"Penguins don't die!" exclaimed Avital Percher, a student from the University of Massachussetts-Amherst. Kendrick Gores '12 and Justin Alvin '12, each dressed in penguin costumes provided by the Animal Appreciation Club, proceeded to prove this point as they dodged bullets and bodies, mainly trying to avoid getting tackled to the ground. Such was the amped mood in the Shapiro Campus Center last Friday, when Game Knight, Brandeis' resident game club, hosted the first Nerf Gun War in as far back as anyone can remember. Game Knight president Jesse Appell '12 said the penguin costumes were "a last-minute addition" to the Nerf Gun War. "They did, however, make me think up the idea of an even better event . an absurdist Nerf gun war. Perhaps next year."

The event, which ran from 9 p.m. to midnight, had students lining up to check in and pick up guns as early as 20 minutes before it started. "I was a bit worried that we'd get to 9 p.m. and people would arrive stylishly late and not give us the big boost of energy I wanted in the beginning. When I saw we had about 90 people waiting in line before 9 p.m. hit, I realized it would be an epic event," Appell said.

Students from Brandeis and other schools in the area, including Harvard University and UMass Amherst, came to the event ready for action, many with their own Nerf guns in tow, or else looking to borrow one of the 35 guns Game Knight had in stock. One of the big draws was that the event was free, compared to the cost of laser tag and similar games off campus. Overall, about 130 students participated in the festivities, with about 50 people on the floor at a time.

The night was divided into rounds in order to give everyone a chance to play, with the first two being free-for-alls followed by one round of capture the flag. The first round was pretty chaotic, with people shooting all over the place and taking cover behind couches, garbage cans or anything else they could find. Some, including myself, had trouble shooting their guns, which made the madness around them even more intense. However, even in the midst of all of the craziness-trying to reload my gun and figure out why it was jammed-it was just plain fun. All around people were bonding, helping one another pick up ammunition or apologizing for hitting each other in the face. Everyone was good natured about the "fighting," and anyone could participate. Even better, there were no "outs," so it was just about getting into the game and shooting your friends, rather than showing off or trying to be the best. With each subsequent round the madness increased, until at a certain point, people's stamina had started to drain and they began to trickle out of the building. The hard-core gamers stayed on until midnight, however, and enthusiasm ran high.

Game Knight, which meets every Friday night in the Castle Commons, often partakes in activities of this sort, playing games ranging from Lap Tag to ones that members have created themselves, including "Crazy Hat Game," a variation on charades; and "Sock Wars." "[It's] just like when we were kids and didn't need video games or board games to have fun," said Appell, who wanted to host a Nerf Gun War to give students an opportunity to experience what Game Knight is all about.

A unique facet of the club is that it gives students an alternative to going to parties or going to sleep on Friday nights, offering a tight-knit community based around games instead. Up until this point, the club has existed mainly on a word-of-mouth basis, without doing much recruiting for new members. The Nerf Gun War was the biggest event Game Knight has ever held. However, due to Friday's turnout, it seems that many more students may be interested in joining. Appell encourages them to do so and promises that the group will put on more big events on campus. "We're going to be organizing a massive game of manhunt in the spring, and possibly the second annual campuswide Glow in the Dark Capture the Flag event when the weather gets warmer." So, if you missed the madness of Nerf Gun War 2011, stay on the lookout for the next wild and fun time Game Knight puts on.