In this episode, Teri does a countdown of the 2019 Top Ten Amazon Alexa Skills in Canada.

As of January 2019, here are the top ten Amazon Alexa Skills, based on the top reviews in the Canadian Amazon Alexa skills store. We did a similar countdown about 6 months ago and interestingly some of the skills are still in the list, but there are some new ones as well. ,The skill that takes the number one spot is actually brand new to the list!

Before we proceed, one small caveat: the selected the skills were based on how interactive they are and not just sound effects. There are many great ambient sound effect skills but this list features skills that are interactive in the true sense, so you can see Alexa at her best. With that in mind, time to countdown the top ten!

Ready? Here we go! The Top Ten Amazon Alexa Skills in Canada!

#10 AnyPod by Harrison Digital Media
Are you looking for a great skill to listen to podcasts on Alexa? This skill was the number 10 skill six months ago, so it’s holding steady. This is the best skill for listening to podcasts through your Alexa devices. Their description reads, “AnyPod lets you play any podcast. Enrich yourself with thousands of comedy, drama, music, tech, news, education, and pop culture audio programs.” Once you open the skill, you can play a particular podcast title. You can say, “Next or Previous.” You can say, “Fast forward two minutes.” You can say, “Rewind thirty seconds.” It also keeps track of where you are in your podcast.

#9 Skyrim Very Special Edition by Bethesda Game Studios
This is a new skill on the list. It has some mature content so when you first start it, it will ask you if it is okay to start the skill based on the fact that it has some mature content. It’s an interactive game where the user explores Skyrim using the power of their voice. It has various quests, the user goes into dungeons, and they have different weapons and spells. The user encounters different people. It’s given in Alexa’s voice which means it is a text to speech type of a skill which, in my opinion, can be a bit tiresome and difficult for a user to continue being engaged with it. The timing of the way she says sentences and phrases can be hard to understand at times.

#8 TED Talks by TED Conferences
If you’re interested in TED Talks, this is the skill for you. This was the number 8 skill six months ago. It’s a catalog of all TED Talks and they describe as, “Explore TED’s vast library of inspiring talks and ideas worth spreading by world-renowned speakers and thought leaders from around the globe. You can play the latest TED talk, play random TED talks, or search for talks by topic or by speaker name. You can also play talks that are funny, inspiring, persuasive, courageous, or jaw-dropping. New TED talks are available every weekday and are always free to the world!”

#7 Work Smart Live Smart with Beverly Beuermann-King by 5 Star Briefing
This is a new skill on the list. It is the first of two flash briefings that are on this list of 2019 Top Skills for Canada. This skill is all about giving you tips on how to work and live smart. It’s description on Amazon reads,

“ Would you like to live your life with less stress and more happiness? Discover how to take small steps toward a healthier, happier, less-stress you. Stress is a powerful force in life. It can bring about illness, destroy relationships and cause chaos. There is not a one-size-fits-all coping strategy for dealing with stress. Our goal is to put a plan together that helps us to deal with the sources of stress, take care of ourselves during those stressful time and allows us to reach out to those around us for support. The Work Smart Live Smart flash briefing focuses on helping you to Harness Your Energy and Build Your Resiliency!”

#6 Voice in Canada Flash Briefing by Voice in Canada
This is the other flash briefing on the list and it’s by Teri Fisher. It is the number one flash briefing in Canada. It’s all about providing you with tips, tricks, the latest news, deals, and all types of information related to using your Alexa device in Canada.

2019 Top Ten Amazon Alexa Skills in Canada

#5 True or False? by labworks.io ltd
This skill as on the list last time and it’s a fun “True or False” trivia game. There are a lot of different topics that you can pick from. You can pick from a random topic and it will go ahead and ask you “True or False” questions. You can play against other people (multiple players) or you can choose a particular topic. You can also learn some interesting facts from playing this game.

#4 Would You Rather for Family by Voice Games
This was the number one rated skill 6 months ago. It’s a game where the user is asked whether they would rather do one of two different things, activities or choices. There are different categories, either random questions/topics or Disney questions/topics. You can play along with multiple players and see how you do. It’s a very fun game.

And now the top 3!

#3 Escape the Room by Stoked Skills LLC
Do you like escape room kind of games? Then you’re really going to enjoy this. This skill is holding strong at the number 3 spot for the last six months. This is just like all of those escape rooms that are becoming more and more popular except you’ll be doing it through voice. You’re given the option of working through a couple of different rooms then you’re presented with a scenario, and you have to look around, inspect things, use objects and figure out how you get out of the room. It’s very fun. The scenarios can be a bit challenging.

#2 Yes Sire by Volley Inc.
It was still at number 2 six months ago. This is a really fun game. Its description on Amazon goes, “Needy peasants. A backstabbing nobility. A king who is never satisfied. Nobody said that running a feudal fiefdom would be easy. But with this Alexa game, it is bound to be entertaining. Are you prepared to make some of the hardest decisions of your (soon to be short) life? You sit as a medieval lord of the realm, presented with an ever-expanding array of difficult choices. Make good choices and stay in power as long as you can!

You go through making decisions about things that are happening in the kingdom, and you have to balance your level of influence and wealth, all of which if it keeps track of, and maintain those at certain levels so that you don’t end up being executed or running out of money. It’s all based on decisions in terms of running the kingdom. The voices are done by voice actors which makes the game very engaging and takes the user’s experience to a whole new remarkable level.

And now for #1 of the Top Ten Amazon Alexa Skills… drum roll please…

#1 Storyflow – Interactive Stories by getVoiceflow.com
They are brand new on the list and have been skyrocketing tremendously. Their description reads, “Storyflow brings adventures to life using professional voice actors, sound effects, and custom content made just for Alexa. Storyflow adventures play aloud on your Alexa device and let you make decisions which will affect the outcome of the story. Turn left? Press the red button? It’s up to you! You will be prompted by the other characters in the story when it’s time to make a choice. To get started, launch the Storyflow skill and choose your story. If you already know the name of your story, just say “Alexa” followed by your story name to jump right in”

They are a choose-your-own-adventure type of stories which are incredibly done. The immersive experience through sound effects, voice artists and so much more, are the best on the skill store. They started out doing interactive stories, then they created a platform that allowed them to produce more stories and when they saw how the use of the platform was, they decided to put the platform out to the public to use as a platform for creating stories or any other type of skill. The platform is called Voiceflow.

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