Six Flags Magic Mountain: Fright Fest Extreme has arrived, so here's all of the event's mazes ranked from worst to best.
While Six Flags may not be to the heights of Hollywood Horror Nights, it's still a fantastic choice to visit to celebrate Halloween.
To make it even more exciting, on top of their staple original mazes, the park has a handful of exciting IPs: Stranger Things, The Conjuring, Saw, Army of the Dead, and Trick r' Treat.
All Six Flags Fright Fest Extreme Mazes Ranked
11.) Aftermath: Nocturnal Hunt
I don’t revel in being harsh or ragging on things if I don’t have to, but this is one of those instances where it is necessary.
Aftermath: Nocturnal Hunt is truly embarrassing. It’s impossible to figure out what they were trying to achieve with the theming, and the environment is so empty and dull that it just feels like an empty scare zone.
In addition, there are hardly any scare actors in the maze, which makes it a truly forgettable experience.
This maze area should be considered for life support, and it would be worth it for Six Flags to consider either beefing it up or taking those minimal resources to enhance other mazes in the parks.
10.) Army of the Dead
My sentiments for The Army of the Dead are nearly identical to those for Aftermath: Nocturnal Hunt.
This maze is expansive, yet dreadfully empty. For being a zombie apocalypse epicenter, there’s very few of them to worry about.
The same burnt out city props aren't going to keep cutting it, and don't do enough on their own. Also, the flame bar is not nearly as impressive as the maze seems to think it is.
Army of the Dead is only above Aftermath due to having a change of scenery by going through a the remains of a building—but even that isn't all too exciting.
9.) Vault 666
The biggest strength of Vault 666 Unlocked is its scenery and set design, which remains top-notch.
The maze brings you into an abandoned vault housing a "dark and sinister antique shop,” with people ready to scare around (mostly) every corner.
While the theming is fun, it never quite reaches the heights it should. Sadly, after walking out of the maze, one will probably find themselves scratching their heads to remember what the through line was.
8.) Willoughby's Resurrected
Willoughby’s Resurrected is basically Six Flags Fright Fest’s take on Disney’s The Haunted Mansion.
The mansion itself remains an entertaining set piece, with very well-decorated areas and lots of stuff to see—which sadly can’t be said for all of the other mazes.
The story for this haunt is a little of a miss, though, and isn't as engaging as it could be.
Besides a new entrance to the mansion, frequent goers of Fright Fest will feel right at home revisiting this haunt.
7.) Truth or Dare
Truth or Dare has some really fun theming, bringing audiences into a retro-feeling game show—but with a horrific twist.
While it’s unclear what exactly is happening at the studio, it's clearly no good, and people are dying in brutal fashion. For those who love Squid Game, this one is the perfect fit.
There is a little bit of lost potential here, however, as the premise practically begs for a little bit of audience interactivity that sadly doesn't exist. The story could also have done a little more to keep the whole experience engaging.
6.) Trick r' Treat
Trick R’ Treat is at a huge disadvantage right out of the gates.
For those who missed it, the movie had an incredible maze at Universal Studios’ Halloween Horror Nights in 2018, which I still think about. Sadly, Six Flag’s take on it doesn't meet those expectations.
Despite them not living up to that scope, it’s still fun to see the various setups from the film. Fans of the iconic anthology Halloween film will still find enjoyment in the maze.
My personal favorite part was the final rooms you walk in—including Sam on a throne.
5.) Condemned - Forever Damned
The production value of Condemned - Forever Damned is fantastic, and it’s above and beyond the best part of the maze. It’s not surprising that Six Flags loves using this house and its setup so much.
Walking through the dilapidated house, participants will truly feel like they are walking through a legitimately desecrated empty soul of what was once a beautiful home. Now, it’s filled with terror and unsettling scenes everywhere you look as the former residents look to keep you from exiting.
If you ever need something to convince yourself or your friends to be cleaner, this is the place to go.
4.) Stranger Things
I’ve seen some pretty harsh feedback for this maze, but I don't think it’s as bad as many have said.
Sure, it doesn't live up to previous iterations, but fans of Stranger Things will still appreciate walking through the halls of Hawkins and into the Upside Down, floating particles and all.
You’ll go through the Creel mansion, see the fateful trailer park, and even run across some Demobats. Admittedly, Six Flags could do a better job utilizing space because it all felt more spread out than it should have been.
Like many of the mazes this year, there weren't too many scare actors and familiar faces were slim. The big Vecna reveal at the end was a bit underwhelming, and I feel it would have been an excellent chance to have a practical actor in a Vecna outfit.
At the very least, there was a fun, practical Demogorgan who was having a blast interacting with those walking by. Bonus points to the maze for fitting in a Demodog as well!
3.) The Conjuring Universe
With this year's The Conjuring Universe maze, there's much to pull from lore-wise, so it's a little broader scope than last year's. But the set remains pretty similar. Thankfully, that's good since the production value here is pretty on point.
The best parts include Annabelle, as pictured above, and her terrifying shadow as it looms larger over her porcelain frame and everyone passing through.
This maze's effects, in general, were pretty great across the board, though there could perhaps be a few more scare actors here and there. With that said, The Nun is easily the best performer moment in the maze.
2.) Sewer of Souls
While Sewer of Souls is far from a new addition to Six Flags Fright Fest, it remains an incredibly solid maze.
The concept sees participants enter "an underground world of lost souls and terrifying tunnels where evil oozes and creatures taunt." The visuals are really neat, with splashes of glowing neon and eccentric crazy setups littered around every corner.
What really made this maze stand out this year was our interactions with the scare actors, who admittedly had more leeway to do stuff as our group was the only one going through the maze at the time.
1.) Saw 20th Anniversary
At the very top of the list is Six Flags’ Saw maze!
The concept is simple: participants walk through Jigsaw’s lair, where they witness poor souls trapped in iconic traps throughout the franchise’s 20-year history—and that’s about what any fan would want.
The Rack from Saw III is the real standout here, and it looks terrifyingly convincing. Then, right behind it is the bone marrow trap.
While the key draw of the maze is seeing people in the traps, there are still plenty of scare actors in pig costumes to push participants through. And of course, Billy makes his required appearance.
Be sure to check out what we thought of the mazes at Universal Studios Hollywood's Halloween Horror Nights this year as well.
