(Ed. Note: This post contains spoilers for games/characters that appear later in the season. Read on only if you know these details well.)

It’s very easy to watch Squid game and think: I could do that. It may even be easier than some of the other reality competition shows. This is, after all, the Faustian bargain of elitist, violent games Squid game. It’s the exact same mindset that leads to the characters getting killed – after all, how hard would it be to survive a single round of Red Light, Green Light?

Squid gameas a show, makes it clear that it’s often more luck than skill that gets people through the games. But for the cast and crew, even achieving a guaranteed result was anything but a walk in the park. And since Season 2 deviates from Season 1’s schoolyard games due to some more difficult competitions, the question had to be asked: Which game was actually the hardest to play?

Even if the actors themselves don’t risk their lives, they are definitely involved in this fight. We interviewed the cast of Squid gameis the second season to find out what was really challenging about this year’s challenges.

“I enjoyed playing with six legs. (…) That was the most fun. But at the same time it was very difficult because we had to stay with our legs tied together the whole time.”

Lee Jung-jae (Seong Gi-hun)

“So for me it was red light, green light because we shot it for four or five days and I was screaming at the top of my lungs the whole time. I say, “Freeze!” or “Stop!” and kind of boss people around. I screamed the whole time, and sometimes you get a little dizzy when you scream so much.

“Luckily I didn’t lose my voice and we were able to finish the scene well. But yes, that was the biggest challenge for me.”

Kang Ae-sim (Jang Geum-ja)

“It would definitely be the (pentathlon). It reminded me of pep rallies or those big games we used to have at school back when we were divided into the red team and the blue team and people were cheering and everyone was watching, and there was a real excitement and emotion of those games.”

Showrunner Hwang Dong-hyuk

“For me it was definitely the pentathlon – especially because they were easy So a lot of people who had to appear on screen and on set. And there was so much sand dust on the floor. This caused many people to cough constantly; I remember that I also had a lot of difficulty breathing and later developed a respiratory cold because of it. And we (only) had so many days of shooting to film the entire sequence. I think it was almost like a nightmare at the time – because I think we did about 15 to 16 days of filming over a period of probably at least two or three weeks. So if I had to do it all over again, I don’t think I could.”

Lee Byung-hun (frontman)

“While I strongly believe that it was probably director Hwang who had to go through the most difficulties as an actor (and for whom it was probably the most challenging because he had to think about all the complexities). I think the pentathlon in these scenes was one of the most difficult scenes to shoot. Because firstly, the dust – the air was constantly filled with sand dust, so breathing was difficult. And there were so many people on screen, as an actor you always have to keep that in mind.

“But also in Season 2, because my character requires different facets where I have to be part frontman, part In-ho and then part the wrong person Young-il. So sometimes I had to turn my gaze on and off by seeing Young-il’s and then the next look, In-ho’s, and immediately turn that on and off with each fleeting moment. That was both very challenging and fascinating and a fun challenge for me as a performer.”

Yang Dong-geun (Park Yong-sik)

“I think for me it was definitely the (carousel) game because I had to show a lot of those deep inner emotions. And I think it was a difficult process for me to get to the point where I could express those emotions.”

Lee Seo-hwan (Park Jung-bae)

“For me it was the (carousel) game. It was actually physically difficult for me because I have very poor eyesight and the lights go off and come back on in a second and sometimes it blinds you and you just can’t see for a few seconds. Also, the floor was very slippery and there were so many people that it was a physical challenge for me.”

Yim Si-wan (Lee Myung-gi)

“Before filming, I thought green light and red light would be relatively easy. But that wasn’t the case, because it was actually very difficult for me to stand still without moving.”