Can Netflix outplay the competition? As the streaming wars rage, the original streaming king, Netflix, is making a potentially explosive move: adding video game streaming to its repertoire. The report—which Netflix has not confirmed—claims that Netflix plans to offer this new revenue avenue by 2022. Netflix recently hired former Facebook gaming exec Verdu to be vice president of game development. Verdu has a long CV in the video game world—he has held executive roles at both Electronic Arts and Zynga. There are many things that remain to be seen, including if Netflix plans to develop original games—as it has put billions into original streaming content—or stream video games created by third parties, or both. Additionally, questions about how and where one can stream games arise—Netflix has a presence in virtually every medium, from smartphones to smart TVs and Roku, Amazon, Google and Apple hardware. Will Netflix games be compatible with all of these? Netflix wouldn’t exactly be trailblazing in this space, either. Apple Arcade, Microsoft’s Xbox Cloud Gaming, Steam, and Amazon Luna let consumers stream games in a variety of ways. While questions persist, it’s clear that a move like this would be Netflix’s attempt to broaden its horizons as the movie and TV streaming realm becomes more and more crowded. With Disney+ landing as an outsized success and HBO Max offering simultaneous at-home and in-theater releases of tentpoles, Netflix has its work cut out for it. Source