User Reviews (1 - 11 of 284)

Show these reviews first:

Highest Rated
Lowest Rated Newest
Oldest Most Helpful
Least Helpful

Exercise for the mind

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: July 16, 2007
Author: Amazon User

There are so many puzzle and mind-exercise games available on the DS now it's difficult to keep track of them all, but Nintendo's Brain Age, despite being one of the DS's first titles, continues to stand out. The concept is very simple--Brain Age includes many activities designed to stimulate blood flow in the brain and make you think, giving your brain the "exercise" it needs to remain healthy. It also includes Sudoku.

Audience: This game has appeal for a wide range of people. It is great for elderly folks wanting to keep their mind active and sharp, good for kids who can learn while playing a video game (although Big Brain Academy might be more fun for that demographic), and excellent for anyone in between who has a few minutes each day to challenge themselves mentally and maybe relieve a little tension from the day. Because most of the activities are short, the game can be picked up for a few minutes at a time, and would be ideal for a commute on public transportation.

Graphics: Not much to say here. It's a puzzle game, so the graphics don't need to be lifelike or real, but they're good enough to be able to enjoy the game.

Gameplay: The game revolves around a daily test you can take to determine the "age" of your brain. While this doesn't really make sense (for example, younger children who are just learning math and other skills will have a very high age at first), it doesn't really matter to me because I can see by the graph of my "age" whether I'm improving. There is also a practice training mode where you can practice several of the activities. There are unlockable games as well, and a separate mode to play Sudoku (Sudoku has various difficulty setting available).

Control: This is the game's major drawback for me. While navigating the game using the stylus is simple and intuitive the gameplay has two drawbacks dealing with the controls (I'm including this under controls even though they're not technically problems with button setup, etc). Both have to do with the game failing to recognize an answer, either through the voice recognition feature or while writing a number or letter, and resulting in some frustration on the part of the user. The game, for example, does not recognize some words, especially the word "blue" (in the color activity). I also have trouble with the game not recognizing some letters in words I write or in reading the wrong number in the math games. This is not a matter of penmanship--everyone I know who has played this game experiences the same thing. People who find themselves easily frustrated may find this to be a dealbreaker--for me, it's irritating but not something that makes me detracts TOO much from the overall enjoyability of the game.

Challenge: The activities are plenty challenging, and even if you attain the ideal brain age of 20 the game tracks your personal best scores and you can work on improving them. You can also see how other people who have profiles on the same cartridge have done.

Multiplayer: while there is a multiplayer option (using 1 cartridge--always a plus), gameplay is limited to only a couple of the activities in the full game. Multiplayer options fall short in my opinion.

Overall this is a great game, and worth the twenty or so dollars it costs (at the time of this writing). With all the mindless games available these days its nice to get something to keep your brain vibrant and active, and the fact that you can pick it up for 10 or 15 minutes at a time is a major plus. I'd include this game in my list of DS titles worth owning.

I don't see why there are so many critics...

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: January 07, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I have been playing this game for a while now, and I don't find it boring at all! true, the mike is a little faulty, but pronounce clearly and it will get it. the only problem besides that is that I read very fast, and it will bring me back to the beginning somtimes saying it couldn't track me, which was annoying. Everything else is great! the more you play, the more games you get.

stroop test not working well

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: January 09, 2007
Author: Amazon User

It does not recognize voices well. Most of the time it does not work. It needs improvemnt.

Wow, I feel smarter already

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: January 09, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Incredible prefrontal cortex stimulation here. Just a few minutes a day and the brain feels smarter.

Fun way to compete

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: January 09, 2007
Author: Amazon User

My family simply loves this game. We are very competitive and a few of my siblings were utterly dismayed by their first several scores.

What is really nice is that each individual can only test once per day to avoid the tendencies of repeating tests until their scores improved.

Highly recommended!

Great Game!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: January 09, 2007
Author: Amazon User

My 9 yo son asked for this game for months; I put him off until Christmas. I have to give the kid credit, its a lot of fun. I'm not a gamer but for an adult, its a great game, too.

Great!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: March 26, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This is a fun game I like to play about 4-5 times a week. It's fun to test your knowledge and see how you improve. I'd rec. it to anyone, of any age!

Not overly boring

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: March 22, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I got this game for a road trip we took. There really isn't anything exciting about this game but my husband and I have fun trying to beat each others age and see who can draw the best. So far Im winning with an age of 22, not bad for a 23 yr old I guess.

You've heard the hype!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: March 18, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Great game and fun just to chew up some time. It does help to make your brain think quicker. I am down to 46 years old for my brain (I'm actually only 35) but that is a vast improvement from the 80 year old brain I tested at when I first got the game. Test everyday and it tracks your progress and give you additional games to play. It's alot of fun & a great added bonus is the Sudoku option that's included in the game.

Fun game with stimulating exercises

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: January 11, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Some of the games are almost too simple, and some almost too difficult. It doesn't reveal all the exercises at once, you must earn enough "completion" stamps. So, in the beginning, there are only 2 or 3 exercises available, but as you practice more and earn more stamps, more exercises are made available. The suduko games are also very good. The only thing I don't like is that sometimes it has trouble recoginzing written letters (such as "k" vs "x"), and the spoken word "blue"). Overall, I would definitely recommend this game for $19.99.

Review Page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next 

Actions