GamesRadar - Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day

Forbes: Nintendo's Brainy Strategy (News)

Oct 8, 2008

Burlingame, Calif. - "Brain Age" was all the rage in 2006. The collection of mini-games designed to stimulate your prefrontal cortex--in other words, stave off mental aging--was advertised in mainstream publications and coveted by the masses. The title, which convinced parents and other non-game-playing elders to seek out the Nintendo DS handheld console, is often credited with kick-starting the Nintendo revolution that expanded videogames beyond the core "Halo" or World of Warcraft" audience.

Nintendo of Canada's Awesome Shrunken Head Campaign (News)

Sep 29, 2008

NextGen Player writes:

"Every man has a list of health problems they hope don't happen to them during their lifetime. Male-pattern baldness, myopia and impotence come to mind. Well, after seeing Nintendo's new 'Build Your Brain' ad campaign I am officially adding shrunken head syndrome to my list.

The ad on the right is one of many that have been appearing around Toronto in the past two weeks. Each ad contains two people (generally 40-something couples), with one person having an abnormally tiny head. Yes folks, this is what happens if you don't have your daily dose of Brain Age.

The ad reads:"

More after the jump.

New study shows Brain Age makes you a better person (News)

Sep 25, 2008

More interesting than the fact that the game does make you smarter, and a less obvious result, is that the students who played the game became better people. They showed up for class on time more often, their interpersonal skills became better and they were more likely to take charge of a situation or to organize something. Even more impressive was that students who played the game daily started to have a better attitude toward school.

Brain Age Boosts Student Math Performance By 50 Percent (News)

Sep 25, 2008

A new UK study into the potentially beneficial effects of Nintendo's Brain Training games has found that playing the titles daily not only boosts students' math skills, but improves their concentration and behavior levels, too.

Top 7... Cutesy Characters We Want to Beat the Crap Out of (Feature)

Apr 21, 2008

Admit it - you’ve thought about choking quite a few videogame characters to death. Whether it’s an annoying sidekick or a particularly tough boss, there’s no denying that the urge to bust somebody in the mush hasn’t seized you. There are a lot of deserving punks we could put into this article - but the most aggravating offenses come from the cutest characters. Those fluffy types just there to make a game more ...

'Brain Age' Creator is Freaking Crazy (News)

Jan 31, 2008

Dr. Ryuta Kawashima, the man behind the popular Brain Age games for the DS, is a pretty strange dude. He refuses to accept any of the $11 million in royalties he's entitled from his involvement in the games, and he doesn't even really like videogames in the first place. All he wants to do in life is work. What a nutjob!

While it certainly is admirable that the good doctor is so obsessed with his work (he studies brains - big surprise), you'd think there would be some room left for fun. Well, you'd be wrong. Dr. Kawashima lists "work" as his only hobby.

He doesn't even play his own games, and limits his kids to a mere 1 hour of videogame playtime per week. Per week!

Kotaku:Nintendo Million Sellers Revealed (News)

Jan 29, 2008

Wii

Wii Sports - 17,850,000
Wii Play - 9,230,000
Super Mario Galaxy - 5,190,000
Mario Party 8 - 4,350,000
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess - 4,300,000
Super Paper Mario - 2,160,000
Big Brain Academy: Wii Degree - 2,000,000
Mario Strikers Charged - 1,650,000
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption - 1,140,000
Link's Crossbow Training - 1,070,000
Wii Fit - 1,050,000

Nintendo DS

Nintendogs - 17,790,000
Pokemon Diamond & Pearl - 14,170,000
New Super Mario Bros. - 13,140,000
Brain Age - 11,710,000
Brain Age 2 - 9,840,000
Mario Kart DS - 9,670,000
Animal Crossing Wild World - 9,200,000
Super Mario 64 DS - 5,780,000
Big Brain Academy - 4,610,000
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass - 3,820,000
Pokemon Ranger - 2,610,000
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time & Explorers of Darkness - 1,540,000

Do brain training games actually work? (News)

Jan 11, 2008

11 Jan, 2008 Brain training is big business. Since Dr Kawashima popularised the concept amongst the masses with Brain Age/Brain Training for Nintendo DS, we've been overwhelmed with games dedicated to head-sponge workouts. But do brain training games actually work? Of course, we're not smart enough to answer that question, so we were pleased to find that it's a topic covered in the January issue of New Scientist magazine. The feature contains plenty of neuroscientist debate on the matter and ...

VG Chartz Featuring the First Weekly European Software Charts Ever (News)

Nov 27, 2007

According to VG Chartz, here are the top 10 European software titles - with individual platforms, publishers, and units sold - for the week ending November 24th:

1. Brain Training (DS, Nintendo): 187,803
2. Assassins Creed (XB360, Ubisoft): 178,543
3. Super Mario Galaxy (Wii, Nintendo): 177,393
4. Need for Speed: ProStreet (PS2, EA): 149,927
5. High School Musical: Sing It! (PS2, Disney): 144,745
6. Assassins Creed (PS3, Ubisoft): 134,650
7. Mass Effect (XB360, Microsoft): 129,598
8. More Brain Training (DS, Nintendo): 128,614
9. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 (PS2, Konami): 124,674
10. Nintendogs (DS, Nintendo): 120,237

Report: Brain Training aids study in schools (News)

Oct 24, 2007

Gaming could soon be part of the national curriculum if one academic researcher has his way. Scottish primary school teacher Derek Robertson, who set up Consolarium--the Scottish Centre for Games and Learning--has released results of his most recent study that shows so-called brain-training games have a positive impact both on behaviour and on learning when used in schools.

The study took place over three P6 school classes (children aged 10-11), where School A was given 30 Nintendo DS consoles and copies of Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training and used them for 15-20 minutes every morning. School B used Brain Gym--a program of physical activities that is marketed as improving learning abilities--for the same amount of time every day, whereas School C acted as a control group and did not have access to either.

Seniors strike it healthy with virtual bowling (News)

Oct 14, 2007

CanWest News Service (Canada) reports how Nintendo Wii and DS are helping seniors and retirees to stay physically and mentally healthy while bonding with their friends, children and grandchildren.

"Friday is bowling night at the Millennium Trail Manor retirement home, when up to 20 residents gather for some friendly competition on the (bowling) lanes... They're going to try boxing next. There's no risk of bruised knuckles or broken noses, though, because the residents play the sports on the Wii..."

"Dr. Sharon Cohen has incorporated Brain Age (DS) into treatment programs for patients with Alzheimer's and dementia at the Toronto Memory Clinic. The games really do offer mental callisthenics, she says..."

New Year's solutions (Feature)

Jan 4, 2007

Did you behave well enough last year for Santa to bring you some new games for Christmas? Stuck on them already? Well, don't worry, we've put together a little something for you to unwrap now - that's right, the best cheats, hints and easter eggs for the top-selling Christmas games. Just hit the tabs on the left for the games you want to know about. Many of these cheats were sent in by our readers through CheatPlanet.com (thank you kindly) - so why not share your own best cheats and tricks ...

Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day (Review)

Dec 21, 2006

You may have heard about the rampant Nintendo DS shortages in Japan. Part of the reason it's in such high demand is this one game - Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day. The everyday mind-stretcher has captivated the entire country, spanning all ages and sucking up non-gamers as well. Now it's your turn. Every day you're supposed to fire up Brain Age and perform a series of quick tests that gauge how old your mind really feels. They start out fairly simple, like basic math problems, ...

Brain Training wins Edge award (News)

Aug 22, 2006

EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND--A 'close to unanimous' jury, chosen by Edge magazine, yesterday awarded its annual innovation in gaming award to Nintendo. The EIEF06 Edge Award, presented by editor Margaret Robertson, was awarded to Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training (known as Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day in the United States) at a ceremony that closed out the first day of the Edinburgh fest.

Brain Age sells 4 million copies worldwide (News)

Aug 10, 2006

The latest craze to sweep the planet is Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day for the portable Nintendo DS.

Selling more than 4 million units worldwide, including 600,000 in the Americas, 3 million in Japan and 500,000 in Europe.

In general people either dislike the non-game, or they can tell you their brain age...

Success for Brain Training (News)

Aug 10, 2006

Thursday 10 August 2006 Nintendo has achieved another significant DS success as Dr Kawashima's Brain Training: How Old is Your Brain? has managed to shift half a million copies in Europe. The DS game is comprised of a series of brain toning exercises devised by the renowned Japanese neuroscientist Dr Ryuta Kawashima. The idea is to spend 10 minutes a day energising the brain and soon you'll be as smart as Arnold Einstein. The promise of getting smarter has tempted 500,000 previously thick ...

Gaming supermen (Feature)

Aug 7, 2006

What the hell did people do all day before the internet? In just the past year, user-generated sites like YouTube have become everyday destinations for virtually anything that's ever been recorded, broadcasted or even conceived of - and that includes gaming. A recent thread over on the Penny Arcade forums called out the best you'll-never-pull-this-off video game moments captured on video, and wouldn't you know it, YouTube pretty much as them all. Prepare to feel worthless. We perused the list ...

Bush trains his brain (News)

Jul 6, 2006

Thursday 6 July 2006 Nintendo has treated President George W Bush to a special 60th birthday gift this week. A DS Lite and a copy of Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day were waiting for the pres when he climbed out of bed on his anniversary morning, possibly in a world-saving effort by Nintendo to keep the planet's most powerful man as sharp up top as possible. While you amuse yourself with other suitable titles for the man with the big red button (Advance Wars: Dual Strike, ...

It's yoga for your mind (Feature)

Mar 31, 2006

Fifty-six. That's the average age we editors at GamesRadar are getting when we first fire up the mind-twisting Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day. While our memories of the average '80s weekend may vary, none of us quite hits that age bracket just yet (and in fact, our scores seem to get better quickly, at least at first). But it doesn't matter - this mental Twister mat isn't about competition. We recently had a chat with two guys responsible for translating and porting Brain Age to ...

Prof Kawashima's Brain Training (Preview)

Mar 15, 2006

Likely to be placed highly in any competition judging the most obscure game title out there, Prof. Kawashima's Brain Training is another of Nintendo's genre-busting DS titles, right up there with Trauma Centre. The Japanese have been going mad for the game, which is based on research from a leading professor of neuroscience at Tohoku University in Japan. Which essentially seems to be that if you use your brain it makes it work better - we hope he didn't spend too long working that one ...

Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day (Screenshots)

Mar 10, 2006

Brain Age (Preview)

Mar 10, 2006

Way back in the day, it was Tetris that snuck Nintendo's original, green-and-blacktastic Game Boy into everyone's backpack, briefcase and duffel bag. With so many easily-accessible games landing on the Nintendo DS, it's only a matter of time before the company's latest handheld completely dominates the market. Oh, whats that? There's another pick-up-and-go, brain-teasing title coming that's aimed primarily at video game virgins and adults? Score another mass-market point for Nintendo. Brain ...

Flex your gray matter (News)

Mar 10, 2006

Who says video games don't teach you anything? International Brain Awareness Week kicks off on March 13th and can you believe there's a handheld game embracing the festivities? Already a major success in Japan, Nintendo's Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day is headed for the Nintendo DS on April 17th. The game's nothing more than a package of noggin-shredding minigames that whip your brain into shape. Yes, it's a cleverly disguised way to actually ... learn while playing "them damn ...

Glasses (Easter Egg)

May 21, 2008

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More Sounds (Easter Egg)

Aug 22, 2006

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Even More Pointless Cheating (Hint)

Aug 22, 2006

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Voice Calculation Game (Unlockable)

Jul 27, 2006

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More Pointless Cheating (Cheat)

Jul 27, 2006

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How to Get Multiple Stamps in One Day (Glitch)

Jul 27, 2006

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Bonuses (Unlockable)

Jul 27, 2006

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Brain Age Check Selection Menu (Hint)

Jul 27, 2006

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Larger Stamp (Hint)

Jul 27, 2006

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Top Three Results (Hint)

Jul 27, 2006

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Irritate the Prof (Easter Egg)

Jul 27, 2006

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Weird Sounds (Easter Egg)

Jul 11, 2006

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Weird Kawashima (Easter Egg)

May 23, 2006

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Pointless Cheating (Cheat)

May 3, 2006

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Brain Age Check Test Selection (Hint)

May 3, 2006

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