By Sydney Shaw
News Editor
Starter, legendary and classic Pokémon characters were hidden at the College on Sunday, Nov. 8, for The Society for Creative Endeavors’ (TSCE) fourth Pokémon scavenger hunt.
“It is inspired by the game ‘Pokémon Snap,’” TSCE member Rachel Bouton said. “It’s an older video game where users take photos as the game goes on, and point value is determined by the quality of the photos.”
Bouton and several other members of TSCE were dressed in pink shirts with sewn-on pockets containing paper eggs, resembling the Pokémon Chansey.
To participate in the scavenger hunt, students took selfies with as many of the 126 printed-out and laminated Pokémon photos they could find all across campus. Each Pokémon was worth a certain point value. Students could then go to the Pokémon Center (located in the atrium of the Social Sciences Building) to cash in points.
“We tried to stick with a theme,” TSCE member Maddie Remetz said. “Certain types of Pokémon are hidden in places that are associated with them.”
For example, Shuckle, a Bug/Rock-type Pokémon that resembles a turtle, and Caterpie, a Bug-type Pokémon that resembles a caterpillar, were both hidden just outside the Biology Building.
Munchlax, a Pokémon known for its gluttony, was found taped to the wall just outside the Convenience Store, while Vaporeon, a Water Pokémon, was placed outside of the Packer Hall Pool.
The two Grass Pokémon, Oddish, with green leaves protruding from its head, and Leafeon, with green sprouts on its body, were found taped to Green Hall, as the color of the Pokémon’s characteristics correspond to the building’s name.
“We thought way too much into this,” Remetz said.
The hunt did not come without its difficulties, though, as two pairs of students acted as Team Rocket and Team Magma, challenging participating students to Pokémon trivia games and Nintendo 3DS matches.
TSCE Vice President Graham Roberts and Secretary Tim Cornell comprised Team Rocket, while general members Nicole Haley and Cassandra Gonzalez served as Team Magma.
If the villainous teams defeated the student searching for Pokémon, they had the power to delete the last Pokémon photo from the student’s phone, subsequently erasing those points.
Students who defeated their challengers, though, could take a photo with them for bonus points.
“There was a set of high quality pins for the winner, some stuffed animals for the first few runners-up, a classic game cartridge for another runner-up and some trading cards for other participants,” Roberts said.
Ultimately, a few dozen students participated in the scavenger hunt, which lasted from 11:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.
“It’s always a lot of fun,” Bouton said. “We have some new ideas already for next year’s scavenger hunt.”
