By Alexander Lee • August 1, 2024 •
Ivy Liu
Netflix’s push into gaming shows no signs of slowing down in 2024, as made clear by the platform’s appointment of veteran game developer Alain Tascan as its new president of games last week.
Netflix has also acknowledged its investment in gaming and the channel’s chance to “serve super fandom with games” as “really fun and remarkable,” as Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos put it during the company’s Q2 2024 earnings call on July 18. He also hinted at the company’s plans to expand its own IP into gaming.
“I think the idea of being able to take a show and give the super fan a place to be in between seasons, and even beyond that, to be able to use the game platform to introduce new characters and new storylines or new plot-twist events — now you could do those kind of things,” Sarandos said, sharing that gaming engagement on Netflix had tripled in 2023, without providing exact figures.
Tascan is, by all accounts, a gaming industry OG. Most recently, he worked as an evp of game development at Epic Games, where he oversaw all first-party game development for “Fortnite,” “Lego Fortnite,” “Rocket League” and “Fall Guys.” Prior to his time at Epic, he served as CEO of the game developer Umi Games. The Montreal-based game dev is also notable for founding the first studios in the city for both Ubisoft and Electronic Arts, where he collectively worked for nearly 17 years.
“Alain’s track record of success in the gaming industry, combined with his innovative mindset and leadership skills, makes him the perfect fit for this role,” said Sergey Punchev, a gaming UX/UI designer and CEO of Punchev Group, who worked with Tascan during his time at Umi Games. “I have no doubt that he will bring a fresh perspective and drive transformative change in Netflix’s gaming division.”
Tascan’s appointment comes at an opportune moment for Netflix’s presence in gaming, which has continued to grow even as other potential avenues of expansion for the company, such as Netflix’s advertising business, have gotten off to a rocky start.
Netflix made its first foray into gaming in 2021, when it hired former Facebook and Electronic Arts exec Mike Verdu to lead its game development arm. Since then, Netflix’s gaming plans have continued apace.
Since 2021, Netflix has acquired four gaming studios — Spry Fox, Next Games, Boss Fight and Night School — and is building two additional studios in-house. Over 100 games are now available for download via Netflix’s mobile app, including both popular pre-existing properties such as the “Grand Theft Auto Trilogy” and games based on homegrown Netflix IPs such as “Too Hot to Handle.” The company is also in the process of testing gaming options for its television and personal computer users.
“The thing I point to most often is the number of downloads that have been driven through the platform. In 2021, it was 5 million; in 2022, it was about 29 million,” said Jason Chapman, a managing partner at the venture capital firm Konvoy Ventures, citing estimates from the market research firm Sensor Tower. “Last year alone, they drove about 81 million downloads. So you’re seeing incredible increases — that’s a 180 percent increase year-over-year.”
At the moment, Netflix’s games do not feature ads, even for subscribers who are on the company’s ad-supported television streaming plans. To download games via Netflix, all a user has to do is log into the platform’s mobile app and navigate to the gaming tab.
“Partnering with Netflix for publishing is great,” said Nai Chang, the managing director of the game developer Wooga, during an interview about the release of the company’s game “Ghost Detective” last year. “One of the reasons why this makes so much sense for us is because people use Netflix for narrative-driven entertainment — for their stories. It’s about immersion, and that aligns very closely with what we’re trying to do in our games.” (Chang did not disclose how well the game performed on Netflix.)
At the moment, adapting homegrown IP to gaming is a particular focus for Netflix. There are over 80 games in development based on Netflix programming including “Emily in Paris” and “Selling Sunset,” according to a company representative, who declined to comment specifically on Tascan’s hiring. Tascan deferred comment to Netflix PR.
Netflix’s push to adapt more of its owned intellectual properties could explain why Tascan was hired for the president of games gig. During his tenure at Ubisoft and EA, Tascan worked with Hollywood studios to develop premium games based on popular movies, such as “Need for Speed” and “Batman Vengeance.”
“Alain is known for his ability to identify and nurture talent, encouraging a collaborative environment where ideas can flourish,” Punchev said. “His strategic thinking and deep understanding of both gaming and entertainment will enable him to seamlessly integrate gaming into Netflix’s existing ecosystem.”
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