Search for "brain games" and you will find bold promises: sharper memory, a higher IQ, a younger brain. Puzzle, memory and maths games are popular for good reasons, but do they actually make you smarter? Over the last ten years, scientists and consumer regulators have looked at that question carefully. Their answer is more interesting than a simple yes or no.
The biggest review of the evidence
In 2016 a team led by the psychologist Daniel Simons of the University of Illinois published a long review in the journal Psychological Science in the Public Interest. They examined the studies that brain-training companies and their supporters cited, 132 journal articles in total (Association for Psychological Science).
- Strong evidence: people get better at the tasks they practise.
- Weaker evidence: improvement on closely related tasks.
- Little evidence: improvement on different tasks, general intelligence or everyday life, which is the benefit most people actually want.
The reviewers also found that many studies had design problems, such as weak control groups, which made positive results hard to interpret (University of Illinois). Scientists call the missing effect "far transfer": getting better at a memory game does not automatically make you better at remembering where you left your keys.
When a regulator stepped in
In January 2016 the US Federal Trade Commission announced that Lumos Labs, the company behind Lumosity, would pay $2 million to settle charges of deceptive advertising. The FTC said the company had claimed, without enough scientific support, that its games could improve performance at school and work and delay age-related decline, including dementia and Alzheimer's disease. A $50 million judgment was suspended because of the company's financial situation (FTC).
The research question is still open and studies continue. But any game or app that promises to raise your IQ or prevent dementia is promising more than the current evidence supports.
So why play puzzle games at all?
Because "it will not raise your IQ" is a very different statement from "it is useless". The same research that is sceptical about broad benefits is clear that practice improves the skill you practise. And many people play for reasons that have nothing to do with intelligence tests:
- Enjoyment. A good puzzle is satisfying in itself, and that is reason enough.
- A real skill. Practising mental arithmetic makes you faster at mental arithmetic, and that skill is useful every day.
- A short break. A five-minute game can be a clean pause between tasks, as long as it stays five minutes.
- Something to share. Chess, quizzes and word games are easy to play with family and friends.
- A sense of progress. Watching your best time or score improve is motivating.
Getting the most out of brain games
- Pick games for fun and for the specific skill they train, not for promised IQ gains.
- Vary what you play. Logic, memory, words and numbers use different skills.
- Increase the difficulty when a game starts to feel automatic.
- Keep sessions short and do not give up sleep or exercise for screen time.
- Be wary of paid apps that make medical or IQ claims.
Free puzzle and memory games on PapoGames
All of these run free in your browser with no download or account, and none of them claims to make you smarter. They are simply good practice for one skill each. MindMatch is a card-matching memory game. CalcRush trains fast mental arithmetic against the clock. Sudoku and 2048 are pure logic, and Astral Chess includes lessons and tactical puzzles. For general knowledge, try Atlas Quiz for flags and capitals.