League of Legends ‘Hextech Mayhem’ now available on Netflix gaming platform
After a few months, Netflix has released its first high-profile mobile game. Riot Games’ League of Legends spinoff Hextech Mayhem has been broadly released for Android and iOS by the streaming service.
This week, Netflix and Riot revealed that the “rhythm runner” game starring League of Legends champion Ziggs is now available on mobile devices. This comes after a preview of future additions was released late last year.
New home for Hextech Mayhem
The game, like the other games incorporated into Netflix’s platform, is free for those with active Netflix subscriptions. Users on Android can find games in a variety of places, including a dedicated gaming section in the app’s navigation menu. On iOS, however, games are displayed in a separate row.
Riot Games’ Hextech Mayhem is a recent mobile port that has been accessible and consoles since November 2021. It’s an auto-runner, but it also has a rhythm mechanic that allows players to advance throughout the screen by measuring their taps with the game’s music and visual cues scattered throughout each level.
The games are organized on the platforms’ respective app stores rather than on Netflix’s networks, but they can only be played by Netflix subscribers. After installation, the games will direct users to sign in with their Netflix account information before they can enter the game.
The game has three graphic settings: Max Performance, High Performance, and High Fidelity. However, in order for the settings to enter into force, players must restart the game.
The best way to experience Hextech Mayhem is to play at the highest framerate possible on the Max Performance setting. The game runs smoothly at 120FPS or even 144FPS, with no dropped frames or noticeable latency. This, of course, necessitates the use of a phone with a high frame rate, which many people do not have.
Netflix’s gaming venture
Riot’s decision to launch Hextech via Netflix comes as no surprise. The game was released just as Arcane began streaming, and while it isn’t directly related to the animated series, it serves as a plug for both companies.
Riot has also been known to incorporate League of Legends characters into games such as Fortnite. It’s simply a matter of whether a game like Hextech will be prominent enough to help grow Netflix’s newly formed game business and stimulate other high-profile projects.
Netflix has been expanding its game platform since late last year when it launched its first lineup, which included a few “Stranger Things”-themed names and other familiar titles. Ever since, it has quickly grown its obtainable selections to include racing games, puzzle games, open-world strategy games, and other types of games.
During the company’s recent Q4 earnings call, they explained to investors that these initial gaming rollouts are more about allowing Netflix to truly understand what users want from the new initiative.
“It’s tremendously exciting to get to this point because we basically have been building the plumbing and all the technical infrastructure just to get to the point where we can do this, which is consistently launching games globally to all of our members,” said Netflix’s COO and Chief Product Officer Greg Peters.
“We’re now really getting to learn from all those games what are the discovery patterns, what are the engagement patterns, how are they performing, what do our members want from games on the service.”
