Urban water gun festival to make a comeback in 4 years

The water gun festival, which has been suspended due to COVID-19, will be held again in downtown Seoul in four years.

Participants will be able to cool off from the heat by shooting water guns at each other at the venue set up with the concept of the survival shooting game 'Battleground.’ DJ parties and dance performances will also be arranged. In addition, opera performances for children and festivals featuring experimental works of art will be held throughout Seoul.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on Tuesday that a variety of cultural and art festivals will be held in downtown Seoul in July and August to help the public cool off from the sweltering heat.

First off, on August 12 and 13, the ‘W.G.F (Water Gun Festival) Water Gun Festival’ will be held at the Cultural Reserve Base in Mapo-gu. Although the water gun festival is Seoul's flagship summer festival, attended by about 1 million people for seven years from 2013 to 2019, it has been suspended since 2019 due to the spread of COVID-19. The event will resume after four years, and the venue has been changed from the Shinchon area to the Cultural Reserve Base in Mapo-gu, which has a large circular site.

Heyway, the event organizer, plans to implement the concept of the game PUBG at this year’s festival. PUBG is a game in which players compete until the last one out of 100 remains. An official from the organizers said, “We are looking for ways to introduce elements of the battlefield throughout the venue. At the time of the first pre-order, all 3,000 tickets were sold out, and additional tickets are being prepared for sale, which illustrates great interest in the event.” There were separate free-of-charge and paid-for areas at the venue in the past, but this year, it has been completely changed to all paid areas only (admission fee of 30,000 won).


4g1@donga.com