Where It Came From

Unlike games such as Mugunghwa Kkoci Pieotseumnida or Yut Nori, Puzzle Tug-of-War doesn't have roots in Korean tradition, it was cooked up by Run BTS! producers as an original segment, first appearing in a 2018 episode built around a wheel-of-fortune "spin for everything" concept nicknamed "Spin BTS" in Korean. The idea takes the simple physics of a tug-of-war and adds a mental task on top: instead of just pulling harder than the other team, you have to divide your focus between holding your ground and actually solving something. That combination of physical strain and fine motor skills under pressure turned out to be pure comedy gold, and the game has lived on in fan memory (and reaction compilations) ever since.

How It's Officially Played

The setup is simple to describe and much harder to survive. Three players, one representing each team, are tethered together at the waist with ropes that all meet at a central hub, like spokes on a wheel. Each player has their own small jigsaw puzzle (in Run BTS!'s case, easy children's puzzles with around a dozen pieces) set up on a table or stand a short distance away, positioned so no one can reach their puzzle without pulling against the other two.

When the game starts, everyone tries to do two things simultaneously: drag themselves close enough to their own puzzle to actually place pieces, and yank the other two players away from theirs. Since the ropes are all connected at one point, any tug on the line affects everyone at once, plant your feet and pull, and you might drag one rival forward while another slides sideways. The first person to finish their puzzle wins the round for their team, but as the members of BTS learned firsthand, raw strength doesn't guarantee victory if you're clumsy with your hands once you finally reach the table.

Fun Twists Idols Add

Part of what makes this game so watchable is that it rewards completely different strategies, and idols have tried nearly all of them on camera. Some players dig in immediately, planting themselves like a statue directly over their puzzle table so no one can budge them. Others go on the offensive, taking a running start to yank both rivals off balance at once, sacrificing their own progress to sabotage everyone else's. There's also the "ally" strategy, where two members quietly team up mid-game to gang up on whoever's winning, even though the game is technically every player for themselves.

The genuinely unexpected twist producers didn't even plan for: strength doesn't matter if you can't do a puzzle. In the most famous Run BTS! run of this game, the strongest, most immovable player of the round barely moved from his table the entire time, and still finished dead last, simply because he wasn't fast at fitting pieces together. Meanwhile, teammates not currently playing get in on the fun too, coaching from the sidelines, giving pre-game pep-talk massages, or even sneaking over to help solve an eliminated teammate's abandoned puzzle out of solidarity. Costume punishments from earlier rounds (giant mascot heads, oversized outfits) have also made cameo appearances mid-game, adding an extra layer of slapstick to an already ridiculous scene.

How to Play It at Home

You don't need studio-grade rope rigs to recreate this one, a home version just needs a little setup and a few volunteers who don't mind getting silly. What you need: three soft ropes, scarves, or long fabric strips of equal length; a central point to tie them together (a sturdy chair leg, a doorknob, or just a knot everyone holds loosely works); and three small, quick puzzles, kids' puzzles, jigsaw apps on a phone, or even simple tasks like stacking cups or threading beads if you don't have puzzles handy.

Setup: tie the three ropes together at one center point. Give each player the other end, and set up their "puzzle station" a few feet away, close enough to be tempting, far enough that all three players pulling at once creates real tension. Space the stations in a triangle so no one has an unfair angle.

How to play: on "go," everyone tries to reach their own station while resisting being pulled by the other two. First to finish their puzzle wins. Keep rounds short (2-3 minutes) since it's a genuine workout, and swap in new players or rotate stations for fairness.

Stakes for a home game night: losers do a goofy forfeit, think wearing a silly hat for the rest of the night, doing the dishes, or being the DJ stuck taking song requests from everyone else. Keep the ropes gentle and the puzzles easy, the fun is in the flailing, not the difficulty.

Watch It In Action

  • Run BTS! 2018 EP. 38 The full episode featuring the original Puzzle Tug-of-War game, including the round where Jungkook barely moves from his table but still loses the puzzle race, and Suga (still stuck in a giant BT21 Chimmy costume from an earlier punishment) flails helplessly trying to reach his pieces.
  • BTS Tug Of War | RUN BTS EP 38 A focused clip of the tug-of-war segment itself, showing the rope mechanics and the members' wildly different strategies for staying anchored to their puzzle stations.

Puzzle Tug-of-War proves that you don't need centuries of tradition to make a great party game, you just need rope, a little friction, and friends who take winning way too seriously. Whether you're watching idols get dragged across a studio floor or running your own version in the living room, it's a reminder that teamwork and chaos aren't always opposites.