ON Aug 15, a small number of Netflix subscribers in Canada and the UK were able to play games on their TVs as the streaming platform launched a limited beta to test its cloud gaming service.

The subscribers were able to do this using the Netflix Game Controller app.

In a blog post, Netflix vice president of Games Mike Verdu explained that the beta aimed to “test [its] game streaming technology and controller and to improve the member experience over time”.

Only two games were available for the beta: Night School Studio’s Oxenfree and Molehew’s Mining Adventure.

Even though it is a beta, the range of compatible devices is still impressive, such as the Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, LG TVs, Nvidia Shield TV, Roku devices and TVs, Samsung Smart TVs, and Walmart ONN.

The beta will continue on the PC and MAC for now, while more devices will be added at a later date.

The games were controlled by smartphones for TV. On Android and iOS, the controller was accessible through the Netflix app and a special controller app that’s available on the App Store.

For those who were playing on the web, it was done with a keyboard and mouse.

“By making games available on more devices, we hope to make games even easier to play for our members around the world,” Verdu said in the blog post.

“While we’re still very early in our games journey, we’re excited to bring joy to members with games.”