Netflix is pulling most of the interactive titles from its platform. Only four will remain, including an interactive episode of Black Mirror. It ends the Netflix foray into interactive viewing that began with Puss in Book and went on into trivia games. The choose your own movie game now consists of deciding what to watch from the rest of the catalogue.
Netflix chose to launch its own interactive adventure in the middle of 2017 with Puss in Book: Trapped in an Epic Tale, produced by DreamWorks Animation, part of a series based on the character from the Shrek franchise, aimed at children.
That was followed by Bandersnatch, a multipath episode from the Black Mirror series, written by Charlie Brooker. That will be one of four interactive titles that will remain of 24 that are currently listed.
Netflix branched into trivia games like Triviaverse and Triva Quest, but none of these will be retained.
The relatively small number of interactive specials released over several years suggests that it was limited success.
Despite the technical capability, the creative challenge of producing branching narratives has long been problematic. The logical conclusion to this adventure is that games ultimately provide a better interactive experience.
Netflix’s head of gaming, Mike Verdu, said in late 2023 that “The technology was very limiting and the potential for what we could do in that realm was kind of capped. But we learned a ton from that.” He said the learning would come to life in narrative games.
“The technology served its purpose but is now limiting as we focus on technological efforts in other areas,” a representative of Netflix said.
Netflix has been moving into video games, which are available to some subscribers, depending on region and device. They use an Android or iOS phone or tablet as a controller.