The game of Assassins, a water gun elimination game played outside of school, has become an annual tradition for juniors and seniors across the country during the second semester.
In a semester usually full of stress, especially for upperclassmen who are typically preoccupied with college preparation, the game can provide some much needed fun. Upperclassmen are typically expected to start becoming responsible adults, but the game allows for another chance for students to enjoy playing a game with one another.
Each team must pay an entrance fee, which, with a lot of teams participating, can easily amount to a big prize for winning. This keeps players competitive, as they know there is a prize to win at the end.
While over 50 teams play Assassins at Baldwin, apps like X are used as the primary source of communication throughout the game’s duration. Having the game run off of one social media platform keeps everything – such as teams, eliminations, tips, and announcements – together and easier to find.
The tips page can make the game more high-stakes as players worry about their addresses or job locations being leaked. While the tips page is used for “advice,” there is also another page used to post “kills” – squirting an opponent with a water gun – and other updates.
Each “kill” a team gets must be videoed, which gets posted on the Assassins X page. While some videos can be boring, there are always funny ones of someone getting chased or sneaky hiding spots that the target never sees coming.
Not only are these eliminations fun to watch, but teams also enjoy coming up with them.
Overall, the game is something for upperclassmen to look forward to and enjoy during their last years of high school.
While the water gun game Assassins can start fun, it can easily turn into something players take way too seriously. Really competitive players can sometimes deny being sprayed, despite every elimination being video recorded, which makes the game less enjoyable.
Outside involvement can also impact the game. Parents who are unaware can be startled by random students sitting outside their house with a water gun, causing them to yell at students or call the police.
Police involvement is relatively common during the duration of Assassins, where the students are asked to leave the premises. They are either alerted by parents or concerned neighbors, or they spot students in what seems to be suspicious behavior. While there are typically no issues and everything gets sorted out, this is still a recurring problem, which is worrisome at times.
Administration of the game has moved entirely online, with sign-ups, tips, eliminations, and team assignments all given through X. Most students do not have X, which can discourage them from playing.
Although the “tips” page on X is meant for sending in tips about certain targets, the page is not always used as it is intended to be used. Students who are not playing are sometimes brought up, making the tips page less useful.
The concept of exposing other students’ addresses and jobs for whoever follows the page is also a consistent point of concern.
Certain rules, such as not being able to get players on school grounds, at work, or during rain, make it very difficult to get players whose strategy is to stay inside the whole game. While some difficulty makes the game fun, having players who never leave their houses takes away the fun of the game.
