What to know

  • Netflix is developing 80 more games to bring to its mobile app.
  • The streaming service already has 96 games available for Netflix subscribers.
  • Netflix subscribers can play these games on smartphones and tablets and do so without getting any ads or in-game purchases. 

Even if you’ve always ignored the games on Netflix, it should come as no surprise that there are already close to a hundred games available on Netflix. But if that wasn’t enough to get your attention, the streaming service, known mostly for their shows and movies, is doubling down on its foray into the gaming industry. 

Netflix is now developing 80 more games that will be available very soon. Some of the titles would already be familiar to many and upcoming titles like Tales of the Shire, Don’t Starve Together, Lab Rat, and Too Hot to Handle 3 are already generating some excitement among the public. 

But games that are already available are no push-over either. GTA: San Andreas, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Dead Cells, and Sonic Mania Plus are bound to roll back the years and flex your muscle memory. Then there are games based on TV series like Stranger Things and Queen’s Gambit that have their own cult following. 

Sure, there are some platform restrictions, for these Netflix games can only be played on mobiles and tablets. On the bright side, however, there are no ads, no in-games fee or purchases. If you have an active Netflix subscription, you basically have access to all these (and upcoming) games already. Once you’ve downloaded and installed the game, you can keep playing even if you’re online.

Although many would welcome Netflix’s gaming experiments, it’s not entirely clear what the end game is here. Netflix isn’t exactly Steam or GOG or Game Pass, nor are the games on the same level as those put out by these giants. Netflix has a completely different market to cater to.

This excursion into gaming territory could only be a way to keep users engaged – mildly, we might add – who want to kill time when bored of streaming shows and movies. In any case, it is intended for the very small group of Netflix subscribers who are both into the shows and the games that have spun off them. But we’ll let the users decide for themselves if these games are worthy to stand on their own, or if they even need to.