Netflix unexpectedly 'shuts down its major gaming studio as high-profile developers leave'

Netflix has reportedly shut down its major AAA gaming studio which has led to a number of high-profile developers leaving the company.

GameFile reports the company's Southern California game studio, which was known as team 'Blue', has been closed down.

Early work there suggested Netflix was preparing to go for big budget games playable across different devices after expanding its mobile game offerings but this has now been cast into doubt.

A company rep told GameFile that former Call of Duty, God of War, Halo and Overwatch developers have left the company as well.

Netflix has shut down a AAA gaming studio / Patrick T. Fallon, AFP via Getty Images

There are currently more than 100 games available through Netflix Games which are all included as part of a membership, reports IGN.

These include GTA 3, GTA: Vice City, GTA: San Andreas and Football Manager Mobile 2024 along with a number of other classic titles, such as Battleship, Minesweeper and Snake, and game spin-offs from its successful series such as Money Heist, Narcos and Too Hot to Handle.

In a July financial call, reported by GamesIndustry.biz, co-CEO and president of Netflix Greg Peters described games as a "huge market" for Netflix and without advertisement revenue, it is generating "almost $150 billion, excluding China and Russia".

"We're looking good in our engagement growth in 2024 and we've set even more aggressive growth goals for 2025 and 2026," he added.

"We're getting close to three years into our gaming initiative and we're happy with the progress that we've seen."

indy100 has reached out to Netflix for comment.

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