Netflix wants to make more narrative and party games

Netflix says it wants to focus more on narrative and party games.

In a Q4 earnings call last week (via The Verge), Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters offered some insight into the company’s vision for its burgeoning gaming division. According to Peters, Netflix is planning “more narrative games based on Netflix IP,” as they are “consistent fan favourites.” So far, Netflix has made games based on the likes of Stranger Things, The Queen’s Gambit, Squid Game and Too Hot to Handle. In fact, Netflix said in 2023 that Too Hot to Handle: Love is a Game was its most popular game. The company has long said that it intends for there to be synergy between its movies, shows and games.

Additionally, Peters says Netflix wants to make more couch and party games. He didn’t elaborate on what these would look like, but he notes that Netflix could use the cloud to bring people together. As it stands, Netflix subscribers can download the streamer’s games through the App Store and Play Store. “We think of this as a successor to family board game night or an evolution of what the game show on TV used to be,” teased Peters.

Netflix Games has seen a lot of changes in recent months. Last week, The Hollywood Reporter broke the news that former Netflix Games executive Leanne Loombe is now spearheading Annapurna Interactive, the beloved indie publishing label behind the likes of What Remains of Edith Finch and Stray, after the entire staff resigned last year. In October, Netflix also shut down its AAA studio led by Halo veteran Joseph Staten before it had ever released a single game.

It remains to be seen what will come out of Netflix’s plans for its nascent gaming initiative. In the meantime, the company just raised subscription prices in Canada. That increase also applied to other markets, like the U.S., but that still hasn’t stopped the Conservatives from trying to blame it on the Liberals.