Netflix’s Southern California gaming studio, also known as Team Blue, has been shut down, as our friend at Game File. The studio was one of several internal teams that Netflix had built in recent years as part of its push into the video game industry.
Already the end?
Team Blue seemed to want to take Netflix to another dimension when it came to gaming. Early indications suggest the studio is working on a big-budget cross-platform game, representing a bold leap beyond Netflix’s initial focus on mobile games. There was talk of a third-person action RPG for PC and consoles supervised by industry veterans who worked on Halo, Overwatch, Call of Duty and God of War.
Over the past two years, the studio has made significant recruitments, demonstrating its ambitious objectives:
- At the end of 2022, Chacko Sonny, former executive producer of Overwatch at Blizzardjoined Netflix to run its Southern California studio. Sonny had also worked on Call of Duty and at Sony Santa Monica.
- In spring 2023, Halo franchise veteran Joseph Staten Microsoft at the house of Bungie And 343 Industriesbecame creative director. Staten was tasked with leading the development of a “AAA cross-platform game and original intellectual property.” His arrival caused a great stir.
- Shortly after, Rafael Grassetti, the artistic director of God of War at Sony Santa Monicaalso joined the team, strengthening the studio’s potential.
To everyone’s surprise, Netflix has just closed Team Blue, putting an end to what had raised high hopes among players. The restructuring began with the departure of Mike Verdureplaced by Alain Tascana former Epic Games executive, which resulted in around 35 job cuts.
Netflix continues its games
Despite these changes, Netflix is not abandoning game development. Studios like Night School, Next Games, Spry Fox And Boss Fight Entertainment continue their activities, but for smaller games. However, questions are being asked about Netflix’s future in the cross-platform triple-A gaming business. Will Netflix confine itself to a secondary role in the world of mobile games?
In any case, to date, the Netflix Games catalog is starting to be interesting, with games of all kinds, including classics and exclusive new releases like Monument Valley 3 to come.
