Five Games to Learn if You Want to Give Your Brain a Workout
Most of us could do with getting down to the gym more often, but even more of us than that could do with working out our brains a little harder. Many of us get those moments: forgetting passwords, spacing on names, or just feeling mentally sluggish.
But here’s some good news – sharpening your mind doesn’t have to feel like homework. There are tons of games out there that challenge you in sneaky ways, boosting your cognitive skills while still being fun. Here are five games that’ll whip your grey matter into shape – no Sudoku puzzles or crosswords in sight.
Chess: A Classic for a Reason
Chess might seem intimidating at first glance – those endless strategies, obscure terms, and the serious faces of Grandmasters. But peel back that reputation, and you’ll find a game that’s brilliantly accessible and fiercely replayable. Chess is a pure brain workout, requiring pattern recognition skills and exceptional memory recall. If you’re worrying that you don’t have those skills yet then don’t let that put you off. You’re going to learn them! Your mind begins to think multiple steps ahead, always planning your next move (and the one after that). After a while, you’ll spot patterns everywhere – useful for life, not just pawns and knights. Better still, we’ve got a strong chess culture in Malawi, with record-breaking chess teams and local clubs, too. It’s one of those rare games where you genuinely feel smarter with each session.
Sharpen Up with Scrabble
Scrabble sounds gentle, cosy, even slightly wholesome. But beneath those friendly letter tiles lies a battlefield. If you’ve not watched a Scrabble world final, I urge you to do so. It gets heated. You might have noticed it playing against your Aunty at Christmas time one year! You need linguistic agility to whip up words quickly and problem-solving skills to adapt your strategy when your opponent takes your perfect spot. A dose of patience doesn’t hurt either. The other big bonus is that your vocabulary will improve tenfold. Each strange noun you find has got to be used in a sentence.
Poker: The Ultimate Mind Game
Some games are just plain brilliant at forcing you to think critically, assess situations quickly, and even read the room. Poker is a prime example, as it requires you to read situations, calculate odds, and make decisions under pressure. Those looking to learn poker will find that mastering the game sharpens memory, enhances logical thinking, and builds resilience – making it a great addition to your game rotation.
The beauty of poker is in the human element. You’re constantly interpreting subtle signals from opponents: tiny changes in facial expressions, hesitations in bets, that slight tremor in their hands. Even online, you’re assessing odds, managing bankrolls, and keeping a calm head under pressure. Your mind juggles multiple skills simultaneously – and every win feels deeply satisfying. You might even walk away richer (or at least wiser).
Go: Simple Rules, Deep Strategy
Go has been around for thousands of years, yet it still feels fresh. On the surface, it seems simple: capture territory by placing black or white stones on a board. But underneath? There’s surprising complexity. Go really pushes your pattern recognition skills. You’ve got to be constantly thinking about territory control, but whirring away in the background are your skills of adaptation and recalculation. Basically, if you’re not a whizz when it comes to multitasking, you’ll struggle in the short term, but you’ll make fast progress.
Catan: Problem Solving With Sheep and Wheat
Ever heard the phrase “I’ll trade you two sheep for one brick”? If you have, you’ve already
dabbled in Settlers of Catan. This board game is built around negotiation, strategy, and resource management – all things your brain secretly loves, you just might not know it yet. As you trade, build roads, and carefully expand your settlements, you’re strengthening cognitive skills like problem-solving, adaptability, and long-term strategic thinking. The tactile satisfaction of placing roads and settlements – little wooden blocks that tap gently on the board – is part of the charm too. Plus, winning feels genuinely rewarding, especially when you’ve convinced your friend to trade away the last sheep you need.
Follow and Subscribe Nyasa TV :
I don’t understand why they don’t prosecute the hospital? Didn’t they admit to giving her the wrong medication?
I wonder if they will have this much force going forward with the Albino case. This is ridiculous. Direct this energy to the real murderers of this country. Our ex president was killing albinos for the love of all things good.
Judge Ligoya, mbuzi yamunthu. Judge wausilu kwambiri
I’m just shocked at the level of unprofessionalism in malawi. They did not investigate before detaining these kids? Kayuni is said to be a doctor and lawyer, on what grounds are they appealing? This country will never progress. So embarrassing
This is a joke of a case. The state prosecutor clearly has nothing better to do with his time. Facts of the case I’m Court:
1. Dzamalala did the autopsy by himself. None of the accused were even aware or present. This was definitely not transparent and from the looks of it, corrupt as he was paid by former reserve bank governor Dalitso to do the autopsy. He admitted himself in court. Dalitso is relative of Thoko Kaunda- the one who started this whole accusation as he presented himself to the police as Kotannas father and reported the matter. He is not even blood related to Kotanna.
2. From all those witness statements, none of them accused the 4 innocent people. And no evidence links to them.
3. Polycare clinic admitted to their negligence in administering the wrong drug vecuronium which is what killed her. You are supposed to put the patient on a ventilator before giving them this drug as it relaxes all muscles including the heart.
4. Dr. Chimutu said in court that she saw the pinhole wound of the snake bite and that Kotanna herself showed her. This was after Kotanna called her own mother to inform her she was bitten by a snake. The mother’s statement was read in court too.
You people who talk, ask for facts first. Don’t just talk nonsense.
The only thing Kotanna drank that evening was a glass of wine which she had at Khala- her workplace. Did the accused 4 serve her with that glass of wine?
The prosecutor is obviously ashamed of what they did. You locked up 4 innocent people for a month for NOTHING. just because you had as the police admitted in court, “orders from the top” to keep them locked up.
Corruption at its highest. You will lose at the Supreme Court anyway. You’re just increasing your costs because of your stupid ego!
Dr Kayuni are you a medical profession? With all the evidence that you’ve recieved you know very well her death was a result of medical malpractice. What a waste of state resources. Why are you protecting the hospital? So that this may happen again to yet another person? Who are you protecting? Dzamalala? Why does this man still have a license to practice, this is not the first time he has done this and it won’t be the last.
This is the kicking of a dying horse. We know termik kills you within minutes. The hospital admitted to administering a muscle relaxant. The medical counsel are rebuking Dzamalalas findings based on the fact that her organs were fine and the effects of the muscle relaxant. If she died of termik, she would’ve been foaming from her mouth, but she called her mother from the hospital. The snake was even present. And the family of the deceased are now bankrupt? Look at the facts people, they conspired to make money off of the death of their own daughter at the expense of the innocent.
Ok ok late me try to narrate the states case. Kottana friends poison her at the house and suggest they leave the house that night. Then a proper scapegoat in form of a snake is coincidentally in the area and the guard kills it. Then for some dumb reason her murderers take her to the hospital even without signs of sickness in order to ?( help me out here Mr Kayuni). Anyhow the victim shows no symptoms whatsoever of organophosphate poisoning at the clinic to raise a red flag to medical personnel. Yet by now we have all heard about how aggressive the symptoms of termik poisoning are. What is also bizarre is that the victim is in on the snake story. Fast forward she is taken to KCH which still does not immediately pick it up that its Termik poisoning. Yet in the health centres countrywide they are able to pick it up. I know there’s the saying that ” there are more wonders in heaven and on earth than the mind can ever imagine” but this one is definitely not one of them.
Wasting time. I don’t believe anyone can drink poison and go to the hospital for a snake bite. Meanwhile all her vitals were normal. Kayuni is incompetent and trying to pin innocent people. The first question is WHY DID SHE go to the hospital. In other words you are implying that Kottana was part of the fake snake story. How can one drink Termik and present themselves with normal vitals. The clinic messed up and killed the poor girl and medics are covering up because big kahunas own the clinic. May these youngsters properly sue the state after this.
It is clearly stated that she was normal by the time she got to the hospital. It us also stated that she was given wring medication and thats when her condition changed and led to her death.
So why waste time wuth this appeal instead of taking the hospital to task.
This young girl lost her life please. Why go around in circles
Exactly! And remove Dzamalala licence. We do not need corrupt health workers like him. Plus Thoko Kaunda should pay for what he did.
I was of the view that yesterdays celebrations by suburbia was inappropriate and insensitive and premature. The judge didnt say not guilty, he simply let them off on a technicality.
A young woman lost her life here and some of these high school graduates know the truth.
Smacks of the same judicial gymnastics that are still plaguing the murder case of Chanthunya who clearly had a hand in the killing and coverup of Linda Gausi.
What is the common denominator? Rich daddy and mommy.
Abiti
Big man did you attend school? The rich don’t target bankrupt families.
The Honourable Judge is right it is not how the victim died or if she had Termix in her system it is the evidence NOT presented that the accused administered the poison. Was the needle found, did it have finger prints? Did the accused have traces of termix on their clothes or body? Was the Termix bottle found at the site? It appears the four stayed with their stories and did not accuse the other therefore no witnesses to the poisoning? The question remains was it self induced? Or murder. No evidence Judge has no option but to Acquit Lots of unanswered questions.
Let God be God.
How to get away with murder
You obviously don’t know a thing about this case so just shut up.
Ha ha ha the guilty are always too loud!! Carry on!
This is what happens when you skip school to watch Netflix. Ignorance is bliss. Do you know what termik does to the human body? Eats at your organs. Even Dzamalala states that her organs were fine. Go finish your form 4 please.
Ha ha ha eh shame! Ati schooling a person you don’t don’t even know .. the clownery of it all..
We thank God for Dr. Steven Kayuni’s intention to appeal the verdict.
Right from the beginning, it was a miscarriage of justice to give this case to Justice Thomson Ligowe.
Ligowe has, over the years, built for himself a questionable character. All his verdicts have been very questionable.
Look at the Vuwa Kaunda versus Ralph Mhone election case. There was no fairness in his judgment.
The Kottana-murder case must surely go to the Supreme Court.
Very true 1000%
Have you read any of the witness statements? Did you hear what Dr. Chimutu said under cross examination in court? Did you hear what the police said and who paid Dzamalala? Did you hear the “suspicions” that Thoko mentioned that led him to report this matter to the police? Did you hear what the chief police said about having orders from the top in DPP government to keep these innocent people locked up even after knowing they were innocent? Have you read the submissions from the prosecutor?
I’m guessing the answer is no! Anyone with a brain wouldn’t say any of what you just said if you know the facts.
Let it go. The family and doctor will be charged for corruption, tampering with evidence to incriminate 4 innocents. She didn’t die of termik. Everyone knows.
Oh fuck off she was killed at the hospital! Let it go!