Netflix Games’ first boss has reportedly left the company, months after switching roles to focus on AI
Mike Verdu left his Netflix leadership role last November to focus on generative AI
The Netflix executive who was tasked with creating the company’s gaming division has reportedly left the company.
Former Electronic Arts and Facebook executive Mike Verdu joined Netflix in August 2021, and was tasked with leading the streaming service’s expansion into the video games market.
Verdu stepped down from his role last year, and took on the new role of ‘VP, GenAI for Games’, which he described as “driving a ‘once in a generation’ inflection point for game development and player experiences using generative AI”.
However, according to journalist Stephen Totilo via his Game File newsletter, Verdu has now left Netflix entirely. The news was reportedly confirmed to Totilo by a Netflix representative.
When Verdu left his leadership role last year he was replaced by Alain Tascan, the former executive vice president of game development at Epic Games.
Since Tascan’s arrival, Netflix has started making widespread changes to its video game arm, including shutting down numerous aspects of it in an attempt to reorganise the interactive side of its business.
In October, Netflix shut down its triple-A studio, known as Team Blue, after spending the past couple of years acquiring a number of veteran developers to join it. These included former Overwatch executive producer Chacko Sonny, Halo veteran Joseph Staten and former Sony Santa Monica art director Raf Grassetti. All three reportedly left Netflix after the studio was closed down.
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The following month it then removed almost all of its interactive specials, which played out like branching stories with players making decisions to progress the story in various directions. 20 of its 24 interactive specials were removed by December 1.
Last month it was reported that Netflix had also laid off multiple staff at Night School Studio, the development team best known for the Oxenfree games. Night School Studio was acquired by Netflix back in 2021, becoming the first game developer to be acquired by the streaming company.
Despite these actions, Netflix still appears to be committed to including games as part of its service. In December 2024 it released mobile title Squid Game: Unleashed, and it recently announced plans to bring the WWE 2K series to mobile as a Netflix exclusive.
