Even though we are used to the idea that games are meant to make you forget about studying or having problems, if we could look a little further they have the potential to develop our brain and help us see the world from a different point of view.

Chess

Chess is one of the most intelligent brain games ever created. It requires a lot of perception and predicting what the opponent might do.

2 players vs each other (typically on a board, though can be played on technology) and each side has 24 pieces spread across a 64 mini squared board. The pieces that you will start with are; 16 pawns, 2 knights, 2 bishops, 2 rooks, 1 queen and 1 king.

During the game each player takes a ‘turn’ by moving a piece forward whilst sticking to their ‘designated square colour’. It is a common trend that the ‘white’ pieces start first, causing them to typically win slightly more and are shown through tournament games.

Chess has a long history as it spans back to the 6th century and began in Northern India.

Chess creates a better analytical thinking in those who play regularly. Studies show that playing chess can even increase your IQ and it does an amazing job with your concentration abilities.

Scrabble

Scrabble is a word game that expands your vocabulary and language skills. There is a whole scrabble association that searches for new words, suitable for the game.

Scrabble is very similar to crossword puzzles, except works slightly differently. Instead of filling in the blanks, you are making as many words up as you can by expanding the letters to create more words. It is a very fun game and has brain training elements to it that you won’t even realise.

Played between 2 and 4 players, a board divided into 15×15 squares has the purpose of creating words from the pieces they have left, whilst expanding on the one on the board.

In 1983, the American Architect ‘Alfred Mosher Butts’ invented the first Scrabble board.

It not only makes you learn new words, but increases your imagination to a point where you not only know the word, but you can also recall it in your memory when the time is right, in a way, improving your memory.

Monopoly

This is a great game for those who dream to become leaders someday. It creates a sense for business and it teaches people about money management techniques. By playing monopoly regularly you can learn how to manage other people’s lives together with your own.

There are even simpler games that can seriously impact on your brain abilities.

If you are right handed, that means that most of your actions and thoughts are performed by the work of your left brain half. This is because the nerve pathways of the right and left brain cross before they reach the body. That means that your left half is more developed than the right one. One effective way to significantly raise your IQ is to try developing the right half as well. A very simple way to do this is by trying to write with your left hand. You will be amazed how such an easy action can take so much effort. Adjusting to this could take years!

Another action that can develop your imagination and improve your visual cortex together with abstraction thinking is to try reading and talking backwards. Talking will take you a little more time, because the brain is designed in a way that it can grasp things easier when you can see them written on a paper.

There are many fun ways that can stimulate your brain to be able to perform difficult tasks. Thus you are not only able to do those tasks, but also you improve the development of different centres in your brain to be able to memorise and complete even harder tasks. And they say that you can’t have fun while learning!