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I look back on Flash and Shockwave games pretty fondly; I grew up on them. So, when I saw YouTube Playables, I thought, “Hey, I’ll give those a shot.” On the surface, they had that Flash-like quality to them, and even played like old Flash games, too. As I peeled back the layers, it became clear YouTube Playables were uninteresting, low-effort, and a poor excuse to get people to hang around the site even more than they already are.
YouTube Playables Are Painfully Boring
I’ve played plenty of shallow mobile games before, but YouTube Playables are just stripped down, carbon copies of other games. Alien Shooter is just Galaga, and BlockDrop is just Tetris. Also, how do you simplify Galaga and somehow do it worse?
Most of these games take a very basic concept and do next to nothing with it. Or worse, it’s some mundane, real-world routine, like parking your car. And the writing? Forget about it. I wasn’t expecting award-winning stuff, but there’s nothing engaging.
To be fair, not all YouTube Playables are deadweight. Bowmasters is fun, but then again, that’s not a YouTube Playable original. Both Adorable Home and Brain Out have a cute art style with a comfy bend to them. Flames & Fortune has enough strategy that I could see myself burning a couple minutes with when I’m bored.
What’s the Goal Here Exactly?
What bothers me most about YouTube Playables is their purpose. What’s the goal here? They’re wasted space—digital fidget spinners designed to suck up your time and keep you “engaged” with the most basic premises so you stay on the site longer.
There are hundreds of simple mobile games with deep mechanics and layers. Or how about the numerous great games ported to mobile, like The Bard’s Tale, Terraria, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, and Final Fantasy VII? Even Roblox has a bunch of fun experiences to play!
Netflix Tried This and It’s Infinitely Better
If you’re subbed to Netflix, then you already have access to the platform’s library of games. It’s a decent library with some pretty good games, too. Stellar, even. You have Dead Cells: Netflix Edition, GTA: San Andreas, Hades, TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge, and some goofy titles like Dumb Ways to Survive and Exploding Kittens.
You’ll find a couple stinkers in there, but it pales in comparison to YouTube Playables. Depending on which game it is, you can play them offline, too!
