This may look familiar: You're sitting on the couch, scrolling aimlessly through Netflix I examine my list, peruse the various columns vertically and horizontally, and tab through the "Movies and TV Shows" section Hours (or even decades) later, I still can't pick a title And every week I write a "what to watch this weekend" guide It's easy for me

To cure the blues of indecisive people like me, Netflix rolled out "Play Something" earlier this year This is a shuffle feature of sorts, literally playing something that does exactly what its name implies It is not completely random, but based on preferences and tastes indicated by past viewing history But you don't have to choose, the algorithm does it for you

I was quite skeptical when this service was launched Furthermore, it wasn't (and still isn't) available on the Netflix Apple TV app, so I had forgotten it existed However, while testing the Roku Streaming Stick 4K Plus, I noticed the Play Something option and decided to give it a try The results were not at all what I had imagined

My initial expectation for Play Something was that it would function as a sort of discovery mode A sort of Netflix version of my article on shows and movies to watch after The Squid Game Kind of like a Netflix version of my article on shows and movies to watch after The Squid Game

In fact, Netflix has so many films that the size of its library is immeasurable The size of its library is immeasurable My friends sometimes talk excitedly about Netflix shows I've never even heard of Still, the breadth and depth of the programming makes it extremely difficult to discover on my own, and the thematic rows on the Netflix home screen are not particularly helpful 'Near-future sci-fi,' indeed I can understand "because you're watching [insert title]" But "exciting TV shows" seems too broad And "mood booster" Whatever

These columns further exacerbate my indecision I start debating in private whether "Startup" is really a "familiar TV show" or not, and I am puzzled as to why "Criminal Minds" is in the "award-winning TV show" category

When I find something that looks interesting, I don't play it right away I add it to my list, make a note of it, and keep scrolling, hoping that I might find something better among the zillions of other shows This is a classic case of selection paralysis, and that's where Play Something comes in

One evening I launched Netflix and selected the Play Something option It took me 15 skips to discover a title that was new to me Either I had already watched something, was in the middle of watching something, or wasn't interested

Below are the 15 Play Something pieces I got:

None of these suggestions deviated much from my taste As you can see, most of them are shows I have either seen or am in the process of watching To be fair, Netflix explains that Play Something offers entirely new series and movies, series and movies that I have already seen, series and movies that are on my list, and unfinished series and movies that I might want to revisit

And you can't blame Netflix for not noticing if you've watched a show elsewhere, such as on a broadcast station, cable TV, or other streaming service (although an "already watched" button would be neat) For example, I watched the first five seasons of "Shits Creek" on Netflix, but tuned into "Pop TV" to watch the last episode I am one of the millions who watched "My Neighbor Seinfeld" when it aired on NBC I have plans to rewatch it on Netflix at some point, so it's an understandable suggestion

But in general, my Play Something results indicate that it is more of a reminder to catch up on shows I am behind on than a discovery tool Yes, yes, I know there are new episodes of Sex Education and Money Heist I promise However, Netflix already has a feature that reminds you to watch a show you started watching again It's called "Keep Watching" (and I hate it)

Only the 15th one, "On the Verge," was new to me (I had heard about the Julie Delpy series, but it had slipped my mind); 1 out of 15 is not a great It's not a great track record It takes time to process the title that is playing, press next, and then see the new program in the queue At that point, it takes almost as long as scrolling

Speaking of saving time, for those with less-than-ideal internet connections, Netflix is getting an upgrade that will make it easier to stream videos on a slow connection

I didn't expect Play Something to be perfect and find exactly one or two recommendations that fit my mood at a particular moment But I did expect that it would at least alleviate some of my decision paralysis Instead, it added a different kind of anxiety to my Netflix experience Perhaps if I were the type of person who wakes up and chooses chaos, "Play Something" would be perfect

For now, I will continue to scroll, scroll, scroll