Basement of the Dead Review 2023
Basement of the Dead Review 2023
Basement of the Dead is located at 42 W. New York St. Aurora, IL. 60506. Online tickets are $29.99 for general, $39.99 for VIP which is about ¼ the wait of general, and Instant Access which is $59.99. General admission is $5 extra on site, and VIP and Instant Access are $10 more. For discounts, group tickets and combo deals for their sister haunt, please visit their website. https://basementofthedead.ticketspice.com/basement-of-the-dead-
As always, the atmosphere at the haunt was jumping when we got there. People were dancing in line to the DJ and we just happened to arrive during “Shots” being played. For those that don’t know, they do this a time or two a night, and throw merch into the crowd. Basement of the Dead is known for their queue basically being a party; everyone is having a great time which makes you forget that you’re about to enter a haunted house where your worst fears are about to come to life.
As we entered the haunt, I was jumpscared almost immediately upon walking into the haunt. I’m arachnophobic, and I already know from past years that there is a room with spiders. I am not gonna tell you where to look for this spider, but you would be blind if you miss it, cause it’s MASSIVE. Gave me the ick right off the bat, making me jumpy. Later on you will meet the giant spider’s kids in the spider room down in the sewers. This is so creepy, as you hear the spiders making noises all around you! Looking around the room, there are spiders crawling all over the walls. I wanted out of this room so badly! A new addition to the haunt is the hazard room. There was a moment in this room that made me laugh hysterically! I saw this person go up out of the corner of my eye, and when I turned it was an animatronic being lifted into the air. I just remember screaming, “NO, not the RAPTURE! I’m not READY!” as I scurried out of the room. The last room I want to mention is the sea monster room. There is a boat you walk past with a lady standing in front of it and she gets ripped out of the side of the ship as you go by.
We need to talk about Shattered 3D Nightmare. This is sadly the final year for Shattered. For years after you survive the basement, you take on a shattered nightmare. This is the black light part of the haunt where you wear glasses and the paintings and other objects would turn into 3D. As we walked through the haunt, everything was 3D, even the clowns walking around. It is amazing how Basement of the Dead even makes their makeup 3D. The clowns in Shattered Nightmare were crazy! They were running around trying to get us to chase them! Some of them were looking for a friend to stay with them in their room. They would be banging on windows for no reason at all, then look at us and smile…these clowns were absolutely insane! It is so sad to see this part of the haunt go. There really are no more 3D haunts anymore, Basement of the Dead was the last one to have one. We here at Halloween Blast will dearly miss Shattered Nightmare. The last thing I want to talk about is one of the actors outside the haunt. I didn’t see her until after, but she was skating around eating crickets from a little chinese takeout box. After chatting for about 5 minutes about what they taste like (dry is NOT a taste, but I understood after the fact), I was finally talked into eating one myself. I had to stop and ask when she got them cause they tasted like the skin inside a stale peanut. They were fresh from that morning and I am NEVER eating one again! If you have never been to Basement of the Dead before, we recommend you check them out. Not only do they throw an awesome party outside, they scare the pants off of you once you step down into the basement. This is the final year for Shattered Nightmare, so if you have never experienced a 3D haunt, check it out; you won’t be disappointed! If you have been Shattered Nightmare, then go to say your final goodbyes and take in the beauty of this haunt and its psycho clowns. Shattered Nightmare will surely be missed dearly.
