Field of Screams: 2019 Review

Field of Screams, Lake Elsinore, CA

On this, the eve of Halloween, we start things off by covering our final commercial haunt of the season (save expanded Dark Harbor coverage, which I just never got around to, so it will have to join the ranks of post-Halloween retro-coverage, similar to our Halloween Horror Nights’ 2018 mazes update). We’re headed inland, out toward Lake Elsinore, to check out this year’s Field of Screams: The Haunted Stadium, presented by Sinister Valley, a Johnson & Johnson Company (okay, that last part may have been extraneous.

This is our third year attending Field of Screams. Our first year was admittedly a little lackluster, as the talent and energy of the cast needed to rescue the otherwise mostly simple and rudimentary looking mazes. Last year, however, management of the event switched over to the folks at Sinister Valley, and they brought a notable increase in quality with better and more extensive theming, more integrated theatrical lighting, evocative audio soundscapes, and an attempt at a cohesive main concourse scare zone. tying everything together. The use of greater effects, animatronics, and greater theatrics had us optimistic that 2019 would be even better.

A pair of street monsters pose next to a map of Field of Screams / Sinister Valley.

Unfortunately, that was not quite the case this year, in that while Field of Screams still provided some enjoyable experiences, the rate of improvement did not match the pace put on by last year’s very impressive turnaround. There was a good reason for this, though. When the Sinister Valley folks unpacked the wall flats and theming from the previous year from storage, they found that over 300 such wall pieces had been overrun with mold, rendering them useless. Build for Field of Screams is already generally short—only a month, because it cannot start until after the Lake Elsinore Storm minor league baseball season has concluded—and it was even shorter this year when the Storm made the playoffs. But add to that the necessity to rebuild hundreds of maze walls—time that could have been spent erecting and set dressing and flushing out theming—and things weren’t in Field of Screams’ favor from the get-go.

The show must go on, though. Sinister Valley knew they needed to present three mazes, and they also tried a different configuration by locating mazes on both concourse wings instead of the traditional lot on the right field side. And three mazes they eventually ended up churning out. They ended up running the gauntlet of highs and lows, so keep reading to see what hit and what missed at this year’s Haunted Stadium!

Senseless

The recommended first maze to experience was the 1000sf Senseless maze, a blackout maze with nearly dark corridors, strobe lights, occasional flashes of lightning, and a couple of monsters lurking within. This maze was the consequence of the moldy flats. By having to make so many replacements, Sinister Valley lost time that could have gone to theming and enriching the maze. As a result, Senseless ended up being a rather straightforward, minimal frills experience whose only source of tension was the uncertainty that comes with navigating a maze in the dark. For some, that is truly terrifying. But for myself, the trek through ended up being a neutral experience. The minimal monsters certainly threw out energy, but with no story and no real ambiance, this maze felt like nothing more than a light warm up.

Secrets of the Mist

Past Senseless, toward the end of the right field concourse, lay Secrets of the Mist. This follow-up to the Hall of Shadows mini-haunt version presented at Midsummer Scream is the longest maze in Field of Screams’ history, lining up at an impressive 10,000sf! Literally ten times the size of Senseless, Secrets of the Mist provided a lengthy and deliberate experience that offered plenty of chances for psychological manipulation.

A tribal warrior lurks in the jungle beyond.

One thing I should mention is a deliberate design decision that Sinister Valley makes with its haunts. Call it the anti-HHN approach. Rather than use boo box scares repeatedly and relentlessly, which can garner startle fatigue, Sinster Valley prefers a method of compression and relief, back and forth, juxtaposing sudden startle moments with longer, calmer waves that lull guests into a false sense of security. And even though I personal prefer a more overt and intense haunted maze experience, I could see and appreciate the approach being utilized at Field of Screams.

Secrets of the Mist was full of long, almost tranquil walks in the chirping wilderness, interspersed with monsters popping up out of nowhere, from the shadows and sometimes within the glare. The general layout is an out-and-back, and monsters are stationed in a secret central corridor that allows them to ambush guests heading toward the far and as well guests on their way back and out toward the exit. This efficiency provides a more robust experience going through, though I still thought, after my first trip through the maze, that there could have been a few more scaracters within to maintain a higher source of adrenaline. Naturally, my second time through, several monsters actually succeeded in startling me during portions that were completely dead the first time through, throwing off my expectations. The approach of compressing and relieving actually formed a nice psychological play and enabled the surprise scares to be more effective.

There were also some cool moments within the maze. A sequence where guests follow a dark hallway lit only by singular, hanging red bulbs that seem to beck on as guests move closer and closer toward the end, plays out to an almost cinematic level. Similarly, the fog and snake effects are pretty clever, adding a dramatic spritz of smoke into select highlight moments. And certain portions of the maze have few recognizable props—nods to last year’s Field of Screams.

Dead Rose Hotel

The final maze of the night was located on the left field concourse wing. Clocking in the middle, at 3000sf, Dead Rose Hotel ended up being the best maze of the night. Not only was it the most creepily photogenic, but it also utilized some fantastic lighting and audio effects and cues to tell the story of the maze that could even function without other props—just listen to and see what is lit up to enjoy the vibe of the wakl-through.

Guests are first welcomed into the hotel by a most vertically gifted manager, who exhibits extremely welcoming hospitality with his drawl. Never mind that he unnervingly reappears several other places as one continues through the layout. It’s not like he’s part of the hauntings… can it?

As guests proceed from room to room, they quickly realize that something is amiss. A rotting skeleton in one, a crying girl echoing down the hallway from another, and various beasts fluttering in the shadows seem to suggest that this place is most certainly cursed. And yet, guests are led forward—helped greatly by the sound queues and lighting triggers that beckon towards the next scene. The way the audio is set up establishes such a creepy and immersive experience, holding tension as it builds up within the maze.

Guests eventually make their way through the hotel as the monsters start to target more and more. Unfortunately, there is no real climactic moment at the Dead Rose Hotel, something that I wouldn’t have minded being added as a very flashy effect. But the maze as a whole does provide the best combination of theming, lighting, audio, and monsters, and it seems to be most people’s favorite maze as well.

Field of Screams put forth a solid effort at continuing its improvements started in 2018. Although it didn’t quite make the advancement expected this year due to unforeseen conditions, its two main mazes still lent a feel for the potential that is upcoming. The sense of town that was constructed last year was also lacking this year, though, again, this was a victim of the moldy framed walls.

Fortunately, Sinister Valley already has deigns to create a more immersive general scare zone next year and possibly take the street experience down to areas of the stadium not previously accessed by any haunt in prior years. That is the nature of things, of course. It’s tough to turn something around immediately and then keep elevating at a high level. But continuous improvements will work to do the trick, and assuming no similar misfortune next year, we look forward to seeing how Field of Screams can continue to evolve and advance.

Field of Screams is located at 500 Diamond Drive, Lake Elsinore, CA 92530 and is open one more night this season: Halloween night, from 7:00-11:00pm. Afterwards, it shuffles away for until another season!