Netflix has announced the next release from its selection of video games in a move that could bring about seismic change in the gaming industry. The streaming giant has access to an audience of around 222 million subscribers worldwide.
Netflix’s addition to the zombie game industry
Netflix launched its collection of games last November including two games adapted from its popular horror series Stranger Things. This gives an indication that Netflix could follow the lead of the wider gaming industry by choosing to create games based on successful movies and TV shows.
One theme that they’re taking inspiration from for their new game is the zombie horror genre. Shoot-em-ups involving zombies have been popular video games since Zombies Ate My Neighbors was released in 1993. Netflix’s Into the Dead 2: Unleashed is the sequel to the 2012 zombie action video game Into the Dead, and will form part of the streaming service’s strategy to offer video games to subscribers.
Zombies in the wider entertainment industry
Netflix already features a wide range of zombie-themed TV shows and movies; some examples are the South Korean series All of Us Are Dead and the movie Army of the Dead, directed by Zack Snyder and starring Dave Bautista, Ella Purnell, and Omari Hardwick. Films and TV shows involving zombies have proven extremely popular, so it’s no wonder that game developers have chosen to continue using the theme.
It’s not just console games that have picked up on the genre’s popularity, though. The influence of the zombie genre has spread into other areas of the entertainment industry, such as iGaming. Online slots aim to draw in zombie fans with titles such as Zombies Gone Wild, which features characters and images related to zombies. New players have the opportunity to try out this slot by taking advantage of casino bonuses.
One of the attractions of the zombie genre is that there is a stream of new innovations to keep fans coming back for more. This has been demonstrated by the widely popular Resident Evil franchise, which has done brilliantly in both the movie and gaming industries.
The Resident Evil franchise model for success
Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City is a 2021 reboot of the popular Resident Evil franchise and the seventh movie in the series. The zombie horror stars the English actresses Kaya Scodelario and Hannah John-Kamen, along with Canadian actor Robbie Amell. Resident Evil began life as a horror video game developed by the Japanese company Capcom in 1996 before filmmakers recognized its potential as a movie. The first Resident Evil movie first appeared in 2002 with actress and supermodel Milla Jovovich starring in the first six movies.
Director Johannes Roberts indicated further movies from the franchise are on the agenda with the video games providing the perfect backdrop for movie adaptations both visually and in terms of storylines: “There’s also a different side of Resident Evil with Village and Resident Evil 7, where it’s a much darker, more horrific world.”
Netflix is taking advantage of the popularity of the zombie genre by releasing its initial first-person shooter. The streaming giant is really shaking up the gaming industry in the process. Zombie themes have always been particularly successful in the movie and gaming industry and there is no indication of the popularity of the genre waning anytime soon.