When the time came to experience my first haunted house, the jitters were instantly present. Necropolis, a nationally ranked haunted attraction, got my blood pulsing. If not solely from being ranked nationally, the stories of fully developed men peeing their pants, left me picturing myself in a fetal position on the floor, rocking back and forth, crying.

Necropolis is located right off exit 70 on Shadeland Ave., in an old abandoned warehouse building. Arriving, I was greeted by a lofty man in a black coat with white face paint, cat eyes and decaying teeth, while also followed by another man in ragged cloths who seemed to have considerable back problems (given his hunched position). Next, they opened the doors. Before continuing downstairs, I took a quick bathroom break; it seemed like a good idea. Once downstairs, panic set in, it seemed the only thing separating me from the ghouls and ghosts was the unlucky person in front that I had chosen to use as a shield. Then, something horrific happened; they had only led me to another line, “Ah!” After waiting nervously, I was then released into the maze of perpetual darkness known as Necropolis.

So, did Necropolis live up to expectations? More or less, did it live up to $26 dollars for all three attractions?  Giving my honest opinion, no it did not. It is difficult to explain. The decorations were exceptional, with animated robots, severed limbs lying in buckets, twisted dark passage-ways, and psychedelic affects. Also, the sheer amount of masked monsters being paid to make you scream was incredible. For some reason though, the scare factor wasn’t up to par. Occasionally, someone would pop out, and knowing they were already there, I would let out the sympathy scream, giving them bonus points for effort. Other times though, I was truly caught off guard, thinking something was fake, or simply not there to begin with. At these instances, Necropolis stepped up to the plate, giving me and everyone else a good scare.

The major problem with Necropolis was the lighting. It says on the website “city of perpetual darkness”, when in fact, the darkness did have an end, every main room.  Other than the lighting, in a way, the whole production was overdone. Friends had told me about their past haunted house excursions, lower budget attractions located in corn fields, old barns or historic houses, and according to them, the experience was scarier and more realistic. Special effects and decorations don’t always amount to a great haunted house. The one and only objective a haunted attraction should have is to scare its victims to the point of no return.

Even though Necropolis lacked the realistic aspect of other attractions and ended up being quite pricy, I would still go back next year. The general thrill and layout still provided quite a sensation, especially for a newbie like me. By Audrey Bailey <[email protected]>

Grade: B-

Atmosphere: B

Scare factor: C

Decorations: A

http://www.darkarmies.com/necropolis-haunted-house/