While watching the first season ofNetflix’s original series,Squid Game, it is only natural to think about oneself in the players' shoes. Each individual is facing drastic financial hardship in the real world, so they are desperate to win the cash prize; this is why the 456 individuals were originally approached and offered a spot in the 33rd Squid Game competition. To win the prize money, they have to play a series of children’s games, but that comes with a catch that was unknown during the contestants' initial onboarding process.
After a quick pause in the competition due to a majority of the 201 remaining players voting to end the games, desperation quickly sets in once again when out in the real world.187 players voluntarily returnto the remote island with a full understanding of what they are risking. The posing question is this: are hundreds of deaths worth one person winning 45.6 billion Won?
If you take away the deadly element of the children’s games and the need for the cash prize, how hard are these games anyway? Check out how each of the six games inSquid GameSeason 1 rank based on easiest to most difficult.
6Glass Stepping Stones
The fifth game in the competition,Glass Stepping Stones, is a game of chance rather than skill. The premise of the game is much like hopscotch. Each player must choose a glass panel to jump on to cross a bridge. The catch is that some panels are made of real glass that will break and cause the player who stepped on it to fall to their death, and other panels are tempered glass that can hold a player’s weight. Everyone at the front of the line (except for Player 017) has to rely on luck when jumping across the bridge.
Unlike the other games, Glass Stepping Stones does not require brute force or strategic planning. It is as easy as a coin toss; either a player selects the right panel, or they lose. Unfortunately for the contestants, losing means death, but the game itself is rather simple.
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After players partner up and are brought into the area, each person is given a bag of 10marbles. An announcement is made stating that each pair will play a marble game of their choosing against one another. The player who takes the 10 marbles from their partner wins. This game has the potential to be very easy or incredibly difficult. For both players to agree on a game, they would each have to understand the rules, right? Some players like Player 101 think otherwise. When he starts to lose his marbles to his partner, he tries to change up the rules. There are pairs like Player 240 andPlayer 067, Kang Sae-byeok, who spend their time talking about their past only for one to happily sacrifice herself at the end of the game. Then, there are people like Player 218, who tricks his partner and steals his marbles.
This game could be based on luck, skill, or brute force. The rules do not state whether or not an individual can forcefully take their partner’s marbles, but it also does not clarify that each contestant could simply switch marble sacks and both be declared winners.
4Dalgona (Sugar Honeycombs)
In the second game, many players are reminded of their childhoods by the sugary honeycomb candy that they are given, calleddalgona. Before the challenge began, each contestant was told to choose a shape (a triangle, a circle, a star, or an umbrella).The masked guardsthen handed each player a canister containing a needle and a circular candy with their chosen shape etched into it. Within 10 minutes, the contestants had to cut out their shape without breaking it.
Players are completely on their own in this game. They do not have to rely on a partner or team, nor do they have to have strength to successfully complete the challenge. The hardest part about this particular game is patience and skill. Even with the hardest shape, the umbrella, a person could remove it from the rest of the candy with a steady hand and intense focus. Shaky hands, however, are the biggest downfall to the contestants due to the amount of people being shot around them and their own potential death.
3Red Light, Green Light
When the 456 players stepped foot into theRed Light, Green Lightarena, they did not know that the games would result in death. The rules forRed Light, Green Lightwere announced, and the players appeared confident in their ability to win. However, once two players were shot and blood spackled the floor, the reality of the competition set in.
On the surface, it seems like the players have only their speed and body awareness to rely on, but that proves to be untrue. Other players' movements can and do affect one another. Some players discover that they are able to run behind others, avoiding the robot’s motion detection. Many contestants run into one another, causing each other to move during the “red light” interval which gets them shot and killed. There are too many outside factors to consider this game an “easy win.”
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2Tug of War
No one likes group work because from an early age, we realize that everyone takes credit for the hard work of a few individuals. Now, when it comes to a life or death situation likeSquid Game’sTug of War, the teammates are not allowed to be slackers. This child’s game is mostly a game of strength, so players who appear physically weaker than the rest are seen as easy targets to beat. With 10 players on each team desperately fighting and tugging at a single rope, their physical strength as a unit is put to the test. Player 001 and Player 218 are the only two who realize that their team, who is viewed as weaker due to several players being women or older in age, is able to win through strategy rather than brute force.
Tug of War is not an easy game when the stakes are low let alone when the teams know that losing means falling to their death. With factors like physical strength, strategic planning, and the possibility of just having bad luck with a number of things (the surface, one’s shoes, arthritis, etc.), this game seems difficult for just about any team.
1Squid Game
The final challenge,Squid Game, is the most physical game in the competition. In the VIP room, the Front Man explains to the others that violence is not restricted between the players. They are allowed to push, shove, and, within this series, even kill one another. Player 218 brought a dinner knife with him from the night before, so he started off with an unfair advantage. Surprisingly, the guards did not step in to confiscate the item. Even with the weapon in play,Player 456 (Gi-hun)was eventually declared the winner after his opponent stabbed himself in the neck.
Squid Game is by far the most challenging game to win, especially for those learning the precise rules for the first time. The defensive team is allowed to physically harm the offensive team to make sure they do not make it to the squids head (the winning circle). With money being on the line or just bragging rights on the playground, this challenge tops the chart as the most difficult game thus far in the series.
