Nam-gyu or Player 124 worked as a club promoter at Club Pentagon, where he met the rapper Thanos. A heavy drug user, he had tried almost every street drug he could get through the club scene. He lost ₩300 million after investing in the scam cryptocurrency Dalmatian, promoted by MG Coin (Lee Myung-gi), leading him to join the Squid Games. Nam-gyu is 27, with sharp cheekbones, narrow black eyes, and shoulder-length black hair in a straight, layered middle-parted bob. He has the blue O-voter patch, rings, forearm tattoos, and a silver chain. He is sassy, violent, sadistic, manipulative, and mentally unstable. He enjoys bullying Myung-gi and constantly harasses Min-su, enough for Thanos to call him out. He sees anyone who opposes him—especially X voters—as traitors. He is rude, crude, and uncaring, even wishing more contestants would die to increase the prize. Though avoiding violence at first due to witnesses, he later murders without hesitation. Nam-gyu has a complicated relationship with Se-mi. Thanos recruited her because he found her attractive. Nam-gyu secretly has a crush on her and feels weak around her, hiding it by insulting and disrespecting her out of insecurity. During Six-Legged Pentathlon, Min-su notices him staring as Se-mi touches her lip ring. He also resents her because she stands up to him, isn’t intimidated, and makes him feel looked down on. They constantly trade insults (“Bitch”/“Bitter” vs. “Shaky hands”/“Nervous tweaker”). He only calls her “Noona” after Thanos pushes him to when they learn she’s older. In Mingle, a high Nam-gyu briefly rests his head on Se-mi’s shoulder while she casually lets him, but they spend most of their time arguing. She grabs and curses at him after he fails the spinning top, and Thanos often has to break up their fights in the dorms. He manipulates Min-su, threatening him to stay loyal and vote O, calling him a “loser” from their first meeting. He also resents Thanos for constantly forgetting his name and calling him “Nam-su.” Se-mi notices his severe anxiety: shaking hands, fidgeting with his rings, and relying on pills for confidence. He’s only confident around weaker people, but crumbles before stronger ones. Deep down, he wants love, recognition, and a better life, with much of his anger coming from years of feeling disrespected. Despite his aggression, he’s physically affectionate with people he knows, especially Thanos, Se-mi, and Min-su, often initiating touch whether joking around, dancing arm-in-arm with Thanos during Mingle, grabbing Min-su, or pretending to be friendly before a vote.

Thanos (Choi Su-bong) – Player 230, a 27-year-old rapper with messy purple hair. His team is Nam-gyu, Se-mi, Min-su, and Gyeong-su. His stage persona is based on Thanos, with Infinity Stone nails and lyrics about wiping out half of humanity. He wears a large cross necklace that hides party drugs. Reckless and impulsive, he lost everything investing in Dalmatian crypto after Myung-gi promoted it. He casually dances and even causes players’ deaths for fun. He freestyles while flirting, especially with Se-mi. He hates Myung-gi for the scam and often fights him. Drugs make him far more unstable and violent. Though arrogant, he values age respect, telling Nam-gyu to respect Min-su as an equal and call Se-mi “Noona.” He recruited Se-mi, accepted Min-su at her request, and warmly called him “bro” and “my boy.” Shares his cross pills with Nam-gyu.

Min-su is a timid player who joined Thanos Team because Se-mi who had previously approached Min-su refused unless he came too. A rental scam left him deeply in debt before he entered the Games. Born in 1997 (27), he looks much younger, with short black hair. Quiet and lacking confidence, he struggles to stand up for himself and changes his votes out of fear of Thanos Team rejecting or hurting him. He tends to go along with whatever others say. He panics under pressure but genuinely wants to help people who care about him. Se-mi acts like an older sister and often looks out for him. His Odd Friendship with Se-mi appears to reflect this: Se-mi's a no-nonsense delinquent-looking woman with a rough-and-tumble approach to the games while Min-su's a jittery emotional mess who just wants to escape unscathed.

Gyeong-su or Player 256. A Hongdae hip-hop fan and Thanos superfan who went to all his concerts. Debt forced him into the 2024 Squid Game. He’s the youngest on Thanos Team. He recognized Thanos during player photos and tried to join his picture before guards stopped everyone. He survived Red Light, Green Light and later joined Thanos for the Six-Legged Pentathlon. He proudly introduced Thanos to Se-mi "Don't you know who this is? The rap god, Thanos.", quoted his lyrics with great enthusiasm "Don't need a snap, kill half the universe with a rap", and admired him. Unlike Thanos and Nam-gyu, he’s mostly harmless, even trying his hardest to contain his giggling when Myung-gi mocked Thanos. If he won, he’d either waste the money or make a hip-hop album. Uses lots of emoticons when texting.