Game Studio Shutdown Suggests Gaming May Not Be Working Out for Netflix - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Game Studio Shutdown Suggests Gaming May Not Be Working Out for Netflix

Netflix recently shut down its "Team Blue" gaming studio in Southern California, according to Game File. The studio included industry veterans that worked on titles like Halo, Overwatch, and God of War.

netflix games launch
There have been mobile gaming titles available through Netflix since 2021, but Team Blue was supposedly working on a big budget AAA gaming title that would have represented an expansion of Netflix's gaming efforts.

The decision to shutter the studio developing an original multi-platform AAA title suggests that gaming might not be going so well for Netflix. Back in 2022, a report suggested that less than one percent of Netflix subscribers were engaging in games, but Netflix has made an effort to introduce more premium titles since then.

Netflix's mobile gaming catalog includes several Grand Theft Auto titles, popular roguelike Hades, Cozy Grove, Farming Simulator, Spiritfarer, Rollercoaster Tycoon, and more. The games are included with a Netflix subscription, and no additional fees are required to play them.

Netflix games can be downloaded as standalone games on Apple devices, and are available to play after logging in with an active Netflix account.

Tag: Netflix

Popular Stories

Netflix Smaller 2

Netflix Launches Free Kids Gaming App to Compete With Apple Arcade

Monday April 6, 2026 11:32 am PDT by
Netflix today launched a new Netflix Playground app designed for kids who are eight and under. Playground offers a selection of games with popular characters from shows like Sesame Street and Peppa Pig, with no ads and no in-app purchases. Playground is included in all Netflix memberships, and it is an expansion of the existing gaming options that Netflix offers. Netflix has had games...
iOS 27 on iPhone 17 1

iOS 27 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Saturday May 2, 2026 8:43 am PDT by
Apple is expected to unveil iOS 27 during its WWDC 2026 keynote on June 8, and there are already many rumored features and changes for iPhones. The first developer beta of iOS 27 will likely be available immediately following the keynote, and a public beta typically follows in July. Following beta testing, the software update should be released to all users with a compatible iPhone in...
Apple MacBook Pro M4 hero

Why You Might Want to Wait to Buy a MacBook Pro

Friday May 1, 2026 3:43 pm PDT by
Apple refreshed the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro with M5 Pro and M5 Max models in March 2026, but depending on your needs and interests, you might want to skip this generation because there's something better in the works. The M5 Pro and M5 Max MacBook Pro models have faster chips, but the same design that Apple has used since 2021. An updated design with new display technology and faster ...

Top Rated Comments

antiprotest Avatar
20 months ago
I think many Netflix users still don't know they offer games but they even have GTA.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
20 months ago
Not once have I touched these.
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sw1tcher Avatar
20 months ago

The decision to shutter the studio developing an original multi-platform AAA title suggests that gaming might not be going so well for Netflix.
😂 Trying to extrapolate Netflix closing a gaming studio with things not going well. And maybe even Netflix abandoning gaming???

It helps to read Netflix's investor letter and listen to the analyst call from last week when they reported earnings. If you had, you'd know they will continue to invest in gaming

From Investor Letter:

We’re pleased that we’ve reaccelerated our growth and, as we head into 2025, we expect to deliver solid revenue and profit growth by both improving our core series and film offering while investing in new growth initiatives like ads and gaming.

[ . . . ]

At just under 10% of TV time today in our biggest countries, we believe there’s a huge opportunity to grow that share by investing even more in our slate and continuing to improve the variety and quality of our offering. Part of that improvement is ensuring we have a steady drumbeat of great, new TV shows, movies and games throughout the year to satisfy our members.



From analyst call Q&A:

Gregory K. Peters
Co-CEO, President & Director

Our second set of priorities are about planting seeds, these investments and new initiatives that help us expand and strengthen our entertainment offering and that we believe will be incremental levers for growth in the coming years. We've got initiatives like games. We're excited about games based on Netflix IPs. We got a Squid Game coming. We've got a Virgin River Christmas. We've got The Ultimatum. We've got games based on storied game classics like Monument Valley 3 that's coming out.

[ . . . ]

I think it's also worth noting that we've got a lot on our plate right now. We've got a lot of hard work building new capabilities. We're building ads. We're building games. We're building live. Those all expand that offering. They deliver more value to members. So we want to focus on building those capabilities.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
anthogag Avatar
20 months ago
Apple Arcade could benefit from having large AAA-type games available to play using the small Apple TV unit or very immersive in Vision Pro.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
20 months ago
Time to pass those savings instead of expenses to customers now for a change
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
chrono1081 Avatar
20 months ago
I didn't even know these existed. Way to market Netflix.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)