YouTube’s “app store” for games is rolling out more widely. The company was announced on Tuesday that its collection of light, free-to-play games called “Playables” will soon begin appearing in the YouTube app for all users in addition to the YouTube homepage. Previously, the games were available to select users to test before arriving for YouTube Premium subscribers last November.
Because they don’t generate revenue as paid downloads or through in-app purchases, YouTube Playables don’t directly challenge the app store model or break Apple’s rules. However, they compete with free-to-play games on the App Store, which are often downloaded by casual gamers and monetized through ads. As the search giant shifts its focus to integrating artificial intelligence, there are questions about the technology’s impact on its ad cash cow due to sponsored links appearing above search results. Free games on YouTube could, in theory, become another place to serve ads further down the line. For now, however, Google hasn’t signaled its intention to monetize its Playables.
Games could, however, distract YouTube users between their browsing and viewing sessions and help keep them engaged with the YouTube app.
The Playables lineup includes a handful of popular titles such as Angry Birds Showdown, Words of Wonders, Cut the Rope, Tomb of the Mask, and Trivia Crack, among others. It also offers titles such as Stack Bounce, a game Google brought to its HTML mini-game service, and GameSnacks, which was developed by its in-house incubator, Area 120. With GameSnacks, the goal was to bring gaming to users in emerging markets — a place where Android dominates.
Today, there are currently over 75 minigames in the Playables catalog, Google says. Players using the feature will be able to save their game progress and track all-time high scores. Not everyone will see Playables right away, but the feature will finish rolling out in the coming weeks.
YouTube isn’t the only tech giant looking to expand into gaming. Netflix grows its own catalog of games through acquisitions, licensing deals and in-house game development. Meanwhile, Fortnite maker Epic Games is trying to take advantage of new EU regulations to bring its game store to European users. Elsewhere, other unexpected companies are also delving into gaming, including, most recently, LinkedIn.
These moves highlight how companies are using games to drive App Store sales while boosting their own bottom lines. Although Netflix games are available in the App Store, they require a Netflix subscription — purchased through its website — to access.
