YouTube Playables Is The Gaming Experience You Never Asked For
Is YouTube's 'Playables' a Gaming Flop?
YouTube has launched "Playables," a platform allowing users to play games directly on YouTube. This move seems aimed at tapping into the lucrative gaming market, mirroring efforts by Amazon and Netflix. However, the selection mainly features generic and outdated games like "8 Ball Billiards Classic" and "Bubble Pop Star," with few notable titles such as "Angry Birds Showdown."
The platform's presentation appears outdated, resembling early gaming websites, and lacks compelling exclusive content that would differentiate it from other gaming sites. The initiative seems more focused on increasing user engagement and ad revenue for YouTube than on delivering a unique or high-quality gaming experience.
Why might companies like Amazon, Netflix, and now YouTube be interested in entering the gaming sector?
Companies like Amazon, Netflix, and YouTube are interested in entering the gaming sector because it is a highly lucrative industry that generates significant revenue and has a massive, engaged audience. The global gaming market is estimated to be worth over $300 billion, which is more than double the size of the global box office and music industries combined. By entering the gaming sector, these companies aim to diversify their revenue streams, capitalize on the growing market, and tap into the vast audience of gamers who return to the same free-to-play titles again and again, and even take a hand in creating games.
Additionally, these companies see opportunities to leverage their existing infrastructure and user base to create synergies with gaming. For example, Amazon can use its cloud computing service, Amazon Web Services, to support game development and distribution, while YouTube can integrate gaming content into its already established video platform6. Netflix, on the other hand, can use gaming as a way to keep its subscribers more engaged with its service and offer unique experiences related to its original content, such as Stranger Things.
Moreover, the gaming industry is undergoing rapid digital transformation, with more and more players moving from traditional paid models to free-to-play and subscription-based services. This shift aligns with the business models of companies like Amazon, Netflix, and YouTube, which have experience in managing subscription services and generating revenue through alternative means, such as advertising and in-app purchases.
In summary, the gaming sector presents an attractive growth opportunity for companies like Amazon, Netflix, and YouTube, as they can leverage their existing strengths and infrastructure to tap into the lucrative gaming market, engage with a massive audience, and diversify their revenue streams.
How has YouTube's approach to the "Playables" been perceived in terms of its presentation and quality?
YouTube's "Playables" feature, which allows users to play games directly within the platform, has been met with mixed reactions regarding its presentation and quality. The feature, which is now available to users in the U.S., U.K., Canada, and Australia, offers over 75 basic mobile games6. However, the games available have been criticized for being generic and lacking in appeal, with titles such as "8 Ball Billiards Classic" and "Bubble Pop Star."
The selection of games has been compared to an early version of Kongregate or Yahoo Games, with the notable inclusion of Angry Birds Showdown, a Playables exclusive, alongside other older titles like Cut the Rope and Words of Wonder. Critics have expressed confusion over YouTube's strategy with Playables, questioning the platform's intentions and the value it provides to users, especially considering the presence of irritating ads.
In summary, YouTube's approach to Playables has been perceived as underwhelming in terms of presentation and quality, with a lack of big-name mobile games and a confusing purpose behind the feature.