Game On!

Dan Whittington sat at the end of the table, wearing a witty “Dungeons & Discourse” t-shirt and drinking Diet Pepsi from a roughly goblet-sized snifter.

He’s been a member of the Gaming Club since freshman year, but this was the first time that he was in charge of the meeting, having been elected as the club’s new president at the end of last year.

“Let’s go around the table,” he suggested halfway through the meeting, realizing that he was surrounded by strangers. “What are your names, your years and your favorite kinds of games?”

The group – about fifteen students, most of them freshmen – was pleasantly surprised to discover that four of the members were named Dan, including President Whittington.

Many were also pleased to find common interests in games, both in electronic and tabletop modes.

The gaming club has been a staple on campus since at least 2002, shuffling their time between open board game nights and video game tournaments. Upperclassmen probably remember seeing club members tabling for upcoming events right outside Harris, rocking out to a game of Guitar Hero while you’re patiently waiting to get your food.

There was some discussion as to what the gaming club could do differently this year. The tournaments remained a popular fixture, so expect more multiplayer video games being played in Blaustein some future Friday evenings.

Last year, Rock Band and Dance Dance Revolution tournaments found surprising popularity among students outside the gaming club.

Dan told the club, rather sadly, that members of the gaming club rarely win first place at the tourneys. You just never know who on campus has a secret talent at playing some games, and the tournaments offer relaxing atmospheres that welcome new players to try new things.

What about board games? For the electronically-illiterate community, the gaming club plans to host open gaming nights, free of charge and open to anyone who wants to stop by the Lambdin Game Room. Don’t hesitate to jump in on a round of Apples to Apples or discover new board games you never knew existed.

Dan found the moment towards the end of the meeting to slip in a plug for Humans Vs. Zombies, an intensely modified game of tag, which has swept not only the campus, but the nation as well. Sometimes lasting more than a week, the game is designed to prepare college students for the eventual zombie apocalypse.

Conn started playing Humans Vs. Zombies two years ago and Dan was lucky enough to be the original zombie during the first round.

“You’ll learn so much more about your campus than you had before,” said a previous player, his statement backed up by upperclassmen who knew all too well about the paranoia which comes with Humans Vs. Zombies.

Mario Kart for the Wii was voted as the first event of the season, scheduled for the evening of Friday, October 16 in Blaustein.

For Mario Kart 64 or Double Dash purists, those versions will be played in adjacent rooms, although the Wii version will be the only game used for the tournament, and therefore the only game where players are eligible for prizes.