Will Netflix Become The Next King Of Gaming?

Netflix Inc. is well-known as the king of streaming, but don't expect the company to rest on its laurels and hope to maintain its spot at the top. Instead, you can expect Netflix to grab a bigger piece of the gaming pie.

Two years ago, Netflix announced its entrance to the gaming world. 

"Whether you're craving a casual game you can start from scratch or an immersive experience that lets you dig deeper into your favorite stories, we want to begin to build a library of games that offers something for everyone," Netflix stated.

In 2023, Netflix tripled the size of its game library, reaching more than 75 titles including favorites like TMNT: Shredder's Revenge, Tomb Raider Reloaded and LEGO Legacy: Heroes Unboxed.

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Netflix isn't the only company making noise in the gaming world. Startups such as Gameflip are changing the industry for the better. With over $140 million in platform sales, $10 million in funding from Silicon Valley venture capitalists (VCs) and the use of commercial blockchain, Gameflip is transforming gaming and targeting digital commerce in the gaming metaverse.

Netflix gamers may be disappointed with the slow growth of its video gaming service, but it's all by design.

"This trajectory is not dissimilar from what we've seen before," Co-CEO Greg Peters said on the company's recent earnings call. "When we've launched a new region — or when we launched new genres, like unscripted" we had to "crawl, walk, run, but we see a tremendous amount of opportunity to build a long-term center value of entertainment."

The company's track record of success with this strategy speaks for itself. 

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Since 2021, the company has attracted several heavy hitters in the gaming industry. Mike Verdu, a former Electronic Arts mobile executive, became Netflix's vice president of game development in 2021. And in February, Joseph Staten, previously with Microsoft Corp.'s Halo Infinite, joined Netflix as creative director for a new AAA multiplatform game.

A deep dive into the numbers as of September — as reported by Apptopia Inc. — reveals that while Netflix's foray into gaming has generated significant downloads, its daily engagement rates pale in comparison to seasoned mobile gaming publishers. 

Here's a closer look at the data and how Netflix's gaming endeavors stack up against the competition.

Netflix's gaming stats as of September:

• 70.5 million Netflix games downloaded globally
• Average daily players: 2.2 million users
  • Peak in January: 2.7 million users
  • Lowest point in March: 1.45 million users
• Daily users dipped below 2 million between March and July
• Despite a growing game library, less than 1% of Netflix's 247.15 million subscribers play their games daily.

Comparison with other mobile game publishers:

• Playrix (Gardenscapes publisher): 531 million downloads
• King (Candy Crush maker): 438 million downloads
• Supercell (Clash of Clans owner): 388 million downloads

The question remains: Will Netflix win in the end with its slow and steady approach, or will it continue to fall further behind the competition?

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