Netflix has been figuring out what’s the best way to enter the game market. Right now, the company has a collection of games which are pretty much mobile games, only available on Android and iOS. The company wants to take things a step further, though. And as it turns out, the answer to its gaming woes might have been something the company has been doing all along — streaming.
Netflix is officially bringing games out of smartphones and into TVs and computers, using similar game streaming technology used in Amazon Luna, NVIDIA GeForce Now, and the now-defunct Google Stadia. Through streaming, users will be able to check out the service’s catalog of games on any device, not just smartphones. But while this seems like a cool development, it’s a difference experience than what you get from most existing game streaming platforms.
On services like NVIDIA GeForce Now, you have a vast catalog of major PC and console games ready to fire up and play. Netflix is instead focused on streaming mobile games, essentially just giving you an alternative to downloading the full game, or allowing you to play something on your TV that would otherwise be limited to a smartphone or tablet. Admittedly, this might be a bit of a letdown, but games are already a no-cost extra perk to the standard Netflix subscription. Game streaming also requires a better internet connection than your regular video streaming, although if you’re already streaming 4K video, chances are most games will work okay.
Streaming big-budget PC and console games would require better hardware from Netflix’s end, although it’s something the company might eventually look into down the road. You really don’t need a lot of hardware to steam mobile games, and on a platform as massive as Netflix, transitioning into actual AAA titles would probably need significant investment — and knowing Netflix, it would probably come with an even more expensive subscription. There are a total of two games available right now, including Oxenfree and Molehew’s Mining Adventure — more will probably be added down the road.
This new experience is set to roll out to smart TVs and the web.
Source: Netflix
Via: The Verge
