Swiftman said:It's not what they couldn't see, it's what they wouldn't see.
In a house where everyone has to be 18+ (21+?), the actors wouldn't have to pay attention to who they're scaring, if they'll going to step on someone's kid, etc. They get to just scare people. The lower crowd levels would enable an "Alone"-like story and setup where smaller groups (10 or so) could be moved through the house at a set pace- room by room. Doing a house like this with your average 14 to 18 year-olds would be a nightmare for everyone involved. I should know. I'm in that age range. Most people my age are flat out stupid.
If it's an extra-ticket, Swift, who is being inconvenienced? Parents who bring their kids along through haunted house because they are too bothered to take their kids home at 6 PM are not going to shell out extra money to take the kids through the house. If you stagger entrances and only allow small groups at a time, you are not going to hold anybody up with bad behavior. If you make it a cost-added house, people will expect higher quality and won't tolerate hoodlums. Security would be encouraged to do it's job, rather than forced to take a hands-off approach.
If it is not a content related restriction, it is a behavior related restriction, and I cannot understand the mindset of a person who thinks it is acceptable to just flat out bar people who are legally eligible to join the army and drive highly dangerous automobiles from something, just because they don't want to deal with them.
I didn't want to go this route, but I'm starting to get a little upset. If I went out there and found some statistics that said more blonde headed people act up in haunted houses than brown haired people, would you be advocating a brown hairs only house? No...because that would be ridiculous. The point of legitimate age restrictions are to prevent immature minds from being corrupted. They don't exist so enlightened 19 year olds won't have to deal with the 16-year-old rabble.
If there's nothing in the house that is dangerous to the mind of a teen, then let them in. Sorry if you don't want to be inconvenienced by the fact that there are kids in the world.