Netflix has revealed a little more about its plans to branch out into the wide world of video games, revealing it won't charge subscribers extra for whatever it has planned.
Those who don't play them might not realize this, but video games are big business. That's exactly why Netflix is getting involved in the wide, wide, world of gaming, something it has now confirmed via its latest shareholders letter. The streaming service wants to build on the work it has already conducted in that arena via the Stranger Things games and its interactive movies such as Bandersnatch and a joint venture with WWE released earlier this month.
Rumors that Netflix was seriously considering working on its own video games first surfaced this past May. The platform hired Mike Verdu, a former executive at EA and Zynga. That rumor came coupled with talk that those who want access to Netflix's games division would need to pay extra. Turns out that will not be the case.
“Games will be included in members' Netflix subscription at no additional cost similar to films and series,” the shareholders letter reads. It also adds that it will only be working on mobile games for the time being. No Netflix version of Amazon's New World then, at least not for a while.
Video game subscription service prices have been a hot topic in 2021. News that Xbox planned on increasing the monthly cost of Games With Gold was met with such backlash that the decision was quickly reversed. Nintendo revealing its Expansion Pack, which goes live later today, will double the price of an annual NSO subscription was also met with a lot of anger. Nintendo has not gone back on that decision, though.
Netflix has flirted with the video game world via more than just the Stranger Things games and a few interactive movies. One of the platform's biggest shows is The Witcher. Netflix even teamed up with CDPR for the first-ever WitcherCon over the summer. It's also the only place you can watch the new Pokemon movie Secrets of the Jungle right now.