Although the Humans versus Zombies event started off without the sponsoring of any clubs it eventually it got the approval of the Deans of Students office and is now a scheduled semesterly event | Image courtesy of Cougar Urban Gaming Society
The zombie apocalypse is reigning on campus as the Cougar Urban Gaming Society recruits members for its biggest game, Humans Vs. Zombies. The battle begins Monday.
“(Here’s how) the game works. When you sign up, you can ask to be put in the original zombie pool,”said CUGS moderator and creative writing senior Michael Moser. “On the first day, one person is chosen and they run around, assumingly as a human, and then they can just walk up to you (and turn you into a zombie).”
Humans are provided Nerf guns to stun zombies before they can tag the humans to turn them into zombies. The zombies wear neon green bands around their forehead, while the humans wear them around their arms, which is the only means of identification.
“The game is never turned off unless you’re in a building,” said CUGS moderator and mechanical and chemical engineering junior Mitchell Lott.
The only time a human is protected is in class or at UH events, which is why zombies sometimes will team up against a human and wait for them after class or chase them down campus.
Emails are sent through the website to assign missions to both zombies and humans. Each team member gets an email about a place to meet with their team and a moderator to explain the mission. Missions can be anything from scavenger hunts to “protecting the VIP,” in which one person is chosen to be protected by the humans and targeted by the zombie.
“One of the things about playing HVZ is that I think it’s a great college game, like a social experience,” said biology senior David Kronenberger. “The whole goal is to socially exclude yourself and not care with a bunch of other people and make great friendships.”
Kronenberger has been the president of CUGS for three years and has seen many people establish friendships through HVZ. When it first came to UH, it was not sponsored under any club and soon began to receive complaints by security. After a year and a half, it was approved by the Dean of Students and is now scheduled to be a regular activity every semester.
“It took forever and a lot of work; I didn’t think I would see a full game back by the time I was here, but we got it approved, and we got the full campus, so I’m just really glad it’s back,” Kronenberger said.
CUGS also hosts board game nights and other events throughout the semester. Students interested in CUGS are encouraged to visit its Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/140063629376902/.
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