Honor. Allegiance. Conquest. Victory.
Big Game Hunting is the paramount embodiment of a rivalry 116 years in the making.
Big Game Hunting is the paramount embodiment of a rivalry 116 years in the making.
In the first stage of the epic duel between Stanford and that school across the bay, players must pledge their loyalty to the Cardinal by “weaving” a basket in the shape of a tree. A conductive chain had to be pulled in a specific sequence through ten different hooks in order to complete this part of gameplay. The chain was soldered to a pin that was held at ground, and the ten hooks were held at 5V. As the chain was pulled through each hook, that hook dropped low and a green LED lit up to let the user know that the he or she was on the right track. Upon completion of weaving the chain into the shape of the tree, all the green LEDs around the tree would light up.
After proving their commitment to Stanford, players must then engage in an attack against Oski, Cal’s mascot. A ring of white LEDs would light up around Oski when it was time to strike him with a hammer. Beneath Oski was a rod that would press against a force sensing resistor in an analog configuration. This allowed for a proportional deduction of health. The circuit was designed to detect and hold the peak in the FSR signal, maximizing the amount of damage done to Oski. Oski’s health was displayed as a pictograph mounted on a servo: when his health was high, users could see an image of a smiling bear; as his health deteriorated, Oski’s facial expressions looked progressively more sad. Based on how far ahead your opponent was, a handicap could be issued to the player that was behind so that his or her bear would lose more health even if the player wasn’t hitting as hard.
When Oski’s health was all but depleted, players had to put their hammers back before moving on to the next stage of play. Tape sensors directly underneath where the hammers hung recognized when the weapon had been put back in its rightful place and allowed the players to move on to the final stage.
To completely finish off Oski and ensure Stanford’s victory, players would press the “Finish Him” button that would light up once the hammer was back in place. The pictograph of Oski’s health would swing into its final position- a tombstone reading “Cal” that nobody would mourn.
Of course, a moment as joyous as Stanford’s triumph over Cal is one that can only truly be captured with the playing of Stanford’s fight song, “All Right Now” and lighting up red and green LEDs in the shape of the Stanford logo. This celebration inspired hope and joy in not only the victor, but in the hearts of Cardinal fans everywhere.
Game Play Video
ABout the Creators
Big Game Hunting was created by Vivian Nguyen, Kyuwon Kim, Arul Suresh, and Carolyn Estrada (pictured above from left to right) in the autumn quarter of 2013.
Vivian "I swear, I did NOT blow that power supply fuse...again" Nguyen is a first year co-term in mechanical engineering. Originally from Cal bear territory, Vivian was rescued by Stanford missionaries and soon repented from her evil past. It's rumored that she taught Ed Carryer how to solder.
Kyuwon "Yes, I did wink at you" Kim is an elusive, closet-comedian second year Master's student in mechanical engineering. He did his undergrad in Seoul, South Korea, which is also his hometown (Holla, Gangnam Style!). In his spare time he does secret, possibly government, possibly private work. He is incredibly talented at iPad sketches.
Arul "the Bear Killer" Suresh is a first year Master's student in mechanical engineering. He did his undergrad at Princeton. A California native, Arul could be described as your stereotypical Californian vegetarian surfer bro hipster, though he is more widely known for his madd Quidditch chaser skillz.
Carolyn Estrada is a second year Master's student in mechanical engineering. She is from Dallas, Texas and received her Bachelor's degree from Texas A&M University. Carolyn is working on her pilot's license and likes to travel whenever she has the chance.
Vivian "I swear, I did NOT blow that power supply fuse...again" Nguyen is a first year co-term in mechanical engineering. Originally from Cal bear territory, Vivian was rescued by Stanford missionaries and soon repented from her evil past. It's rumored that she taught Ed Carryer how to solder.
Kyuwon "Yes, I did wink at you" Kim is an elusive, closet-comedian second year Master's student in mechanical engineering. He did his undergrad in Seoul, South Korea, which is also his hometown (Holla, Gangnam Style!). In his spare time he does secret, possibly government, possibly private work. He is incredibly talented at iPad sketches.
Arul "the Bear Killer" Suresh is a first year Master's student in mechanical engineering. He did his undergrad at Princeton. A California native, Arul could be described as your stereotypical Californian vegetarian surfer bro hipster, though he is more widely known for his madd Quidditch chaser skillz.
Carolyn Estrada is a second year Master's student in mechanical engineering. She is from Dallas, Texas and received her Bachelor's degree from Texas A&M University. Carolyn is working on her pilot's license and likes to travel whenever she has the chance.
