Netflix Games
Netflix is contemplating extending its emerging video game service to TV screens, signalling an ambitious move beyond the existing mobile platform.
Hidden code within the company’s app suggests the potential for playing games on television sets while using smartphones as game controllers. This information was uncovered by app developer Steve Moser, who shared his findings with reporter Mark Gurman and Bloomberg News.
In November 2021, Netflix entered the gaming arena with titles such as Stranger Things: 1984; Stranger Things 3 The Game; Teeter (UP); Shooting Hoops; and Card Blast available on iPhones, iPads and Android devices. These are casual games that offer some instant fun, but may not cater to non-gamers.
While games are released separately through the App Store on Apple devices, they are accessible via the Netflix app and of course, require an active subscription.
The gaming expansion aims to enhance Netflix’s streaming offerings and maintain customer loyalty amid increasing subscription fees. The company has previously expressed its intention to extend its gaming service to additional devices and create an all-encompassing cloud gaming platform, but no specific timeline has been disclosed.
Integrating the gaming service into television sets would be a significant achievement for Netflix, which already has a presence in numerous smart TVs and is accessible through platforms such as Apple, Amazon, and Google.
The eventual introduction of a cloud gaming service by Netflix would allow users to stream games without installing them on devices, broadening the selection of titles and positioning the streaming giant as a competitor to companies like Microsoft and even non-cloud gaming providers like Apple Arcade.
Netflix is taking its gaming offering seriously. Last March it acquired mobile game developer Boss Fight, while later in September of the same year it announced the perk would get exclusive mobile games from Ubisoft.
Although the code discovered within Netflix’s app doesn’t guarantee the implementation of gaming on television sets, it does provide insight into what the company has been considering internally.
