Ambush code cracked?

Junior Adam Forrester believes he may have cracked the code for the current game of Ambush.

“Everybody kept coming to me and asking who this person or that person was that they had,” said Forrester. “From there I saw a pattern in the way the names are listed.” Student Development had sent out an email informing all the people who signed up for the game to pick up their Ambush packets, and the names of all the participants are listed as recipients. “Some students have tried to figure out who has whom by using complicated mathematical equations, but as I was looking at the list of names from the email, it seemed pretty simple to me, said Forrester. “But there are a few twists and turns in the list that I haven’t figured out yet.” Using the list of names from the email, you can start to figure out the system. Forrester explained how every other name was connected. For example, in the email was the list of names; A, B, C, D, E and F. Player C’s target is player A.              Player E’s target is player C. Player D’s target is player B.              Player F’s target is player D. An easy way to view this is to format the list of players into two columns: Player A                      Player B Player C                      Player D Player E                       Player F Forrester believes the connection runs vertically so the person’s name on top (A) is the target of the person next on the list (C), and (C) is the target of the next person on the list (E). Forrester said using this method helps define the connections between the players, but it is not perfect. Figuring out the system has another part to it besides figuring out the connections; you need to keep track of who is no longer in the game. Ambush is set up so that when you (player E) get your target out (player C), you then acquire your target’s target (player A). On the Social Life page on Bethel’s website is a list of all the Ambush players with the people who are out of the game crossed off. Using the list of players who are out, you can update the list of who has whom, although the webpage is not updated frequently. There is a question of whether or not actively trying to figure out the system and using that knowledge is ethical or not. “It was nice to know who to watch out for, but it made it harder to get my target out,” said freshman Gabriel Campbell. “It was helpful to know who had me so that I could watch out for them,” said freshman Elizabeth Hartman. “But it also made me a little more paranoid because you cannot be sure the person who has you is not out, and then you have someone else you need to watch out for.” Another student had a slightly different opinion on using the system. “When I found out who had me, I mentally gave up,” said junior Angela Cornell. “This person knew me and it would be easy for them to get me out. Surprisingly though, I lasted for three weeks.” Anonymity is a benefit for those playing Ambush, but in the age of the Internet and easily-accessible information, it is hard for players to stay below the radar. For those of you who have no hope of staying below the radar, may you be blessed with fleetness of foot.