in a great way. It almost feels as though you are happening upon different creepy and disturbing vignettes of the lives of the mansions inhabitants. We felt like we were intruding, and we hoped we wouldn’t get noticed! In the last couple years, we were ready for this maze to get Condemned (although thats another maze). But this years performance made us think otherwise.
Red’s Revenge
We think it’s about time Red gets lost in the woods. Although we love the style and design of the maze, we know it too well. But we do enjoy seeing others scream their heads off from each one!
If this maze does return, we think it really needs some freshening up and some major changes. Maybe even changing where each scare comes from just to change it up.
Condemned: Forever Damned
We unfortunately didn’t get a chance to experience this maze this year. It closed before we had a chance to go in because of some structural problems. Last year, we were very impressed with the maze design and the set design. From the looks of it, this year is no different.
Vault 666: Unlocked
New this year, Vault 666: Unlocked takes the original mazes and adds a new style and flair. Although the changes are minimal, it’s a fun change to a well liked maze. We got scared plenty of times from some well timed monster looming around each corner.
We liked Vault 666: Unlocked much more than the previous years Hell Fest maze. We think Fright Fest excels best in original content, not IP based content.
Aftermath 2: Chaos Rising
The biggest maze at Fright Fest, Aftermath 2 takes up the biggest piece of real estate and has the largest cast of monsters. The creatures range from zombies to maimed humans. This maze delivers on exactly what it promised… Apocalyptic mayhem! this maze is impressive if for no other reason than the great setting that Fright Fest has at its disposal.
Last year, we noticed they made some investments in some phenomenal masks but this year they were nowhere to be seen. If this maze returns, we hope it gets a pretty large overhaul to really amp up the chaotic nature of the theme.
Overall
This year didn’t skip a beat from last years fun and scary environment SFMM does so well. Although our only real gripes we have are inconsistent monster acting and lack of changes in returning mazes. There were several times through the night where we encounter incredibly well timed scares and some unsettling noises from monsters. But those were peppered with very odd choices by some monsters. One notable occurrence happened in Aftermath 2. We were near the end of the maze when we were approached by a monster making a noise that could be described as a noise made by a character from Monsters Inc. It wasn’t scary and it completely took us out of the moment. Consistency in scare tactics is crucial to having a cohesive experience at any haunted attraction.
When it comes to returning mazes, each one or at least some of them should have some type of noticeable change and adjustments. Since this event is not a separately ticketed event, people are literally only paying for the mazes. Thinking of it in this manner, if anything changes it should be the mazes. Especially for repeat guests to Fright Fest! After years of no changes, it becomes a bit difficult to justify the added price of a maze pass when you can have the free scare zones which are extremely impressive.
We are fully aware that a majority of guests attending this event simply will not notice these changes. They are looking to get scared and ultimately, Fright Fest can do that and at a price point better than most.
The overall value of the experience mixed with world class roller coasters really makes Fright Fest an event all SoCal people should attend. In our travels across SoCal, Fright Fest is unique in that the event is not separately ticketed. So guests attending the park during the day can stay for the Halloween festivities at night. Although they do need to purchase maze passes to enjoy those. But we cannot think of another Halloween event where you can enjoy spectacularly scary zones for the price of admission alone. Essentially getting scare zones for free with your admission ticket during the day. Even with minimal issues, we still have so much fun and love attending Fright Fest. It speaks volumes that we find ourselves getting more scared here than at other haunts. If you love coasters and love monsters, Fright Fest might be the match made in Heaven (or Hell, it is a Halloween event after all) for you! If you’ve never visited SIX FLAGS MAGIC MOUNTAIN for Fright Fest, this year would be the perfect year to attend.
Theme Park Duo 