Games

The sun was a few hours from setting when doors opened at the Netflix on Vine studio space as the streamer hosted an official Netflix Game Night for press, partners and guests on Wednesday afternoon.

The digital showcase gave attendees an exclusive opportunity to play recently released Netflix Games made for smart TVs while getting a sneak peek at upcoming launches as the streamer continues its push into becoming a one-stop shop for all things entertainment.

“Our vision is simple,” Netflix Games president Alain Tascan said in kicking off the presentation in front of a standing room only crowd. “Can we make playing a game as simple as streaming a movie on a Friday using the same innovative mindset that led Netflix to transform itself from a company shipping DVDs to streaming, movies, shows and now games. I tell my team almost every day we have a golden ticket, the opportunity to reinvent the way people play games, but also engage and reengage with IP and worlds they are familiar with. So hopefully today you’ll see the potential of what can be games on Netflix and on the TV, where the majority of our audience is.”

The event, and Tascan’s comments, come a little more than a month after Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters announced to Lucas Shaw at Bloomberg Screentime that the streamer was making a move with its games division from offering a suite of mobile apps to games that can be played on TVs for the first time using smartphones as controllers. Group games dominated the first rollout with currently available titles like Boggle Party, LEGO Party, Party Crashers: Fool Your Friends, Pictionary: Game Night and Tetris Time Warp. Up next: Dead Man’s Party: A Knives Out Game that features detective Benoit Blanc (played in the franchise by Daniel Craig) and allows users to solve a mystery in which everyone playing is a suspect.

The games range from existing IP like the LEGO franchise to Netflix originals and beyond. Tascan, who joined the streamer last summer from Epic Games, explained why they’re doubling down in his division.

“At Netflix, our mission is to entertain the world but entertainment isn’t just about shows and movies. Right now, more than three billion people around the world are playing games. It’s the biggest entertainment shift in the last 30 years. Games tell a story and we are home of the best storytellers on the planet. It’s why I’m so excited about what we’re creating At Netflix. Our strategy is to give people something familiar, whether it’s a game they know or a world they love, but we also want to take advantage of the rich and innovations at Netflix to push games in new and unexpected directions.”

It was Netflix Games vp Jeet Shroff who said that one of those directions won’t require any movement as they want subscribers to simply keep the Netflix app open on on their TVs all night. “Let’s say it’s Friday night, dinner’s done and you’re looking for something to do. Forget fumbling through that board game closet. Just open up Netflix,” said Shroff, who explained that scanning a QR code allows smartphones to become game controllers. “You’re going to have a blast with your family and friends. You can go straight from watching KPop Demon Hunters to playing a party game without ever leaving Netflix.”

That’s not to say that Netflix is abandoning its mobile games. Far from it. There are 80 mobile options and more on the way, including high profile launches. The “coming soon” lineup includes PAW Patrol Academy, the wrestling sim WWE 2K25: Netflix Edition starring superstars like Roman Reigns, Trish Stratus, Undertaker and Rhea Ripley, the daily game Netflix Puzzled featuring hot titles like Stranger Things, Squid Game, KPop Demon Hunters, Bridgerton and Emily in Paris, and Red Dead Redemption.

To tease another launch, Tascan and his Netflix Game Night team then allowed attendees to be among the first to play Best Guess Live hosted by TV and media personality Hunter March (Sugar Rush, Nightly Pop) and Howie Mandel in what was presented as a live stream from another location. Reminiscent of the wildly popular Trivia HQ, the mobile game show is sure to be a weekday phenomenon that allows users to compete in real time against real players for cash prizes. Best Guess Live offers up five clues, which last 20 seconds each, allowing users to drop their answers as quickly as they can to beat the competition. Speaking of, one reputable journalist in attendance beat the competition by guessing that March and Mandel were just down the hall, and they were. After the game had ended, the two raced over to surprise the crowd and join Tascan for some final comments.

“You can see why games on Netflix are going to be different. And let me be clear, we are not here to compete with consoles. We’re creating a completely new way to play games,” Tascan concluded. “One that’s as easy as streaming a show on a Friday night. On the TV and film side, we’ve gone from sending DVDs through snail mail to streaming films and movies to an audience of more than 700 million people around the world. It’s in Netflix’s DNA to innovate and push boundaries. In the history of gaming, some of the biggest successes have come from taking big swings and now we’re going to apply that same innovation to games. We’re going to keep experimenting and entertaining the world. This is just the beginning.”