After Netflix’s tentative first few years in games – which has seen it grow its mobile library, acquire studios, and dabble in triple-A development before dramatically changing course – the streamer’s new gaming boss, Alain Tascan, has laid out the company’s latest vision. This, he says, is less about the console model and more about phone-controlled party games.
Tascan – a 30-year industry veteran who most recently served as executive vice president of game development at Epic Games – joined Netflix last July, taking over the role from Mike Verdu, who briefly transitioned to vice president of generative AI at Netflix before departing the company. And with nine months at the streaming service now under his belt, Tascan recently outlined his vision for Netflix gaming at this year’s GDC.
As reported by The Game Business, that vision takes a four-pronged approach, focusing on narrative and transmedia projects, on big mainstream IP, on being a trusted destination for families, and on party games played on TVs using mobile phones as a controller.
The latter, as Tascan sees it, is Netflix’s attempt at Wii-style industry “disruption”. “I love the Wii,” he told The Game Business. “I am very vigorous about lowering friction and eliminating it if we can. I see that the subscription is friction as well. Maybe good friction because it makes business sense… But the other friction is having enough controllers for family. Having a piece of hardware that might be expensive… Waiting for a game to download… I am [looking at] all the obstacles, and asking if we can reduce them as much as possible.”