2022 and 2023 marked a strange time for original streaming content, in that several services took the initiative to both cancel and shelve already produced projects as a money-saving tactic, as well as jettison fully original content from their online libraries. Max removed tons of shows, and Disney+ wasn’t too far behind, but even the showhorse Netflix bounced O.G. streaming series every so often, and even ousted series it saved from linear cancellation like Arrested Development.
Now, the entertainment giant is apparently losing another sizable batch of content, albeit of a fairly specific variety, and I think it speaks to a larger Netflix issue that isn’t being talked about enough on a consumer level. Especially considering we’re the ones who keep suffering regular price hikes to our Netflix subscriptions.
Netflix Is Removing Most Of Its Interactive Movies And TV Content
Over the years, Netflix has cemented itself as a business that takes big and sometimes oddball swings, and its library of interactive specials, shows and movies is definitely one of the more unique creative pushes of any streaming service. Something like Black Mirror: Bandersnatch may not be the most fun for everyone, but it definitely stands out from the rest of the sci-fi anthology's intallments, much as Ranveer vs. Wild with Bear Grylls works differently from other Bear Grylls-fronted series.
Only 24 interactive projects were produced over the years, speaking to the complications involved for both live-action and animated projects. And not only will we not see any new releases of the sort ever again, but Netflix is also pulling the majority of those specials off of the Internet on December 1. That exodus will leave only the aforementioned Bandersnatch and Grylls alongside You vs. Wild and the comedy-geared Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt vs. The Reverend .
Here's how one Netflix spokesperson explained the decision to The Verge:
The technology served its purpose, but is now limiting as we focus on technological efforts in other areas.
Not that the interactive specials have feelings or anything, but STILL HARSH, Netflix spokesperson. If all shows had to do was serve their purpose before going away forever, we wouldn't ever have any TV to watch.
This is perhaps not the most surprising turn of events to anyone who happened to catch a report earlier this year in which Netflix's then-head of gaming Mike Verdu told GameFile that the service was ceasing development on all interactive specials, citing the limitations of the format at the time. So at least the story matches with what the spokesperson said.
But while this might seem like smaller issue that falls outside of casual Netflix customers' interests, let's talk about why it should look like a bigger red flag to just about everyone who isn't on the payroll.
Netflix Is Overspending On Gaming Plans Without Much To Show For It
As someone who would easily fit under the "Gamer" umbrella, I would ideally love a future where Netflix found a way to boast a video games lineup as massive as its movie and TV libraries have been over the years. (Though hopefully in a way where the game developers, creative teams and voice actors get paid properly.) But in all these years, what have we seen from so many millions of dollars of efforts?
Well, there are the 24 interactive projects we talked about, but most of those won't exist anymore when the 2025 TV season rolls around. Then there's the fine-enough library of third-party games that consumers can play on their computers, mobile devices and certain consoles. Some true bangers are included for just about any kind of gamer, but not really enough of anything to be a major draw.
So it made sense when Netflix rounded up Overwatch executive producer Chacko Sonny to work with a bunch of other notable and talented developers within an in-house game studio that went by the name Blue. That team had reportedly been working on a large-scale AAA game since April 2023, but Netflix fully shuttered the studio in October 2024 without any publicized details or game concepts coming out.
Outside of Blue, the streaming service has acquired and attached itself to multiple other studios and game developers such as Spry Fox, which developed the casual gaming sequel Cozy Grove: Camp Spirit after Netflix took over. But nothing released thus far has been on a grander scale than that.
To top it all off, the aforementioned Mike Verdu announced on Nov. 4 (via LinkedIn) that he's now the Netflix's VP of GenAI for Games, which indicates the company is following other tech companies in throwing a bunch of money at A.I. without having a clear path for how to implement it. If the company hasn't fully figured out how to make gaming attractive to its gigantic user base, I doubt adding more arbitrary algorithms into the cauldron will result in alchemy.
TLDR: We're Probably All Paying Big For Netflix's Gaming Woes
I'm sure there's no way to do the math on this in a way that actually makes Netflix look bad, but it seems like at least a mildly noteworthy percentage of the company's price hikes in recent years has to be tied to the money spent on wishy-washy gaming efforts. Which would be far more infuriating to me if I didn't have hopes for what's to come.
I'm not trying to say that the studio doesn't produce and license a crapton of scripted and unscripted content that also (maybe) justifies paying more money for a lot of content I'll never ever pay attention to. But I think it's time for Netflix to completely spinoff its gaming initiative so that non-gamers don't have to worry about what'll go wrong next that'll lead to another $1-$2 upcharge next year.
You could have just left all the interactive specials alone, Netflix. You could have just left them all alone. (Be sure to check out any you haven't watched yet before the December 1st purging.)
I'd also be fine if the company could figure out how to perfect video game movie and TV adaptations before trying to make the source material. But that's just my two cents, which is about 0.45% of my current Netflix bill.
