The big thing If Netflix’s history has taught us anything, it’s that underestimating the streaming giant is generally pretty unwise. And yet, there are plenty of good reasons to be skeptical that Netflix can pull off an expansion into the gaming market, plans of which were reported by Bloomberg this week. The report notes that Netflix plans to add games as a new category to its library and has hired Facebook’s Mike Verdu, who led the company’s virtual reality games business, to helm the effort. In almost any other entertainment category, a Netflix entrance might have more than a fighting chance, but in today’s gaming ecosystem, it’s hard to believe that there’s room for them in a field where giants like Microsoft and Facebook are struggling to find a hold on third-party hardware. This disparity is largely due to Apple’s reluctance to allow subscription gaming experiences on their devices, but the fact is the entire ecosystem is increasingly hostile to new subscription plays. Netflix’s advantage over game-streaming competitors could come from the fact that most of their viewers access the platform from a TV, but that also means a gaming play would likely rely on them making a hardware play and either entering a crowded streaming box market or navigating partnerships with TV manufacturers or companies like Roku to build integrations with a game controller of their design. Game-streaming network upstarts like Google Stadia and Amazon Luna have been slow to make a splash, but Netflix’s advantage may come from luring consumers into the mix with more lightweight game content before looking to role out a console-class MMO. Publishers have been wary to sell themselves short with subscription partnerships, something that has forced giants like Microsoft to buy out massive studios in order to bulk up their offerings. It’s too early to tell what approach Netflix might take, but with gaming’s future rewards looking richer than ever, the existing stakeholders likely aren’t looking to play nice. | 
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