Netflix is beginning to test its gaming platform on a wider variety of devices, including smart TVs and other streaming devices, essentially making many home theater installations double as gaming platforms beyond simply PlayStation 5 and Xbox consoles.
According to the streaming giant, the company is rolling out a limited beta test to a small number of members in Canada and the UK on select TVs. Gaming will also be added to PCs and Macs through the website on supported browsers in the next few weeks.
Two games will be a part of the company’s initial test: Oxenfree from Night School Studio, a Netflix Game Studio, and Molehew’s Mining Adventure, a gem-mining arcade game.
To play Netflix games on TV, users will use their smart phone as a controller, the company says.
During the limited beta release, Netflix will test its game streaming technology and controller and will work to improve the experience.
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To start, Netflix games on TV will operate on select devices, including Amazon Fire TV Streaming Media Players, Chromecast with Google TV, LG TVs, Nvidia Shield TV, Roku devices and TVs, Samsung Smart TVs, and Walmart ONN. Other devices will be added on an ongoing basis, the company says.
“By making games available on more devices, we hope to make games even easier to play for our members around the world,” writes Mike Verdu, Netflix’s vice president of Games.
“While we’re still very early in our games journey, we’re excited to bring joy to members with games. We look forward to hearing feedback from our beta testers and sharing more as we continue on the road ahead.”
The company first launched games on mobile in November 2021 for Android and iOS devices. CE Pro had pegged high-performance gaming systems as one of its five Home Tech Trends to Watch earlier that year, and the opportunity has only grown since HDMI 2.1 ushered in several display features well-suited for gamers who want maximum AV performance.
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