A lone brown cardboard box stood in the middle of Hooker Field. A group of 20 students armed with Nerf guns cast a tentative glance around the empty field, then uniformly charged towards the box.
Suddenly, from around the perimeter, previously hidden students with bandannas tied around their arms surged towards the runners. Colorful plastic foam darts were fired, but the armed students were outnumbered. Twenty more joined the rank of zombiehood.
About 70 students participated in a Humans vs. Zombies game from 6 p.m. Friday to 6 a.m. Saturday. The game is better known for the weeklong event in which students designated as “humans” hide from student “zombies.”
Human players carry Nerf guns and balled up socks to ward off zombie attacks. They can also take refuge in previously determined safe spots such as buses, academic buildings, bathrooms and libraries.
There are missions, such as the one on Hooker Field, that draw human players out into the open, which test both the human and zombie players’ ability to strategize. The game is over when either all humans have been infected by zombies or when the remaining humans have completed all missions.
Nathaniel Arrington, an organizer for the event, said what appeals to outsiders about the game is its strangeness. “If you ask any player, they’ll say, ‘Well yes, this is a bit childish, but isn’t that the point?’” he said.
The zombies carried the day.
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