Streaming media company Netflix has revealed a marked investment into the gaming sphere via a July 18 earnings report, with the development of over 80 video games across multiple genres confirmed and plans for a steady release schedule.
Netflix co-chief executive Greg Peters noted the company’s determination when it comes to tapping into the gaming market during the company’s earnings briefing for the second quarter of 2024 last week. Peters said that Netflix is in the third overall year of its gaming initiative, and discussed having launched over 100 games already. “We’ve set ourselves pretty aggressive engagement growth targets [in gaming] and we’ve met those, exceeded those in many cases,” Peters said, adding that 2023’s push into gaming saw engagement triple.
These numbers may surprise some gamers as Netflix has not seemed like a particularly prominent player in the games space. Peters states Netflix’s current investment in gaming is actually “quite small,” but suggests that for an experimental avenue for the company, things are performing well.
As a streaming company focused on TV, most would expect Netflix to stick to the one thing it knows best. This would be the assumption, especially now that it has considered more aggressive methods of courting subscribers, including implementing an ad-supported tier and taking steps to curb password sharing.
Perhaps one of the most well-known Netflix-branded video game releases was Stranger Things: The Game. This simply seemed to be a fun tie-in release from 2017 that kept the show’s hype going. The following year, Black Mirror: Bandersnatch appeared to be a stronger push towards the idea, where Netflix emphasized the release was not just an “episode” of Black Mirror but an “interactive film.” Another leap into gaming came in 2021 when Netflix began to pursue mobile gaming.
Netflix seems particularly proud of how its Netflix Stories games have taken off. These are essentially bite-sized visual novels based on several shows the streaming giant is producing, including Virgin River and Love Is Blind. Because these games are included in a Netflix membership, for much of the content being made, the only audience targeted is its pre-existing one. While this is the case for the majority of Netflix Games releases, it should be noted that the company has shown interest elsewhere.
In 2023, when Oxenfree 2 ramped up advertisements for release, plenty of fans were surprised to see the Netflix name attached to it. Although it has prestige, an indie studio like Night School did not seem like the first pick for a streaming conglomerate to acquire. It does make plenty of sense. however; the first Oxenfree was a critically acclaimed narrative-driven experience similar to visual novels in most ways.
If Netflix really wants to pursue a gaming market aggressively like it says it will do in the future, it may be within its best interest to continue supporting this style of original content, carving out a niche that aligns perfectly with the TV content it’s producing—not just in brand, but in design.
Currently, it seems less feasible for Netflix to pursue console gaming outright, but it would be somewhat absurd to ignore the space altogether if it wants to be as aggressive as it is talking about with the market. That’s not to suggest mobile gaming isn’t serious; in the last decade, the mobile gaming space has become a notoriously profitable one.
Peters hints that Netflix has “very different types of games to come in the quarters and years ahead.” Even if Netflix released two games a month starting now, it would have about three years’ worth of new games to show off. It’s likely the streaming giant will take a couple of big swings down the road.
