It was in 2021 that Netflix showed signs of coming into the gaming space, poising itself to add mobile gaming to its repertoire. After buying out and starting up a few smaller studios, the company"s intentions to step into the AAA space were revealed in late 2022, with former Overwatch executive producer Chacko Sonny coming in to build this new studio.
However, it seems plans have changed in the two years since then. A report by Game File"s Stephen Totilo states that according to a company representative at Netflix, the "Team Blue" studio that was building the AAA experience is no longer active, with all personnel being let go. Several big names were attached to this studio to build this next-generation project.
The studio"s Creative Director position was being held by Joseph Staten. Halo fans may recognize that name, as he has previously worked at both Bungie and 343 Industries on various games in the franchise, and most recently served as the project lead for Halo Infinite"s single-player campaign.
Staten left his head of creative position at 343 in 2023 to join Netflix Games, where he said work was starting on a "brand-new AAA multiplatform game and original IP."
Raf Grassetti, the Santa Monica Studio art director known for his work with the God of War franchise, joined the Netflix studio in 2023. He also mentioned work is starting on a AAA original IP, and that he was happy to work with "Joseph Staten, Jerry Edsall and Chacko Sonny" to build the team.
Unfortunately, no other information about this mystery project has been released to the public yet, and considering the shut down, details may never surface. While it seems its AAA dreams are fading, Netflix is still continuing its mobile gaming push, offering subscribers access to a large number of games that are increasing in number every month.