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When I was in high school, my life was wanting for espionage. I was too restless to devote much time to online RPGs–the only really popular one was Quake, and although it was scored by NIN, I was too recently out of nerddom to take part in virtual death matches. But by my junior year in high school, the pendulum of cool was nudging back over to the subversive, kinda nerdy side. MTV’s “Daria” was in and my gentlemen friends who’d fared puberty intact could pregame for QuakeCon and still reasonably get a perky, generally symmetrical date to Homecoming. The social climate that fall was ripe for a new kind of forum, and suddenly I was signing up to play some new game called “Assassin.” If you’ve ever played it–especially if during the more formative, hierarchical years of your life–you could probably understand the terror that slowly overtook my life: stake-outs at tennis practice, the anxious skulk through the parking lot, eyes glued to rear view mirrors all the way home. My life was superseded by the gaunt, afflicted senior who’d “killed” my original, quite harmless female perp & inherited me as the next obstacle in the path to live-action RPG glory. Ultimately (and once I could no longer answer the phone at night while babysitting, completely a la Scream), I bowed out of the game before I had any traction…Of course, after the real life terror of the horrible VTU shootings, school officials are urging students to put an end to “Assassin” and its target-based derivatives. What do you think? Did you ever participate in any of these live-action campus RPGs and do you think they’re appropriate?
Comments (12)
Comment
Hate to sound like an old stuffed shirt, but…institutions of higher learning are meant for, well, learning. Distractions as highly tuned as this game most likely make for lost concentration at the least, failing to learn at the most. Sure, it’s fun. And I don’t believe someone would be mistaken for a real killer, but it’s just plain silly to spend your time looking over your shoulder, and not absorbing information.
posted by Johnny Cat on 5-3-2007 at 12:35 pm
Actually I and my “team” made it to the top and won. The monetary prize went to a poor friend who needed it, and we all patted ourselves on the back. It was great fun, especially taking out a our various nemesis.
Ultimately, the question you raise is the same old “does pretend violence beget real violence” argument. My short answer is no. Broken people, broken homes, a broken culture begets violence. Lust, greed, power beget violence. Sickness can do so as well.
The urging is a knee-jerk reaction. Its telling us that we cannot control ourselves or be trained to do so and that every person is a VTU killer waiting to go off. I’m not, I suspect you aren’t and I don’t need parenting now that I’ve reached my maturity.
posted by John on 5-3-2007 at 12:35 pm
In the olden days (the 80’s) we called the game Gotcha! – named after a cheesy movie. The game is also a funny sub-plot in Dave Barry’s ‘Big Trouble’.
Gotcha/Assassin is simply tag with more rules. I don’t think the game has a subversive effect on those who would otherwise not harm their peers. Those who intend to commit violence on others certainly have many other ways to practice their intents.
However if it becomes a painful reminder of the recent past, I could understand that reasoning.
posted by n2y2 on 5-3-2007 at 12:48 pm
@Johnny Cat – I absolutely agree that institutes of higher learning should be places of learning. No quibble with that. But. Four (+) years is an awful long time to spend hunched over the books at the library with no reprieve. That being said, I’ve never been a fan of violent games, period. RPG, video, whatever, I don’t play them, I don’t like them. I find absolutely no thrill in killing anything real or pretend. So I agree with the school officials in their ban of the game. Not because it detracts from learning (although EVERY other pursuit can be argued to take away from learning, tennis anyone?). Not because I think it begets actual violence (see numerous arguments about television). Simply because it DOES mimic violence and I don’t like it. Opinion – entitled – first amendment – all that jazz.
posted by KJ on 5-3-2007 at 12:56 pm
We called it TAG – “The Assassination Game” and used the Steve Jackson book of the same name for rules.
All-in-all, it’s simply a game. I can naturally see schools wanting to ban it if it gets out of hand by being disruptive, but most games I’ve participated in had a subtle quality to ‘em. Weapon choices that had to be allowed by a game moderator before use, no “witness” rules, “zen” games, etc.
Banning it simply because it simulates assassination is moronic and simply won’t work… kids playing the game will simply hide it better.
Besides, that kind of logic can be extended to even more moronic statements like banning football because it encourages aggressive behavior or classes on Criminology because it may lead to students thinking like criminals.
posted by Jason! on 5-3-2007 at 1:30 pm
Now, I think it’s pretty hypocritical trying to stop people from playing a game but allowing them to legally own submachine guns…
I used to play “Killer” (as the Steve Jackson rules book was called here in Spain) back in my first years of college. We wouldn’t intrude in ongoing lectures, libraries or offices, but aside from this I even remember one of our lecturers giving out “poisoned” handouts to playing students (he was assumed, correctly, that we wouldn’t expect him to try such a sleazy move).
Games don’t kill. Weapons do.
posted by Mar on 5-3-2007 at 2:33 pm
Oh, thanks Mar! The book we had was called Killer as well. I remember now… It’s been a while…
One of the more ingenious attacks against me involved petroleum jelly on the underside of my car’s door handle. Stuck to it was a note in a little plastic baggy that read, “Consider this contact poison. If your hands are bare, you are dead. Beneath your right rear tire is a rag for cleanup. Thanks.”
posted by Jason! on 5-3-2007 at 2:47 pm
I organized a TAG game when I was a student at Kent State University back in the late 80s.
I ended up get a nasty call from the Student Life Office about my signs being in violation of a rule about listing the sponsoring club.
After fixing that via sponsoship from the Gaming Club [I was, of course, the President], I was “invited” to chat with the Campus Police, who asked me to reconsider, and call it off. When I politely declined, explaining that I’d run these before [in my high school, no less], I was “invited” for a chit with the campus legal department.
What fun!
Should folks stop, in light od VA Tech?
well, I think it would not be inapropriate to take a break. Then pick back up after a while. Or maybe just don’t advertise so much. Stay low key while people are still smarting.
posted by LJ on 5-3-2007 at 8:10 pm
@LJ – Yea! Another Kent Stater and I’m reading this on May 4th, too.
posted by KJ on 5-4-2007 at 7:14 am
I don’t think Assassin or Video Games like Doom can cause anyone to go off the deep end. I am sure millions of peace loving people play these games. These games do not cause VA Tech incidents. Troubled evil people do!
However, I believe that people who do go off the deep end, that have played these games, are more efficient at the evil that they do.
posted by Stew on 5-4-2007 at 8:24 am
I still have painted clothes pins in my truck from an assassin type game played out at a Renaissance festival. The only way to kill was to ‘pin’ someone. You knew who killed you by the colors of the pin. Somehow, I got killed five times that day… and I wasn’t even playing. It’s all in fun!
posted by Tru on 5-4-2007 at 9:38 am
We played a game called Assassin in in college that involved water guns as weapons and a well-guarded round robin list of the players. We played it in rounds and you were out if you didn’t get your target. We generally stayed off the main campus for the game, as any school building was a safe house and no attempts could be made against you inside. I think the biggest risk of the game was not offending anyone on campus, but the chance of police mistaking your actions for something criminal.
posted by audrey on 5-4-2007 at 1:53 pm