In 2023, Universal announced a brand new Vegas-based attraction that promised year-round spooky haunts. Now that it has celebrated its opening day, Universal has proved that when it sprinkles its Hollywood magic on an all-new horror-themed event, their legacy as the creators of horror leaves no tomb undisturbed. 

*Spoilers Ahead*

Universal Horror Unleashed is located in Las Vegas’ AREA 15. Construction of this new site developed over the last two years, and the fruits of this massive labor do not disappoint. 

Inside the massive warehouse, guests can experience four different haunted houses: Universal Monsters, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Blumhouse’s The Exorcist: Believer, and Scarecrow: The Reaping. 

Universal Monsters takes guests through a frightful maze in which all of the classic Universal monsters appear. These include the Mummy, the gooey green Creature from the Black Lagoon, Dracula, Bride of Frankenstein and more. The most thrilling part of this house? There’s an interactive staged scene towards the end in which Dr. Frankenstein brings his monster to life. The visual and sound effects of this scene alone are noteworthy, and the actors are convincingly enthralled in this magnificent feat during the reenactment. 

In The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, a decrepit farmhouse awaits, and guests can expect to see some familiar characters from HHN of years past. The sounds of buzzing chainsaws coming at you from secret corners never gets old, and the jump scares are quite effective. Additionally, this house has a fresh new layout that allows for a bit of a more detailed and in-depth experience. 

Blumhouse’s The Exorcist: Believer is probably the most tame of the four houses. This story involves two young girls who are possessed and following you throughout the house. While there are plenty of jump scares, the characters themselves aren’t particularly frightening in appearance. Similar to Universal Monsters, this house also features an interactive scene towards the end, during which an exorcism takes place. One of the characters who’s possessed faces away from guests as the exorcism is being performed, so the scene doesn’t feel quite as dramatic as Frankenstein’s monster coming to life. However, with the sound effects booming and the exorcism being chanted loudly, it is quite the spooky experience.

Scarecrow: The Reaping provides what is quite possibly the most in-depth immersion of all the houses. The exquisitely detailed, dark, and ominous corn maze is straight out of your worst nightmares. The jump scares by the numerous scarecrows are nearly unrelenting in a fun way — you never seem to know when they’re coming and how frequently. This house also notably features a dual entry area: the right side is a standard queue, while the left side expedites the line by allowing single parties to move ahead. Overall, this house vividly embodies what one would most fear about scarecrows and being lost in a corn maze. 

Throughout the interior of the venue, numerous scare actors freely roam the space, interacting with guests and revealing various aspects of their sordid lives. After chatting with all of them, it was apparent that Universal prioritized storytelling and character building. From a vampire queen at the entrance who can’t find her silly familiar, to mask-wearing Robert who accidentally sliced his neck, these scare actors are worth chatting up. 

There’s one dedicated scare zone called the Props Graveyard in between the restaurants Rough Cuts and Jack’s Alley. This scare zone is unique in that it’s decorated with old props and set pieces from various Universal Studios film sets. You’ll also find several more actors roaming this area, with detailed stories about why this creepy venue has come into existence and what roles they serve within it. 

In terms of food and beverage, you’ll find four original eateries at Horror Unleashed. There’s The Boiler, a bustling bar right in the heart of the venue’s entryway. There’s also Rough Cuts, serving up themed menu items inspired by ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.’ Jack’s Alley is another onsite bar that also features live entertainment by the clown Jack himself, along with his sidekick Chance. Lastly, there’s Premiere House, which is located across from Jack’s Alley. It offers a full service dining experience along with Blumhouse-themed photo ops from M3GAN and The Black Phone. During its peak, Premiere House had an hour-long waitlist. I opted for bar seating and was seen immediately, a tip that many soon followed.

One of the highlights of the Horror Unleashed attraction is its original staged show performed in and around the Jack’s Alley bar. Performers, led by Jack’s wickedly funny ring-mistress Chance, engage the audience with a musical intro from the bar area, then coerce guests to head over to a stage where they mesmerize the audience with spellbinding dance and acrobatic routines. Jack and his crew then invite three “victims” onstage to play “Stay or Slay,” where they determine whether or not two of the stage performers survive. Spoiler alert: if the house always wins in Vegas, you can take a guess as to whether these victims stay or are slayed at Jack’s command.

To close out your time at the venue, guests exit through a gift shop featuring a variety of exclusive Horror Unleashed-specific and haunted house-themed merchandise. Child’s Play and Psycho merch are available as well, leaving us wondering if we can expect more themed houses in the future. 

Universal has certainly made great efforts to not only bring a state-of-the-art horror entertainment venue to Las Vegas, but it also prioritized improving upon this existing concept. One of the biggest improvements of the haunted house concept is this venue’s use of staggered entry. HHN is notorious for its conga line fashion of going through the houses, oftentimes dimming the scare factor since people are sandwiched in between other groups and get rushed through. By staggering each house’s entry per party, you can now enjoy the jump scares and room experiences within each house without any bottlenecks. Solo travelers beware: this means you’ll be trekking through the houses alone. 

Time-stamped tickets are available for advance purchase all year long, with the venue currently operating from Thursdays through Mondays. 

Universal Horror Unleashed has made a big, spooky impact in Las Vegas, and with the announcement that an additional facility will later be opening in Chicago, it’s Crystal Lake clear that Universal has its eyes focused on the expansion of its monster universe.