We’ve reached the part of the tour where we get the opportunity to travel to Canton, Georgia to visit Paranoia Haunted House.
We’ve been visiting this haunt every season since 2013 and they are one of the very few that we experience who finds ways to greatly improve season after season.
This season was no different, except this time they blew any expectation we had coming in out of the water.
If you’ve followed our past reviews about this haunt, you know we’ve always said going to paranoia is like going to a haunted metal concert!
They keep that aspect but they’ve added a massive facelift to their outside queline.
If you were not familiar with the haunt, you almost wouldn’t recognize it while passing by.
The 2 level interactive queline is full of fun and screams as you zig zag through an industrial themed path. The roaming actors now have an industrial playground to terrify guests prior to entry.
Paranoia has ALWAYS put a lot into their outside entertainment and this season they simply just amped up the party! They still have the amazing firework display prior to opening which to me it seemed like they added fireworks from previous years. Little funny story leading up to the opening. I was stopped by a group of haunt fans who traveled from North Carolina just to see this haunt. They noticed the “red tie” and let me know that they’ve been following Scurryface for years and that our past reviews of Paranoia is what finally drove them to make the trip. In the middle of our wonderful conversation, a loud booming voice came over the property, “20 Seconds”.. I was in mid sentence talking to them and I literally got hushed and was told to hold that thought because they did not want to miss this opening. Which I thought was great and quite honestly it forced me to remember that I had a job to do as well.
As Paranoia lit up the Canton sky, I looked over at them just to see their reactions and they were all smiles and filled with excitement. I told them, “If this gets you that excited, just wait until you get inside! This is just the beginning.”
We haven’t even touched on their Midway party yet, Paranoia offers a true Midway. It sits right in the middle of their two haunts. They increased the activities for customers, new games, a snack shack, escape room, DJ entertainment tower, numerous photo ops, plus a merch store with tons of unique items that you can ONLY get at Paranoia. This is where you transition into a different vibe when it comes to the music choice. Here it is more of a dance party and you will find actors and guests taking up areas dancing and having a great time. What I love about this midway is the fact that you’re not forced to go directly into the next haunt. You’re free to hang out, have a great time and you decide when you want to experience the next haunt. Afterwards, you’re free to come right back and continue on with the party!
It truly is a fun experience and it’s set up perfectly!
Let’s get into the 2 haunt experiences.
-THE WRETCHED-
This is where you get to explore the McCoy House and the dreaded swamp. In the past this was my personal favorite experience because of the insane amount of detail and immersion. This season, it’s no different. Except this time, it’s not as dark as years past. You now truly get to see the crazy amount of detail throughout the entire experience. Their theming ties perfectly into the story. From the walls within the house, the front yard, the outside siding of the house when making your way to the swamp. It’s insanely detailed and they don’t miss a spot.
All that is complemented by perfectly placed characters throughout. Don’t let the fact that they decided to brighten the experience take away from the actors who will absolutely find the darkest corner and still scare the hell out of you.
Out of the two haunts, this one is still the absolute scariest. A lot of that is due to how well it is put together and produced. The detail captures your focus and completely immerses you into the scenes and these actors know that and they take full advantage.
I went through twice just to see the sets again and see if the actors changed up their routine. My question was answered as I was startled 3 times by 3 different actors who threw me off because I was expecting them to be in the same place.
Both times as I was heading into the merch store, I felt my heart beating faster coming out of this experience versus the other one.
-EXTRACTION-
This is the in your face more visually intense experience. It’s a huge experiment gone wrong and very industry vibe. The new queline out front compliments this haunt and it ties to it very well.
The detail and eye candy on this side is seriously a sensory overload. There are so many things going on all around at the sametime. Someone like me who is A.D.D., I have to experience this multiple times because I know there are things that I missed on the first try.
The intensity on this side never lets up, it’s as if the scenes come alive and then you add actors into the mix constantly pouncing on you like low hanging fruit. It never lets up!
In years past, my biggest takeaway with this haunt was amazing beautiful sets with not enough actors and the ones who were there lacked intensity. Not anymore!!! The actors have turned their intensity up to 11 and they are relentless. The energy in Extraction is off the chart and I loved every single second of it.
The addition to this along with multiple new scenes, which were great changes if I may add. I love the direction this haunt is going. It seemed more gritty and gory and slowly taking a different path from their past which was more on the SyFy side of things.
Don’t get me wrong, I love SyFy horror but it’s really hard to bring it to life in a haunt. I love the new gritty, gory, intense approach that Paranoia has transitioned into for 2022.
In Closing:
Both haunts took me around 45ish minutes to complete all together. You could easily spend your entire night at Paranoia and there’s no reason why you shouldn’t. It’s a never ending party from the time they open until the time they close.
What I also absolutely love about Paranoia is the detailed elaborate makeup and costuming that you will find throughout the entire experience. The makeup artists are so incredibly talented and the actors go to extreme lengths to bring their characters to life not only with their acting ability but with their appearance as well. They take pride in their work and it shows during their performances.
The changes they implement yearly is always appreciated by those who are able to notice.
Paranoia is not afraid to implement changes or take chances with things. They are always trying to evolve and improve themselves.
Outside of their big move to this location, this season was the biggest change that Paranoia has made and they told me in 2021, “Just wait until you see what we do in 2022”.... Just when I think Paranoia may have hit a ceiling. I was told by Dave and Keith “Just wait until you see what we have in store for next year.” I have learned my lesson to never doubt this crew.
Scurryface has always loved this haunt because they put on such a great quality show.
I have been visiting this haunt since 2013 and this season was the absolute best experience I’ve ever had at Paranoia Haunted House.
I went on their opening weekend and they performed like it was Halloween night.
Forget the Southeast! Paranoia Haunted House belongs at the top of the list with haunts from around the nation!
