Brett (wm)

I'll admit it, up until now I have boycotted Terror On The Fox.  I'm a lifelong resident of Green Bay, and TOTF is basically a local
landmark in it's own right.  The house itself has been around forever at numerous locations, well before the 15 years it now celebrates at the National Railroad Museum.  Year after year, there's tons of hype for this well promoted house... yet I was a let down the many times I visited.  That, dear readers, was several years ago.  Now things are different.  New management.  Lower prices.  A 'back to basics' approach.  I'm part excited, part leery of how this experience will unfold.



I attended on a Sunday night, which leads me to believe that they were lower staffed than if I would have went the prior few nights.  There was only one actor on the train, and it seemed like he was making small talk more than trying to get some screams out of the
passengers.  The train ride is one of the most unique parts of this haunt.  When they first started offering it 15 years ago, it was much more spooky.  There was no strobe or loud music.  Sitting in a dark train as it travels through the woods at night, with monsters creeping around you.  Now THAT was scary!



Before heading to the main attraction, you're directed to several large tents (IF you purchased the combo or VIP pass).  The first up was the 3rd Dimension of Fear, "Carney Rampage".  There was no rampage there.  It was short and disappointing, with no scares and lots of glow in the dark colors.  The actor tried his best to be funny, I'll give him that.



Next up was The Void.  Now this was very well done, and it proves that your imagination can be more scary than anything you can see.  It's pitch black, you can't see a thing!  Just a dark maze with some actors in it, but we jumped a few times!  I think they had on night vision goggles as their timing was spot on.  We must have looked so goofy to them as we walked around in circles.  After leaving the dark Void, we came to the Vortex.  If you've ever been to the Terror On The Fox, then you'll know of the multi-color tunnel that plays mind tricks on you.  In fact, most haunts have something just like it now, or something similar.  TOTF was one of the first to have it, if not the first...  but maybe it's time to retire it?  Maybe it's time to take back the claim of the area's best haunted house with something new and original.      



Up next is a short walk in the woods before you come up to the house.  Another part that used to be much more scary, as they used to have actors jumping out at you as you walked by.  But again, this was a Sunday night.  I hope that is something they still do on their busy nights.  Now, walking up to the house is impressive.  The location, the look of the house, the lights and actors...  it definitely has the WOW factor going for it.  I'm glad to see they went back to the 'run down' look for the house, and
not the neon day glow paint job it sported a few years ago.  There were two actors moving to the music, looking extremely creepy while still keeping the beat.  Not an easy task!



I want to take a minute from this review to address a particular actor that was in front of the haunted house.  Picture a pale Aaron Rodgers wearing a black cowboy outfit.  I don't think I've ever been as offended by an actor in an entertainment setting before as I was this night.  He was extremely rude and demanding.  I get it, this isn't a kiddy ride.  But this isn't my first rodeo either.  He crossed the line several times by screaming in our faces with his demanding tone, talking down to us.  I also didn't
appreciate his holding a straight blade to my throat multiple times, real or fake.  You were way out of line A.R., this is SUPPOSED to be entertaining.  I ended up ignoring and walking past him into the house after several minutes of him berating us.  I digress...


We enter the house in all it's glory.  It really is something to see if you've never been there.  The amount of detail that's there is incredible.  I wish I could have spent more time in each room, taking it all in.  Some rooms I remember from before, but I didn't mind as they really are very impressive.  There was at least one actor in each room, and most did a good job at entertaining us.  There were only a few that actually scared us.  These were the sneaky ghouls that were actually hiding and jumped out when we approached.  'The Boss' near the end didn't have to hide though, he was terrifying just standing there.  The last room featured another TOTF classic, which maybe should also be considered for the retirement party at the end of the season.

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This was my first time to the Nightmare Factory, but it won't be my last! From the moment we walked in the haunt, it was on!

The factory is really broken down into two completely different types of haunts. The first is the old school, scare the pants off of you. They mix old school scares with some modern technology that will have you screaming for more! This lasts for about 25/30 minutes, and we enjoyed every second of it.

The second part is the 3D section. I'm normally am not a fan of any sort of 3D haunts. They, as a rule are more visually appealing but not scary. With that said, we jumped a few times! This section was another 15 minutes in the factory.

We walked out very impressed with almost every aspect of the Nightmare Factory. I can't wait to see what other nightmares this factory produces next year!

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It was a clear night, perfect for a nice drive to Oconto.  But this is no joy ride…  it's literally a Trail of Terror.  (insert sinister music)  Situated on farmland in a heavily wooded area, it's the perfect Halloween setting in the middle of no-where.  As we drove up, we saw a crowd of people with glow necklaces being led to their doom.  Just that sight alone, in this environment, got my adrenaline going.



You walk into the ticket building and are instantly handed a glow necklace.  I'm normally against any sort of glow sticks or LED handouts at haunts, but I'm sure this helps the actors locate their customers in the extremely dark woods.  After purchasing your ticket, you are led out to a large open field.  The wait area had a nice fire and concession/merch booth, but it really could have used some music and a few actors trying to scare people.  There wasn't that big of a crowd the night we went, but the wait was about 45 minutes.  The time seemed to drag without any sort of entertainment.  Once your number is called your group is led into the woods and your adventure begins. 



One thing to note is that there is a guide who leads you through the woods.  Although this is a great idea so you don't get lost, it does take away from the 'we're in the middle of nowhere and all alone' vibe that you would get otherwise.  The guide is not one of the actors, he's strictly there to get you along the trail.



Throughout the walk, there are a series of skits performed by their actors.  Most are humorous in nature.  They make use of the darkness quite well, and the skits are paced far enough apart to keep the walk interesting.  Although I don't rate the scare factor high, they definitely make it fun and interesting!

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