The Game is a spin-off of UPN's Girlfriends, created by Mara Brock Akil, with the character Melanie Barnett first introduced in a 2006 Girlfriends episode of the same name.

After being canceled by The CW in 2009, BET Networks struck a deal with CBS Corporation to revive the series, moving production from Los Angeles to Atlanta, with new seasons starting in January 2011.

The fourth season premiere on BET drew 7.7 million viewers, making it the most watched sitcom premiere in cable television history and a ratings record for a scripted premiere on the network.

In September 2006, writer Staci Robinson filed a $40 million copyright infringement lawsuit against The CW, CBS, Warner Bros., and Grammnet Productions, claiming series creator Mara Brock Akil stole the concept from her novel 'Interceptions' about a woman who postpones law school to follow her football-playing boyfriend; the suit was settled out of court in September 2007.

A revival of the series was ordered by Paramount+ in May 2021, relocating the show's setting to Las Vegas, with Paramount+ marketing and rebranding it as a fresh 'Season 1' despite being a continuation of the earlier series.

Lead actress Tia Mowry-Hardrict declined to return for the 2021 Paramount+ revival, though she later suggested in an interview that she would 'never say never' about reprising her role as Melanie in the future.

Actor Pooch Hall was initially announced as not returning for season six in May 2012, but it was later revealed in August 2012 that he would return for a single episode.