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Brain-Twisting Fun

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 22 / 27
Date: August 20, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Last year, gamers really started to go wild for the Nintendo DS all over again. Not just because of the DS which was redesigned into the DS Lite, but a whole new era of mental challenge games attracted new gamers young and old. Mainly, with Brain Age, the Nintendo DS got older gamers into the scheme of gaming and excitement from verbal memory games, to introducing Su Doku, the challenging puzzle game that have really made gamers go wild. Unfortunately, there have been many knockoffs to Brain Age like Mind Quiz for the PSP, that really haven't delivered and attracted the feeling that Brain Age delivered. Now, a sequel to the original mind bender that started it all, returns to the Nintendo DS, but is it good as it was before, or falls short on memory?

Brain Age 2 for the Nintendo DS tackles on more exciting puzzles than before. The gameplay is expanded nicely, but there are also a lot of changes to the gameplay here in the game. The first main change is that a lot of the verbal games like the color strooping exam were removed, because there were a lot of problems with the microphone use in the game. Instead, there are a lot more games that feed off nicely from Nintendo's other DS mind-bender Big Brain Academy here, where you have to comprehend how much you have to give back as change in dollars and cents, to memorizing a song on a piano. Another new game is called word wheel, where you have a series of letters spinning around, and you have to fill in the exact word, one letter at a time. There are also a few things that have returned here, including the picture drawing challenges, but especially the Su Doku puzzles, withe over 100 new puzzles to test your mind. The graphics are just as simple as they were before, but the gameplay is just even more addictive than it has been before, and the control also handles that just as well.

All in all, with so many mental games in the video game market right now, Brain Age 2 really does deliver nicely for the Nintendo DS. If you haven't tackled the challenges before, you may want a new mind-reading workout. I loved the original one, and I really like the new addictive challenges. I absolutely suggest you buy this sequel, and keep that brain sharp.

Graphics: B

Sound: B 1/2+

Control: B+

Fun & Enjoyment: B+

Overall: B+

Too similar and inherently flawed

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 11 / 19
Date: August 22, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I loved the first Brain Age, but this sequel is lacking severely. The games are a little more involved, but they don't seem quite as "smart" as in the first game. It's as if the game creators were searching for just about anything they could use to fill this game. The gameplay is identical to the first one, so in that respect it doesn't feel "new". Almost as if you paid to play a game you already own.

The innovative voice-regonition Stroop test is replaced with Paper, Rock, Scissors (huh???). Only this time, the voice-recognition doesn't work. No matter how close or far you are from the mic, in understands you 25% of the time. It shouldn't have been released like this, but I'm sure they wanted to rush the game out the door. Also, the word mix-up game is fun, until you get a combination of letters that can make multiple words. Since the game is only expecting a specific answer, it counts it wrong if you input a different word (when in reality, you came up with a word, and that's the point of the game!) The music game is fun (I personally play the piano), but it can be agonizing to someone who is not musically inclined (I've witnessed the frustration).

All-in-all, this is a very disappointing game. Too bad you can't rent DS games. At least it's only $20.

Voice game does not function

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 8
Date: August 22, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This new game is great. The only problem is the voice game, paper/rock/hand, does not function and it does not recognize any voice, close up or not close up. I have tried it on several different DS systems and it does not function. I am waiting for the recall from Nintendo so they can fix this glitch.

Another winner!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 5
Date: August 23, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I played through the first installment (any doubts that there will be a third ?), and found it a fun, stimulating challenge with decent replay value. The ability to set personal bests, combined with the enticement of a normalized ranking (the much ballyhooed "brain age") suits the quantitative, competitive sorts like myself. Some of the concerns voiced above re: BA2 are easily sidestepped: Don't play the voice recognition game. Easy enough, and there's plenty of other places to find fun. One feature I'd like to see are the dedicated Brain Age tests broken out as individual games to play (some in BA2 are a very cool, but you can't play them outside of the BA testing environment) as well as ALL games as possible selections for a Brain Age test. Interestingly, BA2 is more math focused than BA1, which I like. But there are a number of other enjoyable games that will make you think. Anagramming, music composition, information aggregation, memorization, and a host of general executive function tasks come into play. In particular, the piano game is a blast, although if you can read music, play the piano, and best of all, play by ear, you'll have a powerful advantage. It is worthwhile to spend a little time learning shortcuts for handwriting recognition (like a slash for division, rather than a line with dots above and below); this will improve the times and prevent a break in the mental flow as the problems stream by. There are still too many click-through screens of various beheaded ramblings, but the quick fix presented by this quirky edutainment title is compelling. It does seem to me that the brain age rankings are a bit tougher this time around, but maybe it is my lack of familiarity with the games. All in all, the game isn't perfect, but it's perfectly suited to serve up daily dollops of 1-10 minutes of fun. Just don't expect a significant boost in IQ.

Better Than The First!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 9 / 10
Date: August 24, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Brain Age 2 has so many more exercises than the first one. There is a little problem with voice recognition in Paper, Rocks, Scissors- but don't let that stop you from getting it. There are still many, many more games to play. What I really like is that it has it's own version of Dr. Mario! If you click on "training" and scroll down to the last "???" block and click on it...you will find VIRUS BUSTER!!! That alone is worth 20.00! Get this game, it is good!

Brain Age: Version 2.0

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 12 / 12
Date: August 24, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Brain Age was quite the success on the DS. At the time of its release it was something quite new and unique. An interactive puzzle experience. The game was followed up later with Big Brain Academy and that was also pretty good. Now we've got Brain Age 2 which is more or less an expansion to the first one.

The mini-games here are fun and addictive much like the first one. A lot of it actually comes from the first game but now they've added more twists to the games or updated some of them. Not every mini-game is a winner, but if you liked the first Brain Age game, then this one should satisfy. These mini-games are quite a challenge too. Especially because some of the "twists" they threw into these games really actually makes you start thinking, or better yet, memorizing things.

Nintendo also threw in some multi-player this time. You and your friends can compete and it only takes one card to do so. The rest of your friends just have to bring their DS along.

The two biggest problems of the first Brain Age still exists here however. Games that require you to speak or games that require you to write don't always work in your favor. You could say the correct answer but for some reason the game won't "hear" you correctly and you'll get it wrong and get penalized. Just the same when it comes to handwriting simulation games it might not be able to "read" your handwriting. It's actually pretty annoying and you're unfairly penalized for it.

Despite that, however, Brain Age 2 is still a fun game and a great follow up to the first game. If you liked the first one, chances are the second one will be enjoyable as well.

More of the same, and that's not a bad thing

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 24 / 26
Date: August 25, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Brain Age 2 offers more of the same this time around, and if you played the original, surprise smash hit for the DS, then you'll know that this isn't a bad thing. Brain Age 2 supplies just what the cover of the box says it does: it's more training for your brain. The game is easy to get into for newcomers and veterans alike thanks to offering the same, simple structure as before while offering new takes on the mini-games themselves. Combine that with some solid multiplayer capabilities, more great sudoku, and much more complicated math problems; and Brain Age 2 ends up being a winner. The biggest flaw of Brain Age 2 however remains left over from the first game: the handwriting and speech recognition features are still somewhat shaky. That aside though, Brain Age 2 succeeds by following the same formula as before: addictive gameplay, clean presentation, and a budget price; and in those departments alone, Brain Age 2 is worth checking out.

Better Than The Original! Improved Game Play!!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 64 / 66
Date: August 26, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I have to say I like Brain Age 2 more than I liked the original. I found the first version of the game frustrating (yet still engaging) because the handwriting recognition and voice recognition to be problematic.

This new version seems to have improved immensely. I see a few reviews here inidcating that some users are having problems with voice recognition, but that's not what I am experiencing with the game. The Rock, Paper, Scissors game is working flawlessly for me, unless I stutter, stammer, or someone says something in the background. I especially like that the game requires you to answer with EITHER a correct or incorrect answer! Furthermore, I have absolutely awful handwriting, yet the game is doing an excellent job recognizing my chicken scratch!

Best of all, the game is addictive and has me playing constantly. I'm a fan of games like Brain Age and Big Brain Academy where you ultimately compete against yourself to improve your score (or compete against others if you are so inclined). There are enough challenging mini-games (including sudoku) to keep the game interesting for quite awhile. It is certainly worth the price!

However, it would be a mistake to believe these games are any REAL indication of innate cognitive skill and performance. The game claims to help make your brain more agile and that may be possible. Research is, in fact, showing the benefits for people to continue to solve puzzles, read, and perform other complex cognitive tasks to stave off the effects of mental aging and even help recovery from brain injury. I think Brain Age will improve mental agility, but players should not be discouraged if their initial scores are not high. This is a GAME first and foremost, not an IQ test. Play it and enjoy it!! If your brain becomes more efficient at processing information consider it a bonus of playing a very enjoyable game.

Great Brain Training for All Ages

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 126 / 130
Date: August 28, 2007
Author: Amazon User

The first Brain Age on the Nintendo DS spawned a whole generation of brain training games. Now they're back with Brain Age 2 - and I really feel they did a great job of enhancing the game's functionality!

First, the infamous "voice test". In Brain Age 1, it was the classic see-a-colored-word-say-the-color game that so many magazines and websites print. The big problem there was that blue and black always got confused. With this one, they changed it to rock-paper-scizzors. It's just as challenging, and we've never had any problems with it understanding us. Hurrah!

Next, the mini-games. I appreciated the challenge of the Brain Age 1 games, but they were pretty boring. They just weren't much fun to play, especially compared to some of the other games on the market.

They did a great job of revamping the games in Brain Age 2. Some of them are still on the boring side, like the 'running people' game where you try to figure out what place the dark player comes in. Most of them, though, are truly fun to play. The spinning letters game where you try to figure out what word they spell can be quite challenging. I love the piano game where you try to play along with the song.

There are the usual graphing options, so you can see your progress over time, and then the "brain age" with an ideal age of 20. Just like with the first game, I have to protest that it's a silly idea that your brain is best at 20. Your brain can easily be very slow at 20 and much better at 30! They should rate it as a 0% to 100%, rather than pushing this idea that youth is best. What's next, a diet program that gets you to weigh the weight of an "ideal 20 year old"?

Still, it is certainly valid that the more you use your brain, the better it gets. Everyone needs to keep their brains exercised and fresh. Playing this game is far better than sitting back and passively watching TV all night. Best of all, you can bring this along with you and increase your brain power while you ride the bus, wait in line, and do other boring tasks!

Highly recommended!

better than the first

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 11
Date: August 28, 2007
Author: Amazon User

like this one better than the first. i can never remember what 7X8= but i can remember that 2 PLUS 2 equals 4.
wish there were games like this.

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