PLAINWELL, Mich. — A West Michigan YouTuber is hosting his own version of Squid Game, from the wildly popular Netflix series of the same name, with all of the proceeds going to St. Jude's.
The event is happening this Saturday, Oct. 30, starting at 3 p.m. at Kenyon Park in Plainwell. There are still spots available, but sign up before the roster fills up.
Anyone middle school age through college is eligible, with a $30 cost to participate.
The winner will receive $500 cash, with second place getting an impressive themed gift basket, which will remain somewhat of a mystery until it is awarded.
Cory Dean, better known as CDusk online, has been creating video content full time for about the past three years.
He has found significant success on the video-sharing platform, with over 115,000 subscribers watching his content.
“Every YouTuber you think of, at least big ones... it used to be that everyone was in California; everyone's doing it down there,” Dean told FOX 17 Thursday morning.
“Then you have people... that they don't need to be out there to do that sort of stuff; they can be at home like me. I'm just in my bedroom, just recording videos.”
Dean says the years he has already spent shooting and producing videos has helped him develop more confidence, and deeper roots within his own West Michigan community.
He is going to have several people filming the events Saturday for an upcoming YouTube video. He will also be asking participants to shoot video on their phones when they can, so he can add a multitude of visual perspectives to the piece.
Dean's version of Squid Game will consist of the following stages:
- Ddakji — Player must flip one folded-up paper over by slamming it with another (similar to Pogs in the mid-'90s).
- Red Light, Green Light — Everyone lines up and runs toward a goal line when a designated person announces "green light." Anyone moving when they announce "red light" is eliminated.
- Ppopgi/Honeycomb Cookie — Player must cut stamped shapes out of a fragile honeycomb cookie. Break the cookie and you are eliminated.
- Tug of War — Ten players on each side compete for dominance of a rope.
- Marbles — Teams of two players are each given a set of 10 marbles and must obtain all of their opponents' marbles through play.
- Squid Game — A version of the popular playground game "tag," as played in South Korea in the 1970s and 1980s.
Only 100 people will be able to compete in Saturday's competition. You can sign up for the event HERE.
