Netflix moving into gaming

[Andhaira]

Netflix Plans to Offer Video Games in Push Beyond Films, TV

Netflix Inc., marking its first big move beyond TV shows and films, is planning an expansion into video games and has hired a former Electronic Arts Inc. and Facebook Inc. executive to lead the effort.

Mike Verdu will join Netflix as vice president of game development, reporting to Chief Operating Officer Greg Peters, the company said on Wednesday. Verdu was previously Facebook’s vice president in charge of working with developers to bring games and other content to Oculus virtual-reality headsets.

Mike Verdu

Source: Netflix Inc.

The idea is to offer video games on Netflix’s streaming platform within the next year, according to a person familiar with the situation. The games will appear alongside current fare as a new programming genre -- similar to what Netflix did with documentaries or stand-up specials. The company doesn’t currently plan to charge extra for the content, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the deliberations are private.


Netflix shares gained as much as 2.8% to $563.45 in premarket trading Thursday. The stock had been up 1.3% this year through Wednesday’s close.

Netflix has been seeking ways to keep growing, especially in more saturated markets such as the U.S. That’s included building out its kids’ programming, opening an online shop to sell merchandise, and tapping Steven Spielberg to bring more prestigious movies to its lineup. The company remains well ahead of streaming rivals such as Disney+ or HBO Max, but it added fewer subscribers than expected in its most recently reported quarter.

Pushing into games would be one of Netflix’s boldest moves yet. In Verdu, the company has an executive who worked on popular mobile games at Electronic Arts, including titles in the Sims, Plants vs. Zombies and Star Wars franchises. He also served as chief creative officer for Zynga Inc. between 2009 and 2012.

Netflix will be building out its gaming team in the coming months, according to the person familiar with the matter. The company has already started advertising for game-development related positions on its website.

“This feels like a significant event with broad ramifications across the video-games landscape,” Citi analyst Jason Bazinet wrote in a note Thursday. He said Netflix’s move creates “obvious risks” for larger game developers and publishers.

Video games give Netflix another way to lure new customers and also offer something none of its direct competitors currently provides. Walt Disney Co., AT&T Inc.’s WarnerMedia and Amazon.com Inc. all have access to live sports, but they don’t have gaming within their main video services.

Ultimately, the move may make it easier for Netflix to justify price increases in coming years. Games also serve the purpose of helping market existing shows.

Many of the largest tech companies do sell gaming options in addition to their video services. Apple Inc. has a platform called Arcade for games -- as well as a TV+ service for original video projects. But it charges extra for the gaming.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...ffer-video-games-in-expansion-beyond-films-tv

Going into gaming for the first time, they hire ex EA vice president who was also responsible for gaming on Facebook and Oculus. Sounds like a recipe for sure fire success. However I am not happy about the lack of diversity here; only big name is the EA guy and he is a white cis male. No wimmin, especially no screaming, obese, pink haired wimmin. In gaming. In 2021.

 

[karoliner]

Get ready for 100 new games every year where only 10-15 are actually good, just like their movies. Netflix took the approach of quantity over quality to the most absurd extreme. They deserve the rope.

 

[Night Goat]

Can't wait to see some Netflix Original Games (NOGs)

 

[Andhaira]

Crispy stop removing the Crispy tag please. You should wear it as a badge of honor, not the village idiot badge its actually meant to be.

 

[Ravielsk]

 

[Jenkem]

Didn't they already do that Dark Crystal tacticool game?

 

[†††]

Surely the 12th attempt at making a successful game streaming service won't fail. No sir.

 

[Sukhāvatī]

Didn't they already do that Dark Crystal tacticool game?

Also Charlie Brooker's Black Mirror CYOA.

 

[Derringer]

Get ready for 100 new games every year where only 10-15 are actually good, just like their movies. Netflix took the approach of quantity over quality to the most absurd extreme. They deserve the rope.

Isn't Netflix just a prop for Soros money at this point?

 

[deama]

They have a golden opportunity here I think, because now they can look at how google stadia went, and how the other streaming attempts went, and simply avoid the mistakes.
I think their best move is to not go crazy with a blockbuster game, the amazon "new world" approach is a bad idea, especially since they don't have any experience, and I doubt they wanna spend too much money giving "developers" lots and lots of years to make something.
It'll definitely have to be some streaming thing, I think they should go for a "browser streaming service" type of thing, where the user logs in, and can stream the game and play it on their browser instead of using some sort of netflix gaming app/store thing. This would help adoptions a lot more I think.

The games they should focus on at first at least, is definitely not action, probably turn based, or slow games.
I was actually thinking, they should just make a sims clone, there's barely any of those, it's a popular series, and imagine being able to play that on your browser?
If they make a decent attempt at it, it could probably be a big hit.

So I think they should focus more on niche, slow-paced titles, like copying sims, maybe making their own tycoon games, etc...
Then later branch out into other titles, probably stay away from action based stuff for a while though.

 

[deama]

Oh shit I just realised!
Netflix could literally make point and click games! Stuff like myst or puzzle agent, or still life, or those new sherlock games recently made, it would literally be the best move I think!
Not only would it work as well as what I mentioned before, but even better because point and clicks are fairly similar to movies already, so the movie-gooers wouldn't be as deterred by the whole thing and might even give them a go!

 

[Zed Duke of Banville]

Get ready for 100 new games every year where only 10-15 are actually good, just like their movies. Netflix took the approach of quantity over quality to the most absurd extreme. They deserve the rope.

Please inform us how to reach this amazing alternate reality where 10-15% of new games and films are actually good.

 

[Morpheus Kitami]

You smell that? That's the smell of a company desperately trying anything at all to retain relevancy. I would genuinely be surprised if this was something more than generic flash/mobile games we've had for nearly 25 years and a few odd titles based on Netflix originals. I don't think Amazon's done anything of value in the ten odd years they've been trying to get into the gaming sphere, and I'm willing to bet they have more money than Netflix. Everyone moving into a new gaming market, be it in general or the mobile sphere, are convinced they have what it takes. I think the only time that hasn't gone badly is THQ Nordic.

 

[karoliner]

Please inform us how to reach this amazing alternate reality where 10-15% of new games and films are actually good.

I'm trying to keep a positive outlook on life to delay suicide. Please understand.

 

[udm]

I was going to make a joke about VR Cuties and pedos, but decided against it. Some scenarios are just too bleak to even think about.

 

[JDR13]

You smell that? That's the smell of a company desperately trying anything at all to retain relevancy.

If you think Netflix is having any issues staying relevent, you obviously haven't looked at the price of their stock lately.

 

[Lyric Suite]

I was going to make a joke about VR Cuties and pedos, but decided against it. Some scenarios are just too bleak to even think about.

There's VR chat for that no?

 

[Van-d-all]

Seems like someone saw Jeff go into space and got jealous. They can easily make some shit mobile "game" and skyrocket it's popularity with Netflix ads, at which point it will effectively become another money printer, both from stock value boost and microtransactions.

 

[Kev Inkline]

Get ready for 100 new games every year where only 10-15 are actually good, just like their movies. Netflix took the approach of quantity over quality to the most absurd extreme. They deserve the rope.

Imagine getting 15 good games every year (from Netflix).

-- Not gonna happen.

 

[Xelocix]

Get ready for 100 new games every year where only 10-15 are actually good, just like their movies. Netflix took the approach of quantity over quality to the most absurd extreme. They deserve the rope.

10-15 is extremely generous. Netflix produces like 1 ok-ish thing a year at best. Everything they produce is woke gutter trash propaganda.

 

[Morpheus Kitami]

You smell that? That's the smell of a company desperately trying anything at all to retain relevancy.

If you think Netflix is having any issues staying relevent, you obviously haven't looked at the price of their stock lately.

I'm just going by how I constantly hear people, normies, not just people on forums, saying Netflix's gone downhill. Maybe they'll still stick around, but if someone who doesn't care about the platform is noticing this, then I'm sure there are folks at Netflix thinking of this as a way to keep their spot as top dog. Rome wasn't destroyed in a day, after all.

 

[fork]

Surely the 12th attempt at making a successful game streaming service won't fail. No sir.

Sooner or later this will be successful. I mean, the fact that Stadia failed selling the games on top of a subscription kinda surprised me already; people might be slightly less retarded than I thought (which would be shocking and contradict all of my other observations! There has to be a different explanation!) But many people do have a Netflix subscription already, so there are many retarded people available. It's a matter of time until one of these globo-homo corpos gets it right.

 

[JDR13]

You smell that? That's the smell of a company desperately trying anything at all to retain relevancy.

If you think Netflix is having any issues staying relevent, you obviously haven't looked at the price of their stock lately.

I'm just going by how I constantly hear people, normies, not just people on forums, saying Netflix's gone downhill. Maybe they'll still stick around, but if someone who doesn't care about the platform is noticing this, then I'm sure there are folks at Netflix thinking of this as a way to keep their spot as top dog. Rome wasn't destroyed in a day, after all.

NetFlix was never that good to begin with imo, but that doesn't change the fact that it's a juggernaut.

 

[Dexter]

NetFlix was never that good to begin with imo, but that doesn't change the fact that it's a juggernaut.

https://thehill.com/homenews/media/...in-us-canada-blames-covid-19-for-lumpiness-in

 

[JDR13]

NetFlix was never that good to begin with imo, but that doesn't change the fact that it's a juggernaut.

https://thehill.com/homenews/media/...in-us-canada-blames-covid-19-for-lumpiness-in

Did you actually read that?