Netflix’s first original horror game Unhinged arrives June 30, 2026. Developed by Night School Studio, the 20-40 minute experience stars Zoë Kravitz, Sadie Sink, and Troy Baker, and turns your smartphone into a flashlight controller and in-game lifeline.
Netflix is launching Unhinged on June 30, 2026, its first original horror video game. Developed by Night School Studio, the Netflix-owned team behind the critically acclaimed Oxenfree series, the first-person horror experience lasts roughly 20 to 40 minutes and stars Zoë Kravitz, Sadie Sink, and Troy Baker. Rather than requiring a gamepad or console, Unhinged turns your smartphone into a motion-tracked controller, flashlight, and in-game phone, blurring the line between watching a show and playing a game.
What Is Unhinged About?
You play as Ava (voiced by Zoë Kravitz), a woman trapped in her apartment building during a Category 5 hurricane. The power is out, the stairwell is locked, and the storm makes escape impossible. Your only connection to the outside world is Claire (Sadie Sink), your best friend who lives across the street and can see into your building from her window. She guides you over the phone as you try to find a way out.
The real threat isn’t the hurricane. It quickly becomes clear that someone else is in the building with you: a dangerous intruder stalking the dark hallways. Ben (Troy Baker), the building’s superintendent, is another voice you can reach by phone. Surviving the night depends entirely on your ability to stay calm, use your flashlight wisely, and make the right decisions under pressure.
How Does the Smartphone Controller Work?
No console, no gamepad, no downloads. You open Netflix on your TV or supported browser, select Unhinged from the Games row, and scan an on-screen QR code with your phone. Your device instantly becomes the controller.
The integration runs deeper than a simple touchscreen interface. Your real-world phone movements are tracked 1:1 with Ava’s hands in the game. Point your phone left, and Ava’s flashlight swings left. Tilt it toward a dark corner, and the beam follows. When Ava receives a call or text in the game, your actual phone rings, vibrates, and plays the audio through its own speaker, while environmental sound effects and music continue through the TV.
Game director Sam Warner told Rolling Stone and Game File that this dual-screen design was directly inspired by the Nintendo Wii and DS, particularly a trick from Ubisoft’s Wii launch title Red Steel, where players could hold the Wii Remote to their ear and hear an in-game character speak through the controller’s speaker. “That was magic,” Warner said. “That was the kind of thing that we are inspired by.”
Two Modes for Different Players
Unhinged offers two distinct gameplay modes to accommodate different comfort levels:
- Story Mode: No death, no timer. You experience the full narrative without gameplay pressure. Ideal for horror fans who want the atmosphere without the stress, or for groups watching together.
- Standard Mode: High-stakes moments introduce an on-screen timer. You must find specific objects or make the right move before time runs out, or Ava dies and you restart from the last checkpoint.
Night School Studio head Sean Krankel explained that the compact runtime was a deliberate choice. “If people are on Netflix expecting 30 minutes to an hour of a show or a film, this really kind of fits inside of that,” he told Game File. The team wanted to lower two major barriers for non-gamers: skill threshold and time investment.
A Cast That Bridges Hollywood and Gaming
The voice cast punches well above what most streaming platform games deliver. Zoë Kravitz (The Batman, Blink Twice, The Studio) leads as Ava. Sadie Sink, best known for Max Mayfield in Stranger Things, voices Claire. Troy Baker, one of gaming’s most prolific voice actors with credits including The Last of Us, God of War, and Indiana Jones and The Great Circle, plays Ben.
On the audio side, sound designer Ren Klyce, a frequent David Fincher collaborator (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Social Network), handled the sound design. Composer Jason Hill, known for scoring Mindhunter and Gone Girl, created the original music. This caliber of talent positions Unhinged closer to a cinematic short film than a typical mobile game.
Night School Studio and Netflix’s Evolving Game Strategy
Night School Studio was founded in 2014 by Sean Krankel (formerly Disney Interactive) and Adam Hines (formerly Telltale Games). Their debut title Oxenfree became a breakout indie hit in 2016, followed by Afterparty (2019) and Oxenfree II: Lost Signals. Netflix acquired Night School in September 2021 as its very first game studio purchase, signaling an ambitious push into interactive entertainment.
That ambition has scaled back considerably since then. Between 2021 and 2023, Netflix acquired or established multiple studios and brought major titles like Hades, Sonic Mania, and the Grand Theft Auto trilogy to its platform. But results fell short of expectations. In 2024, Netflix shut down a Southern California studio staffed by former Halo and Overwatch developers before it shipped a single game. In 2025, it also closed Boss Fight Entertainment and sold Spry Fox back to its founders.
Netflix’s current gaming strategy has pivoted toward party games, family-friendly titles, and interactive experiences tied to Netflix properties. Unhinged represents the most ambitious single-player narrative project to come out of this new direction. According to Netflix’s official game page, the project also involved Bloober Team (Layers of Fear, Silent Hill 2) and Fictions studio alongside Night School. A core team of around 20 developers spent approximately 18 months building the game after an initial prototyping phase for the phone-flashlight mechanic.
How Unhinged Differs from Black Mirror: Bandersnatch
Netflix’s most famous interactive project remains 2018’s Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, but Unhinged is fundamentally different. Bandersnatch was an interactive film with branching narrative choices selected via on-screen prompts. You were still a viewer making decisions. Unhinged is a proper first-person video game where you physically move your phone to control the character’s actions.
The distinction matters. In Unhinged, you direct the flashlight beam, you interact with objects, and your actual phone becomes Ava’s phone. The experience is streamed from Netflix’s servers to your TV (cloud gaming), with a parallel interface running on your phone. Early reviewers who played the game at preview events described it as feeling closer to a PS4-era first-person horror title than a choose-your-own-adventure movie.
What You Need to Play
The barrier to entry is deliberately low:
- An active Netflix subscription (any plan)
- A smart TV or supported computer browser
- A smartphone to scan the QR code and use as a controller
- A stable internet connection (the game streams from Netflix’s servers)
There are no ads and no in-game purchases. The game is rated 18+ for violence, blood, gore, mature themes, and language. Netflix lists support for English plus seven additional languages, though specific language availability may vary by region at launch. Unhinged is a single-player experience.
Things Worth Knowing Before June 30
Do I need a gaming console?
No. Unhinged streams directly through Netflix on supported TVs and web browsers. Your phone serves as the only controller. No additional hardware or downloads required.
How long is the game?
Roughly 20 to 40 minutes depending on your pace and whether you die in Standard Mode. Netflix positions it as equivalent to watching one episode of a show.
Can I play on my phone alone?
No. The game streams to a TV or computer screen. Your phone acts as the controller and in-game phone interface, not as the primary display.
Is there replay value?
The two modes (Story and Standard) offer different experiences. The compact runtime makes it easy to replay, and the horror genre lends itself to group viewing where friends take turns surviving the night.
Is this free for Netflix subscribers?
Yes. Unhinged is included with all Netflix plans at no extra cost, with zero ads or microtransactions.
Why Unhinged Matters for Netflix Gaming
Unhinged arrives at an inflection point for Netflix’s gaming ambitions. After years of experimentation, studio closures, and strategic pivots, this project represents a focused bet on what Netflix can do differently: deliver short, cinematic, low-barrier interactive experiences that feel native to a streaming platform. The horror genre is a smart entry point. It’s arguably the most viral game genre, with horror reaction content dominating YouTube and streaming platforms. Horror fans are also more receptive to short-form, experimental content than most gaming audiences.
Whether Unhinged becomes a template for future Netflix interactive projects or remains a one-off experiment depends on subscriber engagement. Night School’s Krankel made clear that no sequels or companion releases are currently locked in. But if the model works, the format of phone-controlled, episode-length horror shorts could carve out a genuine niche that traditional consoles and PC platforms don’t currently serve. Unhinged launches exclusively on Netflix on June 30, 2026.
