“Everyone knows that they secretly want to play,” University freshman Nolan Richard@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=student&d=person&b=name&s=Nolan+Richard@@ said after sprinting through the doors of the EMU Tuesday night, fleeing from a group of laughing zombies.
Sure, you might think of tag as a kid’s game, but when it’s 24/7 and involves zombies, who wouldn’t want to join in?@@yep@@
About 300 students took part in the University’s second Humans vs. Zombies fundraiser this week; the first was held in spring. The game is played between two factions, differentiated by placement of bandannas. Zombies wear a bandanna around their neck or head, while humans wear a bandanna around an arm.
All players start out as humans, with a moderator choosing a handful to be the original zombies. The goal of the zombies is to tag the humans, which turns the humans into zombies — making it a whole lot tougher for the remaining humans to “stay alive.” Humans must dodge, run, hide and defend themselves by throwing socks or using Nerf guns. If they hit a zombie, the zombie is stunned for 10 minutes and the human has time to escape untagged. Safe zones include buildings, streets outside of campus and vehicles. Humans are supposed to try and survive the week, but this can be difficult.
University junior Carly Wright,@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=student&d=person&b=name&s=Carly+Wright@@ a self-described zombie enthusiast, added fresh blood this term to the Humans vs. Zombies game — though she only lasted about 10 minutes as a human as an undercover zombie tagged her Monday morning.@@weak@@ But that didn’t dampen her game for the remainder of the week.
“(Zombies are) generally a cool concept and a fun theoretical situation,” Wright said. “And it’s fun to play tag.”
General strategies for playing as humans include traveling in a group and always being aware of your surroundings.
“I’ve always wanted to play one of these games,” University senior Jessica Ridgway@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=student&d=person&b=name&s=Jessica+Ridgway+@@ said. “It’s really stressful because once you cross Kincaid you’re on campus, and it’s a free-for-all … Everyone gets to class, and it’s kind of professional. But when it gets to the end, everyone gets kind of antsy. There were two zombies sitting behind me (in lecture) and they said, ‘You better run when class gets over.’”@@heh, heh, heh…yes@@
Ridgway, who was still human as the Emerald went to press, said her strategy included running into buildings quickly and avoiding the EMU.
Senior Greg Hom,@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=student&d=person&b=name&s=Greg+Hom@@ Ridgway’s friend, agreed on avoiding certain parts of campus, such as well-traveled paths to class.
“The science buildings are great,” Hom said Wednesday. “No one goes there. But the zombies are wising up. Today, three were waiting for us, and we had to book it to class.”
Because Humans vs. Zombies is a 24/7 game, and to give more variety to the usual three-on-one zombie attacks walking to class, moderators added a twist with regular “missions.” The missions played out every night at 6 p.m. Meeting first in the EMU Amphitheater, all humans and zombies were given a different task for the evening. Monday saw humans paired up, having to escort each other across campus while fending off a zombie attack.@@fun!@@ On Wednesday night, humans played ultimate and dodged zombies at the same time.
“It brings all the players together,” moderator Christian Erichsen@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=student&d=person&b=name&s=Christian+Erichsen@@ said. “It gets people fired up and able to meet each other.”
Wright agreed, saying the night games added something special.
“It’s a lot more fun to play at night because there’s a lot more strategy involved in hiding in the shadows,” Wright said.
On top of the game itself was the fundraising aspect. Throughout the week, players could get pledges from friends and family to donate money for every hour they stayed human. At the end of the week, moderators collect the money and send it to the Red Cross.
“I think it’s a great addition,” Ridgway said. “It’s nice when people are helping, and they are having fun helping. It’s a good deed that a lot of people can get involved in.”
Hom, who was tagged Wednesday evening, pledged to donate a quarter for every hour he stayed human.
“Now I’ve got to work out how long I’ve been alive,” Hom said. He said he thought the game was a good way to raise money for the Red Cross. “Even 10 cents an hour adds up.”
The ‘haunt’ finished for the second Humans vs. Zombies Apocalypse
Daily Emerald
November 16, 2011
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