On October 7th the Highlighter team was invited to one of the country’s top horror houses, 13th Floor. After moving locations the 3 part haunted house is now located at 3400 E. 52nd Ave., Denver, CO. Tickets into the haunted house range from $19.99-$33.99. The house is split into 3 parts (Half-Alive, The Possession, and Trick or Treat) and each one is action-packed.

We had the amazing opportunity to get a behind-the-scenes look at makeup and costumes. The makeup and costumes are very scary and well done despite the fact that each person is only worked on for 10-15 minutes. The area where the makeup/costumes is chaotic and full of people aged 16 and older.

The first area,Half-Alive, was based off of a mad scientist’s, Dr Hadelstein’s, experiments where he releases an unknown disease known as “Paralysis X.” The area starts with being forced in an elevator that then starts shaking and moving. You continue to walk through the area being scared at almost every twist and turn. With some  familiar monster legends popping up through the area, many of the other ones were just random creatures that were all equally scary until you enter the next part.

You then move into The Possession which was inspired by the film The Nun. This room is focused on paranormal and black magic, with things that come off walls and that are  thrown around. The main attraction in this area was a mirror maze that was very complicated and always felt like you were being followed. Many jumpscares and being chased by nuns while being screamed at, added a greater fear factor to this area and the overall experience.

The last area is Trick or Treat and starts with being forced to walk in a line by surrounding us with big inflatable tubes. We had to walk through very carefully because intestines and bodies hung from the ceiling, but we were still chased, followed, and scared. Eventually,  you are screaming and sprinting out of the house, but it doesn’t end there –in some cases, they chase you until the exit of the actual park.

Even with all of the scary rooms, they also have added 4 new mini escape rooms. You have 5 minutes to solve each room and escape. They also have scary carnival games where you can throw the ring on the zombie hands and much more.

My experience with 13th Floor was an amazing opportunity to see behind the scenes and go through the maze. The scariest section to me was the mirror maze in the Possession area where you didn’t know which way to go and the first section where you were in a spinning tube and felt like you were falling is a close second. I would highly recommend going to the 13th floor if you are ever down in Denver during the Halloween season.