The Chilling Truth: 5 Real-Life South Korean Events That Inspired Squid Game’s Deadly Games

The global phenomenon *Squid Game* captured the world’s attention with its brutal, high-stakes survival games, but the most terrifying part of the series isn't the fiction—it's the reality. As of December 2025, the show is not based on a single, actual "death game," but its entire premise is a searing, direct critique of modern society, drawing inspiration from very real, violent, and desperate events in South Korean history and the creator's own life.

The series’ creator, Hwang Dong-hyuk, has been explicit that the show is a metaphor for the cutthroat competition and extreme economic inequality that forces ordinary people into impossible situations. The desperation of the 456 players is a mirror reflecting the crushing household debt crisis and systemic failures that plague millions in South Korea and across the globe.

Hwang Dong-hyuk: The Creator’s Debt and Biography

The dark heart of *Squid Game* was forged in the personal and professional struggles of its creator, Hwang Dong-hyuk. His own history is deeply intertwined with the themes of financial desperation that define the show.

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• Full Name: Hwang Dong-hyuk (황동혁)
• Born: May 26, 1971
• Place of Birth: Seoul, South Korea
• Education: Seoul National University (B.A. in Communications), University of Southern California (M.F.A. in Film Production)
• Early Career: Directed short films before achieving critical acclaim with features like *My Father* (2007) and *Silenced* (2011).
• Personal Debt Struggle: Hwang conceived the idea for *Squid Game* in 2008 while struggling financially. He was living with his mother and grandmother and had to stop writing the script for a time because he was forced to sell his laptop due to debt.
• Inspiration Sources: In addition to his personal debt, he drew inspiration from Japanese survival manga like *Battle Royale*, *Liar Game*, and *Kaiji*.
• Major Works: *Silenced* (2011), *Miss Granny* (2014), *The Fortress* (2017), and *Squid Game* (2021).

Hwang's personal experience with mounting debt became the emotional foundation for the main character, Seong Gi-hun (Player 456), a man drowning in gambling debts and struggling to provide for his family. This connection between the creator's life and the protagonist's struggle lends a chilling authenticity to the fictional games.

The True-Life Violence: The Ssangyong Motor Strike of 2009

While the games themselves are fictional, the single most direct and specific real-life event that inspired a major plot point is the Ssangyong Motor Strike of 2009. This tragic labor dispute forms the core of Seong Gi-hun's backstory, giving him the reason for his deep financial ruin and trauma.

The Ssangyong Strike Parallel

In the show, Gi-hun is a former employee of a car manufacturer who participated in a violent labor strike, which resulted in the death of a colleague and his subsequent firing.

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The real Ssangyong Motor Company, a major South Korean automaker, announced massive layoffs of over 2,600 workers in 2009 following a financial crisis. The laid-off workers staged a 77-day occupation of the factory in Pyeongtaek, leading to violent clashes with police and company-hired security forces.

The aftermath of the strike was devastating. Many of the laid-off workers and their family members suffered from severe mental health issues, financial ruin, and in some tragic cases, took their own lives. Hwang Dong-hyuk used this very real, very painful event to ground Gi-hun's story in a palpable, national tragedy, establishing the systemic failure that pushes people to the brink.

Beyond the Strike: The South Korean Debt Crisis and Economic Inequality

The Ssangyong strike is just one example of the larger, pervasive issue *Squid Game* critiques: the catastrophic levels of household debt and the widening economic inequality in South Korea. This theme is the show's most powerful real-life parallel.

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The Crushing Weight of Korean Household Debt

The primary reason every contestant agrees to participate in the lethal games is debt. This is a direct reflection of South Korea's economic reality.

• A National Crisis: South Korea has one of the highest levels of household debt relative to its GDP among developed nations.
• The IMF Crisis Echo: The devastating 1997 Asian Financial Crisis (often referred to as the IMF Crisis in Korea) fundamentally changed the country’s economic structure, leading to mass layoffs and a deep-seated fear of financial instability that persists today.
• Young Adult Debt: Recent data shows that more than one in five young adults in South Korea are heavily in debt, struggling with soaring housing costs and living expenses. The average debt for a household head in their 40s can exceed twice their annual income.

Characters like Ali Abdul, the desperate migrant worker, and Kang Sae-byeok, the North Korean defector, represent the marginalized populations for whom the promise of the 45.6 billion won prize is the only conceivable path to freedom. The show argues that the economic system itself is a rigged game, forcing the poor to prey on each other for the entertainment of the wealthy elite.

The Dystopian Parallels: The VIPs and the Brothers’ Home Scandal

The show’s critique of the wealthy elite—represented by the masked VIPs who bet on the players’ lives—is also rooted in real-world observations. Furthermore, the concept of a hidden, deadly game operating outside the law has parallels to a dark chapter in South Korean history.

The VIPs as Global Elites

In recent interviews, Hwang Dong-hyuk revealed that the VIPs who appear in the later seasons were inspired by the actions and attitudes of the global elite. He saw them as a critique of the wealthy who view the struggles of the poor as mere entertainment, completely detached from the human cost of their economic systems.

The VIPs represent the ultimate failure of a capitalist society: a system where a small, privileged group can manipulate and profit from the desperate conditions of the majority, all while remaining anonymous and untouchable.

The Chilling Shadow of Brothers' Home

While not a direct inspiration confirmed by the creator, many viewers and commentators have drawn parallels between the *Squid Game* facility and the horrific Brothers' Home scandal.

The Brothers' Home was a state-funded welfare facility in Busan, South Korea, that operated from the 1960s to the late 1980s. Thousands of homeless, disabled, and petty criminals were rounded up and detained there. Inside, they were subjected to forced labor, beatings, rape, and murder. The facility operated with impunity for decades, highlighting a shocking instance of systemic violence and neglect toward the most vulnerable in society. The idea of a closed, violent system where people are forced to participate in a struggle for survival resonates deeply with the Brothers’ Home tragedy.

Conclusion: The Fiction That Exposes Reality

The question "Is *Squid Game* based off a real story?" can be answered with a qualified "no," but the show is far from pure fantasy. The games, the masks, and the killer doll are fiction, but the poverty, the crippling debt, the labor violence, and the systemic exploitation are all painfully real elements of modern South Korean society.

By using the universally understood language of childhood games, Hwang Dong-hyuk created a powerful capitalism critique and a dystopian survival drama that resonates globally. The show is a warning—a visceral reminder that when a society fails its most vulnerable citizens, it creates a real-life environment of desperation where the stakes are life and death, even without the presence of masked guards and a giant piggy bank.