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Sabrina or Ozark? Netflix has secret games in store for E3

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Netflix continues to invest in interactive entertainment, both through choose-your-own-adventure episodes of shows likeBlack Mirror and full-fledged video games like Stranger Things. The company will make an appearance at E3 2019, and it still has some unannounced adaptations that it will be showing off. The question is, of course, just what will they be?

Speaking to the official E3 account on Twitter, Netflix’s science-fiction account NXOnNetflix revealed that it will be hosting its own panel at E3 in June. The panel will be called “Bringing Your Favorite Shows to Life: Developing Netflix Originals into Video Games.”

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How does this sound:
"Bringing Your Favorite Shows to Life: Developing Netflix Originals into Video Games"?

— Netflix Geeked (@NetflixGeeked) May 13, 2019

Stranger Things was confirmed to make an appearance during the panel, with the account adding that there is “more to come.”

Presumably, this means that a video game adaptation of at least one more of Netflix’s original series will be announced at E3. Stranger Things was turned into an isometric action game similar to those popular in arcades during the time when the show is set, but this likely wouldn’t work for other Netflix series.

An action series based on Ozark or a point-and-click adventure inspired by Chilling Adventures of Sabrina seem like good choices. We are very unlikely, however, to see anything based on the Netflix Marvel series, which were canceled in advance of Disney launching its Disney Plus streaming service.

Netflix already has some other experience with television and video games, but not in the way you might expect. The Telltale series Minecraft: Story Mode was brought to the streaming service. Taking the adventure gameplay of the original release and turning it into an interactive television show, it offered a different way to experience the humor and story for those unfamiliar or uninterested in traditional video games.

Among Netflix’s latest interactive programs is You vs. Wild, starring Bear Grylls. In the series, you make choices to help the legendary outdoor expert survive in the wilderness, and each episode takes place in a vastly different environment. Naturally, it’s the most fun to figure out how to make Grylls do something silly.

The latest Stranger Things game sequel, Stranger Things 3: The Game, is scheduled to release on July 4 for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, PC, and mobile devices.

Gabe Gurwin
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…
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