Individuals seeking to give themselves a bit of brain training as finals loom on the horizon might want to consider investing in a Nintendo DS, Nintendo's portable system. Not for "New Super Mario Bros." or "Sonic Rush," but for a unique game called "Brain Age 2."
The "Brain Age" games are inspired by the research of Ryuta Kawashima, a university professor in Japan. He suggests that our brains can decline in quality, along with our bodies, starting at the age of 20. But fear not, for he says there's a way to keep your brain fit: Exercise specific parts of your brain by playing "Brain Age" and its sequel.
"Brain Age 2" is more of an experience than a game. You cannot play it for hours the first time around. It is likely that you will spend no more than 20 minutes investigating its various features because "Brain Age 2" unlocks more features the more you play it on a daily basis.
The bulk of the gameplay in "Brain Age 2" consists of innovative exercises designed to test specific parts of your brain. These range from word unscrambling to arithmetic problems to memorizing numbers in a sequence. In addition to 11 addictive activities, the game also offers Sudoku puzzles and a "Test your Brain Age" feature, where a series of interactive tests measure how old your brain is relative to your response time and accuracy.
Though having to play for certain amounts of time each day in order to unlock the game's full features may seem like a chore, it adds a great deal of replay value to "Brain Age 2." Often, players will find themselves returning for another brain test or Sudoku puzzle and will eagerly await the next day when they can unlock another new feature or mini-game.
What makes "Brain Age 2" extremely interesting is that during gameplay, the DS is held sideways like a book. The stylus is used to write numbers and words onscreen.
A key criticism of the original "Brain Age" was the lack of voice registration for games, but this has been fixed for "Brain Age 2." Voice registration is now extremely accurate, and the few times the DS does not accurately register your voice, it will not detract from the gameplay.
As addictive and engrossing as "Brain Age 2" is, it suffers from a flaw that tarnished the critically acclaimed "Nintendogs." Some of the exercises, specifically the "Test Your Brain Age" ones, require you to speak aloud and be in a quiet place. Not only can this be inconvenient for those who want to play their DS while waiting in a crowded train station, but it can also sound silly to shout numerical values and colors at a game console. Regardless, people who need to play silently can always do standard exercises or solve one of the dozens of Sudoku puzzles.
"Brain Age 2" is a unique game in all aspects, and it makes math and English fun and entertaining. People who feel like they need to train their memories or who just want to solve some intriguing and fascinating puzzles should pick up a DS - it may make or break your score on that big final exam.
