Squid Game Season 2 & 3 Lore

1. #1Squid Game

   Keys: 37th Annual Squid Game, Squid Game, Games, Squid Games

   November 2024, takes place during the 37th Annual Squid Games in South Korea. The Squid Games are an annual competitive event held worldwide featuring hundreds of participants—456 in South Korea—engaged in a series of six children's games. The ultimate winner of the competition receives a grand prize of ₩45.6 billion, symbolizing the total number of players. The games operate on an elimination system, where failure to succeed results in death. The players don't know that these are death games beforehand. For each eliminated player, an additional ₩100 million is added to the prize pool. The games are conducted on a remote, untraceable island in South Korea, with participants rendered unconscious during transport to keep the location a secret. Before transport, the players don't know that losing results in death. The players are all people who, due to various circumstances, owe a large amount of debts they can't afford to pay and are nearly at the absolute misery and bankruptcy. Players must willingly agree to participate in the games and are given the chance to withdraw before the competition begins. However, the consent form clearly states that once the games start, players cannot stop, and those who refuse to continue will be eliminated. The games can only be terminated if a majority vote to end them, but this means all players leave without any prize money and return to their normal lives. The rules are reinforced, and the contestants are controlled by a large number of masked guards in pink jumpsuits with rifles, who never reveal their faces or identities to the players and regularly apply deadly force when enforcing the rules or eliminating players who lose competitions. The games are watched by wealthy sadistic people from all over the world known as VIPs. Often, dead players have their organs harvested and sold in the black market. In 2024, the games were Red Light, Green Light, Six-Legged Pentathlon and its five further mini-games (ddakji, flying stone, gonggi, spinning top, and jegi), Mingle, Maze or Hide and Seek, Jump Rope, and Sky Squid Game.

2. #2Red Light, Green Light

   Keys: Red Light, Green Light, first game

   Red Light, Green Light (무궁화 꽃이 피었습니다 Mugunghwa Kkochi Pieot-seumnida?, roughly translates to "The Mugunghwa Flower has bloomed") was the first game of the 37th Squid Games. The goal of this game was for players to successfully reach the other end of an enclosed field, where Young-hee, a large robotic doll, was positioned, within the five-minute time limit. Players were permitted to move when the doll called "green light", but if the doll shouted "red light", players were to remain stationary while the doll scanned their movements. Any player caught moving was eliminated and shot dead.

3. #3Six-Legged Pentathlon

   Keys: Six-Legged Pentathlon, second game

   The Six-Legged Pentathlon (5인 6각 근대 5종 경기 Ohin uggak geundae ojong gyeonggi?) was the second game of the 37th Squid Game. It consisted of five children's games: Ddakji, Biseokchigi, Gonggi, Paengi Chigi and Jegi, all to be completed within a five-minute time limit. It happened on November 2, 2024.

   Players are divided into teams of 5 and must take turns completing all the mini-games. All 5 members of the team must advance around the track with their legs tied together. Each team member must complete one game. If a game is not completed, it must be tried again until it's finished.

   Any team that fails to complete all five games and cross the finish line within five minutes will be immediately executed.

4. #4Mingle

   Keys: third game, Mingle

   Mingle (짝짓기 게임 Jjakjisgi Geim?) was the third game of the 37th Squid Game. It has 50 rooms. Players had to group up and enter rooms following a predetermined number. If players don't manage to make it into the rooms in time or if a room does not contain a required number, they will be eliminated. This game occurred on November 3, 2024.

   Throughout the game, players become desperate to form teams and reach a room before time runs out, leading to players teaming up and betraying each other to survive.

5. #5Hide and Seek

   Keys: red team, seekers, hiders, fourth game, Hide and Seek, hide-and-seek, blue team

   Hide and Seek (숨바꼭질 Sumbakkogjil?) was the fourth game of the 37th Squid Game that occurred on November 4, 2024.

   The game was played in an arena resembling a maze, with stars on the ceiling resembling a starry night sky and kids drawings on the walls, reflecting the narrative of kids going home at sunset.

   The game will be played in teams. The team a player is on will be decided by a giant Gumball machine that dispenses blue and red balls, making the placement of a Player in a team totally random. If one gets red, they go to the left side of the room, while blue goes to the right side, splitting the players into two teams.

   Having been divided into two teams, the players receive an item as a gift from the guards, the Blue Team receives keys and the Red Team receives knives. When the Blue Team enter the game, they have 2 minutes to explore the maze before the Red Team come to find them. The maze is filled with locked doors and when a door is unlocked it cannot be relocked.

   The Red Team, aka Seekers, must kill at least one member of the Blue Team, aka Hiders, to pass the game within 30 minutes, however they are allowed to kill more than one if they so choose. If a seeker does not kill a hider within the time limit, that seeker will be eliminated. Killing another member of the seekers is also prohibited.

   The Hiders must either use the key to unlock the doors and find an exit, or hide until the 30-minute time limit is reached. The hiders can also kill the seekers to defend themselves. If a hider gets killed by a seeker, that hider will be eliminated.

   Prior to the game beginning, players were allowed to switch teams if they wished. In order to do this, they had to swap with a member of the opposing team and this could only be done under mutual consent from both players. Inside the arena, the locked doors have three different keyhole shapes required (either circle, triangle or square) and for the exit door, all three types of keys are needed to unlock it.

6. #6Jump Rope

   Keys: fifth game, Jump Rope

   Jump Rope (줄넘기 Julneomgi?) was the fifth game of the Squid Game competition in 2024, which appeared in Season 3. It featured Young-hee and Cheol-su, a railroad theme, a jump rope, and a flower-themed abyss at the bottom of the arena. This game occurred on November 5, 2024.

   To pass this game, players must cross the narrow bridge within 20 minutes, while also jumping to avoid the rotating metal rope, which increases in speed as time passes. There's also a gap in the middle of the bridge, which adds to the difficulty of the game. Players may decide the order amongst themselves.

7. #7Sky Squid Game

   Keys: Sky Squid Game, sixth game, last game, final game

   Sky Squid Game (고공 오징어 게임 Gogong Ojingeo Geim?) is the sixth and final game of the 37th Squid Game, and the Squid games in South Korea as a whole. It happened on November 6, 2024. Players play this game up on three tall towers in the shape of a square, triangle, and circle. To start the game on each platform, a player must step on a button on the platform. When the game starts, players have 15 minutes to eliminate at least 1 player. After 15 minutes have passed and 1 or more players have been eliminated, a bridge will appear, letting the remaining players to go to the adjacent tower. If the time runs out and no-one has been eliminated, then all remaining players will be killed. If a player is eliminated before the button on a platform is pressed, this elimination will not count.

8. #8Lights Out

   Keys: Lights Out, Special Game

   The Special Game, also known as Lights Out, was a bonus "game" that happened between game 3 and 4 taking place in the dormitory. Though not part of the six game line-up, this was a planned event of the staff to eliminate and uneven the amount of Players before the next voting. Players voting O attacked the Players whom voted X overnight to thin out their numbers.

9. #9The VIPs

   Keys: The VIPS, VIPs

   The V.I.P.s are a group of extremely rich businesspeople of various different nationalities who traveled from their domestic country to South Korea in order witness the games in person. They created and watch the games to bet on which players will win for their own pleasure and entertainment. The VIPs are known to not only watch Squid Game in Korea but also other franchises in other countries as well.

10. #10The Recruiter

    Keys: salesman, The Recruiter, recruiter

    The Recruiter, also known as The Salesman and South Korean Recruiter was a man who worked as a recruiter for the Squid Games. Though he presented himself as an approachable, calm, and polite man, the Recruiter was in actuality a ruthless sadist with a hatred for impoverished people. He is the first step of the games, the recruitment process.

    He was originally a worker from the Squid Games. He was then promoted to soldier and eventually earned the trust of the game's creator, Oh Il-nam, over time. After raising his position, the Recruiter was given the opportunity to work outside the game. His role was to be the recruiter and recruit people by playing Ddakji with them and later giving them a card if they win.

11. #11Seong Gi-hun

    Keys: Seong Gi-hun, 456, Player 456, Gihun, Gi-hun

    Seong Gi-hun, also known as Player 456, was the winner of the 33rd Squid Game in 2020, who also returned as a contestant in the 37th Squid Game in an attempt to end the Squid Games. A former gambling addict, Gi-hun faced crippling debt from loan sharks for several years before participating in and ultimately winning the Squid Game in 2020.

    Born in Ssangmun-dong, Gi-hun was childhood best friends[7][8][9] with Cho Sang-woo. He worked at a car factory for several years before being laid off and operated two businesses in the following years, both of which failed, putting him in severe debt to a group of loan sharks who threatened violence against him if he didn't pay up. He had a daughter named Ga-yeong, whom he lost custody of when his wife divorced him following his financial troubles and remarried. He ended up moving in with his mother and found work as a chauffeur, which didn't provide anywhere near enough for him to pay off his debt.

12. #12Thanos

    Keys: Player 230, Choi Su-bong, Thanos, Su-bong, 230, Subong

    Player 230, was a rapper who participated in the 37th Squid Game in 2024.

    Prior to his entry in the 37th Squid Game, Choi Su-bong gained fame as a rapper under the stage name "Thanos". At some point, he won second place in a rap battle tournament called "Rap Battlegrounds", missing first place after forgetting his lyrics. He was also an avid fan of YouTuber Lee Myung-gi, and claims to have watched every video posted under his channel "MG Coin".

    When Myung-gi began promoting a new cryptocurrency called "Dalmatian", Thanos decided to invest all the money he had made from rapping (which was around ₩500 million) into the coin. Unfortunately, the cryptocurrency turned out to be a scam, and he would fall into a debt totaling ₩1.19 billion.

    Feeling like his life was over, Thanos went to the Han River Bridge to kill himself before being stopped by a recruiter who offered him a chance to win all his money back after a game of Ddakji. Thinking that the opportunity was some sort of divine intervention, Thanos entered the Squid Games in a last-ditch effort to start a new life and make his mother proud.

13. #13Lee Myung-gi

    Keys: Myung-gi, Player 333, 333, Lee Myung-gi, Myunggi

    Lee Myung-gi (이명기 I Myeong-gi?) also known as Player 333, was a contestant in the 37th Squid Game

    On the run for fraud and violating telecom and financial laws, Myung-gi went into hiding for 6 months to prevent anyone from finding him. During that time, Kim Jun-hee (his girlfriend, whom he got pregnant) tried to contact him, but Myung-gi ignored her calls to protect Jun-hee from foes using her to find him. When Thanos and Nam-gyu confronted him about the scam, Myung-gi reminded them that he always said in his videos that the decision to invest is theirs.

14. #14Kim Jun-hee

    Keys: Jun-hee, Player 222, Kim Jun-hee, 222, Junhee

    Kim Jun-hee (김준희 Gim Jun-hee?), also known as Player 222, was a contestant in the 37th Squid Game.

    Jun-hee is a sweet, considerate girl. She does her best to be independent but still needs dependence since she is heavily pregnant. She has an interesting relationship with Lee Myung-gi (her ex-boyfriend, who got her pregnant) as he convinced her to buy a crypto that turned out to be a scam, Myung-gi disappeared for 6 months to avoid people who wanted to kill him and avoided contacting Jun-hee to protect her, as he thought they could use her to find him.

15. #15Park Min-su

    Keys: Park Min-su, Player 125, Minsu, Min-su, 125

    Park Min-su (박민수 Bag Min-su?), also known as Player 125, was a contestant of the 37th Squid Game

    Min-su is timid, lacking in confidence, and tends to go along with whatever others say. This submissive nature caused him to make cowardly choices, such as picking scissors when Se-mi offered to pick a door with her, and instead opting to go with Thanos and Nam-gyu.

    In times of stress, he is shown to be prone to panicking and crumbling under pressure, but at heart, he does wish to help those who have truly looked out for him.

16. #16Se-mi

    Keys: 380, Player 380, Se-mi

    Se-mi (세미 Se-mi?), also known as Player 380, was a contestant of the 37th Squid Game. Se-mi is bold and determined. In her mind, voting to leave the game is scarier than risking her life to keep playing. Thanos and Nam-gyu consider her to have an attitude. She seems to have a tendency to be strong around strong people and gentle with those who are more vulnerable. She also seems to be not afraid to defend people, as shown when she defended Park Min-su when conflicted by Nam-gyu.

17. #17Team Thanos

    Keys: Thanos Team, Team Thanos

    The Thanos Team (also known as Thanos World) was a team formed in the Squid Game competition in 2024. Led by Thanos (Player 230), a well-known rapper, the team was formed during the second game, Six-Legged Pentathlon, with five members consisting of Nam-gyu (Player 124), Park Min-su (Player 125), Se-mi (Player 380) and Gyeong-su (Player 256).

18. #18Nam-gyu

    Keys: Namgyu, Nam-su, Player 124, Nam-gyu, Namsu, 124

    Nam-gyu , also known as Player 124, was a contestant of the 37th Squid Game.

    Before the games, Nam-gyu worked as a club promoter at Club Pentagon, where he became acquainted with the rapper Thanos. He regularly brought him drugs and got him free drinks through his position at the club. He was an active drug user as well, having tried nearly every street drug he could obtain through the clubbing scene.

    In 2024, Nam-gyu invested large amounts of money in a cryptocurrency called Dalmatian, on the advice of the YouTube channel MG Coin. Unfortunately, the currency turned out to be a scam, and Nam-gyu lost over ₩300 million when the rug was pulled. This led him to participate in the Squid Games, where he hoped to find a quick way to settle his financial problems.

    Throughout the Games, he forms an alliance with Thanos. Thanos seeks revenge on Myung-gi, the crypto influencer whose greed caused him a huge financial loss. Nam-gyu becomes an accomplice to Thanos, and together they plan to take down Myung-gi, whom they blame for their respective downfalls. Their alliance is not only based on a desire for vengeance but also on the desperation they both feel after losing everything in their lives.

19. #19Dormitory

    Keys: Dormitory, dorm, bunks, dorms

    The Dormitory is a location in Squid Game. It is where the players stay between the Games. It is also known as The Lobby or The Bedroom.

    The Dormitory is a rectangular room with metal-framed bunk beds lining the walls. Its basic architecture and monotone walls reflect its sterile nature. Aside from the beds, there is a large screen on the wall that displays the number of contestants remaining as well as the prize money.

    A large clear acrylic piggy bank is periodically lowered from the roof of the dormitory as a display piece, accompanied by yellow theatre lights and upbeat chiptune arcade game-like music. It contains the winnings of the Squid Game in the form of stacks of banknotes. There also seems to be fluorescent lights attached on the black parts of the walls.

20. #20Voting

    Keys: vote, Voting

    The third clause of the Agreement Form says if the majority votes to stop the game (stop = 'X', continue = 'O'), the entire competition does not continue further, and players will return home without any prize money. Voting was held after the first game of the 33rd Squid Game, and between rounds in the 37th Squid Game.

21. #21Soldiers

    Keys: Soldiers, triangles

    Soldiers (symbolized by a △), also known as Triangles, are the armed guards who enforce the rules of the Squid Games and elimination policy, as well as maintain its integrity, by force.

    They are equipped with Heckler & Koch MP5A3, MP5A5 sub-machine guns and Smith & Wesson Model 19 revolvers with black Hogue rubber grips for dispatching contestants,tasers (noticeable in the Halloween Party episode) and switchblades (Fair World). During the Red Light, Green Light, they are equipped with Heckler & Koch PSG1 for eliminating moving players, as revealed in the game in 2024.

    Soldiers act on orders given by Managers, and are often assigned to specific players during certain games to oversee the elimination of players. Their primary role is to terminate eliminated players, execute any players caught breaking the rules, and to keep the players in-line during the intermission period between games.

    In addition to their role as adjudicators, they are often seen flanking important personnel, such as Managers and the Front Man, as bodyguards.

22. #22Front Man

    Keys: Front man, In-ho, Hwang In-ho

    The person in charge of creating and overseeing the Squid Games and the second-highest ranked Squid Game staff aside from the Host.

    Hwang In-ho, the person who was the Front Man during the 33rd Squid Game in 2020 and the 37th Squid Game in 2024

23. #23Managers

    Keys: Squares, Managers

    Managers (symbolized by a ☐), also known as Supervisors or Squares, are the ground leaders who act on behalf of the Front Man. They organize groups of guards in order to facilitate the effective running of the Games.

    Managers are armed more modestly than their subordinates: they carry a Smith & Wesson Model 10 revolver, but in Friend or Foe some of them also carry Heckler & Koch MP5.

    Managers are responsible for organizing, monitoring, and (in some cases) enforcing the Games. That is done by giving orders to Soldiers, disciplining guards who step out of line, and making objective decisions on the spot.

    Managers are permitted to speak more freely than other guards, allowing them to relay scheduled information to the players and act as ambassadors of the Squid Games. Despite this, they are the most enigmatic guards given their position of authority.

    Managers also have access to every single player's information, including player number, name, age, brief history, reason of financial ruin and total debt. Having this capability, Managers can reveal notable players in order to maintain democracy, trust and avoid any rising suspicion throughout the games, ensuring that players understand why they chose to participate instead of suffering in the real world.

24. #24Workers

    Keys: Workers, circles

    Workers (symbolized by a ⭘), also known as Circles, are the maintenance crew tasked with assisting game operations, general upkeep and clean-up detail of the site.

    Workers are the "civilians" of the Pink Guards. They cannot speak without permission from Managers (similar to Soldiers), move beyond their designated post or use firearms. Their role is simply reduced into menial labour: transporting and cremating deceased Players, maintaining the Game facilities and distributing food to the players. They may not show any empathy or favoritism towards the players and must strictly adhere to the rules and regulations of the Squid Game organization. Like other guards, they are armed with switchblades but do not possess firearms like Soldiers but instead they hold knives although it's unknown what knife they use.

25. #25Pink Guards

    Keys: Pink Soldiers, Pink Guards, Masked Men, Guards

    The Pink Guards, otherwise known as Pink Soldiers or Masked Men, are the staff who manage, upkeep, and enforce the rules of Squid Games on behalf of the Front Man.

    Pink Guards all wear the same base clothing in order to preserve anonymity. This is the pink hooded jumpsuit, black gloves and black boots, and a permeated mask to hide their identity. These masks have one of three symbols which indicates their ranking. (Triangle, Square, circle)

26. #26Park Jung-bae

    Keys: Park Jung-bae, 390, Jung-bae, Player 390, Jungbae

    Park Jung-bae (박정배 Bag Jeong-bae?), also known as Player 390, was a contestant of the 37th Squid Game in 2024.

    Jung-bae often spent time with Gi-hun betting on horse racing. A year after Gi-hun won the 33rd Squid Game in 2020, Jung-bae did not hear from him for at least three years. In that time, Jung-bae had gone into significant financial debt after borrowing money from creditors that he was unable to pay back. His wife had divorced him and gained full custody of his daughter and they were being harassed by Jung-bae's creditors.

    Unable to find any other option, he decided to enter the 37th Squid Game. He joined Gi-hun's team where he bonded with several other players, including fellow fake-marine Kang Dae-ho.

27. #27Kang Dae-ho

    Keys: Dae-ho, 388, Daeho, player 388, Kang Dae-ho

    Kang Dae-ho also known as Player 388, was a contestant of the 37th Squid Game. He was an early ally of Seong Gi-hun and Park Jung-bae, whom he forms a bond with due to his faked military service. Dae-ho was a respectful young man. He shows great discipline. Dae-ho is shown to have a strong moral compass. Dae-ho grew up around four older sisters and spent most of his time playing games with them, leading to him being an expert in things considered ”girly” by societal standards. Sometime later, Dae-ho is forced by his father to join the military service to prove that he is "manly" enough which doesn't happen because Dae-ho is chose as a Social Services Personnel, implying that he wasn't considered mentally fit to go to the regular Military service. So he gets a Marine tattoo despite never being one.

28. #28Cho Hyun-ju

    Keys: Hyun-Ju, 120, Cho Hyun-ju, Hyunju, Player 120

    Cho Hyun-ju (조현주 Jo Hyeon-ju?), also known as Player 120, was a contestant of the 37th Squid Game. She entered with the goal of getting enough money to fund her gender-affirming surgeries. During the games, Hyun-ju formed an alliance with Park Yong-sik, Jang Geum-ja, and Kim Young-mi.

    Hyun-ju has shown to be caring and hospitable towards most players she has crossed paths with. She is loyal, brave and protective to towards the close friends she makes during the games. Examples include such as when she risked her own life to help a man with Gi-hun during Red Light, Green Light. As someone with a military background, she is extremely disciplined and skilled in combat and isn’t afraid to fight or threaten those who are threats to others she cares about or herself, like against Kim Yeong-sam and Player 202 in the Hide and Seek game, as well as in the failed rebellion she contributed to and participated in. Despite this, she appears to be shy and unconfident in herself, likely due to the fact her life took a downturn upon transitioning.

    Through her resilience, she seeks to break down stereotypes. Not much is known of Hyun-ju's early years and pre-transition, outside of how much support she got from her family and friends. Growing up, Hyun-ju often played games such as ddakji, which she was particularly good at. As an adult, Hyun-ju joined the army and rose through the ranks to become a staff sergeant.

    When Hyun-ju began her transition as a woman, she was abruptly fired from her job and ostracized by her family and friends. With no steady income or social support, Hyun-ju started going into debt. She continued her transition and began developing trust issues. At some point, she moved out to Gwangmyeong.

    With her debt standing at ₩330 million, Hyun-ju decided to participate in the Squid Games, with the ultimate goal of winning enough money to move to Thailand and finish getting the surgeries which would complete her transition.

29. #29Park Yong-sik

    Keys: Park Yong-sik, Yong-sik, 007, Player 007, Yongsik

    Park Yong-sik (박용식 Bag Yong-sig?), also known as Player 007, was the adult son of Jang Geum-ja who entered the Squid Game competition in order to pay of his gambling debts.

    He remained close to his mother, who'd joined alongside him, throughout the games and created alliances with other Players such as Cho Hyun-ju and Kim Young-mi.

    Park Yong-sik was characterised by his meek nature. He frequently let people take advantage of his cowardice and non-confrontational attitude.

30. #30Jang Geum-ja

    Keys: Player 149, Jang Geum-ja, Geum-ja, 149, Geumja

    Introduced as an honest and opinionated woman with a fiery temper, Geum-ja is later shown to be kind and empathetic, shown for instance when she was comforting Kim Jun-hee about her pregnancy and deeply consoling an handcuffed Gi-hun after his failed revolt which killed many such as his best friend. Her top priority is her son, Yong-sik as she states she wouldn't have a reason to live if she were to get out of here without him.

    Born sometime in the 1940s, Jang Geum-ja survived the Korean War during her childhood. She got married to an unnamed man and had a son named Park Yong-sik. Her marriage was an unfaithful one, however, as her husband had a steady extramarital affair and was physically abusive towards her.

    Over the years, Geum-ja helped over a dozen pregnant women deliver their babies in her local neighborhood of Bongcheon-dong. Her son Yong-sik continued to live at home with her as an adult and racked up a significant amount of debt due to his gambling habit. Her husband died at some point before October 2024.

    A committed mother, Geum-ja joined the Squid Games in hopes of winning enough money to pay off her son Yong-sik's gambling debt.

31. #31Im Jeong-dae

    Keys: Player 100, Jeongdae, Im Jeong-dae, 100, Jeong-dae

    Im Jeong-dae (임정대 Im Jeong-dae?), also known as Player 100, was a contestant of the 37th Squid Game. He is a greedy old man with a staggering debt of ₩10 billion, he hates the X voters and wants to be the only person in the world to have money and he can't stop saying "one more game" like bro shut up. Due to this, he acts as a secondary antagonist to Seong Gi-hun, repeatedly rallying players to continue the games.

32. #32Seon-nyeo

    Keys: Seon-nyeo, Seonnyeo, 44, Player 44, Shaman woman, Shaman

    Despite the misfortunes that led her to the Squid Games in 2024, Seon-nyeo is an unpleasant and extremely arrogant woman with an inflated ego—shaped by her past as a renowned shaman. She is selfish, outspoken, and often overwhelmed by anxiety, which causes her to lash out at others unpredictably.

    Seon-nyeo has a keen ability to read people, having correctly deduced that Seong Gi-hun had previously played and won the Squid Game upon their first meeting. However, she is also quick to judge and abandon others.

    Despite her flaws, her loyalty—when it exists—can be manipulative and strategic.

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