Latest news with #videoGames
The National
2 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The National
How puzzle video games can improve brain health and focus
There's a reason Sherlock Holmes and his escapades haven't gone out of style since he made his debut in A Study in Scarlet back in 1887. That's the enduring popularity of a good puzzle. And who doesn't love to pit their wits and flex their powers of deduction against a powerful video game? Puzzles are having a major moment. This includes books, such as the popular Murdle series of mysteries; escape rooms where groups must solve the clues together to unlock the door; and even Wordle, which has maintained its pandemic-era popularity. Released this year, video game Blue Prince has proved wildly popular thanks to its mix of storytelling and puzzle-solving. Gamers play as Simon P Jones, a young man who is set to inherit the Mt Holly Estate from his grandfather, Herbert S Sinclair, but only if he can find the manor's hidden 46th room. Players need to build the interior of the estate to create a maze-like layout that leads to the hidden room. 'I'm at that age where a wild Friday night involves staying in and playing video games with my better half,' says Nathan Irvine, radio and podcast producer at Dubai Eye. ' Blue Prince is our current favourite. We play it together – one uses the controller to wander around the mansion, and the other takes notes on clues. Before Blue Prince, our evening's entertainment revolved around other multiplayer puzzle games, such as Tetris Effect, PixelJunk Monsters 2 and Lumines Remastered.' Are puzzle games good for the brain? While parents often lament the amount of time their children spend on their computers, not all video games are created equal. Puzzle-focused games can have an array of benefits. 'I've seen first-hand the cognitive and behavioural benefits of puzzle and logic games,' says Gayatri Govind Gajjam a clinical psychologist at Aster DYU Child Development Centre. 'These games offer far more than entertainment, they can be powerful tools for cognitive development and mental well-being. Puzzle and logic games are more than just a form of entertainment; they provide meaningful cognitive stimulation, and enhance critical thinking, working memory and mental flexibility.' Mental stimulation is a key component when choosing video games that aid growth. Structured challenges such as puzzle and clue-solving strengthen executive functioning and encourage sustained focus. Key brain health benefits can include improved problem-solving skills, enhanced working memory, improved cognitive flexibility and, interestingly for those with ADHD or other inattention disorders, increased attention and concentration. 'These games activate multiple regions of the brain,' says Gajjam. 'The prefrontal cortex is heavily engaged as players plan, strategise and solve problems. The hippocampus supports memory formation and recall, while the parietal lobes assist with spatial awareness and logical reasoning. Engaging these areas regularly promotes interconnectivity between brain regions, which enhances overall cognitive efficiency.' Benefits for young and old Video games are often considered the preserve of the young, but puzzle games are cross-generational, with benefits for younger and older brains alike. 'One of the most fascinating aspects of logic and puzzle gameplay is that their impact is age-specific, yet universally beneficial,' says Yasir Shafi, a homeopathy practitioner at Wellth. 'While the mechanisms of benefit may differ by age, the underlying principle remains the same: consistent, challenging mental activity is one of the most effective ways to support brain health across the lifespan.' Puzzle video games such as Blue Prince change on a daily basis, engaging you to constantly learn and take notes as you proceed, while the game Chants of Sennaar involves decoding fictional languages and writing to advance, enhancing critical thinking and improved cognitive processing speed. 'There have always been plenty of puzzle and logic games around,' says Irvine. ' Tetris is a great example that has stood the test of time. Originally released in 1984, its many iterations – but simple formula – make it one of the top-selling games of all time.' Four puzzle video games to download now The Case of the Golden Idol Available on: Nintendo Switch, MacOS, Xbox, Mobile, PlayStation and PC If murder puzzles are your thing, step into The Case of the Golden Idol in which you must find the murderer at each stage of the game. With clues and evidence all around, this is the ideal game to play with friends and family as you work to eliminate suspects and find connections between the deceased. Return of the Obra Dinn Available on: PlayStation, PC, MacOS, Xbox and Nintendo Switch Mystery fans will be in their element with this old-school game in which the merchant vessel Obra Dinn which disappeared in 1803 suddenly reappears off the coast of England five years later. Surprise, surprise, everyone on board is dead and it's up to you to discover how each person died using a pocket watch that allows you to see their final moments. Outer Wilds Available on: Xbox, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation and PC In Outer Wilds you'll find yourself stuck in a 22-minute time loop in a dying solar system trying to discover what is happening and how you can save everyone. Working out why the system is degenerating is the key, and you must visit nearby planets to try to escape the loop, solving mysteries along the way. Gorogoa Available on: Mobile, PC, Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch Simpler than many puzzle games on the market, Gorogoa 's gentle sketch-style scenes hold hidden meanings. It's reminiscent of hand-held sliding puzzles in which you move square tiles to complete the image. In this slow-paced game the screen is divided into four panels, each featuring a scene you can interact with and deconstruct to move the story along.
CNET
7 hours ago
- Entertainment
- CNET
Elden Ring Nightreign: How to Find More Healing Flasks Fast
Elden Ring Nightreign is not a walk in the park by yourself or with a team. It takes quick reflexes and fast strategizing to survive each night in order to defeat the Nightlord. What can hamper any run in Nightreign is the lack of flasks for healing, which are -- thankfully -- so easy to acquire in the game. In Elden Ring Nightreign, each player starts with three healing flask charges. The only way to get more is to find them, and if you're new to the game, this should be the first thing you do in a run. Where do I find healing flasks in Elden Ring Nightreign? Healing flask charges are found in broken-down churches where a Statue of Marika is located. They can be found on the map with these orange icons. The bright orange icons mark the Statue of Marika locations. Bandai Namco/Screenshot by CNET There are multiple churches scattered on the map, but they tend to be far away from each other unless you get lucky. Still, these churches should be among the first stops when starting a run in Elden Ring Nightreign. On a pedestal in front of the Statue of Marika is a healing flask. Bandai Namco/Screenshot by CNET While these are the easiest healing flasks to find, there is another way to get more charges: defeat a night boss. Elden Ring Nightreign runs consist of three in-game days, with each day lasting about 14 minutes. Throughout the day, a storm circle will close in on a location where players fight the night boss. Some of these bosses may look familiar to fans of the Dark Souls games, while others come from Elden Ring and a few are brand new to the game. When the night boss is defeated, players will receive a large amount of runes to help level them up, a powerful weapon or buff and an extra healing flask charge. One of many bosses waiting for players at the end of a day cycle. Bandai Namco Is there a way to make flasks heal more in Elden Ring Nightreign? Yes. In a run, players will come across a lot of weapons that have various passive traits, from making attacks stronger to recovering a bit of health when defeating enemies. There is some equipment that comes with the trait of enabling a flask do more healing, but these will be completely random. Read more: Elden Ring Nightreign Beginner's Guide: How to Not Get Wrecked in the First 5 Minutes What are other ways to heal myself in Elden Ring Nightreign? As previously mentioned, certain weapons will heal you either by defeating enemies or just doing damage with the weapon. There are seals used for incantations, and they can come equipped with a healing spell. There are also healing items you can buy or find during a run. The warming stone is an orange rock that players can drop on the ground, and anyone near it can be healed slowly. Flasks of Wondrous Physick are single-use items that have a variety of effects, such as increasing stamina, boosting damage effects and healing yourself. Sites of Grace will also heal players as well as refill their healing flasks, even if you crawl to it after being knocked down when your health reaches zero. Also scattered on the map is a unique bed of red flowers that can provide some healing when approached. Elden Ring Nightreign is available now for PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Series S and Xbox One consoles for $40. Owning the original Elden Ring is not required to play this game. Read more: How to Unlock the Secret Nightfarer Characters in Elden Ring Nightreign
The Verge
13 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Verge
1.02 patch will add improvements
Make it Nightreign. Next week's Elden Ring Nightreign's for solo runs, including an automatic revival once per main boss and an increase in the runes you get. Like my colleague Ash, I had fun with solo runs even though they were tough, so this should make them better.
Digital Trends
13 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Digital Trends
Elden Ring: Nightreign: how to play with friends
The major factor that sets Elden Ring: Nightreign apart from the base game is that it is designed to be a co-op experience. Instead of a long, primarily solo RPG adventure, you and two companions will rush through Limveld slaying bosses, getting loot, and hopefully surviving all three nights. While you could try your luck matchmaking with random players, your best bet at success is to get a group of friends together. FromSoftware games have notoriously obtuse matchmaking systems, and sadly, Elden Ring: Nightreign isn't much better. Here's how to play with your friends. Recommended Videos Difficulty Easy Duration 10 minutes What You Need Complete the tutorial How to play with friends in Elden Ring: Nightreign After beating the tutorial (or more likely dying), you will appear at the Roundtable Hold. This acts as your hub between runs and is where you set up matchmaking. Before explaining how to start a party, you should know that Elden Ring: Nightreign is not a cross-platform game. This means that, no matter what, you can't form a party with someone on a different platform than the one you are on. You also need to pay attention to which boss you're targeting on your run. Besides just limiting which people you randomly matchmake with, anyone you want to team up with also needs to have that same boss selected. Then there's the matter of the world state. Based on different events we won't spoil, your world state can change in multiple ways called Shifting Earth. This further fragments who you can match with because two players with different world states cannot team up. There are also eight different expedition playlists to further dilute the matchmaking pools. If the stars have aligned and you and your friends have the same world state, boss selected, and are on the same platform, here's how to party up. Step 1: Approach the Table of Lost Grace and select Commence Expedition. Step 2: Hit the right bumper to view Matchmaking Settings. Step 3: Either select Invite Members to invite players directly from your friends list or go Under *Multiplayer Password and enter a unique password. Step 4: Send that password to your friends. The only final note we need to make is one you likely already know. Nightreign can only be played solo or in groups of three, with no options for duos. If you set a password and only invite one friend, that third slot will be randomly filled before you can start the game.
Gizmodo
13 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Gizmodo
The Last of Us Part 1 and 2 Are Nearly Free on PS5, Play the Story That Goes Beyond the HBO Series
The latest PS5 remake and remaster of the game series that kicked off HBO's biggest ongoing series is on sale for over 50% off. HBO's prestige drama The Last of Us pits Joel Miller (Pedro Pascal) and Bella Ramsey (Ellie Williams) against the American wasteland of infected fungal monsters and the even more dangerous people out there trying to survive them. If you haven't already heard, The Last of Us is based on a video game series of the same name. And those games are on sale over at Amazon for just $30 (-57%) a piece. The PlayStation 5 version of The Last of Us Part 1 is the breathtakingly gorgeous remake we got in 2022 of the original 2013 game. Additionally, the recently remastered edition of The Last of Us Part 2 which adds new modes and improved graphical fidelity is also down to $30 (-40%). See The Last of Us Part 1 at Amazon See The Last of Us Part 2 at Amazon Now as a fan of the games with Part 2 being one of my all-time favorites, I am enjoying my time with the show—to an extent. Ultimately HBO's version has left me feeling underwhelmed due to a lot of the changes made to adapt this Americana tale of grief in an unforgiving world for general television audiences. Without spoiling, some things that get lost are hard to replicate with actors on camera as being in control changes your relationship to the characters. Stuff like that is inevitable when adapting from one medium to another. Other tweaks to the story feel like they come from a lack of confidence in the source material. Showrunner Craig Mazin has spoken extensively on some of the changes you see between the games and his version. This problem becomes even worse in season 2 as the series plot jumps into the sequel. Endure and Survive (the Online Discourse) Now it's a tale as old as time for someone to say 'the source material is better,' but that's a cliche for a good reason. Regardless of if you're really enjoying the series or if you find yourself frustrated with the show, but have not played the games, let this be your opportunity to hop in. Even if you are new to gaming and haven't experienced a shooter before, both The Last of Us games on PS5 make for a great starting point. The developer Naughty Dog included a slew of welcomed accessibility options and difficulty controls to help cater to your level of skill. These can help with navigation, adjust the number of resources you'll find, and mess around with the damage you can both take and dish out to extremely precise degrees. Now is a great time to get into the games. The show is barely even halfway through Part 2 following Season 2's finale so you can be all caught up before it returns to HBO in 2027. The Last of Us Part 1 and The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered are each available for just $30. See The Last of Us Part 1 at Amazon See The Last of Us Part 2 at Amazon
