Haunted Attraction Reviewed: Fortress of Fear ScreamPark
Website: www.fortressoffear.com
Location of Attraction: Alliance Ohio
Date of Review: 10/3/2020
Total Number of Attractions Available: 1
Overall Haunted Attraction Rating: 8/10
Entertainment & Food Rating: 9/10
Atmosphere Rating: 8/10
Overall Costume & Makeup Rating: 7.5/10
Overall Cast & Crew Rating: 8/10
Overall Set Design & Special Effects Rating: 7.5/10
Overall Scare/Thrill Factor Rating: 7/10
Overall Feedback: It’s night two of our much anticipated Ohio Haunt Tour and we ended up with some extra time between our two scheduled haunts for the evening; Akron Haunted Schoolhouse & Laboratory AND Factory of Terror. With the extra time on our hands, we decided to swing by Fortress of Fear ScreamPark in Alliance Ohio, which ended up being just a short drive from our final of three haunts on the evening, Factory of Terror. This fun park by day turns into a bloody-terrific scream park by night! Featuring the main attraction, Fortress of Fear, and two side attractions, Tilt-A-Hurl & Glo-Karts, be prepared for a frightfully fun experience!
We arrived at Fortress of Fear ScreamPark shortly after 9pm. We had about an hour or so to kill before we had to be at the Factory of Terror, so why not spend it checking out another one of Ohio’s 125+ haunted attractions! Two different ticket options are available; $17 for just the Fortress of Fear or $25 which also gives you access to two side attractions, Tilt-A-Hurl and Glo-Karts. Fast passes are available for an additional $20, which allows you to skip the line at all three attractions. We were fortunate enough to chat briefly with the owner of the haunt prior to our experience. We were forewarned that the current general admission wait time was about an hour long. Fortunately enough the owner generously extended fast pass upgrades at no additional cost, allowing us to breeze right up to the entrance of the Fortress of Fear. After snagging our tickets we set off for the main attraction of the evening, The Fortress of Fear! On our way we passed the Glo-Karts, Tilt-A-Hurl, a mini arcade, small gift shop, and a food truck. Several roaming scare actors taunted us and delivered a solid startle before we even reached the main attraction itself.
As we strolled up to the main entrance of The Fortress of Fear we were impressed with the entrance facade. Resembling a castle-esque appearance, this ominous facade certainly helped set an intimidating atmosphere leading up to the attraction. Guests were broken up into groups of no more than six, allowing for groups to be small and intimate. Groups were being admitted into the Fortress of Fear every 2-3 minutes, allowing for ample spacing between groups! Everyone was asked to utilize hand sanitizer prior to entering the attraction. Things began in a mansion-themed room with a talking mirror prop, which set the tone for the journey that lay ahead. We were then sent through the fireplace and onwards into the haunt.
The Fortress of Fear is definitely considered an old school style haunt, featuring hand made props, minimal animatronics, and relied heavily on scare actors to create a spooky fun experience! We were pleasantly surprised with the detail noted throughout many of the sets, especially in the beautifully crafted gothic bedroom, fortune teller scene, swamp, cemetery and castle scenes. Narrow hallways were utilized cleverly to create a sense of claustrophobia. Sloped and slanted floors were utilized to disorient guests, leaving you more susceptible to receiving a spine-tingling scare! Some of the most basic yet effective sections were the room of doorways and the pallet maze. We had ourselves all spun around, clueless on where the exit was. Be forewarned that you may have a gross encounter with MAGGOTS…
Just as we had expected the Fortress of Fear relied heavily on their scare actors to make or break the experience. Fortunately, these folks rose to the challenge and delivered a frightfully fun experience. Many of the spooks were cleverly hidden, appearing practically out of thin air, and from all directions, to deliver a scare. The fortune teller, pallet maze clown, and graveyard zombie all interacted phenomenally with our squad.
After a solid 10-15 minutes we exited the Fortress of Fear, amazed with the experience we just received. These folks executed this old school style haunt quite phenomenally and exceeded our expectations! We had the pleasure of meeting up with the owner again and were able to relay our thoughts on the experience. We were informed that this was only the haunts 2nd season at this specific location, which made the experience we received that much more impressive. We can only imagine the tricks and surprises they’ll come up with over the next few seasons.
On our way out we grabbed some munchies, checked out the gift shop, and enjoyed the two side attractions: Tilt-A-Hurl and Glo-Karts! The Tilt-A-Hurl is your classic Tilt-A-Whirl carnival ride, but instead possessed no bubbly carnival music and the absence of light. This made for a dark and eerie atmosphere. The Tilt-A-Hurl carts must’ve been recently lubed up because these suckers were twirling at an incredible fast rate. Not to mention we received at least a 3 minute ride. We were beginning to think they weren’t letting us off until someone legitimately hurled. After stumbling off the Tilt-A-Hurl, dizzy and borderline nauseous, we headed for the Glo-Karts. What better than a Go-Kart ride in the dark. We hopped into our glow-in-the-dark carts and revved our engines, eager for an intense race! It was definitely an exhilarating experience, racing under the moonlit sky with the cool crisp air swirling around us. Although Tilt-A-Hurl and Glo-Karts weren’t an actual Haunted Attraction, we collectively as a group enjoyed embracing our inner “kid” and shared quite a few laughs during these two carnival ride attractions!
Fortress of Fear ScreamPark exceeded expectations and delivered a spooky fun experience. Old school style haunts are becoming fewer and far between nowadays, so it was refreshing to encounter the traditional haunt style experience that Fortress of Fear offers. We have no doubts that these folks will continue to develop and expand their offerings, while also keeping that old school haunt feel. If you’re in the area of Alliance Ohio we definitely recommend swinging by Fortress of Fear ScreamPark for some hauntingly good fun, you won’t be disappointed!
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