The Texas A&M University-San Antonio Library will host its annual event, Game Night at the Library, this Friday evening.
From 6:30-9 p.m., students, staff, faculty and their families are invited to enjoy pizza, board games, Bingo and a scavenger hunt at this free event in Suite 202 of Central Academic Building.
This year, A&M-San Antonio’s student organization, Guild of Geeks, will co-sponsor the event and provide sodas and ice cream. The club will also bring strategy board games such as: Catan, Dead of Winter, House of Trails, One Night Ultimate Werewolf and Firefly Monopoly.
“Sharing these games will get more people interested in the non-Hasbro games,” said Jessica Germain, English senior and president of Guild of Geeks.
Guild of Geeks, which meets every Friday from 2-4 p.m. in Modular B, Room B1C, looks forward to introducing their organization to others at Game Night.
Germain described Guild of Geeks as a university club that brings together students who are interested in anything considered “nerd or geek” from strategy games like Dungeons and Dragons to anime and card games like Pokémon.
In addition to board games, attendees of this family-oriented event can participate in team activities that violate the keep-quiet-in-the-library policy. Getting loud is allowed since Game Night takes place after the library’s regular business hours.
Sarah Timm, public services manager for the university library, who organized the event, said Bingo is wildly popular with everyone who attends, which contributes to the noise.
“We get loud. People are running around,” Timm said. “People get real competitive because we offer prizes for the winning team who does the scavenger hunt. Then when we do Bingo. We offer prizes then, too.”
Criminology senior Juan Crespin, who has attended Game Night at the Library twice, said the scavenger hunt is one of the best parts of the event because it requires team members to hunt for clues outside the library.
“It’s fun! We have to look at what the topic is and run outside,” Crespin said. “The students are like ‘Go get it!’ and ‘No, you go get it!,’ and they run really quickly to bring something back.”
Timm said the use of Goose Chase, a photo-based smartphone application, makes the scavenger hunt run smoothly. Game Night guests are encouraged to download the free app to view picture clues, snap photos of the answers and upload the shots as they are found around the library.
While the scavenger hunt clues entertain the players, they also help students get acquainted with the various services the library offers, such as their online information database.
“Another reason for doing it is to just get students familiar with us as staff,” Timm said. “So you feel like you can approach us the next time you come in the library, but also to figure out how to go look up a book online.”
For more information on Game Night, contact the library at 210-784-1500.
