How fighting zombies can increase your IQ

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Maybe you don't need to worry so much about the amount of time your kids are spending on video games. New games are being designed that claim to make players smarter!

When Fiona Conrad isn't making music, she's Fighting Zombies. But it's not just child's play. Fiona says this video game, called Project Azriel, has made her smarter.

"When I took the IQ test, I was 97. And then I took the IQ test again and I was 102," said Conrad

Deanna Terzian and her team have worked for six years with the Office of Naval Research to develop the game. It focuses on fluid intelligence or the ability to solve problems.

"If you could get your child to play this game some of the time, then that means some of the time that they're doing something for fun they're actually training their brain," said Terzian.

"You have to match patterns for you to be able to actually shoot the zombies," said Conrad.

One study showed those who played for 16 hours during a month improved five points on average in their matrix reasoning score.

"Today's world is so much more complex than before. Students are expected, people, adults, children are expected to learn more in less time," said Terzian.

And now, even the undead can improve your child's intelligence!

Project Azriel is available online. It costs anywhere between $19 and $70 dollars.