Netflix’s new feature could turn your iPhone into a game controller
Code found in Netflix's iOS app hints at a new gaming feature
Netflix may offer some of the best movies you can watch, but it’s also been flexing its gaming muscles, too. In fact, since 2021, the company has released 55 games and has 40 more on the way.
These games are limited to iOS and Android phones, but the streaming service looks like it’s taking a step into PlayStation and Xbox territory.
According to a report from Bloomberg, the company wants to make its games “playable on every Netflix device you have”. Which, in essence, means your TV. To that end, it’s seemingly working on a way to use your iPhone as a game controller.
Steve Moser, a writer for MacRumors, shared code from Netflix’s iOS app that contains the line: “Do you want to use this phone as a game controller”.
Netflix wants to make games playable on every device by turning your iPhone into a controller for Netflix running on a TV. Code hidden in their iOS app: "A game on your TV needs a controller to play. Do you want to use this phone as a game controller?" $NFLX cloud gaming soon? https://t.co/ZPl5gyoKkQ pic.twitter.com/ilpSJjcxBGMarch 30, 2023
We don't have a timeframe for when this feature could roll out to Netflix subscribers but the company announced it was "seriously exploring" a cloud gaming service back in 2022.
The concept didn't pan out for Google, but maybe Netflix will have more luck. In the meantime, here are the 11 best Netflix movies you haven't watched yet.
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Jeff is UK Editor-in-Chief for Tom’s Guide looking after the day-to-day output of the site’s British contingent. Rising early and heading straight for the coffee machine, Jeff loves nothing more than dialling into the zeitgeist of the day’s tech news.
A tech journalist for over a decade, he’s travelled the world testing any gadget he can get his hands on. Jeff has a keen interest in fitness and wearables as well as the latest tablets and laptops. A lapsed gamer, he fondly remembers the days when problems were solved by taking out the cartridge and blowing away the dust.