Brain Games
Brain games can be lots of fun. Some of the most popular games today are actually brain games. In this section we'll explore some of the world's most popular brain games.
Do you like the strategy of a game like chess, but long for something more flashy? Like, say, lasers? The board game known as Khet might be just what you're looking for.
Imagine you're a super smart computer bored to tears by your job at a widget factory. What could make the time pass faster than pitting the robots you've built against each other in deadly, destructive races?
People are obsessed with Zynga's Scrabble-like Words With Friends game, but there are some habits that'll get you in trouble if you actually play Scrabble. We'll share 5 to watch out for.
In our digital age, it's easy to forget how much fun low-tech games can be. Remember pen and paper games? We've got five that'll keep the kids -- big and small -- busy for hours.
With its Celtic-inspired cards and quirky name, this "short word game" is a crowd-pleaser with kids and adults alike. Care to play a hand? Don't quiddle, then, and check out this article.
Endlessly mispronounced but universally beloved, this game is a mix of rummy and older, tile-based games like mahjong and dominoes. Think you can be the first to yell out "Rummikub"?
Some of your board games may be antiques, but are any from circa 3500 B.C.? Senet, a game played by the pharaohs, still has plenty to offer today.
If Magic: The Gathering and Settlers of Catan merged, you'd get Dominion. And if you have no idea what that means, you may still have fun playing it.
Lumosity aims to provide the same sort of training for the brain that regular trips to the gym provide for the body. What types of games does it use to exercise your mind?
Maybe you've heard whispers of dragons, Dungeon Masters and 20-sided dice, but how much do you really know about the world's most famous role-playing game? Get in character, because we're going on a quest to learn the ABCs of D&D.
Even if you never learn to pronounce the name of this game properly, you and your buddies will still have fun playing this clever strategy game. And you might even learn something (we promise, it won't be painful).
Pentago, a connect-five game with a literal twist, has charmed and challenged players young and old. But where do boredom and skateboarders fit in?
Set in the years before World War I, Diplomacy allows players to represent countries with armies they can move in an effort to control Europe. The rules are complex, but strategy often comes down to a simple question: Will you make allies or enemies?
Like chess but sneakier, Stratego is a gambit of wits and strategy. So how do you play -- and what does 19th century France have to do with it?
It's a printing press block, an electronic font and a less-than-flattering nickname -- so how did Dingbats come to be a series of word games, too?
This conspiracy-minded, convoluted game will tap into your appetite for world domination and your penchant for paranoia. Strap on your tinfoil hat and come play a round with us.
Sequence is half board game, half card game -- half strategy, half luck. So what rules, history and restraining orders make the game work as a whole?
How did clever marketing turn Battleship -- a WWI pen-and-paper pastime -- into the moneymaking empire, complete with movie tie-in, that it is today?
Much like creating an actual civilization, playing Sid Meier's Civilization: The Board Game is a massive undertaking -- but promises great rewards.
Whether you're a Creative Cat or a Word Worm, this brainy board game claims to offer something for everyone. Is it true? Work that brain and find out.
The premise of Boggle -- finding as many words as possible in a jumble of 16 letters in just 3 minutes -- sounds simple, but it's been stumping even the savviest word nerds since its invention in the 1970s. What makes it so challenging?
It certainly takes a lot of concentration to juggle -- but can you actually improve your brain activity by tossing a few pins in the air?
Scrabble aficionados may memorize long lists of unusual words to win. But casual players can improve their games by learning just a handful of useful entries. Which words should you keep in your Scrabble arsenal?
To gaming aficionados, Carcassonne isn't just an uber-fortified French town; it's an addictive medieval strategy game populated by adorable little figures. What's a meeple?
Your opponent scratches her nose: an obvious tell. You call her bluff -- by checking the dictionary. How can you bluff successfully in Scrabble?
