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We Rank All 10 Houses From Our Opening Night R.I.P Tour
Halloween Horror Nights 35 has one of the strongest haunted house lineups Universal Orlando has put together in years, and after experiencing all 10 houses on opening night as part of a hosted media event, we can say right up front that there is not a single house we would recommend skipping. Some landed harder for us than others, but even the house sitting at number 10 would be a respectable middle-of-the-pack house during a weaker HHN season. That makes ranking this year’s lineup especially difficult, but after plenty of debate in the fog, here is how all 10 houses stacked up for us.
Related: Our Complete Halloween Horror Nights 35 Review
Our number one house is Jack & Oddfellow: Chaos & Control, and this one completely exceeded our expectations. The sets are massive and incredibly detailed, the story is compelling, and the house does a fantastic job bringing two of Halloween Horror Nights’ biggest icons together without feeling like a simple greatest-hits collection.
There are impressive animatronics, plenty of familiar characters, and so much happening throughout the maze that one walkthrough simply is not enough. This is the kind of house where you immediately want to get back in line because you know you missed something the first time. For an anniversary year built around HHN history, Jack and Oddfellow absolutely understood the assignment.
Coming in at number two is Ozzy Osbourne: Prince of Darkness, which was almost our number one house. This is an incredibly immersive tribute to Ozzy that feels like it was created with genuine affection for his music and career. The soundtrack is not simply playing in the background, it becomes part of the environments and helps drive you through the house. The Crazy Train sequence is easily one of our favorite moments anywhere at HHN 35 and is exactly the kind of giant, memorable set piece we want from Halloween Horror Nights. Between the music, scenery, characters, and overall atmosphere, this house feels like a true celebration of the Prince of Darkness.
Hellraiser takes the number three spot, although it could easily trade places with Ozzy depending on the walkthrough. HHN fans have been asking for Hellraiser for years, and Universal finally gave us the house we hoped it would. It is bloody, grotesque, packed with characters from the films, and sends guests through a seemingly endless maze inspired by the Lament Configuration. The layout gives the house an intentionally disorienting feeling, almost as if the cube itself has swallowed you. There is gore everywhere, Cenobites lurking throughout, and enough twisted imagery to make longtime Hellraiser fans very happy.
At number four is Cybergoria, one of the most intense houses at this year’s event. We had high expectations going into this original concept, and the HHN creative team delivered. The lighting, audio, effects, characters, and aggressive scare actor placement create a sensory overload that barely gives you a chance to recover before the next scare hits. The scare actors were especially relentless during our walkthrough, appearing from what felt like every possible direction. Guests who do not enjoy extremely loud or visually intense houses may find Cybergoria overwhelming, but for us, that intensity is exactly what makes it so memorable.
INVASION: Alien Abduction lands at number five and may have been the biggest surprise of our night. We expected to enjoy it, but we did not expect it to land this high in such a strong lineup. The house delivers classic alien-abduction and UFO imagery while adding some excellent environmental effects that make the experience feel more physical. One standout section takes guests through an upstairs portion of the house while the floor shakes beneath their feet, creating the sensation that something massive is happening below you. Fans of alien movies, UFO stories, and old-school science-fiction horror should absolutely have this one on their must-do list.
H.R. Bloodengutz Presents: A Halloween Fright-Tacular! takes the number six spot, although the middle of this ranking is incredibly close. Bloodengutz brings exactly the kind of campy, ridiculous Halloween energy that made the character so popular with longtime HHN guests. The house constantly shifts themes while maintaining that wonderfully bizarre sense of humor, and there are plenty of fun details hidden throughout. One of our favorite moments is seeing the Pumpkin King return to Halloween Horror Nights. Bloodengutz may not be the scariest house of the year, but it is one of the most entertaining and is packed with personality.
Sinners comes in at number seven with an incredibly faithful recreation of the film. The house does an excellent job allowing guests to essentially step into familiar scenes and environments from the movie, complete with impressive effects and recognizable characters. For anyone who already knows the film well, there may be fewer surprises waiting around the corner because the house follows the source material so closely. That is not necessarily a criticism, though. Walking through Sinners feels like entering the movie itself, and fans of the film should appreciate just how much attention went into recreating its world.
Number eight is Evil Dead Burn, and longtime Evil Dead fans should feel right at home here. We have been watching this franchise since the 1980s, so we went into this one with very specific expectations involving blood, chaos, and an almost unreasonable amount of gore. Thankfully, Evil Dead Burn delivers all three. The house embraces the over-the-top tone that has defined the series for decades, with gruesome scenes and plenty of familiar imagery. Landing at number eight says much more about the strength of the houses above it than it does about Evil Dead Burn itself.
Stranger Things 5 takes our number nine spot. There is a lot to like here, especially when it comes to the house’s effects and animatronics, some of which are among the most impressive in the event. We did find ourselves wishing Universal had been able to incorporate more material from Season 5 into the experience. That said, we also think Season 5 is the weakest season of Stranger Things, which makes this a tricky property to translate into an HHN house. The creative team still delivers a polished experience with plenty for Stranger Things fans to enjoy, and this remains a house we would absolutely recommend seeing.
MADLANDS: Caged Cannibals rounds out our ranking at number 10, but do not mistake last place for a bad house. MADLANDS has strong theming, some excellent scare opportunities, and a gritty atmosphere that fits perfectly into Halloween Horror Nights. We had several good scares during our walkthrough and enjoyed the overall look and feel of the house. Its biggest problem is simply that HHN 35 is stacked from top to bottom. In another year, MADLANDS could easily have landed several spots higher.
Related: Universal Orlando Resort Announces the Return of Dufftoberfest
That is what makes Halloween Horror Nights 35 such a strong anniversary year. There is no house on this list that we would tell guests to skip, and the differences between several of these rankings come down to personal preference more than quality. Jack & Oddfellow: Chaos & Control ultimately takes our top spot thanks to its incredible sets, storytelling, characters, and replay value, but Ozzy and Hellraiser are right behind it, while originals like Cybergoria and INVASION prove once again that some of HHN’s best experiences do not need a movie title attached to them.
We will absolutely be heading back into the fog for more walkthroughs before the season ends, and these rankings could easily shift as we experience the houses again. We want to once again thank Universal for hosting us on opening night, we had another amazing night in the fog!
If Halloween Horror Nights 35 has you ready to plan a Universal Orlando getaway and experience all 10 houses for yourself, be sure to contact our partners at Get Away Today to help put together your fright-filled trip.
