10 Ways Video Games Actually Make You Smarter

4. Applied Use Of Critical Thinking

Allegedly, there are four stages of cognitive development. You have your sensory motor skills, your pre-operational skills, then your concrete operational skills, and finally your formal operational skills. Video games can help propel you to that level of formal operations, which is better known as "mastery of thought." If this seems far fetched, just hear me out.

Some of the most challenging puzzles contain aspects of abstract and hypothetical reasoning. The best puzzles make you think "what if?" and encourage you to experiment with different results. Ring a bell? It should. The large majority of video games contain head scratching puzzles that push your brain power to the max. They make you aware of your own thinking processes and have you reflecting on the choices you have or haven't made.

Ironically, these are normally designed and implemented in a game to give your thumbs a break. But you negotiate by having to put your brain on the front lines. That's why it is so satisfying when you finally complete even a minor breakthrough in a puzzle that's been giving you hell. The controller may be sweaty, your nails might be gone, and your eyes might be bloodshot, but you accomplished an immediate goal.