Review #14: Big Brain Academy

Cool, two non-platformer reviews in a row!

The DS's touch screen has been heavily used in some games, not so much in others. Sometimes the stylus is a necessity, other times the bottom screen is just there.

There's just a little overview of Nintendo's current handheld for you there.

Another thing about the DS is the abundance of edutainment games. But don't expect anything like "Mario is Missing", this game is fun for all ages, and you'll get something more out of it than the other games I've reviewed on the blog so far.

Okay, looks like it's time for categorization...

Graphics: Pretty good, but they're kinda just there, and there's nothing really special about them. Typical for an new-generation edutainment game for handheld. Graphics get: 8/10.

Sound: Once again, it's nothing special, but nothing grating either. Sound gets: 8/10.

Story: Uh, you decide to go to this school to find out how big your brain is??? Okay, so there's no story. I'll skip this...

Gameplay: You create your own file, and you can do one of two things: take the test, or train for it. The test features one of four mini-games from each of four or five categories, including Math, Spelling, etc. When you finish, the professor guy tells you how you did, by weight. In Brain Age, they measured how old your brain was; in BBA, they measure how heavy it is. You could get 10 to 400 pounds, and maybe even higher, depending on how you did. Overall, not entirely original, considering the idea kinda copies Brain Age, but that was actually more like a daily appointment, but I don't remember this game keeping track of what time you last played. Also, the mini-games are more colorful than those in BA. Gameplay gets: 10/10.

Controls: Like yesterday's "Sling", the stylus is hard to mess up, so no problems here. Controls get: 10/10.

FINAL SCORE:

8+8+10+10= 36. 36/4 = 9/10.

Verdict: If you don't already have Brain Age, try this one out.