Halloween is just around the corner, and this year, Fear Overload Scream Park has done it again. Featuring two gargantuan haunted houses, this event has become the biggest horror destination in the bay area, and for good reason. We were founded in 2009, where our Sacramento, California event, open only for a few short weeks, saw surprising attention from the local haunted house junkies. At the time, the event boasted only one attraction, designed and erected in the span of a few short months. While the critics had mostly good things to say, the founders were simply not satisfied. They knew right then and there that they were unwilling to settle for anything less than horror perfection. Their goal was simple: create events that host multiple haunted houses of incredibly high quality. To do this, Hollywood set architects, mask creators, and costumed designers would need to be hired, and form a team unmatched in experience and expertise. http://photos.mercurynews.com/2013/09/25/photos-fear-overload-scream-parks-haunted-house-in-san-leandro/#1

Since then, the scale and quality of the annual event has continued to increase at a mind-blowing rate. Every year, the sets have become more elaborate and detailed, with more and more time being spent designing them to be the most intricate, labyrinthine structures imaginable. And while the sets are being built, the actors are training. Each of them goes through an extensive program designed by the some of the most experienced scarers around. By the time they have finished, most are unrecognizable as human. Through hours of training, they are transformed into a group of the most terrible creatures imaginable. At a certain point, crawling, leaping and screaming seem more natural than walking and talking.

This year though, things are even better. After last year, the founders determined that it was time to ratchet the experience up to the next level, creating haunted houses that are so utterly soul-crushing, the creatures themselves won’t want to enter. They have succeeded in doing just that. The first of the two massive attractions is Hostel: Tenderloin District. As the name suggests, this haunt takes place in the most notoriously rough neighborhood in San Francisco – http://www.spotcrime.com/ca/san+francisco, http://www.streetadvisor.com/san-francisco-san-francisco-county-california/questions/worst-neighborhood-in-san-francisco. Your group has decided to explore an abandoned Hostel in the area. After breaking in, you realize quickly that you aren’t alone. Someone, or something, is here to ensure that you never leave. Stay ahead of it, and find your way out before it finds you.

The second attraction, Seven Deadly Sins, takes place in the home of a heinous killer. Somewhere in the depths of his twisted logic, he has begun to use the bible as the onus for his horrific murders. Taking the seven deadly sins literally, he has begun to enact his own, creative brand of justice on the world, and you have been caught in the middle of it. Did you stumble in, or were you lured? Only the killer knows, and you are no more than a toy in his grand puppet show. Make your way through countless rooms and hallways, sidestepping the horrendous leftovers of his sickening acts. You had better hope that he’s not home, or you could easily end up just like the rest.

For tickets, and more information, visit fearoverload.com