Five Video Games to Play if You Love Squid Game
Video games are the best place to (safely) experience a ‘death game’
Squid Game has created a fervor around the globe, and is on pace to be Netflix's most-watched original series ever. It has also ignited worldwide interest in the Death Game genre. The ‘death game’ has been a prevalent concept in all forms of media; movies, TV, anime, and comics all have their notable examples. However, video games are the only form of media that allows you to safely paticipate in a death game. Here are some games you need to play if you loved Squid Game and need more death in your life.
#1 The Danganronpa Series
As I watched Squid Game, the Danganronpa series frequently popped into my head. These visual novels consist of a group of extraordinarily talented teenagers trapped in an unfamiliar location (be it an abandoned school or a deserted island, for example) having no idea how they arrived. They are forced to live together where the only way to escape is to kill one of the others and not get caught, leaving the others trapped forever. These rules lead to a thrilling death game where every chapter is a detective mystery. You, the player character, are charged with finding out who killed who and proving it, while congruently working towards figuring out the mystery of the death game and escaping. All of this is lead by the murderously cute Monokuma, a walking-talking teddy bear that relishes in the despair that he brings. I promise that you have not experienced a story with as wild twists and turns as this series.
The trilogy (Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair, and Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony) are all available on PlayStation consoles, PC, mobile, and Switch later this year. These games are mandatory for any fan of the death game genre.
#2 The Zero Escape Series
A trilogy of visual novels unlike any other, each game focuses on 9 characters who are abducted, implanted with a bomb, and forced to play the "Nonary Game." The goal is to escape from the location they are trapped in by going through a series of escape rooms while figuring out the mystery of the games. Why were they chosen? Who runs these games? How will they escape? These are questions all the characters must discover the answers to between being trapped in numerous locked rooms where the only way to escape is to figure out the puzzles each one contains. These games also taught me more about scientific concepts like morphogenic fields and quantum physics (Schroedinger's cat) than anything I learned during my education. They are fantastic at using actual scientific theories to ground some of the series more sci-fi plot points in reality.
The Zero Escape trilogy (Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors; Zero Escape, Virtue's Last Reward; and Zero Time Dilemma) are all readily available on PlayStation consoles and PC.
#3 Half Dead Series
Taking clear inspiration from the death game movie Cube, Half Dead places you and up to 16 other people in a chamber filled with rooms of deadly traps. Each room contains a new trial to overcome to find the exit and escape, thus winning this death game. You may encounter rooms with spike pits, flamethrowers, killer robots, or cake. Who knows what challenge awaits in the next room. The option to play this game with others only enhances the fun. You won't find a crazy story full of twists and turns, but you will find a banterous time watching other players open a door and get immediately shot with a canon.
If you are looking for a unique multiplayer death game experience, Half Dead is available on Switch and PC, Half Dead 2 and 3 are available on PC, with Half Dead 3 currently in early access.
#4 Any Battle Royale Game
The battle royale genre of games has been occupying the top spot for multiplayer since the release of PlayerUnknowns: Battlegrounds in early 2017, and it is not going anywhere. These "battle royale" games get their name from the classic Japanese death game movie of the same name, Battle Royale (a must-watch if you haven't already). These games all capture the thrill of scavenging for loot to increase your survival chances and fighting other players in the pursuit of being the last remaining person alive. There is no other genre of game that can be as tense and as rewarding as these.
In the unlikely event you have not played a game of this type and are looking for one with the most pizzazz when it comes to presentation, I recommend Apex Legends. It has the most game show-like presentation in the genre and has colorful characters and lore that is easy to get lost in. Other battle royale games like Fortnite, PUBG, and Call of Duty: Warzone are also great options. These games are all free as well, so there are zero barriers to entry and you can try them all to see which one fits your preference the most. You can find these on basically any device that can play games, so there is no reason not to join the battle royale zeitgeist.
#5 Honorable Mention: The Hitman Series
If you don't want the pressure of being in a death game and instead would rather play a role similar to everyone's favorite Squid Game detective Hwang Jun-ho, the Hitman series is for you. No game series has perfected the art of stealing disguises and sneaking into compounds better than Hitman. You play as Agent 47, a bald assassin that has mastered the art of fitting into any situation in order to get close to and take out his target. With an insane amount of gadgets and the ability to don the clothes of nearly every character on every map, the only limit on how to take out your target is your creativity. Every scene of Squid Game involving Detective Jun-ho had me giddy thinking that the series writer, Hwang Dong-hyuk, must have taken inspiration from these games.
There are many Hitman games in the series as it has been around since 2000, but I highly recommend starting with the last three games that have released; Hitman (2016), Hitman 2 (2018), and Hitman 3 (2021). These games have linked progress as well-meaning every gadget and disguise you unlock in Hitman (2016) is available to use in the following two games. These titles are all available on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC and are a must if you got a hankering for disguise wearing and sneaking after finishing Squid Game.
