From handing out flowers to wearing wigs and glasses during the days of Jan 27-Feb 28, 700 students eagerly participated in the annual Elimination game, hosted by SEC with senior Nithila Subramanian winning. Elimination challenges players to tag their assigned targets using stuffed plushies, all while following a set of changing daily rules to avoid being eliminated themselves.
Each participant was given a target at the start of the game, and once they eliminated their target, they took on the eliminated player’s target. Targets refreshed twice a week to ensure that no one became too comfortable. The daily rules added another layer of challenge to the game: on the first day, players had to hold their plushie in their right hand, while rules in the later stages required participants to wear glasses, have their shirt visibly tucked in or even don wigs. As the game progressed, elimination’s pressure intensified — by the second weekend, players with fewer than two eliminations were automatically removed from the competition.
Subramian didn’t participate in the game freshman year and skipped it junior year because it seemed too easy. This year, she felt more familiar with the game and had friends to help her with, even befriending a target of hers which she felt contributed to the success of her climbing the leaderboard.
“I did Elimination just to hang out with my friends, because it’s my senior year, I really wanted to do a fun activity with them,” Subramanian said. “We would all help each other and hunt people down together…and also (it was a nice time) to hang out before we graduate.
The game wasn’t just about strategy — it was also about creativity. One of Subramanian’s favorite memories was during the Valentine’s Day rule, where one was required to give their target a flower to eliminate them..
“My friend taught me how to make origami flowers the night before (so we called) the previous night so that they could teach me how to make origami flowers,” she said. “I ended up not tagging (my target) out, so I just gave the flowers away.”
Surbaniam didn’t initially expect to win — she just had a goal of attaining 10 kills. As the competition heated up, she found herself in the top 5 with players finding innovative ways to stay in the game. Some used decoys, including Subramanian who’s younger sister posed as her to throw off opponents. Others discovered loopholes in the rules, like using scooters or bikes to avoid elimination during transit.
The final week was the most intense because there were no safety measures, only requirements for eliminating others. Subramanian felt a lot of self-imposed pressure while studying or being in class, constantly worried about being eliminated and losing their chance to win. Despite the stress, she still found the experience fun. Having friends involved helped ease the pressure, as she supported each other and worked together to avoid elimination.
“I was constantly thinking about how to stay alive,” she said. “I even asked some teachers to make their rooms Elimination-free zones for extra protection.”
Despite the high stakes, the game was ultimately about having fun.
“At the end of the day, it’s not just about winning,” she said. “I made new friends, had a lot of laughs and created great memories. That’s what really matters.”
