Kids emulating Squid Game

[ChuckGarabedian]

For background, I saw this article earlier, and a few posts from other news outlets and local primary schools on my Facebook feed which were of a similar vein: www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/uk-news/schools-issue-warning-over-children-21826216

The bit about kids beating up eliminated players during playground games - has anyone actually heard of this happening in their local schools? It just seems a bit unbelievable that a significant enough number of young kids are being allowed to watch the show, so as to try and emulate the premise and trigger a national warning?!

For the record I’ve just finished watching the whole series of SG on Netflix and think it’s a brilliant show, but too violent for primary schoolers IMO.

• [Message from MNHQ: there may be spoilers on this thread]

I’m positive we played red light/green light as children on the playground.

That being said it’s appalling anyone has let their primary aged children watch it. I stopped because I found it so harrowing so let alone some poor ten year old baby who’ll undoubtably have nightmares about it for weeks.

Wtf are the parents thinking?! It was the same when stranger things first came out, I remember little children wandering around in the merchandise and it was like THEY’RE SEVEN.

@Iggly I know plenty of peoples whose schools claimed kids shouldn't be playing it , because it was increasing school yard violence. And I said they actually had no incidents. Just some mums panicking by shit they read online and was telling the school they should be telling parents that kids shouldn't play it.

Our school went so far as telling us kids weren't allowed to play it if they attended the school. Which obviously they can't actually do. It wasn't about it being addictive. All games can be addictive. That message would have been about gaming in general.

Well they'll all have heard of it now thanks to everyone talking about it and giving it more publicity.

As for actual casualties I've not seen a single concrete example of this actually happening in real life.

Fantastic free publicity for Netflix tho. The Daily Record and a bunch of witless parents who don't understand how the internet works are doing their job for them.

People want to tackle violence on the streets but allow their primary aged children to watch a violent show.

Depends on the maturity of your child. My DS is quiet and has never been in trouble at school, certainly never involved in any violence. He’s 11 and in year 7 so all of his friends were watching and talking about it, he subsequently asked whether he could. DH and I watched it alone first and we’re now watching it with him so we know which part to skip past (the only sex scene). He wouldn’t recreate the games, tbh he doesn’t get time at school to piss about anyway because most of his lunch is spent queuing and then eating. I can trust him to watch content like this because he’s extremely mature for his age. Similarly watched Stranger Things with him earlier this year and he’s a big fan of that too.

Thank you @ Rancidoldhag, that was exactly the point I was making, the initial buzz for this came from young kids having seen bits on Tik Tok before it ever dropped in the UK. The set design, the games etc certainly lent itself to being made into clips that would catch the eye of children.

My 12 year old is the most sensible of my lot yet she came home that Friday and commandeered the largest screen in the house (which she never does) and was halfway through episode 2 when I got in. When I asked how she'd heard about it "Tik Tok" "everyone's watching it today, it's the first day on Netflix" everybody being a list of her sensible friends with decent parents. It was definitely a must watch amongst that age due to Tik Tok
By contrast none of her older siblings that range from 16-24 had heard of it and I didn't see a single adult mention it anywhere until well into the following week.

Oh God. I don't even know where to start. Kids will play stupid games. Banning them and making a big deal of it is just going to encourage them more. If kids are hurting each other, that should be dealt with, but big bloody whole school lectures about a TV show that most of them haven't seen and will not see is just nuts. As a nation we really are prone to mass hysteria, aren't we?

It's just another example of how much exposure things have on social media and other platforms now. So much is taken from once source of media and used in another within a completely different context.

My kids are aware of it. They are 6 and 8. They have never seen it nor will they be allowed to see it. But they know about it because their friends talk about it. Gamers they watch on kids You Tube talk about it. There are Squid Games in Roblox which they play.

FWIW, I grew up in the days of the video nasties. As a child, I'd never seen Halloween, Friday the 13th, Childs Play or Nightmare on Elm Street but I knew all of the iconic horror bad guys simply through pop culture.

I also take what my kids say "apparently happens" in school with a large pinch of salt. Apparently a kid in reception used to bring in cans of Mountain Dew with their lunch. Like that was ever getting past the dinner ladies who banned anything other than water. Or the kid who "completed minecraft" in a day.

[quote Dontknowwhatsnext]@Iggly I know plenty of peoples whose schools claimed kids shouldn't be playing it , because it was increasing school yard violence. And I said they actually had no incidents. Just some mums panicking by shit they read online and was telling the school they should be telling parents that kids shouldn't play it.

Our school went so far as telling us kids weren't allowed to play it if they attended the school. Which obviously they can't actually do. It wasn't about it being addictive. All games can be addictive. That message would have been about gaming in general.[/quote]
That was the news story that we saw and were told by the school
It was about the time that my son started playing it so I remember it well! (I decided to play myself to see what all the fuss was about instead).

@Dillyjones72

I’m not convinced that all these kids are beating each other up because they’ve been watching Squid Game - seems like schools are having another panic like they did over the whole Momo thing. I’m sure some kids are watching it but I find it hard to believe enough kids of that age are being allowed to watch such a brutally violent tv show. It should be 18, not 15, even if much of the violence is ‘cartoony’ at times. I’m not sure what more it would have to show to get a 18 cert - swearing??? It’s so violent.

I agree, I've watched all kinds of stuff and can't believe it isn't an 18. What does it need to be to get an 18 rating? Loads of teenagers/their parents see 15 and think it's ok Gus 12 year old to watch. Everything on Netflix seems to be set at 15, do they set the rating themselves? I'm sure I read in the US it's a 17+

it's going to be another "Momo"

I've name changed to say this.

I've just been through a bit of a thing because of Squid game in primary. I've got 2 kids in primary. One is in P6. He came home quite upset yesterday because a lot of the boys were talking about Squid game and talking about the deaths and brains smashed on the floor when they fell through the stepping stones game.

They also played red light, green light with one of the kids being the sniper who would "shoot" and kill anyone caught moving.

Now, I've not problem with the actual game. It's a kids game. I do have a problem with all the Squid game associations and talk from the boys.

I didnt want to single out the kids going into detail because it is a safeguarding issue and I dont want any scrutiny brought down on any individual parents so I posted on the class page. Basically saying that if you've watched that show with your children then could you please have a chat about what is and isnt appropriate to talk about in school etc. The response was pretty much, "so what?"

This morning my son went into school and a group of the boys, the group of his actual close friends, surrounded him and yelled at him until he cried. His brother saw this. It didnt stop until a teacher saw it and intervened.

So basically, the parents dont give a shit, and have told their kids that it was my son and now he's being surrounded by boys yelling at him.

He wont be going to school tomorrow.

@Legitimatesalvage

I've name changed to say this.

I've just been through a bit of a thing because of Squid game in primary. I've got 2 kids in primary. One is in P6. He came home quite upset yesterday because a lot of the boys were talking about Squid game and talking about the deaths and brains smashed on the floor when they fell through the stepping stones game.

They also played red light, green light with one of the kids being the sniper who would "shoot" and kill anyone caught moving.

Now, I've not problem with the actual game. It's a kids game. I do have a problem with all the Squid game associations and talk from the boys.

I didnt want to single out the kids going into detail because it is a safeguarding issue and I dont want any scrutiny brought down on any individual parents so I posted on the class page. Basically saying that if you've watched that show with your children then could you please have a chat about what is and isnt appropriate to talk about in school etc. The response was pretty much, "so what?"

This morning my son went into school and a group of the boys, the group of his actual close friends, surrounded him and yelled at him until he cried. His brother saw this. It didnt stop until a teacher saw it and intervened.

So basically, the parents dont give a shit, and have told their kids that it was my son and now he's being surrounded by boys yelling at him.

He wont be going to school tomorrow.

It's sad isn't it that some just aren't bothered, and done seem to comprehend that their actions affect others too. It's quite clearly a programme for adults, there are content warnings and it's all over social media- and yet people still think it's suitable and okay for little ones to watch, so sad.

It's because youtubers and the like are incorporating it into videos of minecraft/roblox etc. Luckily DS hasn't seen any of it but that's because youtube is only allowed on the sitting room TV and apps like tiktok are banned from his tablet. DD (secondary school) has seen it and wants to make some of the cookies.

But on our Netflix it asks for a 4 digit code if you want to watch anything adult. So I don't understand how kids can watch it without their parents knowing.

No different from bulldog, manhunt etc back in the day. Kids will always play these kind of games. And bans at school will only make a 'black market' of after school play on the local fields etc.

Let them live.

@Popcornriver

It's because youtubers and the like are incorporating it into videos of minecraft/roblox etc. Luckily DS hasn't seen any of it but that's because youtube is only allowed on the sitting room TV and apps like tiktok are banned from his tablet. DD (secondary school) has seen it and wants to make some of the cookies.

I was coming along to say this.

I have far more of an issue (as a teacher, and as a parent) with children being allowed to play Roblox and free access to Youtube than with them playing Red Light, Green Light/What's the Time Mr Wolf. The vast, vast, majority of the children who are aware of the games and SG generally have picked it up from TikTok, Youtube and Roblox and haven't actually watched the programme.
So many inappropriate playground games come around because of Roblox (Piggy, anyone?) and yet there's no moral panic.

@Bananalanacake

But on our Netflix it asks for a 4 digit code if you want to watch anything adult. So I don't understand how kids can watch it without their parents knowing.

I presume that's because you set up parental restrictions on your account or kids have a child account that they use. A lot of parents don't do that so it's a free for all.

@LampLighter414

It's not the games that are the problem. They are kids' games. It's all the stuff they're adding into it from the show, the language they're using, the things they're telling each other to act out (brains smashed on the floor being one of those).

It isnt ok for primary children to be doing that in a playground. It absolutely isnt OK for them to surround one of their peers who didnt enjoy that aspect and shout at them until they cry.

@LampLighter414

No different from bulldog, manhunt etc back in the day. Kids will always play these kind of games. And bans at school will only make a 'black market' of after school play on the local fields etc.

Let them live.

Playing the games is not the issue, letting your primary children watch this show is. It's not suitable inn the slightest.

Children have been playing shooting games for generations.

Toy guns are easy enough to come by.

Squid Game isn’t to blame for that. Obviously young children shouldn’t be watching it, but you can’t blame violence and acting out shootings on Squid Game.

Maybe parents should know or monitor what their children are looking at online or on Netflix?

@Legitimatesalvage

I've name changed to say this.

I've just been through a bit of a thing because of Squid game in primary. I've got 2 kids in primary. One is in P6. He came home quite upset yesterday because a lot of the boys were talking about Squid game and talking about the deaths and brains smashed on the floor when they fell through the stepping stones game.

They also played red light, green light with one of the kids being the sniper who would "shoot" and kill anyone caught moving.

Now, I've not problem with the actual game. It's a kids game. I do have a problem with all the Squid game associations and talk from the boys.

I didnt want to single out the kids going into detail because it is a safeguarding issue and I dont want any scrutiny brought down on any individual parents so I posted on the class page. Basically saying that if you've watched that show with your children then could you please have a chat about what is and isnt appropriate to talk about in school etc. The response was pretty much, "so what?"

This morning my son went into school and a group of the boys, the group of his actual close friends, surrounded him and yelled at him until he cried. His brother saw this. It didnt stop until a teacher saw it and intervened.

So basically, the parents dont give a shit, and have told their kids that it was my son and now he's being surrounded by boys yelling at him.

He wont be going to school tomorrow.

I'm so sorry that your child has had to go through this bullying. Hopefully the school will deal with it. Some parents just don't care what their children do

Kids shouldn't be smashing each others' brains out and shooting each other, for sure.