Shadowy figures lurked outside an apartment complex, holding what appeared to be guns. Police responded, thinking the worst. Officers carefully trained their guns on the suspects, but then realized it was a game – one that could have ended tragically.
That’s the scenario Germantown police encountered the night of April 16. They were called to an apartment complex where four teens were carrying “AR” style black guns and wearing dark clothing; one was wearing a ski mask. When police arrived and trained their weapon-mounted lights on one of the children, they found the gun the teen was holding was a Nerf gun.
The incident was just one example of incidents this spring in the metro Milwaukee area that have raised concerns from community members – and police – about the potential dangers of games such as “Nerf Wars.” The game is also known under other names, including “Senior Assassin” and “Paranoia.”
The game usually involves players using Nerf guns or squirt guns to “eliminate” each other.
“Even if the intent is harmless … the appearance of a weapon – especially at night – can trigger a full emergency response,” the Germantown Police Department wrote on its Facebook page. “Officers arriving on a ‘person with a rifle’ call must assume it’s real until proven otherwise, and that’s where things can get dangerous fast.
“If you’re connected to students or parents in the area, the practical takeaway is simple: what feels like a harmless game among friends can look like a weapons incident to everyone else. And once that call is made, you can’t ‘undo’ the response,” the department said.
In a phone interview, Germantown Police Chief Patrick Merten said it’s a risk to play the game at night and advised playing the game during the day or in a controlled environment.
Germantown isn’t the only place in recent weeks to deal with what was first thought to be a more serious incident.
City of Delafield police responded April 22 to what was initially thought to be a burglary in progress. A mother called saying someone was trying to enter her home while she was home with her children. Security footage the family was watching showed someone in a black hoodie trying to enter.
As police arrived, they were told it could be a high school prank, but they were unsure. An officer found someone in all black crouched next to a building holding a squirt gun, according to the department’s Facebook post.
“We are the first to support kids being kids and having fun in their youth. We even support a good prank,” the department wrote. “We do not support this.
“Nerf Wars, Senior Assassin and other similar games can be done safely and responsibly. The behavior this morning will not be tolerated and endangers the safety of those participating as well as the officers and public as they respond to the reports of a possible crime in progress.”
The department advised students who participate to be safe and respectful. It suggested several general guidelines:
City of Delafield Police Chief Landon Nyren said in an interview that calls related to Nerf Wars “are relatively infrequent,” saying it’s occasionally a suspicious incident call here and there during prom season, but nothing that usually rises to a serious level. But he said there have been more calls in the last five years.
“I’m not sure how long the games have been going on, but I know similar things have been going on for decades. Maybe it’s just more how the rules have changed that we’re getting more people noticing things that are going on,” he said.
Under some versions of the game, participants can’t be eliminated if their clothes don’t get wet; that resulted in players running naked; some iterations call for participants to at least wear underwear.
The City of Franklin Police Department said in a Facebook post May 4 that it received a report of a naked man with a gun in the middle of the street. Third shift, first shift and other non-patrol officers responded, making a high-risk traffic stop that resulted in a traffic disruption during the morning commute. Police determined the man and his passenger were playing the “Paranoia” game popular among Franklin High School students. Later, the department received a report of several shirtless people arguing loudly outside a residence and threatening to kill each other. Police also determined this to be related to the “Paranoia” game. One of the incidents resulted in an arrest for disorderly conduct.
“We are seeking assistance from the public in educating our youth on the seriousness of these incidents and the potential consequences that may result,” the department said. “Similar incidents not involving the ‘Paranoia’ game occur with frequency across the country, often with very serious outcomes. Police Officers must respond to these incidents in a manner ensuring public and personal safety and take them very seriously.”
What other departments have noticed
In nearby Hartland, Police Chief Torin Misko said his department has seen similar incidents as Nyren described: games in which students were not able to be eliminated if they were either naked or wearing underwear or swimsuits. The department has previously been called for people being seen running naked or near naked as part of the game.
“As you can imagine, not everyone’s aware of this game, so they don’t even know this is happening. They just see what looks like a very odd event,” Misko said.
The department had not had any calls so far this year related to the game. Some years they get a handful of calls, and then there are years without any. But Misko said that doesn’t mean students aren’t playing.
“Even when we don’t have anything there could be stuff happening in our surrounding communities because as you know, like for us Arrowhead’s one of the main participating student bodies of this, and that school district covers much more than just the village of Hartland itself,” he said.
The Town of Mukwonago Police Department, also made a Facebook post in April about the “Paranoia” game. It posted several rules for high school students playing the game:
Mukwonago Police Sgt. Brad DeGrow said the department will regularly receive calls at this time of year related to the game. Usually, those are about numerous cars in an area, reckless driving, illegal parking. Sometimes, calls are over concerns about kids running around yards, he said.
How the department responds depends on what the person complaining wants done, DeGrow said.
“If they’re disturbed enough to make a report and request citations be issued, we’ll take that into consideration,” he said.
However, every situation is unique, DeGrow said, depending on the number of kids, their attitude and the level of concern by the person calling to report an incident.
“We take each of them on an individual basis, and we investigate them thoroughly, and enforce as appropriate,” he said.
What people think about the topic
Sentiment from the community about the game seems to be divided.
Comments on the City of Delafield’s Facebook post seemed to be universally against the game, with posts expressing concerns over the potential dangers.
One post, by Nancy Tegeder, said “There may be some home owners that have guns, and may bring them out to defend themselves and family, not knowing it’s a prank, which could result in a very bad ending.”
Another commenter, Wendy Traeger, said “When did stupidity become all the rage???? Lucky nobody got hurt, or worse, killed.”
But posters expressed the opposite on a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Facebook post sharing a story about the Germantown incident.
The account for “Fil Dood” wrote, “How dare kids play outside.” Another commenter, Alex Romero, said “So guns were pulled on kids playing with air soft? WTF…”
(This story was updated to add new information.)
Contact Alec Johnson at 262-875-9469 or alec.johnson@jrn.com. Follow him on X at @AlecJohnson12.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Suburban Milwaukee police caution about dangers of high school ‘Nerf Wars’
Reporting by Alec Johnson, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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