Former Netflix Games VP Leaves The Company Amid Strategy Shift

The former VP for the mobile games division at Netflix, Mike Verdu, has reportedly left the company. It’s not clear what the reason for leaving is, but Game File’s Stephen Totilo reports that Verdu’s exit from the company has been confirmed.

Netflix began its adventure with gaming back in 2021, and since then, it has launched over 100 mobile games. You can access these games from the mobile app, and all of them are included as part of the Netflix subscription. Netflix was clear from the onset that it wasn’t focused on entering the game market for PC and console and that it would be delving into the world of mobile gaming instead.

However, Netflix did confirm it would be exploring games outside of mobile at some point as the venture evolved. While the company hasn’t put any focus into AAA games, it does now offer some games on PC. Netflix games in the desktop browser are still in beta, though.

Former Netflix Games VP Mike Verdu left in February

During his time at the company, Verdu oversaw Netflix’s efforts to bring games to its millions of subscribers on mobile devices. He stayed in this role for a while before moving into a new role last year that focused on “transformative innovation in game creation and development.” Just after that (last July), Netflix brought in Alain Tascan to be the head of the gaming division. Tascan had held previous roles at Ubisoft, EA, and Epic Games. This probably made him a good fit to head up Netflix’s shifting strategy in the game space.

Verdu then transitioned into another new role in November of last year as the VP of Generative AI for Games. Now that Verdu has left the company, it’s unclear if Netflix has decided to keep this role in place and fill it with someone else. It’s also unclear if Netflix still plans to implement the use of AI in its gaming strategies.

That being said, Netflix wouldn’t be alone if it decided to stick with this initiative. Both Microsoft and Sony have discussed using AI in their gaming strategies in one way or another. Microsoft has thus far deployed an AI chatbot for Xbox. Sony, meanwhile, has experimented with the use of AI for some of its gaming characters.

What’s next for Netflix games?

Netflix hasn’t said anything new about its future gaming plans, but it continues to add games to the app. And with the availability of some games available in beta through the desktop browser, it’s clear that Netflix still plans to continue in the gaming space. Totilo also reports that Netflix will be at GDC next week. With that being the case, it’s likely Netflix will discuss some of its future gaming strategies. However, GDC is focused on developers.

So whatever Netflix’s presence at the conference entails, it’ll likely focus on the development side of things.