An unwritten Squid Game rule was presented to us way back in the first season, and if it’s followed in Season 3, we’re in for an even more brutal, bleaker ride than first thought.
Squid Game Season 3 will be the last chapter of the Netflix series, and we already know it’s going to be dark. Cast members described it as “unimaginably brutal and cruel,” while creator Hwang Dong-hyuk warned not to expect a happy ending.
But how far will this go? Season 2 set up numerous characters to root for, from the caring yet badass Hyun-ju (Player 120) to the pregnant Jun-hee (Player 222) and her Squid Game mom Geum-ja (Player 149). And then, of course, there’s OG Player 456, Gi-hun.
The show has proven its not afraid to kill off fan favorites – RIP Thanos – but this could continue into Season 3 if follows in the footsteps of the previous round of games.
Only one player has ever won Squid Game
Although technically multiple players can win Squid Game, it’s never happened before, according to a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment in Season 1 Episode 5 of the Netflix series.
It unfolds when Hwang Jun-ho goes searching through the Front Man’s room, only to discover the leader is actually his estranged half brother, Hwang In-ho. One of the files he inspects is a list of previous Squid Game winners dating back to the very first in 1988.
By the looks of things, every year just a single player has won. Despite this, the rules imply that numerous players can make it through the sixth and final game.
One guard explains this in Season 2 as the contestants decide whether to vote to stay or leave. “If you choose to play the next game and more players get eliminated, the prize amount will increase accordingly,” they explain.
“The total amount of prize money for all 456 players is 45.6 billion won. Those who make it through all six games will equally divide the 45.6 billion won.”
This phrasing could be intentionally misleading to manipulate the players into believing they have better odds of survival. After all, if they were told only one person has ever made it through, they’d probably vote to end the game early.
One Squid Game fan noticed this hidden detail, writing on Reddit, “There hasn’t been a single year with more than one winner.”
“So… if in Season 3 the games ARE actually concluded then only one player will be ever making it out alive. Final game is ALWAYS destined to be brutal and obliterate players, no matter how many actually get to play it (might even be rigged for it to happen).”
Season 3 is going to be brutal
Another said, “I have a feeling that there will be a moment similar to the Season 1 ending where there will be multiple survivors and Gi-hun thinks they will vote to leave with the money but someone gets greedy and tips the vote to stay so Gi-hun will be forced to kill everyone in order to win/live.”
Others pointed out the new rule change, whereby players can vote to leave at any point and still split the amount of prize money they’ve accumulated up to that point.
But as we know, this also seems to be a manipulation tactic. As the Salesman attempted to prove with his cruel scratch card vs food game in Season 2, most will go for the former believing they’ll win.
Plus, this move has caused a massive divide between the players, making it all the more entertaining for the VIPs.
“As we can see that is just a part of the game as well, to create two opposing factions,” wrote one Redditor. “We don’t know if this is the first time they do this, that’s an assumption based on Gi-hun’s presence, but it could be a regular thing done from time to time.”
All of this is to say, this seems to suggest that either Squid Game Season 3 will go against the mold or we’ll be losing our favorite characters. From what the cast and crew have teased so far, we should probably prepare ourselves for some serious emotional damage.
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