CarnEvil: Maze of Terror

CarnEvil Cover Photo
CarnEvil Activities
Randomized Maze Generator
CarnEvil Maze Exit 001
CarnEvil Playground Third Person View
CarnEvil Playground Top View
CarnEvil Playground FPS
CarnEvil Maze Exit 002
CarnEvil Maze Entrance
CarnEvil Spawn Point
CarnEvil Maze Exit 003
CarnEvil Interior
CarnEvil Timer

Disclaimer: The maze in the world is procedurally generated (randomly) every time and can take up to a minute to generate. Feel free to explore the Carnival upfront while it loads!

Inspiration

The idea for CarnEvil was born after a visit to a haunted maze attraction at Six Flags. As we navigated its eerie corridors filled with unexpected scares, we were struck by how immersive and disorienting the experience felt. We wanted to recreate that sense of thrill and discovery in a VR format. Drawing inspiration from horror and carnival-themed media like Goosebumps and twisted circus aesthetics, we designed a one-time escape experience: players enter a haunted circus tent and must find their way out of a randomly generated maze. Each playthrough is unique, with a new maze layout every time, keeping the experience fresh and unpredictable.

What it does

Users enter a nightmarish carnival—aptly named CarnEvil—where the only escape is to conquer a twisted maze. Experience horrifying carnival attractions as you fight to survive, record your escape time if you manage to break free, and face a brand-new maze every time you play.

How we built it

Note: Read the disclaimer above. We developed CarnEvil using the Meta Horizon desktop editor, leveraging TypeScript for interactivity and logic. AI tools helped us generate scripts, textures, and 3D models to enrich the immersive environment. We also integrated public assets from Meta and used Microsoft VS Code as our development hub. Our team of six brought diverse strengths to the table: one member led the algorithms and game mechanics, another crafted the eerie circus environment, while others focused on media design, testing, world development, and writing. The collaboration allowed us to merge creative storytelling with technical execution, building a world that's both visually striking and dynamically engaging.

Challenges we ran into

Developing in Meta Horizon’s Desktop Editor posed several challenges due to a lack of up-to-date resources and limited community support. The software was prone to abrupt crashes, which disrupted our workflow. While GenAI/HorizonAI was helpful, many AI-generated solutions were tailored for the Unity Engine rather than the Horizon platform itself. Additionally, much of the available documentation was outdated and not reflective of recent updates.

How we overcame these challenges

To overcome these challenges, we relied heavily on trial and error, supplemented by Meta’s official documentation and tutorials, YouTube guides, ChatGPT, and HorizonAI to find workarounds and best practices.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

As students at the University of Maryland nearing graduation and who are new to the Meta Horizon Worlds, we're proud to have carved out time over just seven days to take CarnEvil: Maze of Terror from concept to a working MVP. While our original vision included more interactive features, we successfully delivered the core experience using minimal assets, despite tight deadlines and limited development resources within Meta Horizons. One of our proudest technical achievements was creating a script that dynamically generates a randomized maze in real-time, ensuring a fresh and unpredictable experience with every playthrough. GenAI/HorizonAI was instrumental in helping us overcome roadblocks and bring our vision to life.

What we learned

Through this project, we gained hands-on experience using GenAI/HorizonAI for 3D development and script writing. We learned to program in TypeScript, which proved to be an intuitive and efficient language for our needs. This journey also introduced us to core concepts of game development, including designing game mechanics, building immersive environments, and strategically shaping the user experience using cinematic assets.

What's next for CarnEvil: Maze of Terror

We’re planning to expand the experience by introducing interactive clown enemies that players can fight. One of our major goals is to add multiplayer support—envisioning a mode similar to Counter-Strike, where some players join as clowns starting from one end of the maze, while others play as survivors. The objective: outsmart, outlast, or eliminate the opposing side. Once you're taken out, you're out of the game—raising the stakes and the tension.