Explained: What is 'love game', the Korean task-based gaming app the Ghaziabad sisters were addicted to?
Ghaziabad sisters suicide case: The incident occurred in a tower of Bharat City in the Sahibabad area of Uttar Pradesh.
- Feb 5, 2026,
- Updated Feb 5, 2026 4:04 PM IST
Ghaziabad triple suicide case: Three minor sisters -- aged 16, 14, and 12 -- died after allegedly jumping from the balcony of a ninth-floor of a residential building in the wee hours of Wednesday morning.
The incident occurred in a tower of Bharat City in the Sahibabad area of Uttar Pradesh. As per Ghaziabad police, the three sisters were isolated, did not attend school since the COVID-19 pandemic, and lived in a household marred by financial strain and dysfunctional family dynamics.
Officials also stated that the sisters were addicted to an online game -- 'Love game', a Korean task-based online game.
About the 'love game'
The Korean 'love game' is an interactive, task-based game that reportedly begins after an unknown person initiates a conversation with a child on social media via mobile apps.
This unidentified individual claims to be a Korean or a foreign national and talks about friendship and love. Once a certain degree of trust has been established, the children are assigned tasks, starting with simple challenges.
As the kids fulfil these tasks, they are assigned more difficult and demanding challenges. The 'game master' threatens them if they refuse to follow the orders. As per media reports, these challenges run for a course of 50 days.
The 50th and the final challenge is to reportedly die by suicide. The sisters' deaths are not linked conclusively to the game as of yet.
Is it a mobile app version of Squid Game?
Yes. mostly. Squid Game, as shown on Netflix, features 456 debt-ridden individuals who compete in deadly, simplified children's games for a massive cash prize.
Like Squid Game, these girls were also living in a household grappling with financial challenges. The characters in Squid Game are lured into these deadly games by a secret organisation, desperate to take extreme risks for financial freedom.
The participants play six games, including Red Light Green Light, Honeycomb and the final Squid Game. Failure in any of these games results in immediate execution.
Similarities with the blue whale, Momo challenge
The Korean 'love game' has drawn parallels to the 'blue whale challenge' and the 'Momo challenge'. The blue whale challenge reportedly originated in Russia and involves a series of dares assigned to the player by a curator over a period of 50 days.
Those enticed into the game were forced to complete tasks through threats, blackmail, or psychological manipulation. In 2018, a similar phenomenon spread with a different name -- momo challenge.
The challenge spread via WhatsApp forwards and was named so because people, including children, were conned into adding unknown people into their contacts under the name 'Momo'.
The final task in both these games is to eliminate oneself.
Ghaziabad triple suicide case: Three minor sisters -- aged 16, 14, and 12 -- died after allegedly jumping from the balcony of a ninth-floor of a residential building in the wee hours of Wednesday morning.
The incident occurred in a tower of Bharat City in the Sahibabad area of Uttar Pradesh. As per Ghaziabad police, the three sisters were isolated, did not attend school since the COVID-19 pandemic, and lived in a household marred by financial strain and dysfunctional family dynamics.
Officials also stated that the sisters were addicted to an online game -- 'Love game', a Korean task-based online game.
About the 'love game'
The Korean 'love game' is an interactive, task-based game that reportedly begins after an unknown person initiates a conversation with a child on social media via mobile apps.
This unidentified individual claims to be a Korean or a foreign national and talks about friendship and love. Once a certain degree of trust has been established, the children are assigned tasks, starting with simple challenges.
As the kids fulfil these tasks, they are assigned more difficult and demanding challenges. The 'game master' threatens them if they refuse to follow the orders. As per media reports, these challenges run for a course of 50 days.
The 50th and the final challenge is to reportedly die by suicide. The sisters' deaths are not linked conclusively to the game as of yet.
Is it a mobile app version of Squid Game?
Yes. mostly. Squid Game, as shown on Netflix, features 456 debt-ridden individuals who compete in deadly, simplified children's games for a massive cash prize.
Like Squid Game, these girls were also living in a household grappling with financial challenges. The characters in Squid Game are lured into these deadly games by a secret organisation, desperate to take extreme risks for financial freedom.
The participants play six games, including Red Light Green Light, Honeycomb and the final Squid Game. Failure in any of these games results in immediate execution.
Similarities with the blue whale, Momo challenge
The Korean 'love game' has drawn parallels to the 'blue whale challenge' and the 'Momo challenge'. The blue whale challenge reportedly originated in Russia and involves a series of dares assigned to the player by a curator over a period of 50 days.
Those enticed into the game were forced to complete tasks through threats, blackmail, or psychological manipulation. In 2018, a similar phenomenon spread with a different name -- momo challenge.
The challenge spread via WhatsApp forwards and was named so because people, including children, were conned into adding unknown people into their contacts under the name 'Momo'.
The final task in both these games is to eliminate oneself.