What Happened to the Netflix Interactive TV Shows?

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Submitted by Raven Oweiner on Mon, 03/31/2025 - 09:56

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Last year, a host of titles arrived on Netflix that allowed viewers to choose the path the main characters took, influencing the outcomes. Seen as a new form of entertainment that bridged the gap between their standard shows and gaming content, the spate of programs was short-lived. Many have now been removed from the content schedule, with only a few remaining. So what happened to Netflix's interactive shows?

What Is Interactive Television?

Interactive television began on Netflix back in 2017. As well as a host of family-friendly specials, it went all out, pushing the genre to its limits with ideas like the thought-provoking futuristic thriller ‘Bandersnatch’ from Black Mirror. At their heart, the concepts were roughly the same: The viewer watched a television show, and at various points, they could choose the direction of the narrative. In some cases, this may have been a trivial matter. Yet in others, they posed quite in-depth moral dilemmas for the viewer to digest. Each path gave the show a different outcome.

The push towards interactive elements is nothing new. The iGaming sector is one of the best examples of how interactivity is currently being used, as shown by its live casino UK titles. More than just streaming table games, these have now become akin to interactive game shows where the player is the main contestant. They employ bonus round elements in which people can win real cash prizes in everything from new concepts to adapted versions of well-known licenses, such as Wheel of Fortune or Deal or No Deal.

However, Netflix's foray into them was more akin to a build-your-own-adventure book. In fact, it was a gaming format that had been tried and tested in the early nineties with consoles such as the Phillips CD-I and Sega CD. Back then, some titles such as Night Trap were even banned, falling foul of censors. However, their demise was not down to this. It was simply because consumers didn't find them interesting.

New Ventures Into Gaming

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The closure of the project was announced by a spokesperson for the company, Chrissy Kelleher. She said that the organization was no longer pursuing the project and looking at technological efforts in other areas. Prior to this, Mike Verdu, who is in charge of gaming at Netflix, had spoken of a move toward GenAI for Games which meant interactive titles were being shelved. This left only four titles in its interactive section. These included Ranveer vs. Wild with Bear Grylls, You vs. Wild, Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. the Reverend. In some places, this has now been reduced to the latter two alone.

Despite the project seeming to be a failure, and a sign Netflix is still struggling to carve a niche in the gaming genre, it did have some cult successes. Titles such as Headspace: Unwind Your Mind provided people with a genuinely innovative alternative in Netflix programming, allowing viewers to create their own meditation space.

Even crossovers were executed with companies such as WWE that were a hit for fans. There are many positive lessons Netflix can learn from the experience, which they should incorporate in their future endeavors.