Squid Game – Picture: Netflix
With Squid Game returning for a second season, the question many will now have is what games will feature next? Below we’ve compiled a list of other traditional children’s games from South Korea, and how they could feature in the upcoming second season.
There were tons to love about Squid Game, but arguably the most popular aspect of the show was the series of childish games that contestants had to play in order to survive, and have a chance of winning millions of US dollars.
But what made the series most interesting could also be its downfall in season 2. If the games from the first season are repeated, then the audience knows exactly what to expect, which will take away any tension and intrigue. This is why season 2 will need some brand new games to keep the story feeling fresh and exciting.
Top Spinning
Top spinning or Spinning tops is a classic and traditional game played by South Korean children. In the early 2000s top spinning became massively popular thanks to the Korean and Japanese collaboration on the Beyblade franchise. Top spinning can be played on any solid flat surface, but in the wintertime, the game is incredibly popular when played on frozen ice.
The top spinning game could be one of the very first games we see in the next squid game or one of the later games to whittle down some of the final contestants.
How it could fit in Squid Game
As one of the first games, we envision the contestants being sent to one of the largest rooms of the complex where a giant frozen pool or small man-made frozen lake has been prepared for them.
Groups of contestants are positioned strategically across the ice and are each given their own spinning top. Each contestant must spin their top at roughly the same time, and whoever’s top stops spinning first has a trap door from underneath their feet opened, plunging them into the ice-cold depths below.
If the key of the game is to whittle down a huge number of contestants it would be an incredible sight, not to mention incredibly tense, to watch scores of people around the main characters disappear around them.
Top spinning could be a replacement for Red Light Green Light or the Dalgona Cookie game.
Garakji chatginori
Another game often played in the winter is Garakji chatginori. The aim of the game is to find the Garakji, which are pairs of big rings that are worn by married women and made out of precious metals like Gold and Silver, or precious stones such as Jade.
The game is played amongst a party of people, who will sit in a circle, while one person is chosen amongst the group to be the finder. The finder sits within the circle and covers their eyes, meanwhile, the rings are passed around the circle while a song is sung. The group must hide the rings from the finder and must be careful not to let the rings make a noise, or make it obvious that you’re hiding them. Once the song ends, or the finder shouts to stop, they must then point to the person who they believe is hiding the rings. While the finder attempts to figure out who is hiding the rings, members of the group are allowed to try and trick the finder. If the finder is wrong then they stay in the middle, if they choose correctly then the person hiding the rings becomes the new finder.
How it could fit in Squid Game
The same rules could apply for Squid Game except if the finder guesses wrong then they are shot on the spot. If they guess correctly then the next person becomes the finder and the previous finder is safe for at least one more round. This process can be then rinsed and repeated until there are only two or three contestants in each group left.
Garakji chatginori could be a replacement for Tug of War.
Tuho
The game Touhu originates from the Warring States period of China, first being popular amongst the elite of society, before eventually becoming popular amongst all classes. The game also made its way into Korea (Tuho) and Japan (Tōko)
The aim of Tuho is to throw thin sticks or arrows with rubber tips from a distance into a pot. Often, the pot used will only have a small mouth, making it a game of skill.
Thousands of people from around the world have already been playing Tuho, even if they didn’t realize that’s what they were playing. A version of Tuho became a trend on the platform TikTok where couples, friends, and families would throw small stick-like objects (mostly pens) into a cup or bowl. Before throwing their sticks into the bowl or cup, the person throwing declares something they desire, which can often be funny or outlandish such as “If I get this in, then we should try for a baby” or “If I get this in then you buy me a PS5.” You get the idea, it’s a game that many people will be familiar with already thanks to social media.
How it could fit in Squid Game
Paired contestants will be given a limited number of arrows, each with their own colored rubber tips such as red and blue. Whoever is able to throw the most arrows into the pot survives, and the loser is killed.
Tuho could be the replacement for Marbles.
Bossaum
If Squid Game is given the budget and wants its big-budget set-piece then the game of Bossum is an incredible contender.
Players are split into two teams, and must each build a dam upstream-downstream from the river. When the time is right, the upstream team will release as much water as they can from their dam, while the downstream dam team must try to reinforce theirs so it doesn’t collapse. If the downstream dam collapses then the upstream team wins, if the upstream fails to destroy the opposing dam then the downstream team wins.
No matter who wins, teams switch places and go again.
How it could fit in Squid Game
To set the scene perfectly in Squid Game the opening “game” of the series could be Bossaum, however, the contestants could be tricked into thinking they are there to actually build dams for a construction project. When the time is ready to release the water, the contestants can then be told of why they are actually there, and whichever team survives now gets the opportunity to take part in winning millions of US dollars of Billions of Korean won.
With lives and money on the line, once again we’ll be seen the darker side of humanity. But in a cruel twist of fate for the upstream team, the downstream dam survives, only for the guards, now revealed with their iconic pink suits, and shaped masks, to kill them all.
While many may have already seen the scale and destruction burst dam can bring, instead, the video below is the sort of traditional way dam wrecking can be played by children.
Which game from your country would you like to see in Squid Game season 2? Let us know in the comments below!
