This is where Rich’s Fright Farm excels. The attention to detail is over the top with near Hollywood-quality set designs, state of the art special effects, and soundtracks.
Sound is implemented in almost all aspects of the attraction, either providing added sound effects or a background soundtrack to provide that extra ambiance for the scene.
The hayride had both songs and sound effects providing additional outdoor ambiance to create a more lonely feeling, which is hard to do on a wagon of 50+ people. The natural night sky with its bright moon and stars provides a perfect backdrop. Being this far from city lights you can see a lot of stars. It’s quite a beautiful sight all around.
The scenes had not changed from the previous years. A cemetery, old school, church, junkyard and more surrounded the trailer, each scene with its own sounds and lighting. The buildings appeared to be real buildings (not just wooden facades). Large animatronics, fire, and air canons added to the effects and scares of the hayride. All the while, the large red mansion sits in the background growing larger as we drew near…
Once we arrived at the Frightmare Mansion, it was quite intimidating! It looks as if someone pulled it straight from a classic horror movie. The architecture is so real and authentic that, as much as you feel scared of it, you want to see the inside of this immaculate place – maybe even live there (at least we do)!
It’s not all about curb appeal, either; once we stepped through those large wooden doors, we were transported into another reality. Each room was decked out to every last detail. I wish I could spend a day walking about the house with full lights on so I could see each minute detail. The rooms had old-style wallpaper peeling from the walls, colored lights adding ambiance to each area, and pictures adorning the walls.
Each room had its own distinguished appearance as well. The mannequin room filled with mannequin parts and bodies had a red hue to it. One of our favorite rooms was a darker room with a bunch of white sheets draped over statues (or people, perhaps?). As we walked through, the intensity slowly built as we waited for someone to scare us.
Another cool effect was a mirror that we could not see our reflections in. We came through an area with slatted walls and strobe lights shining through, which provided an interesting effect. I also noticed a cool effect in one area that sounded like bats were above our heads or the ceiling. We also had to traverse through a spider area, a basement / boiler room area, a library, a carnival area, a cult area, and many, many more. I could spend at least a page in each room explaining the details of each area.
The outdoor area took us though the slaughter grounds. We didn’t notice any big changes out there this year, but if it’s not broke, don’t fix it. The outdoor, stone mausoleums looked gorgeous under the moonlight! Real gravestones also lined the walkway. Further in, wicked scarecrows waved in the wind. The old, dilapidated shack and barns held wretched smells and more dead creatures than Michael Vic’s house.
One area that did not look familiar to me, however (we came in the reverse direction of last year), was a large wooden haunted house. It wasn’t as fancy as the main house, but definitely had some charm. Wooden planks made up the crooked house, and the inside of it was wide open with broken furniture and an old wheelchair. Unfortunately, nothing really happened aside from it having movie-quality aesthetics. All of this lead to the new Clinic.
The Clinic seems to be popular this year, as Kennywood created their own version as well. Rich’s, however, added their own signature details to this new attraction. The hospital felt cold, dirty, and somewhere between an abandoned hospital, an unsanitary asylum, and / or a hospital from a third-world country. It reminded me of the facility in the movie ‘Hostel.’ One thing that felt odd with all of this dirt and despair were the bright, colorful monitors with videos and images playing. It seemed too modern for this attraction. One long hallway provided several rooms for patients, and when we looked closely at the windows, we could see the patients inside! This was another small detail that could easily be missed, yet is still there for keen observers. As we came to an open area with stairs leading down to an operating room, we noticed across from us were desks for hospital employees to work. The staff that were at their desks were all deceased, which proves that desk jobs will kill you. The clinic ended with us going into the 3D area, which felt disjointed from the clinic. It was a pretty short area that we feel should have been converted to the hospital. I imagine due to the uneven floors and construction, it may have been too difficult. Maybe they can create a smoother transition next year.
Finally, we headed to The Abyss. Gone is Paranoia 3.0 and now the maze is larger and foggier. No major details here – just plain black walls that are confusing to navigate. Mazes were once a staple in the haunt industry; now there are less and less, so we are happy they still have one available.
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