Amazon gamifies finding something to watch

Future. Amazon released the IMDb What to Watch app to gamify users choosing what movie or show to watch… instead of just mindlessly scrolling. It works with all the streamers but only for audiences that use the Fire TV streaming dongle. If the app takes off, expect streamers to roll out their own proprietary games to help with discoverability on their platforms.

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Amazon thinks audiences would be much happier to play for what they want to watch (as opposed to simply scrolling through endless potential options). The company is debuting an app called IMDb What to Watch, exclusively for Fire TV users, that has a series of games that help users find a title.

• It has three games so far:
  • Quick Draw. A shuffle game that gives users three options.
  • Watch Challenge. A challenge to watch and rate content to collect digital stamps.
  • This or That. A questionnaire that determines a viewer’s mood to determine what they might want to watch.

• And yes, you can input what streamers you have so you don’t get recommended a movie or show you can’t watch — the ultimate FOMO.

It’s still the early days of the app, so Amazon says that even more games are coming, including one called Build-a-Cast and another called Time Machine.

For you Fire TV users, hopefully, this will help cut down on the choice paralysis… or at least help more films get seen that aren’t on platform home pages.