Thanks to the advancements made in technology, the way in which we can entertain ourselves has changed. Nowadays, people can explore a variety of entertainment options through a selection of different devices. One of the most prominent services people have been using is Netflix, a world-renowned streaming platform that offers award-winning TV shows, movies, anime, documentaries, and more.
A service millions of people utilise, Netflix has recently added another layer to its offering by making a leap into the gaming world. Now, subscribers can explore a variety of TV shows and documentaries alongside sampling an array of gaming products. Smartphone gaming’s boom has resulted in this latest move from Netflix, with the company looking to evolve and tap into what is a highly lucrative market.
After all, people are mobile gaming more than ever before in the modern environment. New and improved products have played a part, but so too has the way in which we game. Gone are the days when people could only sample gaming on a PC or a console machine, instead being replaced by portable options that can house a plethora of products, such as a smartphone device. Leading titles like PUBG Mobile, Among Us, and Clash of Clans have been supplemented further by online releases like Aliya’s Wishes, a casino slot that is a reimagining of Aladdin, plus other casino favorites like poker and blackjack. In 2023, Netflix is aiming to make its own impact with a selection of games, although it hasn’t quite gone to plan yet.
Not enough people are playing Netflix’s catalog of games
After the company teamed up with some big names from the mobile gaming sphere, it probably expected to record notable success and pull people in immediately. That hasn’t necessarily happened yet, though. According to Apptopia, a respected app analytics company, Netflix’s extensive selection of games have been downloaded just 23.3 million times and have an average of 1.7 million daily users – that’s less than 1% of Netflix’s entire 221 million subscribers at the time of writing. The company will be hoping to remedy this evident issue that could see their gaming service fail to really take off. If there’s a company that can turn things around, though, then it’s probably Netflix.
Netflix is losing (some) subscribers
Whether it’s due to the cost of living crisis and people making various cutbacks or because of Netflix’s move into gaming, the service is losing subscribers at a rather alarming rate. For example, Netflix has lost 1.3 million subscribers in the U.S. and Canada in recent times, although there are signs of recovery in 2023. This decline in subscribers will not only impact the streaming platform’s TV and movie offering, but it could also have a dramatic effect on winning over subscribers to the service’s new gaming products. Simply put, for Netflix’s move into gaming to succeed, the company needs to build a community and grow awareness around its games. If people are leaving the service and exploring other products elsewhere, then that goes against everything Netflix is hoping to achieve. As such, Netflix will surely be looking at ways the service can adapt its games further and keep people interested.
Games based on movies and shows might be the way forward
One move Netflix is clearly making is to create games alongside the release of TV shows and movies. With film and television communities already established, the hope is that viewing audiences will then supplement their movie-watching and TV binges with a gaming session on a product that is based on what they’ve just watched. For example, we could see more decent releases like Stranger Things 3: The Game.
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