Ghost stories and haunted houses are some of those things which many of us see as a guilty pleasure. A lot of us enjoy the idea of being scared and spooked by the undead and we go out of our way to have encounters with the other side.
Whether you want to head for haunted ghost tours or a haunted house tour this year, here are some of the backstage secrets which you should know to help soften the blow this year.
- Fear uses trends
When setting up a haunted house or tour to freak people out, organizers will always use things which are trending to get the biggest scares out of their visitors. For example, if The Haunting Of Hill House were to inspire a tale, it would involve lots of ghosts hiding in plain sight to scare. If you are to visit a haunted house this Halloween, you are very likely to see a red balloon floating in the sky and a scary clown.
- They have a flow
When setting up a haunted house experience for the masses, people will always be aware to organize the flow of the event to maximize the scares and the overall experience. It is important to start out strong with a jump scare to set the tone, and then there will often be a build up of creepy noises and sights until the final explosion of horror.
- Simple is best
Sometimes when trying to scare the living daylights out of a visiting crowd, the simple tricks are the best and the most effective of all. For example, strobe lights can be used to distort the vision of visitors and this can result in them feeling much more creeped out than they were before. Blackout rooms within the home will disorientate visitors and heighten their senses. A combination of simple tricks can help the audience feel more on edge and this can help with the feel of the home.
- There’s never a pattern
The thing which many people will do to try and ease their fear in a haunted house is see a pattern and be able to predict when a jump-scare will occur. When testing haunted houses, designers will do this and they will make a point to subvert expectations by doing something totally different.
- They use animal urine
A huge part of building a successful haunted house is to make it feel like something unique and enhance the senses. This is why the people who create these experiences will use different smells and textures to make you feel uneasy and uncomfortable. One of the popault choices is animal urine because it gives a space the smell of death.
Haunted houses are created to amaze and frighten all who enter, and they take a lot of planning and work to create. The next time you come across a haunted house this year, think about the work put in behind the scenes to make the ideal experience for you.
