Strategy games, good for the brain

Strategy games are games that involve well strategy. They help you get your brain going because they often involve good decisions.

A strategy game is a game (e.g. computer, video or board game) in which the players' decision-making skills have a high significance in determining the outcome. Many games include this element to a greater or lesser degree, making demarcation difficult. It is therefore more accurate to describe a particular game as having a certain degree of strategic elements, as in being mainly based around strategic principles. The crucial factor that separates this type of game from all others is that there is relatively little chance involved. All players have equal degree of knowledge of the elements of the game. There is no physical skill required other than that necessary to interact with the game pieces. Examples are English draughts, Chess, Chinese checkers, Stratego, Go, Shogi, Nine Men's Morris, Mastermind.

There is one big thing that you always need in strategy games, and that is luck. Most often times in strategy games things are hit and miss. Strategy (and tactics) are usually contrasted with luck, the outcome of luck-based games relying on probability. Games exist on a continuum from pure skill to pure chance, with strategic games usually towards the skill end of the spectrum. The word "strategy" is borrowed from a military jargon. It originally refers to planning at a very high level and often strategy games deal rather with planning on a smaller scale for which the word "tactics" is used in a military context. As you can see to be a good strategist it is more about knowing what your enemy is up to, instead of just going in and getting killed.

To conclude, strategy games are important because they teach you good decision-making skills which are very important later in life.