Scream Operator’s Haunted House Manager Lets You Run the Spooks on PC

If you’ve ever watched Disneyland’s classic Haunted Mansion and thought, “I could run this,” there’s a new management sim aiming straight for that fantasy. Scream Operator: Haunted House Manager puts you in charge of a spooky attraction from the ride’s control booth—handling operations, upgrades, and maintenance as you keep the whole haunted house running smoothly.

Management sim built around running the haunt

Scream Operator is in development at Japhet Interactive for PC, with a release window set for Q1 2027. The game is a 2D, pixel-art, top-down management experience that focuses on day-to-day haunted house administration. From the control room, you’ll manage the flow of the attraction by triggering pre-show segments, dispatching ride vehicles, and placing the props and animatronics that bring the horror to life.

Running a haunted attraction is more than just scares, though—your shift includes practical responsibilities too. You’ll handle merchandise sorting, invest in upgrades for your technology, pay the bills as they come due, and deal with the constant pressure of keeping everything from breaking down mid-service. All of it funnels into the overarching objective: scare your guests.

First look, plus what’s coming before launch

While the full release is still a way off, a playable demo is planned for Halloween this year. That should give players an early taste of the control-booth gameplay loop, including the core management tasks and the haunted house operations side of the experience.

If you want to track it now, you’ll be able to wishlist Scream Operator ahead of the demo window and the Q1 2027 launch.

Preview coverage and community chatter

The game’s early presentation is being supported with first-screen updates under the banner “Scream Operator: Haunted House Manager – First Screenshots.” In the meantime, there’s also a bit of personality attached to the preview cycle: Ryan McCaffrey serves as an executive editor for previews and hosts both IGN’s weekly Xbox program, Podcast Unlocked, and the semi-retired interview show, IGN Unfiltered.

He’s also noted for his North Jersey food take—“Taylor ham,” not “pork roll”—and invites debate online via @DMC_Ryan.