A trio of survivors, trailed by a large group of zombies, were spotted heading to Seven Palms for the final showdown for Humans vs. Zombies on Saturday, April 16.
With the campus not as busy as it usually is, the apocalypse ended with the three remaining humans prepared to fight for their lives.
Another year of Humans vs. Zombies has come and gone, and the week was jam packed with action. From April 11-16, humans could be seen wearing bandanas around their upper arms while zombies had bandanas wrapped around their heads. Socks were thrown left and right, and people were jumping out of bushes or hiding in camouflage, startling many unknowing students.
For those who donʻt know what Humans vs. Zombies is, it is an annual week-long game of apocalypse survival put on by Communiversity. A group of humans attempt to survive the week by getting daily vaccinations, completing missions and throwing socks at oncoming zombies to deter them. The goal is to make it to the end of the week, when the final human hopefully comes out on top.
This year at the final showdown, the zombies formed a circle and the final humans fought for their last breaths against two zombies each. Each human was armed with just two socks and it took two rounds, but the last human to survive was Kyle Brenneman, a freshman business economics major with the runner-up human, freshman computer science major Jordan Caradonna.
“It was a lot of fun, but so stressful,” Brenneman said after winning.
So how did he survive?
“Socks are important,” Brenneman stated. “And [also] the will to survive.”
A few of the zombies were very dedicated this year. Senior biochemistry major James Macatangay, a game veteran known as the resident “Ninja of APU” or “Sensei Tang,” usually plays a zombie. Macatangay hides anywhere he can, such as inside signs, hanging onto the bars of stairs heading to the second floor or camouflaging in the bushes.
“Tips for humans: Donʻt bother because youʻre going to die anyway,” Macatangay said.
However, Macatangay also offered a bit of advice for the humans, taken from his very own how-to guide: “Stop being conspicuous. If you see someone that is going to come after you, donʻt let them know that youʻre there. Just walk casually. Also, donʻt scream. Itʻs a very dead giveaway. Or undead.”
Last yearʻs final human, senior theology major Josh Holm, was a moderator of this year’s event. As the referee for the final showdown, he reflected on his past experience with the game and what led to his win last year.
“Winning last year was probably a combination of prior experience, playing strongly to attributes of my speed, just trying to outplay the zombies and being in a group of friends who wanted to win as well,” Holm said.
So, for anyone who wants to play the game, it seems that many experts agree that speed and having supportive friends plays a big part in winning.
Holm gave five tips in his how-to guide of survival: “One: [Get a] fanny pack. Two, library. When I wasn’t in my dorm, I was living in the Library. Indoors are safety zones. Three, run. Four, run. Five, run.”
However, Holmʻs biggest tip for future players was this: “Make some really good buddies that you can rock the week with. Have fun, and donʻt be as stressed as this game may seem.”
As intense as the game sounds, just remember that for many players, it is all worth it in the end.
“[For me], Humans vs. Zombies is a coping method. [It’s] a great way to meet friends, a great way to get exercise and a great way to be a ninja if youʻre a zombie,” Macatangay said.