The Games Kids Play

The Games Kids Play (コドモノアソビ) is the 21st chapter of the 2nd volume and the 48th chapter overall of the Spoof on Titan manga, written and illustrated by hounori.

Overview
Characters discuss and interact with children dreaming of joining the military.

Summary
Sasha and Connie watch a group of kids playing a game. Sasha explains that they are playing a game called "Fight the Titans," where the players are split into two teams: Titans and soldiers. If a Titan touches a soldier, the soldier dies; if a soldier slices a Titan's nape with their hand, the Titan dies. Learning this, Connie comments that the game mechanics put the soldiers at a disadvantage as he and Sasha watch two Titans kill a soldier. Sasha confirms that the soldiers usually lose and that the game only ends when the kids' parents yell at them to stop.

They then watch another group of children play with the vertical maneuvering equipment, where a player hooks the clawed end into a wall and acts as a soldier. Connie is proud that kids admire soldiers a lot as he watches a boy successfully hook his claw to a wall. However, he and his friends are quickly yelled at by the house owner. Sasha states yet again that the game only ends when the civilians begin getting angry.

Walking away from the scene, Connie wishes that the children would stop ruining the soldiers’ reputation. Sasha teases him for being a stubborn child, but Connie retorts that he used to be sharper than the kids he just saw. He recalls playing the grass whistle and teaching his siblings to do so, as well as stuffing their shirts with frogs and lizards when he was younger.

A young boy asks Rico to show him how to use the vertical maneuvering equipment, but she refuses since it is forbidden to use it in the city. The boy cries, and Rico panics. She then yells at Ian and Mitabi for merely watching her handle the situation without offering to help. Eventually, she takes the boy to see Commander Pixis, who gives her permission to use it. Rico uses the gear, but an angry owner starts scolding her for scratching his wall. Pixis, hiding from the owner with Mitabi and Ian, tells Rico that he only gave her permission to use it and is not taking responsibility for any repercussions.

Erwin and Nile see two boys playing soldiers. Nile tells him that his son is no exception and that he will not listen to him even when he commands him to stop. Hearing this, Erwin starts wondering what kind of Survey Corps soldier he will become, but Nile tells him that he will never allow him to join the regiment.

On another day, Connie asks Eren, Mikasa, and Armin if they want to play "Fight the Titans." Eren says that he has always wanted to play it, while Armin remembers how the game would usually get children into a lot of trouble. Connie asks why they seem to love the game even though they have never played it before, and the two boys reveal that they did not have enough friends to play with back then.