{"id":679260,"date":"2026-05-19T08:28:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-19T08:28:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/679260\/"},"modified":"2026-05-19T08:28:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-19T08:28:12","slug":"high-schoolers-relive-a-splash-of-childhood-with-water-gun-game-but-not-everyone-rides-the-wave","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/679260\/","title":{"rendered":"High schoolers relive a splash of childhood with water-gun game, but not everyone rides the wave"},"content":{"rendered":"

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At an Oshawa park, Vivianna Iacono, right, receives a call from another player warning her that there are nearby players in the area who could eliminate her from a game of ‘senior assassin.’ Her mother Michelle keeps an eye out, looking across the park for other youth with water guns.Shay Conroy\/The Globe and Mail<\/p>\n

The water war at Monsignor John Pereyma Catholic school began last week, as these things often do, with a betrayal. <\/p>\n

A 12th grader at the high school in Oshawa, Ont., turned up for what he thought was a friendly meeting. But when he found himself facing down the barrel of his friend\u2019s water gun, he realized he\u2019d been set up. Double-crossed. He watched his friend pull the trigger. Splash.<\/p>\n

And just like that, he was the first one eliminated in the graduating class of 2026 at Monsignor\u2019s game of \u201csenior assassin.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you know a high-school senior or live anywhere near a high school, there\u2019s a good chance you\u2019ve noticed some odd behaviour in recent weeks. Maybe you\u2019ve seen a kid, Nerf gun in hand, hiding in a neighbour\u2019s bush, or a teen wearing swim goggles in the middle of a Tim Hortons.<\/p>\n

This is senior assassin, the game that has exploded in popularity \u2013 and controversy \u2013 in recent years. It has become a rite of passage at this time every year, 12th graders across the country playing essentially a giant game of water tag around their neighbourhoods and communities. <\/p>\n

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Vivianna has been doing everything she can to stay safe from elimination, including wearing her pair of grey and blue swim goggles around everywhere \u2013 the agreed-upon symbol of immunity.Shay Conroy\/The Globe and Mail<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a game where teenagers hide behind trees, inside of giant recycling bins, even striking deals with siblings to hide out inside each others\u2019 homes, all in an attempt to catch their target with a water gun. The aim is to eliminate their target while avoiding being eliminated themselves. Nobody knows who is targeting who, and the assignments are constantly changing as players are eliminated.<\/p>\n

But after a string of unfortunate incidents (including a teen in Guelph, Ont., who was arrested at gunpoint last year by police after his water gun was mistaken for a real firearm), it has pitted two camps against each other. On the one hand, police and school officials, who see the game as disruptive and potentially dangerous. (Some school officials not only discourage it but ban it.) And on the other, teens and their families, who argue it\u2019s a last gasp of childhood, a rare chance to have some real-life, wholesome fun.<\/p>\n

In light of incidents like the one in Guelph, police departments from coast to coast have warned teens over the past few months against playing senior assassin. <\/p>\n

This is because of the potential for danger when unsuspecting onlookers are combined with the very real fears people have about gun violence, said Temitope Oriola, a professor of criminology at the University of Alberta.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople will call the police, and the police will, of course, have to respond,\u201d he said. \u201cFrom there on, the consequences are incalculable.\u201d<\/p>\n

But others see the fears as overblown. <\/p>\n

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Senior assassin has become a rite of passage for graduating high schoolers. At this time every year, 12th graders across the country play a giant game of water tag around their neighbourhoods and communities.Shay Conroy\/The Globe and Mail<\/p>\n

In Oshawa, where the game of senior assassin at Monsignor school has been officially under way since May 11, it has become something of a family project in the Iacono household. <\/p>\n

Michelle Iacono is as enthusiastic as her 17-year-old daughter, Vivianna \u2013 if not more so. She bought for Vivianna a Ghostbusters-style super soaker to wear on her back, bright pink, with a picture of Skye, the air rescue pup from Paw Patrol, on it.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe can hide this under her hoodie,\u201d said Ms. Iacono, pointing to the backpack portion. And the hose part, she said, \u201cshe can stick that in her sleeve.\u201d <\/p>\n

It\u2019s not lawlessness; there are rules to this combat, Ms. Iacono said. Players \u2013 including those at her daughter\u2019s school \u2013 agree to a long list of rules to the game. No trespassing. No chasing people in cars. Be respectful to others. And chief among the rules: no realistic-looking guns. Only brightly coloured water guns allowed.<\/p>\n

And she said it\u2019s been a delight to see her daughter get outside, off her phone, and interacting with other young people.<\/p>\n

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Vivianna and Michelle jump into the car and check the Splashin app to see whether any nearby players are in the area \u2013 both to avoid being eliminated and see if her assigned ‘target’ for the week is nearby.Shay Conroy\/The Globe and Mail<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like there\u2019s a whole generation that forgot what it was like to be a kid. We were always in our neighbour\u2019s backyards, being kids. Having all that fun freedom,\u201d Ms. Iacono said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt used to be, \u2018Oh, there\u2019s a group of kids playing in the playground,\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cAnd now adults seem to be, \u2018Oh, there\u2019s a group of kids. What are they up to?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Vivianna, too, has thrown herself into the game, strategizing for it with the tactical precision of the Navy Seals. She has built alliances, kept a close eye on the game app the kids use (where her target\u2019s locations are posted in real-time), and waited for opportunities to strike. <\/p>\n

The day before, she\u2019d come close to striking distance. Ms. Iacono was pulling up in her car to pick up Vivianna, who could see that her target was just around the corner. <\/p>\n

\u201cI shouted, \u2018Get in the backseat! Lie down!\u2019\u201d Ms. Iacono said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMum,\u201d Vivianna said, \u201cwas very excited.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alas, her target was gone by the time they got there.<\/p>\n

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Vivianna in her backyard with her gear. At home, players are deemed safe from being eliminated from the game, unless another player is invited in by a parent or adult.Shay Conroy\/The Globe and Mail<\/p>\n

For people her age, Vivianna said, \u201cWe want to go out and do things. But like, what are we going to do? This is something to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

What\u2019s more, such games can provide valuable experiences for young people, said Steven Downing, a professor in criminology and social sciences at Ontario Tech University. <\/p>\n

\u201cPlay is a vital part of everyone\u2019s life,\u201d he said. \u201cPlay brings children closer. It teaches them how to develop rules and boundaries on their own, which is very important.\u201d<\/p>\n

Plus, he added, \u201cthere is an irony that the police are saying, \u2018Don\u2019t do this, because we might accidentally shoot you,\u2019\u201d he said. \u201cThat onus should fall on the police.\u201d<\/p>\n

The game that Vivianna and her classmates are playing this year is battle-royale style. In other words: last person standing. As of the end of last week, Vivianna was still standing. <\/p>\n

She has been doing everything she can to stay safe from elimination, including wearing her pair of grey and blue swim goggles around everywhere \u2013 the agreed-upon symbol of immunity. (Don\u2019t ask why; there\u2019s no good answer.)<\/p>\n

She has been spending most of her time in safe zones: on school grounds, at the bus stop, at home.<\/p>\n

And, of course, she\u2019s always, always, keeping one eye on the lookout. <\/p>\n

\u201cAlways pay attention,\u201d she said. \u201cAlways stay aware.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: At an Oshawa park, Vivianna Iacono, right, receives a call from another player…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":679261,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[43,45877,44,41,39,42,40],"class_list":["post-679260","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-headlines","tag-lc-g","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/679260","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=679260"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/679260\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/679261"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=679260"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=679260"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=679260"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}