BUENA PARK, Calif. — Inside Knott’s Scary Farm’s new scare maze, the sound of snarls from costumed vampires and screams from unsuspected guests was aplenty.
And so were the laser sound effects from so-called bellatorian weapons.
If visitors ever wanted to channel their inner Van Helsing, then Bloodline 1842 might be for them.
On Thursday night, visitors on the opening night of Knott’s Scary Farm waited more than an hour to check out the theme park’s newest scare attraction — one in which they join other Daybreakers in the streets of Valdonia, hunting Valhymphri vampires.
“This is one of my favorite mazes, and aside from the story, it is also one of our largest mazes to date, and the scale of it is amazing,” said Chris Do, a producer at Knott’s Berry Farm, to Spectrum News. “When you walk into that first room, you’ll be blown away.”
Knott’s Berry Farm is celebrating its 49th year of its annual Halloween haunt, Knott’s Scary Farm, which runs on select nights until Halloween night.
The kid-friendly theme park, Knott’s Spooky Farm, with a costumed Snoopy and dressed-up Peanuts gang, will debut daytime Thursdays to Sundays from Sept. 29 through Halloween.
On Thursday night, the line to get inside the park wrapped around Mrs. Knott’s Chicken Dinner restaurant, more than a block long. Security was tight as a new bag and chaperone policy went into effect. Under the new chaperone policy, an adult 21 years or older must accompany minor visitors 17 years old and younger. The adult, who can escort as many as four minors, has to also stay with them the entire night.
At Knott’s Scary Farm this year, the fog was thick in several theme park areas.
Costumed monsters dressed in torn black and dark grey clothing and grotesque masks walked hunched over in and out of the fog and the crowds. They snarled and jumped, scaring unsuspecting visitors.
Many in the crowd shrieked initially and then giggled before going their way.
This year, the theme park has nine mazes, including two new ones, five scare zones, and three shows. There’s also a behind-the-scenes look at some of the mazes.
At the Conjurers: Dark Magic show at the Bird Cage Theater, the magician poked fun and brought out Walter Knott’s dead ashes in a gold urn. At the Puppet Up! Uncensored show, the improv comedy team made raunchy and sexually explicit jokes with puppets.
But most of the visitors came for one thing — the scare mazes.
This year, Knott’s is debuting two new scare mazes — Bloodline 1842 and Grimoire.
In Grimoire, visitors are transported inside the grim story of a mysterious spell book. Costumed demonic creatures hide in dark corners, strobe lights pulse, and bloody mannequins are decorated on walls as visitors walk gingerly through a haunted campground and cabin-themed maze.
In Bloodline 1842, visitors enter the fictional town of Valdonia, where they are asked to choose a bellatorian weapon that resembles a replica toy rifle.
As they navigate the streets of Valdonia, they are tasked with hunting and shooting costumed vampires who jump from the shadows and different parts of the mazes.
Jon Asperin, show director and creative director at Knott’s Berry Farm, said they wanted to create an interactive scare maze with a deep backstory.
Asperin, who worked on the Bloodline maze, said they wanted to create a detailed set and immersive experience.
“With this, we’re bringing in the action,” he said. “We’re bringing in the over-the-top crazy stunts [with] incredible detail and deep storyline. All in all, there’s a bounce back feature that will get guests to come back and do it another time.”