Summer Game Fest – Day 2: Netflix passes the second for its catalog of games included in the subscription

Between Netflix and video games, it’s a love story that is written in two different ways. On the one hand, there are the very many series that have populated the streaming giant’s catalog of video productions for several years now. And on the other, the initiative started last November by the company, which now also offers mobile games (accessible on iOS and Android) included at no extra cost in all its subscription plans.

These are two good reasons to explain why Netflix wanted to participate in Summer Game Fest, the substitute for E3 organized in June 2022 by Geoff Keighley, in parallel with its own Geeked Week. And against all odds, the conference held yesterday Friday, June 10 by the operator, co-presented by Keighley himself, was one of the most interesting of the day. It has indeed allowed us not only to review some of Netflix’s current series projects (Dragon Age Absolution, tekken, Cuphead, Sonic Prime, Castlevania Nocturne…), but also and above all to have a preview of the upcoming additions to the service’s catalog of games, with several titles deserving our full attention.

Supporting brand exclusives and Devolver Digital

It all starts with a few titles directly linked to Netflix’s great hits, with an action game Money Heist and a chess game inspired by queens game. But these adaptations are obviously not the only ground that Netflix wants to invest. The service is also keen to offer exclusives unrelated to its films and series, and this will begin this summer with a brand ambassador, Lucky Luna. Developed by the Snowman studio, already the author of a few mobile games that have met with great success, such as Where Cards Fallthe game will offer us to embody a young girl in search of her past, in an adventure inspired by the Japanese legend of Princess Kaguya.

The service also benefits from the unexpected support of the American publisher Devolver Digital, which brings three games to the Netflix Games catalog. Reigns Three Kingdoms transcribed from the framework of the Han dynasty the concept of Reigns original: a crazy strategy game, in which you play a king whose alliances and enmities are decided by swiping left or right, like in a certain dating application. Terra Nilemeanwhile, could be defined as a “nature-builder“, as opposed to the genre of city ​​builder : the objective is to help nature to rebuild its ecosystem in a devastated world. The title will also be released on PC.

Finally, poinpy is the new game from Moppin, creator of the hugely popular Downwell. The filiation with the latter is also quite obvious, with a very clever gameplay practiced with one hand, in portrait format, perfect for the smartphone. Chef’s surprise: the title plays the card of shadow dropand is available to download now for all Netflix subscribers (type the name of the game in the search bar of the application).

Spiritfarer, Kentucky Route Zero and immortality (Sam Barlow) among the known names

And as that is still not enough, Netflix will also soon welcome a very nice selection of games already known elsewhere. The Indian Adventure Game Raji: An Ancient Epicoriginally released on Switch and PC in the summer of 2020, may not be a perfectly mastered game from cover to cover, but it is a title with a remarkable artistic vein, soaked in culture and legends of his native country. Spiritfarer, at the same time, had seduced players thanks to the very fair treatment of its theme: it puts us in the shoes of a ferryman responsible for accompanying the deceased between the world of the living and the world of the dead, helping them to find peace before the big departure. As for Kentucky Route Zerohe is one of point & click the most unanimously acclaimed stories of his generation.

Still in the genre of narrative adventure, the presence in the list of the very popular Oxenfree In the end, there is nothing very surprising, since its developer Night School Studio was acquired by Netflix just a few months ago. Finally, we must mention the long-awaited immortality by Sam Barlow (Her Story, Telling Lies), which will therefore be available on mobile via Netflix, in addition to its releases on consoles and PC.

Oxenfree II in the Tribeca Games Spotlight

This same immortality continued to be talked about in the evening, since it was one of the games selected for an appearance in the Tribeca Games Spotlight. Sam Barlow was able to detail the impressive mechanics that will be at the heart of his new game. We will investigate the disappearance of filmmaker Marissa Marcel by exploring the reels of the many films she has shot, but without ever being able to finalize them. By dint of visual similarities that we will be able (or not) to spot between several shots, we will have to try to solve a mystery whose complexity already seems dizzying.

Finally, note for the form that the remote presence of Netflix was also felt at other times during the Tribeca event, since we also saw the additional content The Delicious Last Course of Cupheadand especially Oxenfree II: Lost Signals, still developed by Night School. It should be noted, however, that the development of the latter had begun long before the acquisition of Night School by Netflix; this is why the game will be published by MWM Interactive, rather than by Netflix directly, when it is released on consoles and PC at the end of 2022.