Squid Game Season 3 Ending Explained: The Final Confrontation and the Fate of Gi-hun

Following a production schedule that saw Squid Game Season 3 Ending Explained filmed back-to-back, the final chapter of the Squid Game saga arrived on Netflix on June 27, 2025. The seven-episode season provided the explosive resolution to the story that began in Season 2, which saw Gi-hun re-enter the game not for money, but to destroy the sinister organization from within. The finale, in particular, was a shocking and emotionally devastating masterclass in storytelling, leaving no stone unturned as it explored the ultimate fate of its protagonists and the philosophical underpinnings of the game itself.

This deep dive will fully explain the complex ending, the fates of the main characters, and the powerful message that Squid Game leaves behind.

The Return to the Arena: A New Set of Players, a Familiar Deception

Season 2 began two years after Gi-hun’s victory, finding him a shell of his former self, haunted by the deaths of his fellow players. His initial attempts to dismantle the game from the outside—including hiring a team to track down the enigmatic Recruiter—proved futile. Driven by a desire for vengeance and justice, he re-entered the games, only to discover a sinister new twist: the Front Man, Hwang In-ho, had also joined the games as a participant, Player 001.

Posing as the benevolent Player 001, a clear and direct parallel to the manipulative Oh Il-nam from the first season, the Front Man played a masterful long game. He befriended Gi-hun and a new set of players, using his inside knowledge of the games to influence outcomes, sow discord, and strategically eliminate those who posed a threat to his hidden agenda. The final season picks up with this dynamic already in motion, as the remaining players, unaware of the Front Man’s true identity, are pulled deeper into the final, deadly games.

The Final Gauntlet: The Games of Season 3

The Squid Game Season 3 Ending Explained structure mirrored its predecessors, with a series of deceptively simple children’s games escalating in complexity and brutality. The remaining players were put through a series of harrowing challenges, including a deadly, high-stakes version of the Korean folk game “Yutnori” and a terrifying twist on “Gonggi.” Each game served to highlight the moral choices and human frailties of the contestants, with the Front Man subtly manipulating events to guide the outcome.

The final two games, however, were where the season’s true genius—and its most brutal moments—were revealed.

The “Dalgona” Maze: The players were led into a massive, multi-level maze constructed from the same honeycomb shapes from the Dalgona game. The challenge was not to carve a single shape, but to navigate the entire maze by breaking through the thinnest parts of the honeycomb walls. The maze was rigged with pressure-sensitive panels that would cause floors to collapse, sending players plummeting to their deaths. It was a test of both precision and trust, as players had to work together to avoid lethal traps. This game saw the demise of several new fan-favorite characters, including the transgender player Cho Hyun-ju, who sacrificed herself to save Gi-hun, finally earning the money she needed for gender-affirming surgery in a posthumous twist.

The Glass Bridge Returns: The final two surviving players found themselves back in a new version of the dreaded Glass Bridge game, but with a terrifying twist. Instead of just jumping on different types of glass, the players were forced to answer a series of questions about their darkest secrets and past transgressions. A correct answer would light up a safe path on the bridge, while an incorrect answer would shatter the glass beneath them. The game was designed to force a final, psychological confrontation between Gi-hun and Player 001.

The Big Reveal: Gi-hun vs. the Front Man

It was on the Glass Bridge that the Front Man’s deception was finally and brutally revealed. As the game progressed, Gi-hun began to notice inconsistencies in Player 001’s knowledge of the game’s rules and history. After a particularly difficult question about the founder of the games, Player 001 gave a slight, knowing smile, revealing his true identity to a horrified Gi-hun.

The confrontation that followed was the emotional climax of the entire series. The Front Man confessed his true identity, revealing that he had won a previous game and was forced into a leadership role as part of the organization. His story was a parallel to Gi-hun’s: a man broken by the system who, instead of trying to dismantle it, chose to become its master. He saw himself not as a villain, but as a realist who understood the brutal truth of the world. Gi-hun, in his eyes, was a naive idealist doomed to fail.

The final question of the game was not a secret but a choice: “What is worth more than money?” Gi-hun answered, “Human life.” The Front Man answered, “Power.” Both answers were deemed correct, and both men were allowed to cross the final section of the bridge. This was the show’s final, cynical commentary on its core themes. The game didn’t care about their morals; both were tools in a system that valued both human suffering and the control it created.

The True Ending: Gi-hun’s Choice and the Fall of the VIPs

As the game concluded, the VIPs appeared for their final spectacle. However, Gi-hun had not been alone in his mission. All season, his “task force” from the outside, including the now-surviving detective Hwang Jun-ho, had been working to track the games. Jun-ho, having finally found a key piece of information, led the police to the island just as the final confrontation was occurring.

In a thrilling and chaotic climax, the police stormed the facility, arresting the VIPs and their associates. Jun-ho confronted his brother, the Front Man, for the first time since their Season 1 cliffhanger. The emotional reunion was brief and tragic. The Front Man, cornered and facing a life in prison, chose a final, nihilistic act, triggering an explosive device that destroyed the control room, killing himself and preventing the VIPs from escaping. It was a final, devastating show of power, a twisted form of redemption that denied both justice and reconciliation.

Gi-hun, the final winner of the games, stood in the wreckage, covered in the blood and dust of the final explosion. The game was over, but at a devastating personal cost. He didn’t win money; he had to re-live the horrors he sought to destroy. His victory was not in a bank account but in the dismantling of the organization.

The final scenes of the series offered a look at the aftermath. The VIPs were arrested and faced global scrutiny. The prize money from the final game was confiscated and donated to charity in a move orchestrated by Gi-hun, ensuring that no one would benefit from the bloodshed. Gi-hun, now free but emotionally scarred, was seen walking away from the wreckage, his red hair a symbol of his radical transformation and his unwillingness to go back to his old life. He was not a winner, but a survivor who had fulfilled his purpose. He had not only broken the cycle of the game, but he had also broken the cycle of his own life, choosing to carry the burden of his experience rather than seek escape.

The Final Message

The ending of Squid Game Season 3 was not a triumphant victory lap. It was a somber, hard-hitting finale that stayed true to the show’s core themes. It argued that a system of inequality cannot be simply defeated by a single hero; it must be brought down through radical action and immense sacrifice. The Front Man’s fate served as a brutal counterpoint to Gi-hun’s journey, showcasing what happens when a person’s pain is channeled into cynicism rather than hope.

Ultimately, the final season provided a powerful and uncompromised message. The game was not just a competition; it was a symptom of a sick world. By ending the game, Gi-hun didn’t become a hero with a happy ending. He became a man who had faced the true horror of humanity and decided to fight back, regardless of the cost. The final shot of him, walking away from the rubble of the game’s ruins, was a poignant testament to the fact that even after the game is over, the fight for a better world has just begun.