7 Things to Watch After Squid Game

When Squid Game first landed on Netflix, it took viewers by a storm. Squid Game is one of the most intense thriller shows in modern history. Season 1 premiered in 2021, followed by Season 2 in 2024. It tells the story of hundreds of contestants willing to fight for their lives in a reality TV-style competition to pay their way out of debt.

The concept of the show is as creepy and unsettling as it sounds. For some contestants, their debt has become so consuming that the possibility of dying doesn’t even feel that scary to them anymore. The show was such a hit that Squid Game: The Experience was launched to give viewers a chance to participate in the creative chaos as well.

On top of that, a Squid Game remake in English has also been rumored since the original show was filmed in Korean. Here’s a roundup of seven other attention-grabbing shows and movies to watch if you’ve already finished watching Squid Game and consider yourself to be a fan of the concept.

Physical: 100

Anyone interested in a reality TV show that’s similar to Squid Game should know that Physical: 100 is a great follow-up. Season 1 was a hit, so Netflix renewed the show without hesitation. Watching Physical: 100 will remind you of a real-life episode of Squid Game, except you won’t actually see any contestants die bloody or gruesome deaths.

The challenges showcase the strength and talent of military personnel, bodybuilders, MMA fighters, and others who spend tons of time in the gym. Physical: 100 doesn’t pluck contestants who are deeply in debt, but it does offer tons of similarities to Squid Game regarding the hard-hitting competitions contestants dive into.

Kaiji: Ultimate Survivor

Anime lovers have much to celebrate when it comes to a show like Kaiji: Ultimate Survivor. Although this is an animated show, it’s undeniably comparable to Squid Game with uncanny similarities that keep viewers hooked. It focuses on a man named Kaiji who has one of the most unlucky auras ever.

After finding himself deeply buried in debt, he agrees to participate in a series of games to pay his way out of the hole. If you’re hoping to see scenes that are just as brutal and shocking as what you saw in Squid Game, then Kaiji: Ultimate Survivor certainly fits the bill. In one scene, contestants play Rock Paper Scissors while walking across an electrified balance beam.

Alice in Borderland

Alice in Borderland is one show that highlights anyone’s worst fear after watching Squid Game. If you woke up and found yourself in the middle of chaos, forced to play games for survival, you’d quickly realize that you were in a full-fledged nightmare. Alice in Borderland truly maintains that energy as it focuses on a video gamer and his besties stuck in a parallel version of Tokyo.

In order to survive, they must solve a slew of problems correctly. If their problem-solving skills fail them, it means they’ll face imminent death. The big difference between Squid Game and Alice in Borderland is that the contestants solve problems rather than competing against each other physically. Alice in Borderland has attracted so many fans that Season 3 is on its way in 2025.

Panic

The most unfortunate detail about Panic as a TV show is that it only lasted for one season. However, that doesn’t mean it isn’t worth the watch. It’s an interesting show to compare to Squid Game, designed to appeal to an audience of teenagers and young adults more than other age ranges. It focuses on a group of hopeless people living in Carp, Texas.

Carp has a reputation for being a rundown, boring, uneventful place to live. When a group of residents is granted the opportunity to compete in dangerous challenges for a chance to win $50,000, they’re on board. Whoever wins can use the $50,000 to escape Carp forever. The dangerous challenges are liable to end in death, similar to the appalling challenges in Squid Game.

As the Gods Will

One of the most disturbing games viewers saw in Squid Game was Red Light Green Light. The game is typically thought of as innocent and fun when it’s played on playgrounds across the globe. But in Squid Game, Red Light Green Light ends in bloody murder. As the Gods Will is comparable to Squid Game since the movie starts with an edgy game of Red Light Green Light that’s also incredibly deadly.

In As the Gods Will, the penalty for losing competitions is death — straight up. Just like in Squid Game, this movie turns childhood games that are otherwise reflected on with nostalgia into some of the most terrifying and spine-chilling onscreen moments ever.

3%

Who wants to be stuck living in poverty forever? That’s the hard-hitting question the characters in 3% ask each other in early scenes of the show. 3% tells the story of a group of young adults living in depression and poverty. They all get the chance to finally make it to an island paradise where they can live with the wealthiest members of society.

After turning 20 years old, they can go through something called the “Process,” which is a series of horrifying physical tests and challenges. If they can’t successfully decipher hallucinations caused by gas or solve fake crime scene setups, there’s no way they’ll be able to survive and make it to the island paradise. Only 3% of players survive, hence the show’s title.

The Hunger Games

One of the most iconic movie series in recent history is The Hunger Games Saga. Five movies were released in total, honoring the novel series of the same name written by Suzanne Collins. However, the first Hunger Games movie is a great starting point as a follow-up flick to watch after finishing Squid Game.

In The Hunger Games, a brave teenage girl (Jennifer Lawrence) volunteers as tribute in place of her little sister. She’s forced to fight against other children and teenagers in a dystopian battlefield for a chance to end up as the victor of the year. The winner gets to experience wealth, riches, and opulence for the first time after surviving starvation and poverty.