Netflix may be forced to release its subscription games as individual downloads on the App Store to comply with Apple’s rules. Other subscription services, such as GeForce Now and Xbox Cloud Gaming, aren’t allowed on the App Store.
It is believed users will still be able to discover and launch titles through the main Netflix app, but they’ll need to download each one first.
Netflix could launch new games individually
Netflix already offers a couple of Stranger Things games on iPhone and iPad that are available as standalone downloads in the App Store. It has also launched new titles, like Card Blast, as individual downloads on Android.
A new report from Bloomberg suggests the video streaming giant will stick with that distribution model for new additions to its game subscription service going forward in an effort to avoid any App Store rejections.
“Because of Apple’s ban on all-in-one services, the current individual app implementation on Android of the Netflix service gives us a preview of how the Netflix offering will function on iOS,” reads the report.
“Netflix has been actively testing games on iOS, and—according to code discovered by developer Steve Moser and shared with Power On—Netflix will release all of its games on Apple’s App Store individually.”
Apple doesn’t like all-in-one gaming apps
The report does note, however, that users will be able to launch games from the main Netflix app. They just won’t be downloadable or playable inside it.
Netflix’s decision makes a lot of sense when you consider the lack of success other game subscriptions services — including those from Google, Microsoft, and Nvidia — have had trying to get into the App Store.
Its sometimes-ridiculous App Store rules state that developers must submit all titles to the App Store as individual apps. Luckily, that will work for Netflix’s mobile games, but it doesn’t work for titles streamed from other platforms.
Apple at least sticks to these rules itself. Its own Apple Arcade platform requires that all games are downloaded individually, though it does have an advantage in that Apple Arcade is integrated into the only App Store available on iOS.
