2008 Woodie Awards
Game Review: Get Your Revenge on The Quindecim
Be the First on your Hall to Whack-A-Writer
Shoshana Flax
Issue date: 4/1/04 Section: Your Mama
Once again, it is time for the April Fool's Day edition of The Quindecim. The staff realizes that everyone does not have the same sense of humor as we do; we did not intend to offend. Resemblances to any factual persons or events in these articles, are horrible, unintentional accidents.
Is there anyone on the Q staff whom you've always wanted to punch in the nose? Now you can.
Thank Goucher College Information Technology. "We haven't had much to occupy ourselves since we eradicated the Sobig.F computer worm," relates Chief Technology Officer Bill Leimbach. "When one of our technicians heard students speaking of their rage toward the Quindecim's staff, we decided to use some of our extra time to create a harmless outlet for that anger."
Their solution was a game entitled "Whack-A-Writer," accessible from the Quindecim's webpage (www.thequindecim.com).
The ID pictures of every member of the Quindecim's staff float on the screen. The object is to click on as many pictures as possible; when a player does this successfully, a large animated fist strikes the staff member in the nose.
Players who punch ten pictures move up to the second level, in which they choose to attack a group comprised of editors, of people who frequently write for the Opinion section, or of dozens of pictures of the staff member of their choice. The pictures in the second level move faster, and successful clicks result in blows with a hammer.
Are Goucher students really that incensed at The Quindecim's staff? Evidence suggests that they are.
The Q makes little effort to please the campus. One editor was heard to say at a meeting, "I think we should piss more people off, except for SGA, since they give us our funding." Ironically, so far the game is most popular among Student Government Association members; one claims that most of its mistakes occur in articles about SGA.
"That's because all of our articles are about SGA!" Managing Editor Sarah Haller '05 said.
"I think the game is great," asserts Ivana Bequoted '07. "Now when we disagree with an article, we don't need to make the effort of writing a letter to the editor. We can just get our frustrations out this way."
Informed that staff members can log in to see how many people have clicked on their faces, Bequoted comments, "Wow, that really makes me feel powerful."
Other students agree that the game fulfills a genuine need. "So many articles in the Q arouse anger," remarks Rae Vinglunatic '05. "That article about the resumption of the newspaper readership program, the one about recycling, the opinion piece on vegetarian chili ... they all make me want to hurt someone."
"If you write about that stupid Strategic Plan, you have to expect some criticism," adds Dee Bates '04.
"Whack-A-Writer" is not just for the Q's general readership. Editors enjoy the game as well. Most cite lateness of articles as spurring them to pummel their writers. Some also credit excessive grammatical errors, lack of thoroughness, and expression of opinion in news and feature articles as moving them to artificial violence.
"Once in awhile, we have really serious problems with people who write articles, " says Haller. "When people make up quotes, for instance, it really makes me want to beat them upside the head."
Health Counselor Michael Checknoff does foresee one problem with the game - the consequences of its violent nature. "We did a rough study, and it appears that 86.587% of Goucher students who spend more than an hour a day playing the game exhibit violent behavior."
Goucher's Health Office also reports treating a high rate of Quindecim staff members for injuries in the weeks since the game was introduced. The alleged attacker of one such staff member, however, claims there is no connection, stating, "I would've punched her lights out anyway."
Is there anyone on the Q staff whom you've always wanted to punch in the nose? Now you can.
Thank Goucher College Information Technology. "We haven't had much to occupy ourselves since we eradicated the Sobig.F computer worm," relates Chief Technology Officer Bill Leimbach. "When one of our technicians heard students speaking of their rage toward the Quindecim's staff, we decided to use some of our extra time to create a harmless outlet for that anger."
Their solution was a game entitled "Whack-A-Writer," accessible from the Quindecim's webpage (www.thequindecim.com).
The ID pictures of every member of the Quindecim's staff float on the screen. The object is to click on as many pictures as possible; when a player does this successfully, a large animated fist strikes the staff member in the nose.
Players who punch ten pictures move up to the second level, in which they choose to attack a group comprised of editors, of people who frequently write for the Opinion section, or of dozens of pictures of the staff member of their choice. The pictures in the second level move faster, and successful clicks result in blows with a hammer.
Are Goucher students really that incensed at The Quindecim's staff? Evidence suggests that they are.
The Q makes little effort to please the campus. One editor was heard to say at a meeting, "I think we should piss more people off, except for SGA, since they give us our funding." Ironically, so far the game is most popular among Student Government Association members; one claims that most of its mistakes occur in articles about SGA.
"That's because all of our articles are about SGA!" Managing Editor Sarah Haller '05 said.
"I think the game is great," asserts Ivana Bequoted '07. "Now when we disagree with an article, we don't need to make the effort of writing a letter to the editor. We can just get our frustrations out this way."
Informed that staff members can log in to see how many people have clicked on their faces, Bequoted comments, "Wow, that really makes me feel powerful."
Other students agree that the game fulfills a genuine need. "So many articles in the Q arouse anger," remarks Rae Vinglunatic '05. "That article about the resumption of the newspaper readership program, the one about recycling, the opinion piece on vegetarian chili ... they all make me want to hurt someone."
"If you write about that stupid Strategic Plan, you have to expect some criticism," adds Dee Bates '04.
"Whack-A-Writer" is not just for the Q's general readership. Editors enjoy the game as well. Most cite lateness of articles as spurring them to pummel their writers. Some also credit excessive grammatical errors, lack of thoroughness, and expression of opinion in news and feature articles as moving them to artificial violence.
"Once in awhile, we have really serious problems with people who write articles, " says Haller. "When people make up quotes, for instance, it really makes me want to beat them upside the head."
Health Counselor Michael Checknoff does foresee one problem with the game - the consequences of its violent nature. "We did a rough study, and it appears that 86.587% of Goucher students who spend more than an hour a day playing the game exhibit violent behavior."
Goucher's Health Office also reports treating a high rate of Quindecim staff members for injuries in the weeks since the game was introduced. The alleged attacker of one such staff member, however, claims there is no connection, stating, "I would've punched her lights out anyway."
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