A new video game-focused streaming service called Binge has revealed itself days before E3 2021. As Netflix's successful adaptions of Castlevania and The Witcher have shown, gaming franchises can be big business in the world of streaming, but it didn't just start with these massive shows. Players spend hundreds of hours with their favorite AAA franchises, and that love doesn't end when they put down the controller. Instead, entire communities have popped up around producing content specific to gaming fanbases as well as subcultures like retro gaming and VR.
This type of video content was always a factor on YouTube, but it blew up big as Twitch came on the scene and democratized the Let's Play format. Suddenly, any game with an active player base would likely have at least a handful of players streaming out gameplay to an audience on the platform. As this content became more and more normal, those with more professional setups created regularly scheduled shows that wouldn't look out of place back when G4 was a cable channel.
Binge hopes to capitalize on the growing demand for these types of shows with a lineup of on-demand programs that cover games big and small. The service has already teamed with both content creators and publishers to create content that "respects the fans and the games that inspire them," lead by Chief Content Officer Allan Ungar who gamers may know from his Uncharted fan film starring Nathan Fillion.
Binge Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer Cody Hackman had this to say about Binge's mission and the type of content gamers will find on the service:
What sets Binge apart is that we’re bridging the gap between gaming and traditional entertainment – bringing the best of both words together. With our extensive background and expertise in production, gaming and development we’re fully committed to deliver high quality content that respects the games we love.
Hackman reveals that Binge will have more to share about the service's content in the coming months, but gave no specifics as to the type of programming players would see. Reaching out to both content creators and gaming companies could lead to anything from deep dives into a game's development hosted by a face familiar to Twitch viewers to something more like Netflix's in-universe flights of fancy. The service does confirm that it will launch in 2022 and offer "meaningful rewards" for groups of viewers who stay together in what Binge is calling Squad Parties. The service is also hoping to be on TV, mobile, game consoles, and all forms of home computers at launch.
The idea of a Netflix-style service focused solely on gaming content seems niche, but Binge already has a few things in its pitch that could allow it to succeed. The idea of offering rewards to frequent viewers could mirror both Twitch's drops and the Prime Gaming giveaways, giving dedicated players to live service games a reason to stay tuned in. However, Binge's real test will likely come as they reveal their content lineup. If they can live up to their claims and produce authentic shows about games in the vein of channels like Noclip, Bing will already be ahead of the game.