Netflix launches games to iPhone and iPad users around the world – TechCrunch

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Last week, Netflix launched its debut line of mobile games for Android users around the world. Today, games are expanding to users on iOS. The lineup, which includes two “Stranger Things” games and a few other casual game titles, will be delivered to iOS users in the same way they are on Android. That is, they are not streamed from the cloud, but actually installed on users’ phones or tablets directly from the App Store.

With the launch of Android, Netflix introduced a new “Games” tab within the app where users could browse the catalog and find a game they wanted to play. But to actually play the game, they would be directed to the Google Play Store to install the game on their device. On first launch, users will log into the game with their Netflix credentials.

Netflix claims to use a similar system with the launch of Netflix games on iPhones and iPads. Except now, users are directed to the Apple App Store for downloads, not Google Play. The games will also require users to authenticate with their Netflix membership information to start playing.

The company believes this system complies with Apple’s App Store rules, which were changed last year to be more lax about gaming apps.

While updated in response to the growing number of cloud gaming services, Apple’s policy indicates that developers can offer a centralized app that gives their subscribers access to a catalog of games, as long as each title within that catalog has its own dedicated app Store listing. Apple said this would allow it to review each game title separately. The system had actually been pioneered by the GameClub subscription-based gaming service, as a way to offer a wider selection of classic gaming titles that were only playable by its members.

However, there is a difference between the iOS implementation of Netflix games and the functioning of the system on Android.

Netflix users on Android have their own dedicated “Games” tab in app navigation, but iOS users don’t. Instead, iPhone members will only see a row dedicated to games in the app where they can select any game to download. Meanwhile, iPad members will see the row (pinned at position 6) and will be able to access the games from the category drop-down menu.

Image credits: Netflix

The company told TechCrunch that while Apple has been a great partner for Netflix games, it wasn’t entirely clear to Netflix whether a game card would collide with another App Store policy, which bans apps that offer their own “app stores”. Since Netflix believes that the card is not essential to be able to offer the gaming experience to iOS users, it has decided to launch it without it. However, if the company is able to get more clarity on this rule in the future, it may be able to add a Games tab to its iOS app like the one available now on Android.

At launch, the range of games remains the same as on Android. This includes two BonusXP titles, “Stranger Things: 1984” and “Stranger Things 3: The Game;” plus two Frosty Pop titles, “Teeter” and “Shooting Hoops”; and a Rogue Games title, “Card Blast”. The first two games are spin-offs of the popular Netflix show, “Stranger Things,” but the last three are just random titles.

In the long run, Netflix has plans to expand this catalog with other additions and game genres. For example, the company in September acquired independent game developer Night School Studio, best known for fiction-based titles like “Oxenfree,” to further expand its Netflix game library.

Netflix explained its interest in games as another way to entertain and retain subscribers, not a way to generate direct revenue from the games themselves. Currently, the games are free to download, ad-free, and do not include in-app purchases. The company said that as its catalog grows, it may apply its own recommendation algorithms to suggest new games to mobile users, rather than just TV shows and movies.

We see games as another category of content for us, similar to our expansion into original movies, animation and unscripted TV, Netflix’s shareholder letter in Q2 2021 said, adding that the company’s initial goal it would be about free games designed for mobile devices. “Since it’s been nearly a decade since our push to original programming, we think it’s a good time to find out more about how our members enjoy games, Netflix said.

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