Does Practice Help on Game-Based Assessments? What Our Data Shows
By the Game Assessment Prep research teamUpdated September 24, 2026How we research
Yes. Across more than 101,000 practice sessions from over 9,200 candidates, scores rise with each attempt and keep rising after the second one. By their fifth attempt, players typically score 14% (Arctic Shores and pymetrics) to 30% (Aon) higher than on their first attempt at the same game. The real assessment gives you one attempt, and without practice that attempt is your first.
How much scores improve, by assessment
| Assessment | Typical gain by the 5th attempt | By the 10th attempt | Time on the game before the 5th attempt | 5th attempt vs. a typical first attempt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aon smartPredict games | +30% | +50% | about 24 minutes | +35% |
| HireVue games | +23% | +37% | about 12 minutes | +17% |
| Criteria Cognify | +23% | +25% | about 12 minutes | +15% |
| pymetrics | +14% | +10% | a few minutes | +11% |
| Arctic Shores | +14% | +19% | about 9 minutes | +11% |
The first three columns compare each player with their own first attempt. The last column is a stricter test: the average fifth-attempt score of players who practiced, compared with the average first attempt of everyone who played. Players who went on to practice started slightly below average, and they still finished well ahead of a typical first try.
Your first attempt is your lowest
The first time you meet a task, the controls are new, the rules are not yet automatic, and you have not felt the timing. All three cost points. They fade after a run or two, which is why the biggest single jump comes between the first and second attempt.
The gains keep building after the controls are familiar
Players who kept practicing gained another 9–21% between their second and fifth attempts. That is skill, not just familiarity: faster arithmetic, longer memory spans, quicker rule switching.
Which games improve most
Games with a skill you can build improve most:
- Planning and patterns: HireVue Pathfinder and Shapedance.
- Memory under pressure: HireVue Disconumbers and Aon Digit Challenge.
- Rules and timing: Arctic Shores Tickets, Balance and Security.
Two kinds of game change least. In reaction games such as Arctic Shores Direction, most people score near the top on their first run. Behavioral tasks such as Arctic Shores Team have no right answer to improve on.
How much practice is enough
About 10–25 minutes per game gets most of the gain. Play each game in your invitation twice to learn the controls, then give three more runs to the games with a skill component. On HireVue and Aon games, scores keep climbing through the tenth attempt.
For each assessment, see our detailed breakdowns: Can you practice for Arctic Shores?, Can you practice pymetrics games? and Can you practice HireVue games?.
How we measure
We compare every later attempt with the same player's first attempt at the same game, under the same scoring version, and report the median change. Scores come from our practice simulations, not from employers. Internal and test accounts are excluded. The full method is on our methodology page.
Frequently asked questions
Does practicing for a game-based assessment help?
Yes. On our simulations, players typically score 14–30% higher by their fifth attempt than on their first, depending on the assessment, and the gains continue after the controls are familiar.
How many practice attempts do I need?
Two runs of each game in your invitation to learn the controls, then three more on games with a skill component such as memory, arithmetic or timing. That is about 10–25 minutes per game.
Is it cheating to practice for a game-based assessment?
No. Vendors such as Arctic Shores offer their own practice task. Practicing similar tasks teaches you the formats, not the answers.
Can practice change a personality or behavioral result?
No. Behavioral tasks measure preferences such as risk-taking, so there is nothing to improve. Practice helps you understand the task so your result reflects you, not confusion about the controls.