Squid Game

If you're looking to dive into the world of Squid Game on your PC, there's a free multiplayer strategy game that brings the intense, high stakes competition of the Netflix series right to your desktop. Developed by Farwal and available on Itch.io, this fan made adaptation throws you into a series of classic Korean children's games but with a deadly twist. Your goal? Survive each round and walk away with a virtual piggy bank stuffed with cash.

Since Squid Game emulators have exploded in popularity, you’ve got plenty of options to choose from on Windows. For example, Squid Game Red Light, Green Light (Rage Edition) takes the original concept and spices it up with faster pacing and more challenging mechanics. If shooting is more your style, Glock Game reimagines the survival showdown as a tense first person shooter. And for something completely different, Speedrun Squid offers a quirky arcade experience featuring you guessed it an actual squid.

Visually, Squid Game doesn’t disappoint. The developer put a lot of love into the details, from the eerie atmosphere of each arena to the crisp textures and dynamic lighting. Character models look surprisingly realistic and animate smoothly, helping to pull you deeper into the game's tense universe.

That said, Squid Game is still very much a work in progress. Right off the bat, you might notice the game launches without any sound you’ll need to tinker with audio settings before jumping in. Once you select single player mode, you’re thrown into the iconic Red Light, Green Light round. It works fairly well once you realize the ‘Shift’ key makes your character run. But things get rocky after that.

The second challenge, Dalgona cookie carving, is where many players hit a wall. Bugs can pop up mid game sometimes the interface shifts prematurely, all other players get eliminated for no reason, and you’re left stuck with no way out except force closing the game. The Glass Stepping Stones stage functions better, though it lacks a proper game over screen. And the Stairs level? It’s completely broken, with no clear objective and a literal dead end.

Multiplayer mode is another letdown. Even though it’s advertised, hardly anyone is playing. You need at least four people to start a match, which almost never happens, making online play more of a myth than a feature.

All in all, Squid Game shows a lot of promise visually and conceptually, but it’s held back by technical issues and incomplete levels. It’s not quite ready for a serious gaming session, but if you’re curious and don’t mind some jank, it might be worth a quick download for the novelty.