Squid Game token: What It Is, Why It Failed, and What You Need to Know

When the Squid Game token, a cryptocurrency tied to the Netflix series Squid Game that promised high returns but had no real utility or team. Also known as SQUID, it became one of the most infamous crypto scams of 2021. It wasn’t built to last—it was built to vanish. The token rode the hype of a global TV hit, lured in investors with fake promises of gaming rewards, and then vanished overnight, taking over $3 million with it. This isn’t just a story about a bad investment. It’s a warning label for anyone chasing quick crypto gains.

The meme coin, a type of cryptocurrency created for fun or viral appeal, often with no underlying technology or use case. Also known as dog coin, it culture made the Squid Game token feel normal. People saw Dogecoin, Shiba Inu, and others rise on hype alone—and assumed this was the same. But unlike those, Squid Game had zero transparency: no whitepaper, no dev team, no roadmap. Just a website with a countdown timer and a token that only traded on one unregulated exchange. The blockchain gaming, a sector where players earn tokens by participating in games, often through play-to-earn models. Also known as P2E, it angle was pure theater. They claimed you’d earn SQUID by playing a game that didn’t exist. When the rug pull happened, the devs drained the liquidity pool, and the token dropped to near zero in minutes. Thousands lost everything.

What makes this case so dangerous is how common it is. The same playbook repeats: viral theme, fake utility, anonymous team, locked liquidity, then sudden exit. You’ll find echoes of it in the ZWZ airdrop, KCCPAD, and even the DeHero HEROES campaign—all listed in this collection. These aren’t isolated failures. They’re patterns. And if you don’t know how to spot them, you’re next.

Below, you’ll find real breakdowns of crypto projects that look like Squid Game but aren’t. Some are scams. Others are just poorly built. A few are quietly working. You’ll learn how to tell the difference—without needing a finance degree. No fluff. No hype. Just what actually matters when you’re deciding where to put your money.