Earlier this month, a University of Texas freshman named Nick Engmann became a legend on campus and on YouTube after being hit by a bus and walking away with only minor injuries.
Now, a fellow UT student, Austin Hallock, has added to the legend by creating a video game of Engmann’s harrowing experience.
Nick Vs. Bus is reminiscent of the classic arcade game, Frogger, asking players to guide Nick across a busy street while avoiding oncoming traffic. A link to the site, Clay.io, a hub Hallock for games that are playable in browsers or on smart phones, has been shared more 1,000 times on Facebook.
In a fitting twist on the original, purple buses (like the Capital Metro bus that hit Nick in real life) will cause no harm to the player, “because you’re Nick and you’re pretty much invincible.”
“I was really shocked when I saw the video—the link I followed to view it didn’t mention anything about someone getting hit by a bus, so it certainly caught me off guard,” Hallock, a computer science major, told the Austin American-Statesman. “I was in the shower a little while later when the idea just popped into my mind.”
Hallock added that he spent around 20 hours working on the game, and that it was crucial to complete it as quickly as possible while the video was still on people’s minds. And so far, Hallock says the response has been positive.
“I love seeing the responses (from students) saying it’s keeping them away from their finals.”
As for what Nick thinks about the game, Hallock reached out to him through Facebook but still hasn’t heard back.
Even considering the frightening circumstances of Nick’s newfound fame, who wouldn’t want to be the star of their very own video game?
Photo via Austin Hallock