Participants enter an arena to play a game in a scene from the Netflix series "Squid Game" Season 2. Courtesy of Netflix
Netflix's smash hit Korean original series "Squid Game" returned with a bang, Thursday, raising the stakes by incorporating more traditional Korean children's games into its high-stakes survival drama for the new season.
In Season 1, classic Korean kids' games including "ddakji" (card flipping) and "Mugunghwa Kochi Pieotseumnida" (red light, green light) were transformed into a deadly survival game. This surge in popularity of Korean games, such as "dalgona" (sugar candy) carving, tug-of-war and even the eponymous "squid game," sparked a flurry of worldwide events and activities, even inspiring Netflix's own reality competition show "Squid Game: The Challenge."
The creepy animatronic doll Young-hee returns for the new season, scanning player's movements and ruthlessly eliminating those who move during the red light. Main lead Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae), the winner from Season 1, also voluntarily comes back to the deadly games with a new goal in mind.
The second season expands its exploration of Korean game culture by introducing more traditional children's games. In addition to ddakji, a Korean slap-match game played with folded paper tiles, famously used by the Salesman (Gong Yoo) to recruit players in subway stations, the show incorporates various other distinctive yet accessible games, providing viewers with a deeper dive into Korean culture.
"Gonggi," also known as Korean Jacks, is seen in a scene from the Netflix series "Squid Game" Season 2. Captured from Netflix
'Gonggi'
"Gonggi," also known as Korean Jacks, is a popular Korean children's game that is traditionally played using five or more small pebbles. Nowadays, children play with colorful plastic stones, sold at stationery stores, instead of finding pebbles.
It is played by scattering the stones on the ground, tossing one into the air and catching the others before the tossed stone lands. Starting with catching one stone while tossing one, the game progresses to catching multiple stones simultaneously. The final stage of the game involves tossing all five stones into the air, balancing them on the back of one hand and then tossing them back into the air to catch them again.
Participants play "biseokchigi," a traditional Korean stone-throwing game, in a scene from the Netflix series "Squid Game" Season 2. Captured from Netflix
'Biseokchigi'
"Biseokchigi" is a traditional Korean stone-throwing game with a long history, though its exact origins remain undocumented. It goes by various names in different regions, including "bisachigi" and "mangkkagi."
In this traditional game, players place small, flat stones at a set distance. The goal is to toss your own stone to hit and knock over your opponent's stone from a distance of 2.5 to 3 meters.
In "Squid Game," a simplified version, where the player aims to knock over a standing stone, is included in the show.
The top in Korea's beloved winter pastime "paengichigi" (top-spinning) is seen in a scene from the Netflix series "Squid Game" Season 2. Captured from Netflix
'Paengichigi'
A beloved winter pastime in Korea, "paengichigi" (top-spinning) involves skillfully spinning a top on ice using a whip-like action.
Dating back to ancient times, these tops are meticulously crafted from durable wood and balanced for optimal performance. Players whip the top into a frenzy, striving to achieve the longest spinning time. This traditional game continues to be enjoyed by children today.
In the show, they feature a triangular top operated with a string, a modern version of the toy that was popular during the 1980s and '90s. Players wrap the string around the top and release it to set it spinning.
A player kicks "jegi,"a shuttlecock-like toy, while playing a traditional Korean game "jegichagi," in a scene from the Netflix series "Squid Game" Season 2. Captured from Netflix
'Jegichagi'
"Jegichagi" is a traditional Korean game played with a "jegi," a shuttlecock-like toy. Traditionally made by wrapping a coin in cloth and attaching strings, modern jegi often have a metal core and colorful plastic strings around it.
Popularly played during the Lunar New Year season, the game's main objective is to keep the jegi in the air for as long as possible by kicking it.
Participants in "number matching" game spin around on a massive merry-go-round in a scene from the Netflix series "Squid Game" Season 2. Captured from Netflix
Number matching
In this popular children's game, often seen in school field days, players join hands to form a circle and spin around while singing a song. At the end of the song, when a number is called out, players must quickly form a subgroup of that number to win.
In the series, participants board a massive merry-go-round first and must quickly form groups of the correct number to claim limited spots in secure booths. This game tests the bonds of humanity, even among family members.