Netflix gaming once seemed to have a bright future. Yet cuts to its games catalogue and staff lay-offs have left it looking lacklustre. So what is happening to Netflix gaming?
In 2021, Netflix hired a former Electronic Arts executive by the name of Mike Verdu to spearhead its games development sector. The idea was that gaming would become a huge part of Netflix content, with streaming titles ready to play through the app or portal. However, in March this year, Verdu left, and dozens of popular titles are set to vacate the platform. So, how successful has Netflix gaming been?
The Netflix Gaming Roadmap
The roadmap for Netflix gaming looked promising. The company began by signing up Joseph Staten alongside Verdu, a big name who had worked on the Halo franchise. By August 2023, it had also launched games that were streamed from the cloud, allowing it not just to compete with casual games platforms but make a move that was seen as putting them in league with big hitters like Sony and Microsoft. Or at least it would at some point in the future.
It was also not the only streaming giant trying this out. Around the same time, Apple Arcade launched. However, this was a separate service that had to be paid for by subscription. Netflix were offering their games within its existing platform. Amazon also provided a Prime gaming service. However, this required the use of third-party platforms to access. Netflix seemed like it had the market down.
Its gaming acquisitions were not to be sniffed at either. It had a Tomb Raider Reloaded game and began developing Assassin’s Creed titles along with a tie-in television show. Netflix even began to buy its own studios for game development, such as Ustwo Games. Everything from SpongeBob to Sonic was in its grasp, and the future looked good for Netflix gaming.
How to Build a Gaming Niche
A case study for how to build a gaming industry can be seen in the iGaming sector. The domain of online casinos has been around since the dawn of the commercial internet, with poker rooms springing up almost immediately. Yet it was the launch of the smartphone and improved connectivity that really opened the doors for this sector, which is now a $85.62 billion a year business.
The sector has grown by not just concentrating on those already using its services, but also by providing ways to introduce others to online casinos that they would not normally have considered. This has been done through its game provisions, introducing myriad slot titles with new mechanics, as well as casual titles like crash games. Easy entry levels, such as minimum deposit casinos, were also introduced, allowing people to try services for very little financial outlay and effort. All this has now made online casino gaming almost as popular as streaming music or watching movies from a phone.
In June this year, it was announced that around 22 games would leave the service for good. Some of these were easy to pass on, such as children’s games like CoComelon: Play with JJ or the board game based on Battleship. Yet some titles had genuine appeal, such as Katana Zero and Braid. Added to this was the fact that Grand Theft Auto titles, one of the most popular franchises in gaming history, left in December.
What Changed for Netflix Games?
The first sign that something was wrong was when a studio it had opened in California closed without ever releasing a title. Layoffs also began across its gaming departments elsewhere, with executives other than Verdu also jumping ship.
Its games also began to change. Once, they had been quite daring. Titles like Before Your Eyes had been thought-provoking, touching on the concept of mortality. Yet its new titles like Squid Games were poor, badly planned affairs that were way off the mark. There were also major cancellations for some highly anticipated games like Tolkien-based “Tales of the Shire”.
Greg Peters is the current co CEO, and in an earnings call this year, he said they are “refocusing their gaming efforts”. This could be a tactful way of saying they are being wound down. The current view, as seen by Netflix, is that games will be narrative-based, couch co op and party games. These will be based on Netflix’s current intellectual property. They see it as an extension of family board game night.
Thus, it seems that Netflix is no longer trying to rival Xbox and PlayStation as the bastion of gaming creativity. Instead, it is opting for Nintendo Switch-style family games, though without the imagination and interactive nature of what really makes the Switch appealing. The worry is that once these games vanish from its service, they are lost forever, and it would be great to have some way of preserving them. The most creative period in Netflix history may have ended, and you should just be glad to know that you were there to enjoy it.
