You may have bought an Amazon Fire TV Stick for watching movies, TV shows or sports on your TV, but that's not all they can do; Fire TV devices also let you play games on your TV.
With options like Amazon's Luna, Xbox Cloud Gaming and a range of games native to Amazon's Fire TV store (including Minecraft, older GTAs, Jackbox titles and more), your Amazon Fire TV Stick could be a fantastic gaming item.
However there are some things to note: some games may not be compatible on older Fire TVs and Fire TV sticks, you need a pretty robust internet connection to stream and, most importantly, most games will require you to get a game controller for your Amazon Fire TV Stick.
But which controller can you use? Again it varies by model as the Fire TV Cube has USB ports to allow certain wired controllers, but the standard Fire TV Stick doesn't. This list will only include Bluetooth options that are compatible with all Fire TVs.
So here's a list of which game controllers you should consider with the Amazon Fire TV Stick.
Amazon's official game controller is the Luna Wireless Controller.
Luna is Amazon's video game streaming service and you can use it on computers, tablets, smartphones and, yes, Fire TV. This controller works across all those options including on your Fire TV and it supports Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or USB connection depending on your device.
It's a little on the expensive price but you're paying for the guarantee of quality and for a product designed especially for the function you're using it for. You can also buy it bundled with phone clips or Fire TV sticks.
The official Xbox Wireless Controller works on Amazon Fire TV, and if you're primarily planning to use your device for Xbox Cloud Gaming, it may be the controller to pick as it's designed for the console.
While the controller was originally designed for the Xbox One console, it actually works on a range of devices. That's because the aforementioned Cloud Gaming system works on lots of devices.
It's expensive but subject to frequent discounts, and also comes in a range of funky colors which I'm a big fan of.
Like the PlayStation 5 consoles they're designed to work alongside, Sony's Duelsense controllers are a little hard to come by, and cost a fair amount of money. So it's an option only worth buying if you already have (or plan to get) a PS5.
The Duelsense controller works alongside Fire TVs as well as computers and, of course, PlayStations. They're quite chunky and a few different color options are available.
Alternatives
You've seen a few games console controllers above, but it's worth knowing that certain previous-generation versions work too. For example the Dualshock, or PS4 controller, works as well and is cheaper.
In all cases you can save money by buying pre-owned or renewed controllers, the latter of which have been fixed up by a company and returned to full working order.
Many people recommend certain cheap brands, but it's worth knowing that these companies come and go so advice can be outdated. For example an older version of this guide recommended options from Matricom and Mad Catz, two companies who no longer seem to sell many devices on Amazon.
If you buy cheap options online, it's worth reading the entire product description to make sure that your chosen controller actually works alongside the Fire TV, as simply searching 'Fire TV controller' in Amazon doesn't necessarily bring up correct options. I did so and some were wired options (which definitely won't work) while others didn't specify Amazon compatibility.
People on a budget would do well to buy pre-owned or renewed rather than unreliable cheap options.
How to pair a game controller to your Amazon Fire TV Stick
- Open the Fire TV menu and choose Settings .
- Select Controllers and Bluetooth Devices .
- Select Game Controllers .
- Choose Add a new game controller .
- Follow the instructions for your game controller to put it into pairing mode.
- Once your Fire TV Stick finds your controller, it will show its name on the screen. Confirm pairing using your remote.
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