A "Squid Game" Is Being Held in China for the Poor and Desperate (7 photos)

There is a new and very dark trend on the Internet in China that is scamming the most vulnerable people - the unemployed and the desperate. And then - everything is like in that very "Squid Game" - perform tasks for money.





Remember who was recruited for the games? People at the very bottom of their lives

What is this "Test of Self-Discipline"

That's what it is called on the Internet. But in fact, the poor and debtors are offered to complete almost impossible tasks in order to win a huge cash reward.

One of those who fell for the bait was Zhang, who told about his experience. He was drowning in debt, so he needed money urgently. And a mysterious company on the Internet in its advertisement offered exactly this - if he could complete a simple-looking "self-discipline test."



This is how you can accidentally turn away in your sleep

And he was given such a task - to spend several days in a small hotel room equipped with several surveillance cameras. If he can stay there for 26 days without covering his face at any point during his stay, he will win a cash reward of 859,000 yuan.

Zhang signed up and paid the 6,900 yuan registration fee without hesitation.

But what seemed like salvation soon turned into a nightmare. Zhang failed the challenge within a few hours.





This is what a typical challenge room looks like

The rules seemed simple. The participant must remain in the room at all times, not use any electronic devices, not communicate with anyone, not cover their face at any time, not move, and not cover the cameras.

Online ads for the challenges make them look easy, with one post saying, “You can read a book, draw, knit, or enjoy the view from your window.”

But as Zhang discovered, the rules are incredibly difficult to follow in practice. On his first attempt, he was disqualified within 24 hours for covering his face for more than three seconds.



And it’s all streamed online, too

Zhang failed the second time around when he briefly turned away from the camera while making his bed.

The third time, Zhang was accused of breaking the rules by staff when he touched a can of beer. Part of the “self-discipline test” included not touching or drinking any alcohol left in the room.

Each time, he was quickly disqualified. After days of effort, he ended up paying over 20,000 yuan and winning nothing. He found himself even deeper in debt and feeling cheated.

This is just one example of a bigger problem

Zhang was the victim of a dark trend that has emerged on Chinese social media in recent months.



As you can see, the hotel rooms are different because this is MASSIVE

Companies lure the poor and unemployed into taking part in dubious "challenges" with the promise of winning a hefty prize. Most of these are isolation challenges similar to what Zhang attempted, where participants typically spend days in small rooms under the watchful eye of CCTV cameras.



And you don't even need a secret card, these games are advertised all over the internet

If participants win, they can earn life-changing amounts of money. They actually reach hundreds of thousands of yuan. But they rarely succeed. Instead, like Zhang, they end up paying registration fees over and over again, and then they are disqualified for minor violations of the competition rules.

To top it all off, companies often livestream these challenges and make short videos of the subjects acting funny or weird in their desperation.



A beggar sleeps on the streets in China, but he doesn't have the entry fee to live like a king in a hotel room

This trend has gained huge popularity this year, with dozens of accounts on China's Douyin advertising these "challenges."

Of course, scamming the desperate has always been easier and more profitable. But this is a new level of cynicism, and truly "The Squid Game." Would you try it yourself?