Netflix plans to expand into the gaming industry by 2022

The move comes at a time when the video gaming industry has benefited from a surge in demand from gamers staying at home during the Covid-19 pandemic. Currently, Netflix has more than 200 million subscribers it can reach with games.

According to a more detailed report by Axios, the upcoming gaming service, which would be offered to Netflix subscribers, as "a smaller Apple Arcade" bundle that would include both licensed Netflix IP and games commissioned from the indie studio and could possibly be launched in 2022.

According to the Axios' sources, the Netflix offering would consist of a mix of licensed Netflix intellectual property and original work commissioned from independent studios, offered to existing Netflix subscribers, while according to The Information, the streaming service hadn't ruled out other approaches, including the more complex effort of making games in-house or getting the games to run on TVs.

A Netflix representative told Axios that users have valued the company's variety of content and the service's interactive shows and games, hence they are excited to do more with interactive entertainment.

In a more detailed statement given to Polygon, a Netflix spokesperson said, "Our members value the variety and quality of our content. It's why we've continually expanded our offering — from series to documentaries, film, local language originals and reality TV. Members also enjoy engaging more directly with stories they love — through interactive shows like Bandersnatch and You v. Wild, or games based on Stranger Things, La Casa de Papel and To All the Boys. So we're excited to do more with interactive entertainment."

In recent years, Netflix has produced many titles that are based on popular video games that are out now or in the works, including popular shows like Dota, Castlevania, Resident Evil, The Witcher and upcoming shows based on Magic: The Gathering, Sonic the Hedgehog, and League of Legends.

In 2018, Netflix published Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, a Choose Your Own Adventure-style movie, followed by a similarly interactive experience in 2020 for an Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt episode. The streaming service partnered with Telltale Games to develop a game based on one of its popular titles "Stranger Things" in 2019, but the project was shelved.