Sega is considering creating and launching its own Netflix-like subscription service for video games. Shuji Utsumi, President at Sega in an interview with the BBC, indicated that this was the trend now, with streaming services such as Netflix and Apple Arcade having become the mainstream now, and that the publisher was “evaluating some opportunities”.
Utsumi also mentioned in the BBC interview that he wanted to bring back the glory days of Sega with the company, saying that both he and the company had been focusing too heavily on its domestic success in Japan, less so on the global stage.
Over the past several years, video game streaming services have mushroomed, with services such as PlayStation Plus, Xbox Game Pass, Netflix Games and Apple Arcade being just a handful of examples. For a monthly fee, users get access to a library of games to play, at no additional cost.
Sega clearly sees the potential in that; the publisher has seen a resurgence in popularity for Sonic the Hedgehog titles, and Utsumi also oversaw the launch of Metaphor: ReFantazio, the spiritual successor to the wildly popular Persona IP. And one cannot overlook the Like A Dragon franchise, which is another popular title to be released under the company’s banner.
As potentially lucrative as operating a streaming service would be for Sega, there are understandable concerns. For starters, the company would effectively be entering a continually saturating market and as one streamer puts, there are already so many subscriptions out there that it would be difficult to justify signing up for a new one.
On the other hand, having all the Sega classics in one place would make it enticing for the legion of hardcore Sega fans to sign up for the subscription, as well as remove any fear of certain titles disappearing from other platforms – earlier this month, the studio removed more than 60 of its classic games from several digital storefronts across PC and console platforms, without rhyme or reason.
