The first previews for Universal Horror Unleashed are here as we get our first glimpse inside the 365-days-a-year horror attraction opening soon to the public in Las Vegas but the real question is, does it work?
Located in the complex of AREA15 this particular horror attraction continues permanent all-year-round scares instead of the usual seasonal Halloween Horror Nights offering that you would see at a Universal theme park.
Immaculate theming and intricate mazes (four of them to be exact) mixed with scare zones, actors and themed bars and restaurants make this particular attraction a horror fans paradise.
As the first videos have been released online I have many things to comment on and many things to discuss, unfortunately influencers were allowed to record in all the mazes and whilst I completely get that for a seasonal event I don’t think filming being allowed in the mazes makes much sense here, these mazes are open all-year-round and should have a mystique and intrigue to them and before the doors have even opened I now know absolutely everything that these mazes have in store.
Will that stop me from going? No. But it certainly could stop others from going when they see that the mazes are absolutely identical to what you’d see at a Universal theme park.
Universal Horror Unleashed Mazes
As you step through the mysterious industrial facade and glide past the beautifully themed bar and indoor area there’s four mazes that lie in store for you and one thought in my head.
When will any scare event theme their bloody ceilings?!
Yes, I ask this to myself every single time. I don’t want to walk through a maze and see stage lighting and projectors and ventilation I want completely 360-degree immersion in my surroundings, is a themed ceiling too much to ask?
If you work in the industry I would absolutely love to know why 99% of the time scare mazes don’t theme their ceilings. Is it a budget thing? Are you ceiling-phobic? What is going on here.
I remember we set up our own 365 horror attraction for a period of 12 months and I made damn sure if we were building a cave the entire ceiling was themed, if we were designing a dungeon we’d have theming complimenting the ceilings. It really isn’t that difficult and we were on a shoestring budget so I’d love to know why it is such a commonly overlooked thing.
Anyways, I digress.
The Exorcist Believer
I get why they chose to theme a maze around the new film as opposed to the old one (gotta keep that revenue churning right?!) but sadly I thought the film was utter trash in every sense of the word, thankfully I did not think that about the maze.
The maze was beautifully created and had a really good length to it full of numerous sets that immerse you into the story but it does have its limitations.
Triggering sound-effects and lip-synching over audio as Universal is known for is VERY prevalent within The Exorcist Believer, I’m sure a few speaking actors wouldn’t go a miss in these all-year-round mazes.
Universal hyped this attraction up to be something very different and unlike anything that’s featured in the theme parks yet absolutely everything seen within this maze is exactly how it would be within the park if albeit slightly larger in design.
A solid walkthrough but certainly nothing that we haven’t seen before.
Has the bar been set so high by Universal that they can’t exceed it?
Let’s check out the next one.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
When I got news this year that the UK was getting its very own Texas Chainsaw Massacre maze I was buzzing (chainsaw pun intended).
The fact the UK was set for an official IP maze is unheard of and Halloween Haunt Fest is set to serve up another IP themed maze but they’re certainly keeping tight lipped on the second maze that’s for sure.
But seeing how good Universal deliver their mazes I knew this one wouldn’t disappoint and as you enter the cemetery straight from the off you are greeted with the infamous BBQ gas station (that you can still visit in Texas to this day might I add) and my mouth dropped.
It looked IDENTICAL to the movie and as you walk around the Sawyer house you really are blown away with the sense of scale and detail.
Once again the audio jump scares are in full flow as actors do their best to work with their surroundings and thankfully in all of the previews it works wonderfully as you’re going through in small groups (alone in most cases) and that works wonders but when this venue is busy you can bet your bottom dollar it’ll be a conga-line approach to queue batching and this absolutely ruins scare mazes for me.
If you’re in a conga line you’re waiting in mazes, scares have zero impact unless you’re at the front and it ruins just about everything that the creators have worked hard to implement within the maze, you are essentially doing a behind the scenes tour with actors popping out and saying hello (via speakers) along the way.
I hope group batching is a strong focus for Universal Horror Unleashed as we don’t want none of that theme park queue batching rubbish here thank you very much.
In this particular maze the actors can utilise the space so much better, it’s less cramped and there are scenes that happen going across you which is very rare because usually at the theme park mazes they happen to the sides of you in 90% of scares, having actors cross your path etc, that’s much more interactive and way more effective than your standard jump scares. You’re fully immersed and Texas has that ambience and tension that makes it the scariest maze of the lot and it’s not even close.
Universal Monsters
After doing the Universal Monsters maze last year at Halloween Horror Nights Orlando, I was both impressed and disappointed. Whilst the maze looked amazing there was just something missing that didn’t really drag me into the monsters lore, they were all out there doing their thing but the flow of the maze just didn’t work it felt very choppy and after being many peoples go-to maze when it was announced it very quickly (and sharply) fell in the rankings once people had experienced it.
A solid start but a maze that ended very abruptly but Universal Monsters at Universal Horror Unleashed has certainly taken the concept and amped it up to 11, this thing is beautiful!
The second you enter the maze you’re in a crypt like enclosure where there are busts dedicated to all the Universal Monsters, this tribute is both respectful and incredible as the walls are lined with horror legends of the silver screen, okay, this is some introduction!
Each room beautifully transitions into the other keeping a similar tone throughout as the attention to detail is second to none. The creative team have really thought long and hard on how to improve on the previous maze and turn it into a much more rounded experience and every niggle that I had with the previous iteration in Orlando has been fixed here.
Whilst I understand it’s difficult to throw in all those legends into one maze without some scenes dominating the others I did feel as though The Mummy section was slightly lacking compared to the others and that’s a shame as The Mummy is arguably my favourite Universal Monsters.
Just look at how much justice they give The Mummy in Monsters Unchained within Dark Universal at Epic Universe Theme Park, that animatronic from the ceiling is literally the most jaw-dropping thing I’ve ever seen. I wish they’d had expanded The Mummy bit ever so slightly, but that was my only niggle of this particular maze. It was otherwise flawless.
Scarecrow’s Revenge
Droolworthy set pieces litter Scarecrow’s Revenge especially in terms of scale featuring a beautiful building facade that introduces you to the maze.
It’s crazy to me how there are three really stand-out mazes and then Exorcist Believer is so far behind the rest that it does make me question if that’s just a temporary maze with them inevitably changing the line-up around over time to keep things fresh and to make the attraction revisit-able for guests who have been previously.
Let me just put this out here… the cornfield effect is FREAKING AWESOME!! It really gives a sense of depth and scale to proceedings and having this outdoor effect within an indoor environment is so clever and love when attractions do this but Universal just do it much, much better!
What I will say about Scarecrow’s Revenge is, is that it feels a little short.
This is definitely a maze you’d go straight back around again and not because you loved it (you probably would) but you’d go around again just to make it feel worthwhile in terms of how long you’re in there.
Could a 365 Horror Attraction Work?
It’s all good setting up a Halloween event and tearing it down weeks later, it keeps guests coming for that event, dedicated to attend those dates and it doesn’t stagnate or get old, what Universal Horror Unleashed are doing is keeping it open all year round and that could post some issues.
Yes it’s great they have horror merchandise, a horror bar to go and chill at along with a restaurant etc.
There are performers and actors and performances and they’re all wonderful too and first time visitors will absolutely lap this up and enjoy it but what then?
How often will you need to change mazes you bring people back?
How often will you change the mazes or maintain particular scenes to keep it fresh as over time the general public will certainly end up damaging scenes and props.
Will this eventually just become an attraction that dwindles in attendance until Halloween until it becomes hustling and bustling once again or am I just overthinking it?
I’m leaning towards the latter because such things as the Saw escape room and the IT / Blair Witch escape rooms are open all year round and they’re still open all these years later so maybe the Vegas footfall is more than enough to keep the cogs turning 365 but at some point, there has to be a change-up to keep things fresh.
Could it work? Absolutely—if you’re a horror lover. Universal Horror Unleashed is intense, creative, and meticulously built. It’s not a cheap haunted house with strobe lights and rubber masks. This is immersive theater layered with theme park engineering. The actors are committed. The sets are stunning. The scares are varied and smartly timed.
But it’s not for everyone.
This isn’t a family-friendly attraction. It leans hard into mature themes, intense visuals, and real fear. If you’re easily rattled or don’t enjoy dark environments and loud sounds, this isn’t your kind of Vegas show.
For those who do love fear, however, it’s a gift. It captures the magic of Halloween Horror Nights and bottles it for year-round consumption. You can go in April, July, or November and still come out clutching your chest and laughing nervously. That’s a rare accomplishment.
It’s certainly a bold risk that Universal has taken and whilst I can see it working in Vegas I’m not entirely sure about other locations planned for this particular attraction.
Vegas makes sense, it’s all crazy out there but at some point… the scares could just… well… stop and at that point a 365 attraction becomes relevant only when it’s Halloween season and then the other months around it then become redundant.
The only thing that can be said here is that we’ll just have to wait and see.
Universal have packaged something truly remarkable together here but I certainly think The Exorcist Believer is the weak link in an otherwise flawless armour. Yes Scarecrow is short but it delivers a short sharp punch. Texas Chainsaw and Monsters Unchained are on another level entirely but Exorcist already feels temporary and for me it would be the first maze on the chopping block when Universal start planning some new fresh additions.
