'Squid Game' Season 2 Timeline & Full Story (2025)

The ending of Squid Game season 1 and the first episode of season 2 made numerous time-jumps just to emphasize Seong Gi-hun’s obsession to exact revenge upon those who not only ruined his life but also took away all his friends for their amusement. He decided to put an end to the game and, therefore, started hunting for the people responsible for his miseries. So, let’s look at the chronology of all the important events.

Spoiler Alert

2021: Gi-hun Wins The Game

Squid Game 2021 ended with Gi-hun being declared as the winner. We got to know how selfless and generous he was when he told the guards that in accordance with the third clause of the contract, he wanted to forfeit the game and take his friend Sang-woo back with him. Sang-woo, on the other hand, had probably realized that he would eventually succumb to his injuries, and so it would be a foolish decision on Gi-hun’s part to leave all that money behind after he had gone through so much. So, Sang-woo killed himself, and by default, Gi-hun won the game. Gi-hun came back to his home to find out that his ailing mother had passed away. Gi-hun had no clue how to cope with all the emotions. He started drinking and whiling away his time. He could have used the money and lived an opulent lifestyle, but he didn’t do any such thing. It felt as if he just wanted to escape reality and pretend that the game, whatever happened to him during that time, was merely a figment of imagination. Gi-hun didn’t even touch the billions of won he had won in the Squid Game for the next year. He felt a lot of guilt, and he lost everything in the process.

2022: Gi-hun Meets Player 001 Again

A year later, on 24th December 2022, Gi-hun met Player 001, aka II-nam, once again, and the former got to know that the latter was the creator of the game. At first, Gi-hun was under the impression that there would be some greater purpose behind making people suffer, but it shocked him when he learned that they went through so much just so a handful of elites could have some enjoyment. The old man told Gi-hun that when a person has too much or too little money, they have nothing to look forward to in either situation. II-Nam wanted to feel alive one last time; he wanted to feel that same adrenaline rush, so he decided not to sit on the sidelines but participate in the game. Also, II-nam knew that his end was near, so he didn’t have any dilemmas while making that decision to risk his life. II-nam told Gi-hun everything because the former had noticed that he wasn’t using any of the prize money. He wanted to tell Gi-hun to enjoy life while it lasts and not think about anything else. But it was easier said than done. After the conversation, II-nam succumbed to his illness, and after Gi-hun left, In-ho came to say his last goodbye to the creator of the Squid Game.

Early 2023: Gi-Hun Decides To Not Go To The USA

Gi-hun, after his conversation with II-nam, realized that he needed to move on with his life. He dyed his hair and decided to put all that money to some good use. He booked a flight to the United States of America as his daughter had moved there with her mother and stepfather. Now, Gi-hun could give her whatever she wanted. There were days when he’d had to take her out to dinner at cheap places, something that left him feeling embarrassed and disappointed in himself. But now he could take her to the most expensive of restaurants. Gi-hun was just about to board his flight when he saw the Recruiter, the one with whom he had played Ddakji a year back, standing on the adjacent platform. The Recruiter was again playing the same game with a man, and that made Gi-hun realize that the games were still being conducted. Gi-hun ran to the other platform, but before he could catch the man, he escaped. Gi-hun’s conscience didn’t allow him to leave South Korea and go to the United States of America. He wanted to hold someone accountable for all that had happened to him. He snatched the card from the man who was playing Ddakji with the Recruiter and asked him to not even think of participating in the game. Gi-hun gave a call to the number printed on the back of the visiting card, and he had a brief chat with In-ho. In-ho told him upfront that he would be committing the biggest mistake of his life by not boarding that plane to the USA. But Gi-hun listened to his inner voice and decided to stay back in South Korea and find the people who were running the game. Firstly, Gi-hun removed the tracker that was installed by the game organizer behind his ear. That was how they were keeping track of his movements, and how they knew exactly where he was at any particular point in time.

2024: Gi-Hun Gets Obsessed With His Investigation

For the next two years, Gi-hun hired Mr. Kim, the same guy he’d borrowed money from back in the day, to search for the Recruiter or any other breakthrough that could lead him to the ones who were pulling the strings and preying upon the vulnerabilities of the players. During this period, even Jun-ho recovered after being saved by Captain Park. In Squid Game season 1, we saw that Jun-ho had been shot by his brother, In-ho, and we learned that he was the Front Man. Gi-hun used his money to pay Mr. Kim, who hired a bunch of people to search each and every metro station day and night. They carried out the same drill for the next 2 years, and then one day, out of nowhere, one of the employees of Mr. Kim, Choi Woo-seok, found the Recruiter at the station, and he informed Gi-hun about it. Mr. Kim, who was also with Choi Woo-seok at that time, followed the Recruiter, not knowing what that man was doing and how dangerous he was. The Recruiter overpowered both of them and took them captive. He made them play Rock, Paper, Scissors, Minus One, and then the moment Mr. Kim lost, he shot him dead. Gi-hun was able to track down Mr. Kim’s location, and in the first episode of Squid Game season 2, he came face to face with the Recruiter. We realized that the Recruiter was a psychotic man, and had a very dark past. He told Gi-hun that the day he pointed a gun towards his father, he knew that he was cut out for the job. The Recruiter played a game of Russian roulette with Gi-hun, which he lost and then ended up taking his own life. From the Recruiter’s pocket, Ji-hyun found a card with details about a gathering. Gi-hun realized that he would find his answers at that gathering and probably be able to learn who was running the games. In-ho was able to get the better of Gi-hun and his entire team, and once again, Gi-hun found himself sitting in the same limousine that dropped him back home in season 1. In-ho, sitting at the front seat of the car behind the tinted bulletproof glass, had a chat with Gi-hun over a call and asked him to not risk his life and go looking for trouble. But Gi-hun wasn’t ready to give up so easily. He told In-ho that he wanted to go back and participate in the games. In-ho was a bit taken aback, and he didn’t know how to react. In-ho accepted Gi-hun’s request, and after almost 3 years, Gi-hun once again came back to play the dreadful game. It is to be noted here that the games were organized every year, so basically, in that gap, when Gi-hun was conducting his investigation, the organizers must have wreaked havoc on the lives of 3 different sets of people, and three individuals must have become the winners in the consecutive year.

Day 1: Game 1

Day 1 of the game was very crucial from the point of view of In-ho and the other organizers as they got to know what Gi-hun was up to and why he had come back to play the games once again. So, Gi-hun decided that he would warn the players about what they were going to encounter and guide them to finish each game successfully. Gi-hun realized that the organizers had not changed the game, since the first game was Green Light, Red Light, just like it had been 3 years back. Compared to Gi-hun’s batch, there were very few casualties in the first game, since Gi-hun informed the participants that the moment the huge figurine turned, it would detect any movement through its motion sensors, and then the shooters who were stationed at a hidden location would kill each and every individual who was not standing still. The moment the game ended, I believe In-ho and his entire team discussed their strategy and how they could tackle Gi-hun. I believe it must have been a last-minute decision to change the games. It was no fun for the VIPs to watch a game where there was no element of surprise and where only a handful lost their lives.

Day 2: Game 2

The organizers had decided that the participants would be given a chance to vote if they wanted to continue with the games or not after the end of each day. This meant that the organizers were pretty sure that they would be able to manipulate the people, and looking back at it, I believe they were right in thinking so. The second game was called the Six-Legged Pentathlon, where the participants had to be in groups of five and play five different games. There was a stipulated time given to them in which they had to finish the games, and obviously, if they weren’t able to, then they were shot to death by the guards. Now, as we all know, the position of player No. 1 is generally reserved for an insider. We saw in the previous season that it was the creator of the game, II-nam, who was given that number, and in Squid Game season 2, it was In-ho. In-ho’s sole agenda behind participating in the game was to figure out what Gi-hun was up to. In-ho pretended to be this righteous man who was not only skillful and courageous but also very kindhearted. Gi-hun had started to put his faith in the man, and together, they were able to complete the Six-Legged Pentathlon successfully. There were all sorts of people participating in the games, and the common link between them was that they had all lost money and were in a huge amount of debt. Gi-hun also found his friend Park Jung-bae inside the gaming arena, who stayed alongside him and supported him in whatever he wanted to accomplish till the very end. Another unique aspect of Squid Game season 2 was that, unlike season 1, there were a lot of people who knew each other. There was a rapper named Thanos who found out that the man on whose advice he had invested all his money in a particular cryptocurrency and gone broke was also participating in the game. There was a mother who had accompanied her son as she didn’t want to leave him alone. I believe this creative move did make things a bit more interesting, as apart from the main conflict of going up against each other to win the games, the players had other personal motivations for their actions. The players were given an opportunity to end the game after the first day, but the people who wanted to continue were in the majority even after Gi-hun told them that that was the worst decision that they could take.

Day 3: Game 3

A game called Mingle was played on the 3rd day, and it somehow made Jung-bae realize the kind of man In-ho was and that he was probably just pretending to be kind and upright. So, in the game, the organizers called out a number, and then a player had to put together a team consisting of that exact number of players. For example, if the number called out was 4, then a player had to look for three more people and then enter one of the rooms located around the circumference of the arena. The catch here was that by the time the players reached day 3, they had already made acquaintances, and unspoken alliances had formed. Since in the last game, teams of 5 had come together, every individual already had four more players with them. So, if the number called out was less than 5, then the players had to make the decision to leave that many people behind. Had this game been conducted before the Six-Legged Pentathlon, then I don’t think it would have weighed heavily on the conscience of people like Gi-hun and others. But it was the genius of the game creators, and they knew exactly how to play with human emotions. Gi-hun, In-ho, and their entire team were able to survive, but there was a twist at the end of the day. The voting ended in a tie, and it was announced that the players would get a chance to vote again the next day. The organizers knew that a lot could happen during those 24 hours, and it was an intentional move from their side to conduct the voting after a one day delay.

Night 3 (Day 4): Game 4

In-ho knew that they wouldn’t have to decide what the fourth game would be, as the tension, the stress of impending death, would force the players to go against each other at night. So basically, it could be said that the fourth game was Tic-Tac-Toe, as during the voting, the symbols of O and X were used to denote the two sides. Thanos went after Myung-Gi, the influencer who he blamed for ruining his life. Myung-Gi couldn’t resist his impulse, and he also retaliated in full force. There was a massacre in the washroom as the players from both teams pounced upon each other. Gi-hun knew that the moment the lights went out once again, there would be violence. He wanted to use the situation to his advantage and reach the upper floors from when he believed that the game runners controlled everything. Gi-hun had no clue that In-ho, his trusted ally, was the Front Man. In-ho played it close to his chest and didn’t reveal anything till the very last moment. Gi-hun formed a group, and they successfully snatched the guns of the guards who had intervened in the middle of the night to stop the violence. The entire arena was turned into a battleground, but the odds never favored Gi-hun and his battalion. The rebellion was short-lived, and most of the people ended up getting killed. In-ho faked his own death, and then he came with his soldiers and made Jung-bae and Gi-hun surrender. In-ho killed Jung-bae in front of his eyes as he wanted to make him realize that it was his actions that had caused the death of his friend. In-ho left Gi-hun alive, and I believe that the reason behind doing so was that Gi-hun’s presence made everything much more interesting. There are two more games that will be played in season 3, but I believe that In-ho and his team proved to Gi-hun that it was not going to be a cakewalk to defeat them. Firstly, these people had a firm hold over the system, and secondly, the arena was so well guarded that it wasn’t easy to breach it. It would be interesting if Gi-hun were able to hold the perpetrators accountable and expose them in season 3 of Squid Game.

Related

'Squid Game' Season 2 Timeline & Full Story (2025)

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Recommended Articles
Article information

Author: Lilliana Bartoletti

Last Updated:

Views: 5887

Rating: 4.2 / 5 (73 voted)

Reviews: 88% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Lilliana Bartoletti

Birthday: 1999-11-18

Address: 58866 Tricia Spurs, North Melvinberg, HI 91346-3774

Phone: +50616620367928

Job: Real-Estate Liaison

Hobby: Graffiti, Astronomy, Handball, Magic, Origami, Fashion, Foreign language learning

Introduction: My name is Lilliana Bartoletti, I am a adventurous, pleasant, shiny, beautiful, handsome, zealous, tasty person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.