Summary
Most of us use Netflix as a streaming platform, but it’s a general entertainment platform that, as a matter of fact, also has some games in there as well. Now, Netflix is scaling back its game selection—maybe because of licensing issues, or maybe a warning sign of a bigger issue.
The company plans to remove over 20 titles from its gaming library in July. The move includes the departure of critically acclaimed games such asHadesand the entire belovedMonument Valleypuzzle series. This culling of its catalog is the latest in a series of strategic retreats, following the closure of its Los Angeles-based AAA gaming studio late last year. Content comes and goes all the time—after all, Netflix licenses most of the content that’s on its platform, and that includes games. But given the circumstances, it’s not crazy to think that Netflix is scaling back from most stuff that’s not movies and shows.
The list of games being removed goes as follows:
Netflix has also notably scaled back its investment in interactive content. At the end of last year, the platform’s portfolio of interactive specials was slashed from 24 to just four. The Emmy Award-winningBlack Mirror: Bandersnatch, one of the most successful interactive experiences by Netflix, was removed from the service on May 12th of this year.
The reason for this is that, simply, people log into Netflix to either catch a movie or binge-watch a show. That’s pretty much it. While some people might occasionally check out games or other miscellaneous stuff, the truth of the matter is that this is a minority, and even for the few people who do engage with games and interactive experiences, they might not do it more than once or twice. Personally, I checked out Netflix games exactly twice, and while they were fine, I quickly got bored with them. I’m not saying my experience is universal, though. Some people might not have even cared to check them out once! In my case, it’s because many are just games that are already available on Android, and I might as well just check them out on the Play Store while I’m on it.
Games on Netflix might be on their way out in the near or mid-term future, so if you have any titles you want to check out, now might be the time to do it.
