Benefits of Puzzle Games

Some of the video games that can be downloaded, contrary to popular belief, can actually be beneficial for children as long as they are used within reasonable limits.

We’ve all heard similar statements before - be it telling them to your kids or your parents telling them to you. Thanks to the mainstream media pointing fingers at Video Games for decreasing children’s intelligence, and clickbait articles on Facebook talking about the dangers of playing video games, parents are now particularly concerned when their children are always on the phone playing Video Games.
 
Like it or not, Video Games - particularly Puzzle Games, Simulation Games, and First Person Shooters are quite beneficial for children. Just like going to the gym or doing jumping jacks in the morning exercises your body, playing such games exercises your mind. And exercising your mind is just as important as exercising your body.

Many studies have been conducted throughout the world on the effect of Video Games. So far, most of the results have been positive (unless your child is super addicted to video gaming). Allowing a child to play puzzle games every day for some amount of time will help him/her learn a vast array of skills in a fun and an entertaining manner. Thanks to the rapid penetration of smartphones into the public domain and a large number of puzzle games being developed, your child isn’t only limited to ancient puzzles like Lego Bricks, Jigsaw Puzzles or Chess. 

Unblock Me, a popular puzzle game that was developed way back in 2009 has been downloaded over 15M+ times. The game is simple, fun and really makes the person use his/her head to solve the problems. The game basically revolves around the player making way for a piece of a block to get out of the maze. As you progress, the levels become much harder thus allowing you to think harder. Unblock me is just one example out of many. There are thousands of other games out there that will really benefit the growing brain of a child (and also adults).

Recognizing Shapes is a very useful skill as a child. There are many games out there that allow the player to use shapes to solve puzzles. Tangram games are an excellent example of shape recognition games. In such games, the player is tasked with making various shapes by using smaller shapes. Just typing Tangram Games on Google Play store yields hundreds of Tangram related games. Make sure you have one of these games installed on your phones. 

Moving on, memory is a very important part of the brain. Most puzzle games revolve around memorizing. Children in particular don’t really like memorizing in a traditional manner but if memorizing goes alongside playing a fun game, kids will love it. These memory games eventually help children develop a solid memory which is always a good thing.

Dopamine is known as the happy chemical. It’s released in the brain every time you achieve something. Be it falling in love, getting a raise or simply talking to an old friend. When kids play puzzle games and they solve a problem, they feel a sense of achievement and become more confident and develop their self-esteem. Good self-esteem is a solid foundation for a good person. 
Elevate App -  available both on Google Play and the App Store    is an excellent app that has a collection of brain development games that support memorizing, fast reading, shape recognition and what not. 

Now, these are all puzzle games but what about those pesky little violent games where the player takes a massive gun and goes on a killing spree? Surprisingly, playing these games develops hand eye coordination as the player needs to look at the screen, control the player, aim the gun and fire it precisely. Thus, they also develop multitasking skills in the child. Keep in mind that these games have some amount of graphic elements so it’s not really recommended for toddlers. 

Simulation games are another category of games that also have their fair share of benefits to the children. Most of these games don’t have a particular problem to be solved. However, a player must use his/her creativity and imagination to play these games. And therefore is also much beneficial to a child.