How Are Guards Recruited in Squid Game? The Mystery of the Pink Soldiers

Every Squid Game viewer has wondered: who are the people behind those masks?

The players we understand. They're desperate individuals recruited through the ddakji game, driven by debt and desperation to risk their lives. But the guards—the anonymous figures in pink jumpsuits with geometric masks—remain one of the show's greatest mysteries.

How do you recruit someone to work at a death game? Where do these people come from? Are they volunteers, victims, or something else entirely? After three seasons, we finally have some answers—and plenty of lingering questions.

Guard Hierarchy Explained: Circles, Triangles, and Squares

The geometric symbols aren't random—they represent a strict hierarchy.

Circle Masks (Workers): The lowest level of guards. They perform manual labor: moving bodies, serving food, cleaning areas. They're forbidden from speaking except when giving basic commands. In Season 1, we see they're treated as expendable—killed without hesitation when they break rules.

Triangle Masks (Soldiers): Armed guards responsible for executing players and maintaining order. They handle weapons and enforce the game rules. They have slightly more autonomy than circle masks but still operate under strict surveillance.

Square Masks (Managers): Supervisors who oversee the workers and soldiers. They're the only guards shown speaking with any authority. Square masks report directly to the Front Man and handle administrative duties.

The Front Man: The only guard without a geometric mask—instead wearing a distinctive black mask. He's the games' overseer, answering only to the Host (Oh Il-nam in Season 1).

What This Structure Tells Us: The hierarchy mirrors corporate structures—fitting for a show about capitalism. The masks ensure anonymity and prevent individual identity, turning people into functions. Even the guards are dehumanized within the system.

What All Three Seasons Revealed

• Guards live on the island in dormitory conditions
• They're forbidden from removing masks or speaking unnecessarily
• Breaking rules results in immediate execution
• Some guards run a black market organ-harvesting operation, suggesting not all are true believers

• The Front Man (In-ho) was once a player who won the games
• Guards are replaced regularly, suggesting high turnover
• Some guards show emotion when observing particularly brutal games
• A guard helps Gi-hun briefly, indicating not all are loyal to the organization

• Guard recruitment appears tied to economic desperation, similar to players
• Some guards are revealed to have backgrounds in military or security
• The organization has multiple facilities worldwide
• Guards are subjected to psychological conditioning

• The exact recruitment process
• Whether guards can ever leave
• How the organization finds trustworthy candidates
• The selection criteria for different mask levels

The Best Fan Theories: Former Players or Something Else?

Theory 1: Guards Are Previous Players

• The Front Man was confirmed to be a previous winner
• Guards' familiarity with game mechanics suggests personal experience
• The organization already has files on desperate people

Theory 2: Military/Criminal Recruitment

• Combat training evident in their discipline
• Willingness to kill without hesitation
• Organized hierarchy mirrors military structures
• Could be recruited from prisons or discharged soldiers

Theory 3: Debt Slavery

• They work off debts by serving the games
• Pink jumpsuits mark them as laborers, not killers
• The "no speaking" rule keeps them from coordinating
• Being killed for infractions is their punishment for debt

Theory 4: True Believers

• They see the games as providing "fair" competition
• Ideology of equality through elimination
• Similar to how some join cults or extremist organizations
• The organization preys on those who feel society failed them

Creator Hwang Dong-hyuk's Comments: Hwang has said the guard recruitment process was intentionally left vague to maintain mystery, but confirmed that "they are people with their own stories" and that future content may explore their origins more deeply.

The Front Man's Role in Recruitment

In-ho's transformation from player to overseer is the only guard origin story we have.

His Journey: 1. Won the games as a desperate player 2. Returned to society but couldn't adjust 3. Came back to the games—but as their leader 4. Now recruits and manages all guards

• People who understand the games intimately
• Those who can't return to normal society
• Individuals who find meaning in the games' twisted logic
• Winners who spent their money and need purpose

The Parallel to Gi-hun: Season 3 explores whether Gi-hun, another winner, could have become like In-ho. Their confrontation highlights how the games corrupt even survivors, potentially turning victims into perpetrators.

The Recruiting Philosophy: The Front Man sees himself as offering opportunities—both to players and guards. In his view, everyone chooses to be there. The organization exploits desperation but frames it as freedom.

What Season 3 Finally Revealed

Season 3 provided more context about the guard operation than ever before.

The Training Process: We see glimpses of guard training—physical conditioning, weapons training, and psychological programming. New guards are broken down and rebuilt, similar to military boot camp but more extreme.

Recruitment Scenes: For the first time, Season 3 shows actual guard recruitment. Candidates are approached in desperate situations—not unlike the ddakji game for players, but with a different proposition.

• Steady pay
• Elimination of personal debts
• Purpose and belonging
• Escape from their previous lives

• They can never leave
• Their identities are erased
• Rule violations mean death
• They're complicit in murder

Why They Stay: Even learning the truth, most guards remain. They've already crossed moral lines. Their old lives are gone. The organization provides structure in exchange for humanity.

The Ultimate Horror: The guards' situation mirrors the players': both groups are trapped by systems that exploit their desperation. The pink soldiers aren't monsters—they're victims who became perpetrators. That's the show's most disturbing message about systemic violence.