Terror Vault’s Fatal Abduction pits Earth against Alien Invaders

Immersive alien thriller probes the depths of San Francisco Mint – and more!

If it’s not vampires, it’s cults. If it’s not cults, it’s aliens. One way or another, evil forces infiltrate San Francisco Mint every Halloween, and it is up to you – the audience – to defeat them. In Fatal Abduction, this season’s installment of the annual Terror Vault immersive show, you will crack codes, unlock information, spy on alien-human conspirators, and even travel through time before taking your place in a final showdown to determine the fate of humanity. Scientific skills and acting ability are not required, but wild enthusiasm and active participation guarantee a good time for fans of interactive theatre.

After saving the Earth (assuming you succeed), you can relax in the basement of the San Francisco Mint, enjoying a cocktail and possibly rubbing shoulders with the venue’s vampire clientele. Also available for VIP ticket holders is an exclusive roadhouse bar and a curiosity shop with a walk-through display of creepy decorations and photo ops. Altogether, it is an experience not to be missed for those in the Bay Area.

Fatal Abduction Review: Sci-Fi Thrills & Uncomfortable Thrills

Fatal Abduction immediately recruits the audience into a battle against aliens that has infiltrated Earth. After a briefing, your handlers quickly send you to make contact with various colleagues, who provide additional clues and information to assist your mission. These individual scenes act as memorable set pieces while also advancing the narrative, leading you deeper into the conspiracy as you search for a way to repel the alien invaders.

Along the way, you may be called on to take an active role if you’re wearing the VIP glow-in-the-dark necklace that signals your consent. Otherwise, interactivity in Fatal Abduction is of the “follow along and do what you’re told” variety; audience participation consists mostly of remembering clues that pay off later. This is fine – who wants to be tossed into the basement of San Francisco Mint and tasked with figuring their own way out? It’s far more entertaining to take a ride on this is a linear adventure sweeping you along like a toboggan to the climax.

The overall feeling is of an R-rated science fiction thriller that puts you in a variety of situations: some suspenseful, some scary, and some slightly uncomfortable. In one case, you are spying through cracks in a wall upon a conversation that reveals an ally to be an enemy in disguise. In another, lights go out and you are assaulted by a monster. Perhaps more memorable are scenes that push buttons and boundaries. In the future, a scaley-faced alien overlord keeps a nearly naked human chained like a bondage boy-toy. Even more distress inducing is an anal-probe scene performed on a live victim, which involves spraying the audience with…we’d rather not say.

Following the template and much of the layout of last year’s The Initiation, Fatal Abduction hits many of the same story beats, but the settings have been repurposed to suit the theme. And let’s face it: aliens are cooler than cultists. There is more opportunity for interesting creatures and situations. The time machine is a load of fun (a clever variation on the fake elevator gag that seems to take you to a new location), and the final confrontation is fabulous and weirdly colorful, inviting the audience to spray glowing green goo at a monstrous alien creature. If you don’t crack under pressure, you may survive…

Fatal Abduction Review: Fang Bang Bar & Gift Shop

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After battling aliens, you can recuperate in Terror Vault’s resident vampire-themed Fang Bang Bar, which serves cocktails crafted to suit the alien invasion storyline, along with finger-food such as pizza. Immediately next door, visible through arched doorways, is a small dance room and stage, where the undead may pose for selfies or bounce along with the beats pulsing through the premises.

Along with a gift shop selling horror-themed merch, these rooms provide a nice way for General Admission ticket holders to spend time before or after the main show.

Fatal Abduction Review: Justin Cooter’s Roadhouse & Creepshop

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VIP ticket holders have more options. Justin Cooter’s Roadhouse and Creepy Collectibles offers “pizza, probes, and booze.” More specifically, your VIP ticket entitles you to a free shot at the roadhouse bar, where you can watch performances and hang out with Cooter, an alleged alien abductee.

Next door is Cooter’s Creepshop, selling merch with an alien-abduction theme. A hole in the shop wall leads to the Creepy Collectibles Museum Tour, which is an enjoyable mini-walkthrough, filled with art installations and photo ops instead of jump-scares and actors.

Many immersive events attempt to keep customers on premises after finishing the main event. Terror Vault does a better job than most. Though small, the Fang Bang Bar benefits from the flow of audience members arriving and leaving, eager to share their anticipation or experiences. Occasional encounters with the undead enhance the experience, making it a comfortable place to await your entrance time or a relaxing way to decompress after exiting. If that’s not enough for you, the Roadhouse is great for people more into aliens than vampires, but it’s the Creepy Collectible Museum Tour that really gives you something more for your VIP upgrade.

Fatal Abduction Review: Conclusion

Terror Vault’s annual Halloween productions have their own unique vibe, a slightly campy transgressiveness exemplified by Fatal Abduction‘s anal probe scene, but equally important are the show’s other strengths: solid storytelling, committed performances, and strong production values. Elaborate sets augment The San Fransisco Mint’s interiors, which are pretty impressive on their own. The aliens who reveal their true appearance feature convincingly scaley faces. Best of all, the climax provides a payoff big enough to bring the adventure to a satisfying conclusion. (Compare this to the relatively tame ending of Delusion: The Red Castle.)

With such consistent quality from year to year, almost the only way to pick a favorite depends on personal preference: vampires, cults, or aliens? For us, the vampires of 2022′ The Summoning still rule, but the aliens of Fatal Abduction come in a close second.

Fatal Abduction Photo Gallery