By Remi Merhi, Staff Writer
Line Length: 1 hour and 30 minutes
Drive Time: 30 minutes away
Ticket price: Ticket prices to see The Rotting or Vault 13 on Friday and Saturday is $28. On all other days, it is $22. To see both haunted houses, it is $35 on Friday and Saturday, but $28 on all other days.
Parking: There are many parking lots located near the haunted house with less than a mile walk. The lots fill up fast though and further walking and searching for parking may be required.
Haunted House Scares: The Rotting was somewhat frightening, but Vault 13 is guaranteed to scare you.
Haunted House Length: 30 minutes for each haunted house.
The infamous Netherworld, voted number one haunted house in America, will not disappoint as the monsters and haunted sets will feed off of your phobias of tight spaces, the unknown, the dark and of course, the unexpected.
With a background of film and television, the owners of Netherworld are continually creating new special effects, unique rooms and scarier contraptions. The creativity and elaborateness of each room is what separates Netherworld from the rest of the haunted houses in Georgia.
“One of the biggest things at Netherworld is distractions,” Ben Armstrong, the co-owner of Netherworld said. “There’s so much cool stuff to look at. It just draws people into the world and then they’re easy prey.”
There are two main houses this year for thrill-seekers to enter. The first is The Rotting which depicts a world in which spirits seeking to devour human flesh have been released to appease the dead. The spirits feed off of their victims and then leave them to suffer as they rot to their death.
The theme of ghost and spirits was one that I could not completely immerse myself in, but I was powerless against the element of surprise. Loud shrieks and terror emerged as the ghosts and monsters popped out of the corners they were lurking behind.
The second haunted house, Vault 13, left me trembling as I forced myself to continue walking through. Vault 13 is meant to portray a secret government base that was hidden deep within the earth. The terrifying creatures in Vault 13 have now escaped and present a danger to all those who enter.
The sci-fi horror theme came off as more realistic and the reminders that the haunted house was not real were soon proven ineffective. Dark rooms, thick smoke and strobe lights left me disoriented and vulnerable to monsters. The monsters do not retrieve back to their corners after they have left you short of breath, however. Some lingered closely behind, following your every footstep.
One monster, The Krampus, equipped with horns, a fur body and bells and horns dangling from his waist is the type of monster that has the power to unearth loud screams and make people nearly faint. This monster has the sole responsibility to devour the naughty children of this world, a community service in his eyes.
“She turned around and saw me and just about fell down,” The Krampus said as he described some of the best reactions he has received.
A new attraction, the foam room, is one of Vault 13’s best attractions in my opinion. It is a room that completely encompasses your body from every direction with foam. I was left with just enough space to walk through the room. It was a playful twist to an otherwise terrifying haunted house.
Overall, Netherworld lives up to the high expectations. The long lines build the anticipation to a night of terror you do not want to miss. The monsters are original, the haunted houses are fantastically creative and the experience is one that will leave with a sense of exhilaration and fear.
