Humans vs. Zombies: The Fear-Inducing Campus Phenomenon

By Caitlin Flynn on September 16, 2013

Monday, September 16th – The first sighting.

Every year the sight of orange bandanas sends a jolt of fear into my heart. I fear that each day is going to be the fateful day that I am the victim of a rogue Nerf Blaster bullet or have to trust my reflexes to knock down a bundle of  socks on my hurried walk to class. The cause of my uneasiness is the student organization Human vs. Zombies (HvZ) which overtakes the University of Wisconsin campus for a week every semester.

The fear I feel is small compared to the anxiety of being a HvZ human in an apocalyptic world.

Luckily there are brave humans to protect students from aggressive spore-infested zombies. One such brave human is UW-Madison student Maurice Boothe.

I knocked on Maurice’s door to ask him about the zombie infestation rumored to take place from Monday, September 16th to Friday September 20th. While I waited, I examined his “In and Out Board” – a bulletin board to let residents know the whereabouts of their House Fellow (R.A. for non-Badgers).

I had clearly come to the right person.

Although he doesn’t consider himself a zombie expert, Maurice definitely fits the role of enthusiast.

Inside Maurice’s room with a World War Z poster hung in front of me, a poster behind me with tips to survive a zombie attack and The Zombie Survival Guide within sight on his nightstand, I asked for Maurice’s insight into the HvZ organization and his thoughts on surviving a zombie apocalypse.

Maurice’s role within the organization is “Moderator”. He explains, “I organize the actual game, the theme of it, what we end up doing for the missions, it’s a little more complicated than running around shooting each other with Nerf Blasters. We’re talking with the Dean of Students, talking with the UWPD (University of Wisconsin Police Department), making sure we’re all on the same page.”

Maurice also organized a Humans vs. Zombies promotional video for the UW-Madison chapter that boasts around 12,000 total views. He commented on the success of the video: “It’s not even just our school but schools all over the world are watching that video which is pretty B.A.”

Humans vs. Zombies first began in 2005 at Goucher College in Maryland and spread virally. Players wear bandanas to identify themselves as either human or zombie. This year the game as it is played in Madison, begins with ten zombies who usually overtake the human population. Zombies tag humans who try to subdue the zombies with balled up socks and foam bullets from Nerf Blasters. The game is five days long and filled with side missions.

Parents, don’t worry. Besides gaining a new fear of smelly sock shrapnel, non-participating students are able to function as usual. Academic buildings are strictly off-limits.

Each year between 300 and 500 UW-Madison students participate in the campus-wide game but the number grows throughout the week. According to Maurice, “There is something about watching your peers run around with Nerf Blasters that makes you ask, “How can I do that?”

This year the theme is based off of the Playstation 3 survival game The Last of Us. The game was inspired by a real parasitoidal fungus that creates a type of “zombie ant”.

Maurice explains, “There are these spores that control the ants to go somewhere, the ideal spot for spores to grow. Then it kills the ant and grows from him there. [This year's game] is taking this very real thing that happens in real life and says, ‘What if this had happened to humans?’ When the spores affect a human they become very aggressive and parasitic in the sense they just try to spread more.”

Despite the vast majority of players beginning as humans, zombies generally emerge victorious at the end of the week. According to Maurice, “The way the game is designed, humans rarely win which I don’t know if that actually says anything about what we have to look forward to if the actual zombie apocalypse happens.”

From his experiences, Maurice has a wealth of knowledge for new players. “You have to be paranoid and that’s a good thing, You actually have to be smart and plan for things. Things like: checking corners, checking doors, making sure a zombie isn’t standing right inside the door, listening for footsteps, checking around. Basically, be smart.”

The success of the student organization and the popularity of Humans vs. Zombies on college campuses across the country enforce Maurice’s final thoughts on the fate of humanity, “When and if a zombie apocalypse were to happen, there’s going to be a lot of people really excited for it.”

 

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