Fun tests in Brain Training (Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training (DS))

Member Name: eilidhcatriona

Product:	Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training (DS)
Date:	18/05/09 (11 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Lots of fun tests and easy to use sudoku

Disadvantages: Dr Kawashima is annoying and the novelty wears off

This was one of the first few DS games I got, and I absolutely loved it at first. I loved improving my age and scores every day, and unlocking the new "tests" as time passed.

There's a nice little variety of tests, the ones that everyone will recognise such as sums and saying names of colours, and others such as head count and triangle maths. The way the game is set out you do 3 tests each day (if you use it every day) to determine your brain age, and these tests are chosen by the game - although after a while you do unlock instructions on how to choose them yourself, which is good because the game chooses the most annoying one every day (word memory).

The other tests are for practice, to improve your brain age - and in terms of the game it does work. You can see your brain age improving every day as you practice more. Some of them are good fun, some are a bit tedious, reading aloud for example.

Every few days you also get a little fun game/question when you switch on - the game will ask you something, such as what you had to eat, or something you watched on tv, then several days later it will ask you the same question and you will have to remember! Also, now and then it asks you to draw pictures of things, and then you compare your picture to the games picture. These things are really good fun.

There are also a lot of sudoku puzzles in the game, which I love - and it's surprisingly easy to use. I've always avoided electronic sudoku because I like having paper to work on and I thought it might be tricky touse, but I was pleasantly surprised by this.

In addition to setting up your own name to do your daily training and brain age testing (there are 3 spaces for this, so 3 different people can use it), there is a quick play option which is a good way to introduce friends and family to it, and laugh as it tells them they are in their 80s!!!

However, Dr Kawashima is really annoying - there are far too many speech bubble screens, where he goes on about improving your brain age. Another point is that, like other reviewers, I found the novelty wore off after maybe 6-8 weeks, and I have barely used it for a while now, I just play the sudoku.

This is good fun, and worth buying, but don't spend too much on it - mine was £20, and I'd say £15 should be the highest you spend, but I'm sure you can get it for less now.

Summary: Good fun but not necessarily long lasting