2012 The Dark Side Haunted Adventure Event Reviews

Review:

This was the first visit to the Dark Side. I’ve always heard great things about it so I was thrilled this year to finally experience this haunt for myself. Here are my notes regarding this haunt in the order that I encountered them:

* Location...if you’re from Milwaukee this haunt is really in the middle of nowhere. It’s amazing how dark it got out there! (…which is perhaps why this haunt is called the “Dark Side”?)
* The size of this haunt is enormous! From the parking area, to the waiting room and especially the haunt itself. This haunt doesn’t measure itself in feet but in acreage!!
* The waiting area and concession stand are all indoors but didn’t appear to be heated. Glad I brought my hat and mittens along.
* The waiting line itself was dark and creepy. I could make out the shadows of those around me but that was it. Definitely set the tone nicely for most of the haunt.
* The size of our group when we departed the waiting area was about 20-25 but I was pleasantly surprised when our tour group was broken down to smaller groups of 2-3 people at several junctures, most notably for the mine shaft and green house portions of the journey.
* The mine shaft was very, very cool! Amazing set design / construction. I’ve never experienced anything like it. Definitely thumbs up in terms of creativity and scare factor!
* The costumed actors who greeted us following the mine shaft were fun to interact with. The camp fire was a welcome sight. I particularly enjoyed the Cajun accent of the tour guide who gave us insight about what was to come during the wagon ride.
* The remainder of our journey from this point was about 90% outdoors.
* The wagon ride was creepy and fun….although if it has rained or is drizzling your butt will get wet. (…either that or the girl sitting next to me was so scared she peed her pants!) The pyrotechnics were very cool and the actors did a great job of scaring our group. My only disappointment with the wagon ride was the darkness which made it difficult to appreciate the props encountered along the way and the performances of the actors who had assumed positions on the wagon not near me. …although for those with fearful imaginations instead of curiosity the wagon ride had some serious scare factor.
* Much like the intro to the wagon ride, the actor providing the intro to the walking portion of our tour was very fun to interact with. The other costumed actors did a very effective job of creeping everyone out.
* The sets along the walking tour were very authentic. I particularly enjoyed the attention to detail found in the meat shop and greenhouses. The corn maze was also a lot of fun to traverse.
* Total time to complete my entire Dark Side adventure was a whopping 42 minutes! For the price, none of the other 10 haunts I toured this year have come anywhere close to this.

Signage / Visibility / Location:
Just one blinking sign with a lot of words on it point you to the dark and lonely long road that leads to the Dark Side. The last few words on this flashing sign read “Dark Side” which caught my attention just in time to make the turn.

Wait Area / Line Entertainment:
Waiting room with concession stand is spacious and all indoors…although I’m pretty sure it is not heated. The waiting area was dimly lit but creepy.

Actors' Performance:
The performances of all 3 Tour guides were sensational. I particularly enjoyed the Cajun accent of the wagon ride tour guide.

Sets / Scenes / Props / FX:
The craftsmanship of the sets at the Dark Side was superb. Many of the sets had a very authentic look and feel to them. While the special effects may not have been cutting edge they were effectively executed to maximize your entertainment value.

Length:
My tour took 42 minutes to complete. Mine shaft took approximately 5 minutes, Wagon Ride took approximately 19 minutes (including the campfire time) and the walking tour took approximately 18 minutes.

Crowd Control:
I arrived early and didn’t have to wait long. The waiting area / line was clearly roped off and quite long so it appears that you must wait in line vs. purchasing your tickets and then waiting for your number to get called.

Most Memorable Moment:
I really enjoyed touring the mine shaft. Set design was amazingly lifelike and the special effects were sharp!

I attend this haunt every year and was excited to see what the new additions were this year. As usual, it was a great experience! The hayride is one of my favorite because actors pop out of nowhere and are on the trailer with you! The bridge is new and kinda spooky. I like the green house too. My favorite is the lady in the house who is yelling at you to get off her property as she guides you in the wrong direction thru the corn maze!!

We go to the Dark Side every year and look forward to seeing what is new. This year we were blown away with the additions to the haunt. Our old favorites like the creepy hayride through the woods and the train (I won't tell you about that!!) were there, but the new corn maze and greenhouse were fantastic. The guides continue the story throughout your evening which really adds to the experience. You start out in groups of 2 going through the haunted house which means there is no middle spot to hide in! Then, you wait by a roaring campfire for the hayride that fits about 40 people and has speakers on the trailer with scary music. Just when you think you're safe, the tractor stops and dumps you out in the middle of the woods to walk through in groups of 2 again! I hope you go the right way in the corn maze-we didn't and were stalked by creepy dudes.

Attended the dark side last night with a group of kids. it is located in a very secluded location and at the end of a long narrow road which is scary enough before you even enter. There are actually three parts to this haunt. An indoor mineshaft maze you walk through then you get on a hayride then you get off and walk through a corn maze with a bunch of attractions. I liked the dark side because it wasn't just a bunch of blood and guts. It had a really neat story to go along with the attractions. The attractions were really well done and very detailed. It took us about 45 min to get through the whole thing which i thought was a really good value for the entrance fee. I would have liked to see some music or something while waiting in line.

I have never written a review before but after going to the Dark Side we decided someone had to do a review. I like that all through the haunt they advanced the story about the dark history of the farm. The actors are relentless and show up everywhere. The setting alone is scary and when you combine that with the fact that they are watching your every move just waiting to scare the pants off you it is hard to continue. We all never screamed and laughed so much for so long. We are going back next week with more friends.

I loved this place! My friends and I went to the Dark Side this year to see what a scream park was. They have 5 haunts and only 2 of them are haunted houses. There are so many surprises I won’t even try to list them. They have a hayride that was very good, a trail in a pine forest where the actors are fabulous, and a corn maze where the same actor scared us 3 times before we found our way out. There were some great scares of course but this place was very entertaining for more than an hour. We will be back!

This event was the most fun haunt I have ever gone too! But at the same time, it wasn't very scary. I jumped a fair amount but that was mostly during the haunted mine. I did like that the spooks interact with you and don't just jump out or follow you. The green house was probably the least scary because only two things jumped out the whole time we were in there.

Look out for A blast of fire at the dark side! First you weave your way through the terrifying mine shaft. Next is a tractor ride through the haunted woods before you get kicked off in the middle of the woods where the "boys" are going to scare your pants off! This is a totally awesome haunted adventure that we come back for every year. the 45 minutes you spend getting your scare fill is well worth the admission fee. Take your friends and family for a great time!

I thoroughly enjoyed this haunted adventure. It was my first time here. You can't really call it a haunted house or corn maze or tractor ride because it contains it all. I had a lot of fun here. The tractor ride through the woods was very cool. It wasn't extremely scary, but it was different than any other haunting I've been too, but it did have it's scary moments and moments of surprise. I would suggest others try this one.

We go to The Darkside Haunt every year and Love it, every year they add on to the already great haunt. This year in addition to the haunted mine shaft and haunted wagon ride through the woods they have added other haunts among your journey out of woods; a haunted green house and a crazy lady in a cabin sending you in all the wrong directions trying to get out of the corn maze.
The use of pyrotechnics during the haunt is awesome.

Each year my family and I attend The Dark Side.This year was by far the best!Its a different set up then last year and they have alot more! After buying the tickets you have to wait until they are ready for the next group which took about 10 minutes after that they tell you a story about the place and you begin to walk up the hill. When you get to the top your group will be split up and will have to go in 2's.There is much more that you do at this haunt but I dont want to give any away.It took my group and I around 30 mins to get threw maybe a little more because we got lost in the maze