How Netflix uses mobile games based on Selling Sunset, Too Hot to Handle and other shows to keep subscribers engaged

Netflix’s growing library of mobile-only games, many of which are based on its shows, are designed to increase the amount of time people spend on its platforms

‘If you love the show or you love the game, there is another iteration for you to immerse yourself in, to enjoy that world,’ explains one Netflix insider

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Chloe Veitch, a contestant on Too Hot to Handle, at Netflix’s Love Is Blind: The Live Reunion official watch party in April, 2023. Netflix has a growing library of mobile-only games based on shows including the reality series Veitch appears in, to keep subscriber numbers high. Photo: TNS

Published: 3:45am, 5 Jun 2024Updated: 4:36am, 5 Jun 2024

Reality-show contestants are fiercely protective of how they look on screen. For Chloe Veitch, one of the breakout stars of Netflix’s risqué dating series Too Hot to Handle, that kind of intense image control now includes her appearance as a digital character in the company’s mobile video games.

Her digital avatar is prominently featured in a series of Netflix games based on the streaming giant’s reality programmes, including Too Hot to Handle, in which scantily clad contestants form romantic connections while being penalised for getting frisky.

Her animated persona appears as a “love guru” guiding players through the gaming experience.

“The game version of me is almost identical,” Veitch said in an interview, noting that the game designers painstakingly copied her multiple tattoos. “Obviously it doesn’t get spots, it doesn’t have hormone imbalances, so I’m quite jealous, to be honest with you.”

She added: “I’ve said to the team when we were first developing me into the game – you need to make sure my boobs look big.”

The reality-show-inspired games are part of Netflix’s growing library of mobile-only interactive offerings, which are available to the streaming service’s subscribers.