Dr Kawashima's Brain Training: How Old Is Your Brain? (Nintendo DS)

The lowdown:
Nothing about this game is ordinary, from the price to the way you hold the DS while playing it (vertically, as if you were reading a book). The basic idea is that you play through a series of puzzles each day, for about 10 minutes, and at the end of each session the "age" of your brain is calculated. The puzzles themselves range from simple maths questions to spot the difference, memorisation and comprehension. All of the answers are inputted either by drawing the answer on the touchscreen or speaking it into the DS's in-built microphone. There's also a multiplayer mode for up to 15 people where you can try and compete to record the youngest brain age.

Most exciting moment:
A brand new addition to the game, not included in the Japanese version, is a special DS version of Sudoku. This works great on the DS's touch screen and is worth the already low price of admission on its own.

Since you ask:
A sister title to Brain Training, named Big Brain Academy, is due for release in July and offers to "weigh" your brain and improve specific skills such as memorisation and analysis. A direct sequel to Brain Training has also been released in Japan but is not yet scheduled for released in the UK.

The bottom line:
The only game that really is for the whole family - from kids to OAPs.
Harrison Dent

Product Description
Give your gray matter the workout that it needs to stay sharp, focused and young. Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day is inspired by a book that was written by Professor Ryuta Kawashima, a prominent Japanese neurologist. His theories revolve around keeping brains young by performing mental activities quickly. When users first start a new game, they will be given a Brain Age Check that determines the age of their brains. Each day, they can compete for the high score in any activities that they have unlocked. They also can check the age of their brains once per day. The more training they do, the more activities they will unlock. Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day is designed to be played in small chunks over a long period of time and can hold data from a year of activity. Features: Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day is a series of mini-games designed to give brains a workout. Activities include performing simple math problems, counting people going in and out of a house, drawing pictures on the touch screen and reading classic literature out loud. When users start a new game, they will take a series of tests and get a score that shows how old their brains are. This number is called the "Brain Age." As they use the software over a series weeks and months, their mental acuity will improve and the Brain Age will drop, indicating a younger, healthier brain. Progress is charted in graph form. Users can keep up to four save files on one game card. Sharing a game allows them to compare their results with those of family and friends. Users also can send a demo version of Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day to friends or compete with up to 16 players in a battle to see who can solve math problems the fastest.