Common Reading Event: 80s Game Night & Crimson Key Gala Planned for March 27

WSU students and the university community are invited to celebrate the conclusion of this year’s Order of the Crimson Key competition and play retro board games at the 80s Game Night & Crimson Key Gala from 6-8 p.m. Tuesday, March 27, in the Terrell Library Atrium.

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The event is part of activities planned around the 2017-18 Common Reading Program book “Ready Player One” by Ernest Cline.

The Crimson Key game was created in summer 2017 by staff and faculty. The goal was to help participants increase their engagement with the campus and learning activities, with clues and phases linked to book topics. Points were earned by solving clues, riddles and puzzles.

While nearly 1,700 students—freshmen through grad students—earned one or more points throughout fall and spring semesters, everyone attending the gala is eligible to win raffle prizes at the event. They include:

  • Tickets to the March 28 Pullman premiere of Steven Spielberg’s movie “Ready Player One,” courtesy of Village Centre Cinemas
  • CRIMZONE football passes for Dad’s Weekend 2018
  • Framed “Ready Player One” movie posters
  • Common Reading books and posters signed by Cline
  • Cougar gear
  • Cougar fleece blanket and throw
  • Gift cards to local business, including passes to regional gaming centers

Those attending the gala can play Clue, Game of Life, Trivial Pursuit, Twister and more ‘80s board games, as well as try out Oculus Rift virtual reality headsets at three stations in the library. Refreshments will include famous ‘80s candies plus popcorn and soda.

“The gala gives WSU students one last opportunity to be immersed in the themes of perseverance, personal transformation and collaboration that Ernest Cline’s book raises,” said Erica England, first-year experience librarian with WSU Libraries. “This event is also a chance for attendees to see the technology side of libraries through the Oculus Rift headsets, which are available for checkout in the Dimensions Lab.

“Plus, I’m a huge fan of ‘80s everything, so what better way to celebrate the end of the Crimson Key game than to throw an ‘80s party?” England added.

The gala is sponsored by WSU Libraries in partnership with the Common Reading Program, Office of Undergraduate Education, Student Involvement and the Student Entertainment Board. For more information about this and other Common Reading Program events, visit https://commonreading.wsu.edu/.