MUMBAI: After months of anticipation, Netflix officially launched its gaming subscriptions service Wednesday, with its first mobile games rolling out on Android to all its subscribers around the world.
The launch comes after a brief pilot in select European markets such as Poland in August and Spain and Italy in September.
The initiative will enable Netflix subscribers to download games to their smartphone or tablet from within the Netflix app. The first five titles in Netflix’s inbound games collection consist of two based on one of its major franchises: “Stranger Things: 1984” and “Stranger Things 3: The Game” by BonusXP. The other three are “Shooting Hoops” and “Teeter Up” by Frosty Pop, and “Card Blast” by Amuzo and Rogue Games.
Mike Verdu, VP, Game Development at Netflix, says in an official blog post: “Just like our series, films and specials, we want to design games for any level of play and every kind of player, whether you’re a beginner or a lifelong gamer. And we’re just getting started. We’re excited to continue improving our mobile gaming experience and adding to our entertainment offering in the months ahead.”
However, unlike traditional casual games, these games will be ad-free with no in-app purchases or any additional fee. At launch, members will be able to see a dedicated games row and a games tab on their mobile app. These games however will not appear on kids profiles.
While the games have been launched for Android devices, they will be available for iOS users in due course.
