Amazon is a big believer in the power of video games to connect and deliver joy to billions of players all around the world. As such, the company has several different businesses that operate independently within the industry and serve a host of different customers in many different ways. These customers include those who love to play and watch video games, as well as the developers and publishers who bring games to life. Amazon is continually evaluating and honing its offerings to meet the needs of its many, varied customers, while also strengthening how it supports the games industry. Read on for more detail on just some of the many ways Amazon is involved across the entire world of video games.
Amazon Games develops games in house and publishes great games from external partners
Amazon Games aims to be the most player- and developer-focused company in gaming. Supported by Amazon to pursue bold creative visions, Amazon Games prioritizes quality and creates extraordinary growth opportunities globally across leading game platforms such as PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam. With development and publishing teams in Seattle, Orange County, San Diego, Montreal, and Bucharest, Amazon Games is actively developing and publishing a growing portfolio of high-ambition games based on original and established IP that it hopes players will love and play for years to come.
The current slate of Amazon Games includes New World and Lost Ark, and there’s an incredibly exciting future roadmap ahead. Amazon Games just launched NCSOFT’s THRONE AND LIBERTY and our own, internally developed New World: Aeternum. In collaboration with UK-based development studio Glowmade, Amazon Games recently announced the co-op hack-‘n’-slash game, King of Meat, at gamescom Opening Night Live. Additionally, Amazon Games has previously announced that it’s publishing the next game in the revered Tomb Raider franchise, a narrative-led, open-world driving game from Maverick Games, and an all-new multiplayer game based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings literary works. And Amazon Games is excited to eventually share more about a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) game in development at its Montreal studio.
“Gaming is bigger than ever before, but so too are expectations amongst an even broader and more diverse set of players than the industry has ever seen,” said Christoph Hartmann, Vice President of Amazon Games. “Our vision is to be the earth’s most customer-obsessed game creator and publisher, and to realize that vision we are committed to finding talented developers and giving our teams—both internal and external—the time and resources they need to build games of the highest quality.”
AWS offers massive, unparalleled server support for online games, along with dedicated services and AI tools for game developers
Did you know that Amazon provides cloud services for many of the world’s largest game studios and biggest hit games like Fortnite, League of Legends, Roblox, MONOPOLY GO!, and more? Amazon Web Services (AWS) continues to power many of today’s leading game developers and publishers, such as Epic Games, Sony Interactive Entertainment, Riot Games, Electronic Arts, Warner Bros. Games, and Nintendo, as well as independent and indie developers working on that next big hit.
AWS for Games brings over 15 years of experience supporting game developers to build, run, and grow their games, along with a network of over 290 game development partners. Players experience significant benefits when studios choose AWS. For example, 50 million Dead by Daylight players saw significant performance improvement when Behaviour Interactive migrated to AWS. Similarly, millions of concurrent Elden Ring players were able to dive into The Lands Between seamlessly thanks to a team of just four FromSoftware engineers using AWS services. AWS is also helping game developers overcome their most demanding challenges using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). This includes helping League of Legends esports fans better understand the game with ML-powered stats and supporting new tools like those from Scenario, which is using generative AI on AWS to create over 100,000 images for game developers daily across 40 countries.
“Game developers would rather build fun, innovative games that delight players, than spend time and effort managing undifferentiated heavy lifting, like infrastructure,” said Samira Bakhtiar, General Manager of Media & Entertainment, Games and Sports at AWS. “AWS provides services that can scale to tens of millions of concurrent players, anywhere in the world, at the lowest possible cost. We’re also helping our games customers build a foundation for the future, by providing the latest generative AI tools to help uncover new ways of automating processes that may be manual, outdated, and take time away from valuable creative ideation.”
Amazon MGM Studios, a leading destination for top-tier video game adaptations, is proud to bring exclusive content to Prime Video customers in over 240 countries worldwide
Amazon MGM Studios and Prime Video are proud to play a role in enriching the worlds and stories of our favorite game franchises by extending them beyond the games themselves. In a groundbreaking move, Prime Video unveiled its live-action adaptation of Bethesda’s iconic post-apocalyptic video game franchise Fallout in April of this year. The Emmy Award-winning series, which has received high praise and renewed for a second season, is currently one of Prime Video’s most-watched titles, sparking immense excitement among our global audience.
Amazon MGM Studios is proud to collaborate with the biggest video game studios globally to craft thrilling new content for Prime Video subscribers. This includes a live-action adaption of SEGA’s worldwide sensation, Yakuza: Like a Dragon. Helmed by the renowned Masharu Take, the series stars Ryoma Takeuchi as the lead character, Kazuma Kiryu. Secret Level is a new adult animation anthology series—from the creative minds behind LOVE, DEATH + ROBOTS—featuring original stories set within the worlds of some of the world’s most beloved video games. It’s in the Game: Madden NFL is a four-part series that reveals the never-been-told story of Madden NFL, from its archaic 8-bit origins to its success as an annual must have—against all odds.
Another esteemed video game character joining the Prime Video family is Lara Croft in Amazon MGM Studios’ and Crystal Dynamics’ live-action adaption of Tomb Raider. Acclaimed creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Fleabag) will serve as writer and executive producer on the series.
Last but certainly not least, Amazon MGM Studios has partnered with Sony Pictures Television to bring the epic God of War franchise to the screen.
Amazon Retail provides one of the world’s largest retail offerings for fans of video games
For more than two decades, Amazon has offered customers one of the broadest available selections of video games, consoles, and accessories, including products from top brands like EA, Xbox, PlayStation, Ubisoft, and Meta. Customers can also shop like-new, refurbished video game gear from top brands like Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo with Amazon Renewed. We make it easy for customers to shop and discover games and game-related merchandise from their favorite brands, with a seamless shopping experience and fast delivery right to their door. Gamers know they can get all their gaming needs at great value every day and during special Amazon deal events like Prime Day and Amazon Gaming Week—a week-long sale event filled with deals and promotions for every kind of gamer, including discounts on PC gaming, console gaming, and other gaming essentials across home entertainment, audio, music, and wireless. Prime members also save every day across our wide selection with fast, free shipping and exclusive deals.
“We’re helping customers explore video games from classic collections to new releases, plus everything they need to play them—all with the convenience and fast shipping they’ve come to expect from Amazon,” said Steve Downer, VP of Consumer Electronics at Amazon.
Prime Gaming delivers incredible gaming value to Amazon Prime members
Through Prime Gaming—a benefit of Amazon Prime—Amazon offers a rotating, monthly selection of free games, a free monthly Twitch channel subscription wherever Twitch is available, and more to Prime members.
Since its inception, Prime Gaming has offered Prime members hundreds of free games, from AAA blockbusters such as Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, and Borderlands 2 to indie gems such as Genesis Noir, Maneater, and Deceive Inc. Additionally, Amazon Prime members in supported countries have the ability to play a rotating selection of games via the cloud on an array of supported devices with Amazon Luna (see below for more on Luna!) through a dedicated offer, and members also get a free, monthly Twitch-channel subscription wherever Twitch is available. This allows Prime members to support their favorite Twitch Partner or Affiliate with a subscription ordinarily valued at $5.99 US per month.
“With more than 200 million paid Amazon Prime members worldwide, our goal is to offer a diverse range of compelling games—popular titles and hidden gems—that appeal to a broad variety of players,” said J.C. Connors, General Manager of Prime Gaming. “We aim to ensure that alongside the many other benefits of Amazon Prime membership, members who love games can look forward to something fresh every month. In addition, we’re always exploring new ways to surprise Prime members.”
Amazon Luna lets you play games at home or on the go via the cloud on the devices you love
Amazon Luna is our cloud gaming service that makes it easy for anyone to play high-quality, immersive games on the devices they already own, including Amazon Fire TV and Fire Tablet devices, select Samsung and LG smart TVs, mobile devices (iOS and Android), and desktop devices (PCs, MacBooks, Chromebooks).
Luna+ subscribers and Amazon Prime members can play Fortnite Battle Royale, LEGO Fortnite, and a rotating selection of games at no additional cost. They can also connect their Ubisoft and GOG accounts to play games on Luna that they already own on those services.
In addition to playing with Prime, Luna offers three subscription options—Luna+ ($9.99/month), Ubisoft+ ($17.99/month), and Jackbox Games ($4.99/month)—for access to even more games.
Luna supports several controllers, including those players may already own. For the best-possible performance, the official Luna Controller connects directly to Luna cloud servers via Wi-Fi to reduce gameplay latency. And thanks to Cloud Direct technology, you can seamlessly switch between compatible screens—such as Fire TV to mobile phone—without additional pairing or setup.
"Cloud gaming has opened up incredible new possibilities for how and where people can play games," said Mustafa Hakim, GM of Amazon Luna. "With Luna, we're able to deliver great games to customers on the devices they already own—no expensive hardware or downloads required. Our goal is to make gaming more accessible and affordable for everyone, whether you're a long-time gamer or just getting started. We're constantly expanding our library with new titles across genres, so there's something for players of all interests and skill levels to enjoy. And with cloud gaming's ability to seamlessly transition gameplay between devices, Luna lets you play whenever and wherever works best."
The list of games is always changing as we add new content, so check out Luna.amazon.com for the latest.
Twitch, an interactive livestreaming service, empowers creators and entertains millions
Twitch is an interactive livestreaming service and global community that comes together every day to create unique, live, and unpredictable experiences from the interactions of millions. It brings the joy of co-op to everything, from casual gaming and world-class esports to anime marathons, music, and art streams. At any given moment, on average, there are more than 105 million monthly visitors to the Twitch site.
“Gaming has always been a social experience—something friends have gathered together to enjoy since the inception of video games more than 50 years ago. Today, on average, viewers watch over 46 million hours of gaming content per day on Twitch, bringing together diverse audiences from all over the world to share their passion for video games and build bonds in the process, no longer limited by proximity,” said Rachel Delphin, Chief Marketing Officer at Twitch. “Twitch streamers and their communities influence and reflect gaming culture worldwide—what’s played, what’s talked about, and how,” she continued.
Twitch is continuously evolving its offerings to meet the needs of both players and brands in the gaming space. The latest example is the launch of The Glitch, an integrated galaxy of brand-customized playable worlds distributed in Fortnite and promoted by Twitch streamers. Developed by Amazon Ads Brand Partnership Studio together with industry veterans, The Glitch marks a new evolution for branded gaming experiences, offering players diverse and highly engaging game play while providing brands a meaningful way to connect with the coveted Gen Z and Millennial audience on Twitch.”
Discover Amazon's Immersive Gaming Hub on Fire TV
Amazon meets the needs of several different audiences within the games industry in a variety of other ways as well. Games on Fire TV is home for all things gaming right on your largest screen. Found right on the Fire TV home screen, the Games destination lets you easily discover and play games from the Appstore and Amazon Luna—select games are even included in your Prime membership. Games from the Appstore are downloaded to your Fire TV and most can be played via your Fire TV Alexa Voice Remote, so no extra device is needed. For Luna and the Xbox app on Fire TV, you can use your favorite compatible Bluetooth game controller or on your mobile device with the Luna Controller app. You can also watch your favorite Twitch streams directly from Games page.
Amazon Ads helps gaming advertisers reach and engage with video game fans on Amazon and beyond
Amazon Ads reaches customers across Amazon properties, including Amazon.com, Prime Video, Twitch, IMDb, and in Live Sports like Thursday Night Football. With Secret Level on Prime Video, engaged communities on Twitch, and custom gameplay through The Glitch distributed in Fortnite, Amazon Ads builds deep connections with customers as we reach them in content they love across Amazon properties and beyond. Amazon has the unique benefit of being at the intersection of content and commerce, and we built our ad solutions to bridge these capabilities for advertisers: marrying our billions of first-party shopping and streaming signals with ads that show up in the right places, at the right time, using predicted interests.
Amazon Ads can help gaming advertisers reach and measure their marketing goals. Gaming advertisers can use Amazon’s suite of ad tech solutions, including the Amazon DSP, to extend reach beyond Amazon properties while measuring impact using Amazon Marketing Cloud, which enables advertisers to connect the dots between ad impressions and sales or game activations, even if the purchase doesn’t take place on Amazon. The Amazon Ads team is excited to help advertisers reach customers across the different parts of Amazon as it engages customers in custom content, including video and display messaging.
Amazon has a multifaceted, long-term approach to video games
Gaming is a growing medium that connects and brings joy to billions of players all over the world. Amazon serves a variety of customers within the games landscape at multiple touchpoints, whether it’s making games at our internal studios, publishing games from several of the world’s best external studios, providing players with several convenient gateways to games and community, and delivering the tools to empower all manner of game developers.
We’re proud to play several important roles as we endeavor to delight players and developers globally, and we’re just getting started.
