The idea of offering video games through a cloud streaming service is not something entirely new, despite technology makes it more accessible and feasible every day. For example, Microsoft started teasing its Project xCloud back in 2018 during that year's E3, and over time the service evolved and eventually became what is currently known as Xbox Cloud Gaming. The service is still being improved, with Microsoft making the decision to transition from Xbox Series S-based servers to those based on the Xbox Series X instead. It also released the full version for all Xbox Game Pass subscribers just over two weeks ago, with it dropping on June 28.
As recent news reported, Netflix is going to be trying something similar in the near future as well. Netflix hired Mike Verdu, an experienced veteran of the sector who previously worked for EA and Facebook, as the vice president of the company's game development section. While the overall plan for this Netflix game streaming service is not yet clear, and things will inevitably change over the course of the coming months, it seems to be another manifestation of the company's established method for expanding and retaining users by offering more.
Google Stadia Is An Exemplification For What Netflix Needs And Doesn't Need
Netflix is already providing a streaming service for plenty of third-party movies, TV shows, kids' programs, and more. As such, it doesn't come as a surprise that the company is going to try something new to widen the selection of things customers can do while using Netflix, and something similar did indeed happen already when the website started hosting documentaries and producing its own exclusive content. Exclusivity is something that works in the industry of video games as well, and that happens because players get excited for a specific game and consider purchasing a service or console because of it.
This is something that Google Stadia tried to do, as it offered a bunch of video games that were exclusive to Stadia users. However, Google Stadia is not where Netflix should be looking when trying to build its new video game streaming service, as Stadia's model didn't work in the end. As a matter of fact, Stadia has dealt with several issues during its development and its execution, despite the fact that Google had seemingly enough resources to turn the project into something that could work.
The main issue was likely the fact that Stadia was overpromising things, such as creating a micro-environment that's part of the Google ecosystem where players could have a seamless experience of playing any game anywhere. There were talks about Stadia managing to offer a lot - namely, a streaming service that could run in resolutions up to 8k with over 100-120 fps for every game. The ability to join gaming sessions directly from a YouTube video or streaming session were also mentioned. Unfortunately, the end result was that big games on the platform never reached the intended performance levels, but instead turned out to be underperforming in many regards. Titles like Destiny 2 ran on lower visual settings than what was promised, for example.
Then, the issue with a few of the exclusive Stadia games breaking that exclusivity arose, and there were just too few left for them to be a major selling point. Not only that, though, but Stadia also released with a very small number of games available, even though some of them were big titles like Doom Eternal and Red Dead Redemption 2. Overall, the best piece of advice that Google can indirectly give to Netflix is to not rush things and to avoid promising too much, as setting expectations and underdelivering is a recurring problem within the gaming industry.
What Netflix's Gaming Service Could Be
Since the news of Netflix dabbling in video games broke, some fans and service users have been asking themselves if this will mean an increase in the current subscription price for the website or the inclusion of service bundles to pick from. While this remains pure speculation for the time being, it is not unlikely that Netflix will eventually increase the price of its services, though that may come at a much later date than some would expect. This does not seem to be the main focus of this whole operation, and maybe the hope is that introducing a brand new streaming service will lead to a spike in subscriptions. At the very least, Netflix may view games as a way to retain more users.
The reason why a subscription-based model like Xbox Game Pass works is because it offers a lot for what it costs. Xbox Game Pass has a library of games to choose from, and new releases tend to be featured in the service as well. This means that users can trust their subscription cost to feel like a very good deal, as they can cherry-pick what to play from a wide selection of games that only gets even wider with time.
Netflix already does that with its regular services, and this bodes very well for the new gaming venture. Being one of the major players in the industry of video streaming, Netflix will be the first to also feature video games, which will be a very alluring addition to an already strong offer. This will also work very well when paired with the way a few Netflix original productions got their own merchandise and video games, like Stranger Things.
The content platform will plausibly include both the TV show or movie that inspired the respective video game adaptation and also the game itself, allowing fans to get even more content from Netflix's biggest franchises. Overall, this approach to gaming could result in something that is a lot like what Stadia was meant to be in the first place, so Netflix has to be very thorough if this new initiative is to be successful.
Netflix's gaming service is in development.