This crustacean game has absolutely nothing to do with a popular Netflix show set in Korea.
On Steam, there’s a game called Crab Game. It’s a first-person multiplayer game in which the player competes in a series of minigames based on children’s games in order to win the “ultimate cash prize” [sic], according to the developer.
If this sounds familiar, there is a disclaimer that could be important. Crab Game’s Steam page adds that it isn’t based on any online streaming pop culture Korean tv shows because that would get him in legal trouble, which they aren’t doing.
Crab Game became popular with Twitch streamers earlier this month, with names like xQc and Sodapoppin taking a look at the game, which isn’t based on a Netflix hit Korean show. However, these Twitcher users and others discovered they were subjected to DDOS attacks; the public lobbies for Crab Game were apparently targeted. Dani, the developer, apologized on Twitter and promised to fix the problem. The game appears to be on an upward curve in followers since these early highs (and lows), even though this isn’t related to a specific series directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk, but rather to a downward trend in concurrent players.
Crab Game has seen a steady decline on SteamDB, which tracks a game’s popularity on the digital store, with a drop of around 40% in players in the last month. The game went live on October 29 and reached a 24-hour peak of 56,106 concurrent players in early November. Around the same time, it reached an all-time high of 283,315 viewers on Twitch. However, since then, the number of concurrent players has dropped to around 13,800 at the time of writing.
Crab Game has a maximum of 35 players, 28 maps, and nine game modes. Players can fight each other with guns and melee weapons, and there are children’s games such as running and stopping to the turn of a giant doll. Dani’s video of Crab Game has 6.1 million views on YouTube, and popular streamers like Pokimane and YouTubers Sidemen have also made videos about the game.
Another YouTuber, MrBeast spent a massive amount of $456,000 to recreate Squid Game in real life, building sets that look exactly like those in the show. So far, 122 million people have watched his 24-minute video. However, it’s most likely the last major hiccup in a fading trend. Squid Game took a while to gain traction after its launch at the end of September, but once it did, it took the world by storm. Squid Game was streamed by millions of people all over the world, and it became a cultural phenomenon. SNL mocked it with a skit featuring Oscar winner Rami Malek singing a country song with Squid Game-inspired lyrics and backgrounds. The games were first played on playgrounds by children. Squid Game tracksuits became popular purchases, especially around Halloween, and Squid Gamers flooded the streets from Tokyo to Seoul and New York City.
However, trends come and go, and Crab Game appears to be fading as the buzz surrounding the hit show fades. Who knows, maybe some dedicated players will keep the game alive, especially since Dani appears to be still adding new content to the game. Meanwhile, Squid Game’s second season has been confirmed
