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- Since 'Squid Game' was released, TikTokers have been rushing to replicate the show's dalgona candy.
- The tag #dalgonacandy has nearly a billion views on TikTok.
- TikTok has also introduced a virtual effect based on the game.
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Dalgona has taken over TikTok's For You Page with a little help from breakout Netflix show "Squid Game."
The candy, which is made from sugar and baking soda, has been sold by street vendors in South Korea for decades, and was especially popular in the 1970s and 1980s, according to the South China Morning Post. It's also known as "honeycomb toffee" due to its taste and consistency.
The dalgona candy challenge appears in the third episode of "Squid Game." Before the clock ran out, players needed to use a needle to carve the shapes that are stamped into the candy. If players broke the dalgona and were unable to cut the complete shape out of the brittle candy, they were killed.
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With "Squid Game" continuing to soar in popularity, TikTokers all over the world are paying homage to dalgona candy. In the weeks since the Korean-language series dropped, the #dalgona tag on TikTok has surpassed a billion views, while #dalgonacandy is fast approaching the benchmark with over 990 million views at the time of writing.
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Several TikTok recipes for dalgona, such as those by user Michelle (who shared her mother's recipe) and food vlogger Bakersmann Cookies, have been watched by over 20 million people each.
There are also those who don't just want to try the cookies, but undertake the challenge too — without the deadly consequences, of course. Posting under tags like #dalgonachallenge, #dalgonacandychallenge, and #honeycombchallenge (which have nearly 100 million views combined), thousands of TikTokers are challenging themselves to see whether they'd survive "Squid Game."
To do this, users are arming themselves with toothpicks, needles, and pins to carve shapes like umbrellas and stars out of the candy with varying degrees of success. A lot of these TikToks add to the atmosphere and pay homage to "Squid Game" by featuring now-viral audio from the show's "Red Light, Green Light" challenge.
Some TikTokers' efforts, such as those of user @erictriesit, have become massively viral — with Eric's failed attempt not only amassing over 80 million views, but also garnering a comment from TikTok's official account, whichasked, "If the cookies don't survive what chance do you have?"
@erictriesit why is this so difficult to make?!? #squidgame #squidgamenetflix #dalgona #korea #korean #dalgonacandy #netflix #fail
♬ Squid Game - Green Light Red Light - Yovinca Prafika
For TikTokers who prefer to not get their hands dirty, the app has introduced its own effect based on the fictional challenge — complete with audio from the show. The effect, entitled "Toffee Game," asks creators to use their heads to carve a shape out of the (digital) candy. Since launching, the effect has been used in over 60,000 TikToks.
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"Squid Game," which premiered last month, charts the journey of a group of cash-strapped people who, in their desperation, decide to compete in a competition to win the $38 million jackpot. The competition is comprised of six challenges, all of which are based on traditional children's games. The penalty for losing is death.
As the dalgona challenge continues to make its mark on social media, the craze hasn't gone unnoticed by Hwang Dong-hyuk, the creator and director of "Squid Game." Talking to The Korea Times, Hwang said, "The production crew and I would joke about our series starting a dalgona craze, like how Netflix's Kingdom did with the gat ― a traditional Korean hat ― but I'm astounded that it actually happened."
Read next
Watch: How the famous dalgona candy from 'Squid Game' is made
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