Those who want to play games on their television still use a PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S or a Nintendo Switch. However, Netflix hopes that this will change soon and wants to use the iPhone to make that happen.
Netflix is a cornered cat that makes strange leaps. Membership numbers are under pressure and so the streaming service is looking cross-eyed for other ways to get people to the platform. It has been operating in the gaming field for some time, but now it really wants to make big moves. Will it open the attack on Nintendo and PlayStation?
Netflix as a competitor to Nintendo and PlayStation
You may have noticed it when opening the Netflix app on your iPhone or Android smartphone. You can find a special offer with games. They are free for members and playable on your cell phone. And no, the games are actually good and entertaining so no crap.
Those kinds of games are fun, but Netflix now seems to want to make a move. Games should come to television, according to a secret code discovered in the streaming service’s iPhone app. So with that, the company seems to want to take the fight to PlayStation and Nintendo.
In the Netflix app for iPhone, the following can be found: “To play games on your television, you need a controller. Would you like to use this iPhone for that?” So it should be possible to play a Netflix game on your television and then control it with your phone. So the code seems to be there already, and it just remains to be seen when Netflix will actually do this.
Initially, this will probably only be mobile games that you then play on television. Still, this could be a stepping stone to more. If it is possible to play games on television through streaming, larger titles may also come to the platform. Something similar to what Xbox is currently doing with Game Pass. Currently, you still have to install games on your smartphone first.
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Netflix wants to make games playable on every device by turning your iPhone into a controller for Netflix running on a TV. Code hidden in their iOS app: “A game on your TV needs a controller to play. Do you want to use this phone as a game controller?” $NFLX cloud gaming soon? https://t.co/ZPl5gyoKkQ pic.twitter.com/ilpSJjcxBG
– Steve Moser (@SteveMoser) March 30, 2023
Is the iPhone plan likely to succeed?
Still, the big question is whether Netflix can give Nintendo, Xbox and PlayStation a hard time. In recent years, Google made a valiant attempt with the Stadia, but the concept failed completely. Far too few people took out subscriptions.
That may be different with Netflix, however, because many people are already members of the streaming service. If gaming becomes a component, the barrier of taking out a new subscription is soon removed. It really needs to come up with a good offer then.
It makes sense for Netflix to try this, as the company is having an increasingly difficult time. Many movie companies have started their own streaming services, making it harder for the service to score big titles. In addition, it also creates more competition and people don’t just subscribe to every service.
Nintendo, PlayStation and Xbox will at least keep an eye on Netflix. Because when you can stream top games via the cloud, you’re not just going to buy a console anymore. So it could be spirited competition, provided Netflix really handles it very well.
5 top games you play for free on Netflix
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge
Into the Breach
Kentucky Route Zero
Moonlighter
Spiritfarer
