Name: The Wall-Knock Ghost Game, Or Tongbyeok Ghost: How To Play It
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The Wall-Knock Ghost Game, Or Tongbyeok Ghost: How To Play It

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Previously: Mirror-sama.Note: Please don’t copy/paste, republish, or narrate this post on other websites, video platforms, etc. without permission.Did you know that sometimes, ghosts hide in the hollow spaces between walls? You’ll know you’ve found a tongbyeok ghost — a wall ghost — if you knock on a wall and hear a hollowing-sounding thunk in that spot. And if you find one of these spaces, you can make a choice then: You can, if you like, play the Wall-Knock Ghost Game. With nothing more than a pencil and a piece of paper — and, of course, the hollow wall you’ve just found — you can gain access to information or answers to any questions you’ve got that you might not otherwise be able to reach.If, that is, the spirit in the wall is feeling… chatty.In the original Korean, the game is called Tongbyeok Gwishin (통벽귀신), which translates more literally as The Ghost In The Wall, or simply Wall Ghost. The gameplay is a lot like that of Charlie Charlie, although I’d argue it also has a bit in common with the Ghost Paper Challenge and Kokkuri-san, as well. It sees players drawing two symbols on a piece of paper, asking a series of yes-or-no questions, and the following the whims of a pencil to learn the answers to those questions.[Like what you read? Check out&nbsp;Dangerous Games To Play In The Dark,&nbsp;available from Chronicle Books now!]I’m not sure quite how old this one is, but its earliest still-accessible appearance on the internet occurred in 2015, when webtoon artist Horang utilized it in an entry for Naver’s summer horror webtoon festival for that year, Goosebumps. Horang is perhaps best known for the 2011 viral horror webtoon “Bongcheon-dong Ghost” (“봉천동 귀신”);&nbsp;that’s far from the only horror webtoon he’s created, though, and every single one of them is a bone-chiller.“Tongbyeok Ghost”&nbsp;follows the plight a cab driver as he converses with a fare — a young woman — he picks up at Seoul Station; it’s this young woman who tells him about the ghost-in-the-wall game. In the one English translation of the webtoon I found, titled “Knock Knock,” she calls the game “Wall-Knock Ghost” — hence my decision to title it as such here — and details a few ways to play, some of which involve both paper and pencil and some of which use only the pencil.It’s unclear to me whether the Wall-Knock Ghost Game was an invention of Horang’s specifically for this webtoon, or whether it existed beforehand; either way, though, it’s an extremely effective storytelling device made all the more shiver-inducing thanks to the unique animation effects characteristic of the webtoon format.I won’t give away the rest of the story, but if you’re familiar with the many hitchhiking ghost legends floating around out there in the non-corporeal ether, that’ll give you something of an idea of what to expect. There’s more, though — much more.In the years since the 2015 publication of “Tongbyeok Ghost,” the Wall-Knock Ghost Game has spread fairly widely on the internet in Korea, undergoing a handful of changes as it went. A version was published at Namuwiki in 2020, for instance, which incorporates asking the spirit for permission to play; additionally, videos featuring people playing it have been posted to YouTube dating back as far as 2016 and going all the up through the present, all of which have tiny differences between them. (For the curious, this one, dated January 2016, is the oldest one available.)If you want to give the Wall-Knock Ghost Game a try, here’s how to play it. But don’t say I didn’t warn you — even though it’s simple, it’s still… likely not safe.As always, play at your own risk.Begin at any time.Go to the room in which you have chosen to play, bringing your supplies with you.Choose a corner of the room in which to begin. Stand at that corner.Now: Knock on the wall. What do you hear?Using the pencil, draw a line down the center of the piece of paper. On one side of the line, draw an O; on the other, draw an X.Place the piece of paper on the floor directly in front of the hollow portion of wall.Face the wall and hold the pencil vertically above the piece of paper.Now: Request permission to ask your questions. You may do so however you like; just be sure to address your correspondent by name — Wall-Knock Ghost, Tongbyeok Ghost, or Tongbyeok Gwishin are all acceptable monikers — as you do so, and, above all, be polite.After you have asked for permission, let go of the pencil and let it fall onto the paper below. Watch where it lands.You may now begin asking your questions. Follow this format for each question: While holding the pencil vertically above the paper, address your correspondent by name; ask your question; then drop the pencil and watch where it lands.You may ask questions for as long as you like, or until your correspondent indicates that they no longer wish to play.When the time has come to bid farewell, you must first request permission to end the game. As when you requested permission to ask your questions, you may do so however you like, so long as you ask politely, and address your correspondent by name as you ask.After you have made your request, drop the pencil and watch where it lands.When you have received permission to end the game, thank your correspondent for their time and say goodbye. Collect the paper and pencil. Dispose of the paper. You need not dispose of the pencil, although you may, if you wish to do so.Regarding the playing space: It is recommended that you clear the room in which you wish to play of all non-players before beginning. However, this is not a requirement. Should you choose to play with non-players present, ensure that they will not interrupt you at any point during the course of the game. Should you choose to empty the room first, similarly ensure that you will not be interrupted by those outside the room while you play: Do not permit non-players to enter the room, knock on the door, or otherwise distract you until you have finished playing and safely ended the game.Regarding your questions: Should you choose to play precisely as written above, you must ask only yes-or-no questions. If you wish to ask questions other than yes-or-no questions, see: Variations On A Theme.This game is highly adaptable may be played in a number of different ways. You may, for instance, make any of the following adjustments, if you like:If you do NOT find a hollow portion of wall during Requesting Permission: Step 4, DO NOT PROCEED.If you do NOT receive permission to ask your questions in Requesting Permission: Steps 8 and 9, DO NOT PROCEED.If you do NOT receive permission to end the game in Bidding Farewell: Steps 1 and 2, DO NOT PROCEED.You have been warned.***Follow The Ghost In My Machine on&nbsp;Twitter @GhostMachine13&nbsp;and on&nbsp;Facebook @TheGhostInMyMachine. And for more games, don’t forget to check out&nbsp;Dangerous Games To Play In The Dark,&nbsp;available now from Chronicle Books![Photos via jarmoluk, Martin_Melicherik/Pixabay]The Ghost In My Machine is an internet campfire of sorts. Gather round, because it wants to tell you strange stories, take you on haunted journeys, and make you jump at unexpected noises.Continue Reading &gt;Like what you read? 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Previously: Mirror-sama.Note: Please don’t copy/paste, republish, or narrate this post on other websites, video platforms, etc. without permission.Did you know that sometimes, ghosts hide in the hollow spaces between walls? You’ll know you’ve found a tongbyeok ghost — a wall ghost — if you knock on a wall and hear a hollowing-sounding thunk in that spot. And if you find one of these spaces, you can make a choice then: You can, if you like, play the Wall-Knock Ghost Game. With nothing more than a pencil and a piece of paper — and, of course, the hollow wall you’ve just found — you can gain...

The Wall-Knock Ghost Game, Or Tongbyeok Ghost: How To Play It

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