After last fall signaling its intentions to expand into cloud gaming, Netflix today launched a new app that will soon allow subscribers to play games on their TV. The app, dubbed “Netflix Game Controller,” lets you use your phone as a controller after pairing it with your TV in order to play the gam...
Honestly it depends on the game. If it's a purely mouse-controlled game like a point&click, why not use the phone as a trackpad so you can game on the far larger screen?
Sure it's a bit silly, but even if we have controllers around the home few of us have trackpads like a Steam Controller, nevermind a whole lapboard.
I do find it interesting how far ahead of its time the GameCube controller is though. It was almost a precursor for mobile button layout with the large A and other buttons around it in a non-traditional form/layout. That’s what immediately came to mind when seeing the controller layouts.
I’m not a huge fan of cloud gaming but Netflix may be on to something here by having games be added value to a sub rather than a discrete service with a separate sub. Plus from my experience, it’s not like the apps are streamed to your device but are available for download with an active sub.