Netflix Announces 55 Games in Production

Updated on April 4th, 2023

The Netflix gaming push seems to be going full steam ahead. The media streaming company has announced that it has 55 games in production. The information was revealed by Netflix VP of Gaming Mike Verdu at TechCrunch Disrupt. The company plans to have over 50 games available by the end of the year.

Since the time Netflix started its gaming efforts, the company has 14 games in development in its own studios and has 35 games on the service now. Verdu said there is a total of 55 games “in flight” currently. Some of the popular Netflix gaming titles that are already on the platform include Into the Breach, Heads Up!, and the BAFTA-winning Before Your Eyes. At present, Netflix is offering these games free of charge to subscribers with no ads or in-app purchases.

Dreams of a Cloud Gaming Service

Verdu, at the TechCrunch Disrupt event also said that Netflix was “seriously exploring a cloud gaming offering.” “It’s a value add. We’re not asking you to subscribe as a console replacement. It’s a completely different business model. The hope is over time that it just becomes this very natural way to play games wherever you are,” Verdu said.

Upping the Ante

Netflix has decided to raise the stakes in the gaming arena by opening a new internal studio in Southern California. Just last month, Netflix set up a studio in Helsinki, Finland. The new one will be the company’s fifth studio. Other studios owned by the streaming giant include Boss Fight Entertainment, Night School Studio, and Finland’s Next Games. Each of the studios is designed to develop games catering to different tastes.

Why the Soaring Interest in Games?

Netflix's gaming arena interest intensified only after the initial release of its Android and iOS lineup late last year. The company adding more gaming titles to the portfolio can only mean that it is pleased with the progress of the games.

A huge part of Netflix’s strategy is that the games will retain customers, simply put apart from the movies, games will be worth your subscription efforts.  “We are seeing some encouraging signs of gameplay leading to higher retention,” said the company's Q3 earnings call letter.

Netflix said that it is in for the long haul and gaming is a “multi-year journey.” The company will need to put more effort into attracting subscriber attention to games as recent data indicated that less than 1% of subscribers interact with Netflix’s games on a daily basis.

In its earnings on Tuesday, the movie streaming platform said that it added 2.4 million subscribers in the third quarter. This is good news for Netflix stakeholders compared to earlier this year when it reported that it lost subscribers for the first time in over 10 years.