Streaming platform Netflix is introducing video games on its TV service for the first time – offering to play Boggle between viewings of the series "Stranger Things," writes UNN with reference to Bloomberg.
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The streaming service is making its video games available for viewing on televisions for the first time, taking a significant step forward in implementing one of its key growth initiatives, co-CEO Greg Peters announced Wednesday at the Bloomberg Screentime conference in Los Angeles.
Netflix offers games that can be played in groups, including Boggle Party, Pictionary: Game Night, Tetris Time Warp, and Lego Party.
The company has been offering games for four years as part of a plan to expand its presence beyond movies and TV shows. Until now, users had to play these games on mobile devices. With the advent of new devices, subscribers will use their phones as controllers, but most of the gameplay will take place on the big screen.
Peters has taken the lead in Netflix's push into the gaming industry – a lucrative but competitive one that has plagued most Hollywood studios.
Alain Tascan, head of Netflix's gaming division, said in an interview that a number of film and television companies have unsuccessfully tried to enter this market. "They took a short-term approach," he said.
Tascan joined Netflix in July 2024 from Epic Games Inc., publisher of Fortnite, to help the company rethink its strategy and break the Hollywood curse in the gaming industry. Netflix initially thought that free mobile games would attract many users. But the company is not focused on video games, and many enthusiasts are already playing elsewhere.
Since then, management has identified four priority categories: games for children, party games, popular hits such as Grand Theft Auto, and games based on existing Netflix projects such as "Stranger Things."
All games in this first offering are free. Lego Party typically sells for around $40.
To play, users need a Smart TV or streaming devices. To turn a phone into a controller, players will need to scan a QR code. Netflix wants the gameplay to be smooth.
The company considers games an important part of its future and has recently been investing in increasing the capacity of cloud servers to handle growing traffic.
"To entertain the world, we have to include games," Tascan said. "Many companies have a lot of users, but not all of them have all these people on the main entertainment screen at home – the TV."
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