With the end of the school year approaching, 74 students in Morgan’s senior class will be participating in the common tradition throughout America known as Senior Assassins. There are 37 teams, with two people per team. The game itself, although the origin is unknown, has been growing in popularity since the 2010s. It is commonly believed to have gained popularity from being shown in popular shows among high school students, such as Gossip Girl. Although the intent of the game is pure, some problems can arise whilst the game is being played.
This year it is being played through an application called “Splashin”. It was released on July 10th, 2023 by a company called Splashin LLC.
The app allows for students to be able to see other students’ locations so they are able to get them out. If the application is downloaded without the premium subscription option, the player is able to see their location, their teammate’s location, and their target’s location at all times. But, there is a premium option within the app that allows for players to view all the participating players locations at all times, including speed they are driving at, battery percentage, and a faster updated map.
This year, Sophomore Hayden Darr volunteered to be in charge of the game and to make sure the rules are well-thought-out, clear, and ensures a safe environment for the game to be played. “I’ve needed to make rules in order to keep people safe, and so they stay out of trouble,” said Darr. Making it a point to have each kid not put themselves in a situation where they could possibly get in trouble.
As part of the position, he has to answer phone calls and texts from people asking questions about the rules of the game often, “It is a lot more work than what people think,” Darr explained. There’s a lot of stuff to take care of, so it was definitely stressful, so many people were texting me all the time. Like when the targets came out, everyone was texting me. And there were so many rules I had to take care of and figure out.” Because of all the work Darr puts in, at the end of the game, he gets 10% of the pot, which is around $50.
Darr is a sophomore and the first to run Senior Assassins in that grade. “Hayden is a very responsible kid,” said Mikey Ferraiolo. “I mean, there were a couple of people who asked me to do it and said I would be a good person to do it,” explained Darr.
Basic Rules of Game
The set-up begins with all the participating seniors at Morgan paying Darr, $15. Once everyone has paid, he places the money into a pool, which the winning team wins. To participate, seniors must have a water gun that is brightly colored or obviously fake. Once the game has started, each week is a new round. For every round, the teams are assigned their “targets”. Their targets are one other team partaking in the game. If one team is able to eliminate their targets, they will take on the team they eliminated’s targets. When going to eliminate someone, there must be a video of it. If there is no video, the elimination will be disallowed. If one member of a team is eliminated, the other teammate can continue the game, just without their teammate.
During the game, there are two “immunity items” allowed. These items are goggles and floaties. If someone tries to eliminate you while you are wearing your immunity items, you will remain in, as will the other person. But if you have to use your immunity items, you will not be allowed to use them for the remainder of that round, and the next round.
Due to a large number of complaints from various members of the community, certain places are considered “safe zones”, or off limits to be eliminated in. The “safe zones” include anything on school property, including all fields at Morgan. It also includes Joel Elementary school, and the fields and Peters Complex. Going into the place of someone’s work and while someone is at work is off limits to all players, but when someone is coming out of work they can be eliminated.
Safety
The game itself has come under scrutiny in all high schools across America. Specifically, about the safety and well-being of the participants.
Rules regarding safety have gotten much stricter since the trend initially began. The game rules when it was first created were simple and clear. The water gun had to be clearly a water gun, each team was assigned a target each week, and to eliminate your target you had to shoot them with water in the body. But because of how much the tradition has spread across America, rules have gotten a lot more strict. There are now a variety of rules regarding safety in public, on the roads and on other people’s property.
There have been many instances around America in which the game has caused serious concern in parents and concerned adults of communities. According to an article written by 2 WGRZ News, a student in Buffalo, NY playing the game was shot by a police officer who had mistaken the student’s water gun for a real gun. The officer had claimed he believed it was a robbery because the students were lurking outside of someone’s residence and could not see the gun because it was too dark out to tell.
To avoid a situation like this happening in the Clinton community, Darr has rules set up stating one player may not enter another player’s property without permission, they must not stake out someone’s property, and they are not allowed to trespass at all.
Student Opinion
Josh Nobitz is participating in the game this year with his partner, senior Mitch Demming. Nobitz has been taking senior assassins very seriously and is looking to win. In regards to the game, Nobitz said, “It’s bittersweet, we have been anticipating senior assassins since freshman year, but now that we are actually a part of the game, it’s setting in how close we are to graduating.”
Senior Liliana Novicki has been waiting for senior assassins since her freshman year. “I had four older siblings who all did senior assassins and I saw how much fun they all had doing it, so I was super excited to participate too,” Novicki shared. Novicki is aware of the risks of playing in the game. “I think that if people all bought bright-colored and obvious water guns, there would be no safety issues.”
Staff Opinion
The game has been going on for many years, necessary rules have come because of students getting in trouble. Principal, Keri Hagness, expressed concerns about safety during the game before the game started, even talking about it in an assembly with the senior class. “While it is a fun game, fun can get taken out of hand sometimes,” Hagness explained. “I put it out early on, to the seniors, about making good decisions.”
So far, 34 people have been eliminated completely from the game. The game has run pretty smoothly. With there being one case where a student was kicked out of McDonald’s while trying to get someone out, but no repercussions came with it because the student was respectful during their exit. Everyone still in is enjoying it, with some taking the game very competitively. One team even has a set-up to take first person video of their “kills”. People are playing by the rules, which shows that while people are having fun, they are also being diligent and responsible.
Playing safe is the most important part of the game. If you were to be caught in a dangerous act, you may get in trouble with the school. Playing by the rules that are set up would ensure that you don’t have any risk. “One of the most important things is making sure everyone stays safe because at the end of the day it’s just a game and it’s just supposed to be fun,” Darr states.