Shocktoberfest...oh how the mighty have fallen.
So we ended up going to Shocktoberfest on Saturday 10/16/10. It was not good. I will explain...
We pulled into a very crowded lot around 8:30 PM and parked all the way up by the prison. There was some confusion as to where to go so some people ended up parking IN the hayride. Ugh. The parking situation really was a cluster-f but more wranglers would easily fix this. Once out of the car we walked past all of the attractions and made our way to the ticket booth. Since we got to see the lines we decided that RIP passes were going to be the way to go. $15.00 more per person was worth it to get us home and in bed before 2AM. There was barely a line for the ticket booth which was unexpected given the parking lot... we were pleasantly surprised. I suspect there would have been no line had there been a sign stating CASH ONLY on the ticket booth. Lots of people were getting up to the cashier only to be sent over to the ATM and then to the back to the back of the line. Just a suggestion. Anyway, tickets in hand we made our way to the 3D Asylum first... it's right next to the ticket booth. The regular line had about a 30-45 minute wait but we walked right up to the door. In past this has been a favorite attraction not because it's innovative or great but because enough stuff was changed year to year, the 3D artwork was beautiful and the actors made it fun. Not so this year. Although the art was good it was exactly the same as last year. Seriously... exactly the same paintings in exactly the same places. Not one thing was different. The rooms/ layout were also exactly the same. The actors and props were... the same. Same bang, same giant rat, same ghoul popping out from behind a barrel. Seeing a trend here? We came out disappointed to say the least. The midway had a few new vendors and attractions and unlike years past was filled with a mixed crowd instead of a million tweens. It was a nice atmosphere and kind of a cool place to hang before heading up to the prison and hayride. After a cold apple cider and a hot churro we decided to do the prison next. Just like in years past the lines for the prison and hayride snake thru Club Shock which is Shocktoberfest's "nightclub". I put that word in quotes BTW because it's insulting to real nightclubs to call a tent and a shoes in the dryer DJ a nightclub. Haha. Seriously it's not really that bad considering and it does appeal to the tween crowd. The music was top 40/ hip hop. Noticeably missing was Halloween music or imagery. Would have been nice to hear the Halloween Theme Dance Mix after doing the Dougie. Anyway, the RIP line for the prison was virtually nonexistent so we were on the bus and at the prison in no time. The regular line had about a 45 minute wait. The buses seem on the verge of breaking down but I think it adds to the experience. Tour recording was the same as before. Whatever. Girls at the prison entrance were very good. Prisoner outside was nice touch and good too. Inside the prison was same set up as years before right down to the actor and prop placement. Happily there were a lot of good actors in the prison who made it work. Guy in the showers was really, really good. Cudos! Some of the effects in catwalk area weren't working. I was sad about that and even sadder that I knew they weren't working. Ugh. Tunnels were the same but we enjoyed them despite this. They really are a unique feature and th actors in there got a lot of scares with loud noises. Outside areas needed more actors. Did add a bus attraction in there that was new but only OK. Left the prison feeling like I had been there and done that. Oh well. Once off the bus we made our way to the front of the line for the hayride. There was 5 minute wait but we didn't mind. The tweens humping in the club were plenty entertaining. The regular line had an hour wait. For some reason they now have you go to a staging area to watch a movie before you get on the wagon. Of course the movie screen is tattered... the place is haunted people... but it was too tattered to actually see the movie. Lame. Luckily for us the people in our group realized that the tatters were perfect for shadow puppets and kept us entertained until we were allowed to board the wagon. We were happy to see that despite the lines they were not seating people in the middle of the wagons. Good move. No one wants to wait an hour and pay $15.00 to be kicked by their fellow passengers the whole ride. The hayride had the most changes of all the attractions but I can honestly say they were too little too late and not good. The best parts of the hayride were honestly the parts outside of the buildings. The actors were all very good and the props outside were good enough. The damn stuff in the buildings however is awful. The sound is terrible, the props look fake and it's just not scary. The greenhouse is a freaking abomination. Sooooo bad. It's sad because the buildings used to be the best part of Shocktoberfest. Now they just piss you off. IMO they should ditch them, lose the ornate props and get more actors. Sorry but that's just how I feel. Once off the hayride we felt really disappointed. Although the actors and midway were good everything else was either the same as last year or shoddy. I hate to admit it but I think this is our last year for for Shocktoberfest. I'm sad but that's life. The Shocktoberfest era has ended and I for one am mourning it's passing. Later.
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