From Red Light, Green Light to Glass Stepping, UAE Braces Itself for the Real Life Squid Games
The Squid Game fever has taken over the world. Everyone is watching the show, memes of the show are flooding the internet, TikTok trends, and people are even buying green tracksuits and basic white Vans. It’s crazy how one TV show can have such an impact on the world. And, to top it off, people are obsessed with the games played during the competition. So much in fact, that when the Korean Culture Center (KCC) in the UAE organized a real-life Squid Game, more than 300 people signed up to participate so far!
Registration for the mock Squid Games opened up on October 6th, and the KCC organized the event to be held on October 12th. Although 300+ people registered so far, only 30 people will be selected to play, and will be divided into two teams of 15. The event will consist of two rounds, from 5:30 pm to 9:15 pm at the Centre’s Abu Dhabi office. And no, this wasn’t organized by the KCC in the same manner as seen in the show…the participants are not meant to be killed off, but rather, to spread awareness about Korean culture.
During an interview by Khaleej Times, Director of the KCC, Nam Chan-woo, said “Just as K-Pop gained worldwide popularity through YouTube in the 2010s, I think platforms such as Netflix would be a channel for the global spread of Korean video content such as dramas and movies.”
An invitation to participate
The applicants had to answer three questions about the Netflix show, simply to test their knowledge of it. The 30 participants will play Red Light, Green Light, Dalgona Candy, Marbles, Ddakji, the paper flipping game, and the glass stepping game, but with stones instead of glass.
Eliminated players will be watching the rest of the game from the sidelines, and not meeting their maker. Participants will be wearing a Squid Game t-shirt with the logo of the show: the triangle, square, and circle. However, the guards, aka staff, will be wearing pink outfits such as those in the show, with circle, triangle, and square masks, and will be using sponge guns for dramatic effect in the Red Light, Green Light game.
Unlike the show however, the winners will not be receiving a money prize. Instead, a customized green tracksuit, as a throwback to the player’s outfits in the show will be their reward.
For now, let’s just think of these games as a spin-off.
