DENVER (KDVR) — Frightmare Compound is one of the most popular haunted houses in Denver with lines out the door before the spot even opens. FOX31 got a sneak peek into that haunted house and what makes Denverites scream.

This Halloween has been one of the most popular seasons for Frightmare Compound. The weekend before Halloween, the wait time was four hours.

Josh Holder, the owner of Frighmare Compound, says the scare is all about the five senses.

“Scares change every year,” said Holder. “You always want to hit on people’s five senses. So you always want something touching people, people are walking through something you want the ground to be moving, pop-out scares are good.”

Visitors will experience those five senses within the haunted house, which takes about 20 minutes to walk through.

Scares through generations

Frightmare deems itself “Colorado’s oldest haunted house” as Holder’s father started the haunted house in 1983. After Holder’s father passed away, he took it over.

The Frightmare Compound is technically a backyard. Holder lives on the property, with his house right behind the ticket booth.

The haunted house legacy is more than Holder’s family tradition. Generations of families come back every year with their children and even grandchildren.

“It’s cool to see everyone over the past 40 years have stories about my dad I don’t even know,” said Holder.

Behind the haunt

Every year, Holder switches up the scenes. That means even last year’s attendees will still be shocked this year.

Holder spends the whole year touring the world for the scariest muses to include in next year’s haunted house. This year, the newest exhibit is based on an old church and graveyard in Scotland. While it’s only based on a church, all the decorations are more than props — including the headstones, which are all sample headstones from a cemetery.

While walking (or running) through, attendees will face moving floors, tight spaces, jump scares and, of course, the monsters.

“We don’t tone it down for anybody — you buy a ticket in, you’re getting the same scare as somebody else,” said Holder.

Frightmare Compound hired 80 actors for the season, all with one goal in mind: to scare you.

While the actors are normal people behind the masks and makeup, it’s not as obvious when they’re chasing visitors with a chainsaw.