When I was in college and the Cold War was ending, but the effects were still everywhere, I participated in an unofficial game called T.A.G. – The Assassination Game. The idea was that we were all agents or assassins and each of us was given a target. You had a plethora of ways to eliminate your mark, from shooting, with a toy gun of course, to “mailing” a poison envelope. I’m not sure if anyone ever finished their mark in that way, but you get the idea. 

At the beginning of the game we submitted codenames and our real names to the administrator. Your codename had to be kept secret, but if anyone found out your codename, you could request to have someone added to your hit list to increase your score. Just another layer of realism added to such a hyper-realistic game, as it is.

So, as this game progressed, you could not really have a “normal” life. You were protected in class and during chapel, but other than that, all bets were off! Walking with your significant other? Tough! Sprained your ankle playing basketball so you can’t run fast? Tough! Left your weapon at home? Do I look like I care? Yeah, it was great, but nerve wracking as everything! But, in a big part, that was the appeal.

Looking back on it, this was my first foray into LARPing and I took to it like a horse to water! I mean, although I was in regular street clothes, I still had to make sure I had functional movement as well as a place to hide my weapon(s). It was fun and it added a sense of realism that kept me on an adrenaline rush. In a way, I was living out one of my fave “average citizen turned spy” movies, Gotcha. There was no Linda Florentino, but that wasn’t the point, was it?