The 17th Door Returns for 2018

The 17th Door, Fullerton, CA

Hey kids! Weekend two of Halloween haunting season is upon us, and in addition to last night's Knott's Scary Farm opening (there will be plenty of Halloween Haunt coverage next week), there's another spooky place beginning its 2018 autumn run tonight.  Over in Fullerton, not far from the aforementioned Scary Farm, is the infamous 17th Door haunted house, an independent "extreme" haunt that requires a waiver for admission, because guests may be touched, prodded, soaked, shocked, or worse!  

Photo courtesy of The 17th Door.

Last year, The 17th Door had to move from its previous Tustin location to to its current Fullerton site.  The result meant a fresh build, which manifested in a new prison-based theme that took the place of Gluttire University from the first two years.  It also meant that the level of theming and detail last year didn't quite match up to the intricacy of the freshman and sophomore years, when 17th Door creators, Robbie and Heather Luther, and their crew had the space year-round and could build, tinker, and fine-tune to their delight. 

This year, however, the 17th Door team has had over a year in their space, and they promise new, innovative, and even more twisted terror to their guests.  Year 4 once again returns to Perpetuum Prison to visit Paula, who remains incarcerated after being arrested for killing her infant child at the end of year 2.  But time behind bars has hardened our once tragic character, turning her vengeful and sadistic.  And the guests will bear the brunt of her rage...

Photo courtesy of The 17th Door.

From the press release:

The 17th Door Haunted House Enters Its Fourth Season… Crybaby! 

• Fourth season starts September 21 with select dates running through October 31

• Pre-sale tickets now available at www.the17thdoor.com

• Regular ticket prices start from $23; VIP Speed Pass ticket prices start from $28

• Located at The West Fullerton Shopping Center: 1851 W. Orangethorpe Avenue, Fullerton, CA 92833

FULLERTON, California, September 10, 2018 – The 17th Door Haunted House keeps its home in Fullerton for the second straight year, allowing the team to build their best haunt yet! One of the scariest, most intense, and most interactive haunted houses in the country has taken things to a whole new level for 2018. This year, guests will be able to experience the Virtual Reality Vixi Ward Experience, an enhanced 15-minute immersive experience for an additional $13.

New rooms and new scares… you will hate it and you will love it! Will you cry “Mercy?” or will you survive all 20 (22 with VR) rooms of psychological terror? 

Photo courtesy of The 17th Door.

STORY 

At Perpetuum Penitentiary, the madness continues. As Paula continues to serve her time, she continues her descent into darkness. An unseen side of Paula is now coming into focus. A thought or mention of her dead child torments her soul and brings forth a psychotic rage aimed at those around her. The prison psychiatrist has prescribed “Art Therapy,” inflaming her rage and suffering. As a last resort, he has given her an unorthodox tool… a therapy puppet named “Lincoln.” Meant to present her suffocated infant son, it will push her to a place of evil and perversion. The depravity spreads like a virus.

Will the puppet, Lincoln, lead her to accepting her crime? Or will it push her to nightmarish depths previously unknown. Will Paula choose a path to redemption or will she be devoured by the darkness, becoming a permanent inmate of hell… otherwise known as Perpetuum, Death Row. 

Photo courtesy of The 17th Door.

Paula, her dead son, and You are… Crybaby.

THE VIXI WARD EXPERIENCE

In the heyday of Perpetuum Penitentiary, the prison partnered with the enigmatic Vixi Labs on a new experimental treatment method for its most troublesome inmates. Touting a revolutionary machine that was capable of interfacing with the human brain – the VRX-2000 headset – Vixi Labs helped Perpetuum to establish the new Vixi Ward within the prison.

After only a short operating streak, Vixi Ward was officially shut down for “excessive casualties” incurred during treatment. Yet in spite of this, screams still echo throughout the halls of Vixi Ward, and it’s rumored to continue operations on particularly unruly inmates. 

Photo courtesy of The 17th Door.

Guests sentenced to Vixi Ward will face a 15 minute immersive experience. Guests may first endure a pre-op procedure to assess their fitness for treatment. They will then don the VRX-2000 headset themselves to begin their virtual reality experience. Once the guests’ treatment concludes, they will then be snuck back into inmate general population using a secret entrance. There, they will begin The 17th Door maze inside Perpetuum.

 “We’re always striving to outdo ourselves each year and 2018 is no exception!” said The 17th Door co-owner Heather Luther. “With a refocus on storyline, refinement in room details and sets and layered elements of new innovative and interactive scares, we are expecting this to be our best show yet!”

Pre-sale tickets for this year’s season are now available online at www.the17thdoor.com. Act fast because they sell out quickly!

Photo courtesy of The 17th Door.

The 17th Door is designed for a mature audience, preferably 16 years of age and older, as guests will find themselves in intense situations. All guests must still sign a liability waiver and the actors are allowed to touch guests. At any point during the haunted house experience, guests may use the safe word “Mercy” to be escorted out. They will be given the option to rejoin their group in the next room or leave the haunt entirely.

The 17th Door 2017 Haunt Experience Dates:

September 21-22, 28-29
October 5-7, 11-14, 17-21, 24-31

Photo courtesy of The 17th Door.

We'll be making our own visit next weekend to check things out, but The 17th Door is open starting tonight.  It's quickly become of the best haunts in town, and if you can handle it's shock value (both figuratively and literally), you'll find an incredibly well put-together haunted attraction!