Near a few giant soundstages located an hour away from London sits a few conference rooms and offices that have turned into makeshift changing rooms with the blinds drawn for privacy. The racks that line the walls carry various green tracksuits, which have become an iconic motif of the Netflix phenomenon Squid Game. While one of the hangers says my name, the t-shirt and track suit that it's holding up tells me my real identity for the next several hours: Player 125. After a very quick change, our phones immediately get special stickers put on them, blocking both the front and back cameras to keep us from photographing or recording anything that we're not allowed to show yet on our personal devices. Netflix handlers are everywhere, reminding us that this is all a secret as 28 strangers that include journalists from around the world, Netflix stars, and influencers prepare to show off their competitive sides.
Welcome to Squid Game: The Challenge season 2. Millions of viewers immediately tuned in to see the sinister and deadly game from the original drama series come to life. With $4.56 million on the line, the lucky 456 contestants who were chosen to be a part of the competition series are ready to do anything to take the money home. For our small group, there actually isn't any money on the table, but that doesn't mean things didn't get heated as we got the experience both new and old games for ourselves. The interesting twist: we're actually were the first "players" to play them as the real cast of the series wouldn't be coming in for another couple of days.
There's also a lot of questions on our minds, especially considering that like the players in the show, we're going into this completely blind. Since it's January 2025, Squid Game season 3 ended over six months prior and it would be over two years since the game show's first season aired, leaving the door wide open for what the producers had up their sleeve in this new round. And, believe me when I say, it wasn't like anything I ever expected.
11:44 A.M.: The Dorms
After moving to the one of the soundstages on the lot, we immediately get ushered into the dorms. The iconic bunkbeds fill the large space as a safety instructor shows us how to safely get up and down so we can get a better view of the entire space from the top bunks. Around us are cameramen and producers, each assigned a small group of us to get confessionals and footage throughout the day.
Immediately, the thermals that we were given make complete sense as the cool January air seeps in despite all the lights that surround the space. (According to Deadline, contestants from the previous season threatened legal action against the streamer for the cold conditions during a game of "Red Light, Green Light," however, no official lawsuit was ever filed.) We also had access to the iconic bathroom and other spaces as we tried to open doors to see what has hidden behind, but none of us actually discoverd the mysterious boiler room that would play a big part in season 2.
We're fed a tin lunch as seen in the games: curry with white rice, that is surprisingly delicious and very filling. Handed over to us by some of the Pink Men, we ate our delicious meal while they remained in the front of the room staring at us, giving us the full experience of the pressure that contestants definitely feel under their watchful eye. Eventually, production crew members call up one by one to activate the ink pack that we were given prior to the start of the day, giving us the one indicator that we had been waiting for: it's time for the games to begin.
1:20 P.M.: Six-Legged Pentathalon
"That was exhausting. This is a lot harder than it looks, y'all. A lot harder than it looks," I say into the camera after our wild round. Unlike the actual series, we don't get to decide our group ahead of time. I'm partnered with a couple of other journalists, while our competition includes cast members of Too Hot to Handle. Sabotage? Maybe. But we still put our game faces on in the hopes that we would be able to come out with a win.
Of course, walking with both your ankles tied to someone else's is not easy at all. In fact, that is probably the hardest part of this game as we slowly tried to figure out the best way to all walk together safely without someone else toppling over. The order that you're shackled together also works in order of the games themselves, with my game, Flying Stone, making me second in line. Instead of walking, our team shuffled throughout the entire track to the next minigame. It takes me three tries to finally complete my game, causing my team and I to go back and forth to pick up the thrown stone when it doesn't take down the stationary one in front of me.
Unfortunately, right as our last player gets ready to participate, the other team completes their run. My ink pack immediately goes off, signaling the end of the game. However, we're left surprised and confused when my team members are seemingly still alive, causing us to take a small pause as we wait for everyone else's to signal their "death" as well. It's the sort of bugs that the team is also hoping to sort out throughout the day before the real players come in to play.
We stay behind to watch the other teams play with everyone's packs going off at the end allowing us to all experience what it's like to get eliminated from the game. It's an odd experience, hearing the ink pack go off with a strange and distinct smell that definitely still stays with you months after. But while for us it was just a fun way to end it all, it started to set in what a terrifying end it could be for real players who hoped to take home the grand prize.
3:00 P.M.: Mingle
After removing ink from our faces, we moved over to a different soundstage that we're warned is completely under construction, but features another exciting game: Mingle. The iconic spinning stage sits the middle of incomplete flooring, which requires us to wear shoe coverings so we don't mess anything up especially after ink was flying everywhere.
Me and my friend Kat Moon, who is also on the trip, decide to take advantage and channel our inner Thanos, dancing along to the iconic song that definitely left a different kind of impact for the players who actually played the games. It was a nice reprieve before the next game shocked us all.
4:46 P.M.: Slides and Ladders
Season 1 of Squid Game: The Challenge introduced new games that were far less dangerous than the ones seen in the actual Squid Game series, so it was not too surprising to see the producers and game creators get a little creative when it came to season 2. However, we still were hit with the unexpected when we were came face-to-face with the now-iconic Slides and Ladders game.
In a game where everything so far has been handled by skill, here was a game of ultimate chance. The dice, cards, and slides all decided your fate as you hoped to be one of the teams to make it up to the top. In a surprise move, I was paired up with none other than Kat, bringing our dynamic duo together for the first time in these games. We got our blue vests and immediately stepped onto the board.
At one point, we step into space number 27, more than halfway through the board. Unfortunately, this means that we also landed in a slot with two slides. A quick rock, paper, scissors game determined who would go down a slide first and sadly my teammate and BFF lost the round, immediately going down a slide, giving her a 50/50 chance of survival. My heart was pounding as we all waited to see if she made the right choice, making me wonder what it would be like for the real players of the series who would have to wait and see what happened to their best friend. Unlike the series that shows them flying out of a slide via some very clever editing, Kat simply disappeared behind the stage, leaving me all alone in this giant life-sized game board.
"I'm really sad, cause I really love Kat, but I'm still here though so, let's see where I end up!" I say right as a slide down the fastest slide I have ever experienced in my life. I land back in square 15, bringing me down two lanes from where I previously was.
Eventually, I land on space 21, allowing me to take a ladder up to 32 out of 42. However, due to time constraints, we are then told to switch places with another duo so they can experience the game as well. While the other blue duo got to win it all, it was still cool to get experience both the slides and ladders part of the game and survive it all.
5:30 P.M.: The Pink Stairs
After the change over, the players that just played are taken over to the iconic pink stairs, which are also still under construction at the time, but completely safe for us to use. Thankfully, there were no Pink Men around so we could take some fun photos to commemorate the occasion.
6:38 P.M.: Final Goodbyes
In our final moments, we step back into the dorms for one final group picture. Unlike the original games, there is no official winner. Instead, we got a once in a lifetime experience that only 912 other people in the world got to experience. Only difference is that we did it with no pressure, no money, and no real Front Man in front of us.
Even though we only played for one day, it is very evident how this experience becomes a true bonding experience for those who get to be a part of it. It really showed all of us how this game can put pressure on the players, but it also makes it clear how all these games can bring them all together at the end of the game.
Who actually wins Squid Game: The Challenge season 2? Even I still don't know yet, but at least I can appreciate how hard it was to come out on top. And while I may no longer be Player 125, at least I got all these sick memories to remember what it was like. And a water bottle that will definitely get me some bonus points out here in the real world.
