Big Brain Academy

Infobox VG
title=Big Brain Academy


developer=Nintendo EAD
publisher=Nintendo
designer=
engine=
released=flagicon|Japan June 30, 2005
flagicon|USA June 5, 2006
flagicon|Australia July 5, 2006
flagicon|EU July 7, 2006
flagicon|South Korea August 2, 2007
genre=Puzzle, Educational
modes=Single player
ratings=ESRB: Everyone
CERO: All ages
PEGI: 3+
OFLC: G
platforms=Nintendo DS
media=
requirements=
input = Touch screen

nihongo|"Big Brain Academy"|やわらかあたま塾|Yawaraka Atamajuku is a puzzle video game published and developed by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS handheld video game console. It was first released in Japan on June 30, 2005, and was later released in North America on June 5, 2006, in Australia on July 5, 2006, and in Europe on July 7, 2006. It has been compared to "".fact|date=April 2007 It is marketed under the Nintendo's "Touch! Generations" brand.

A sequel, "", was released on the Wii in April 2007.

Gameplay

In "Big Brain Academy", tests are done in order to measure a brain's mass. The heavier the brain, the smarter the brain is or the better the reaction time is. There is no one game mechanism to "Big Brain Academy", as it is an assortment of puzzles with no one puzzle having greater priority than the other. There are three modes of play - Test mode, Practice mode, and Versus mode.

Test

Test mode consists of a formal test consisting of five puzzles, with one puzzle taken at random from each of the five categories to determine the player's brain mass.

After the test, the player is given a letter grade. Dr. Lobe (the "headmaster" of Big Brain Academy) also assess what areas the player needs to improve in and what ranking they would be; professions include museum curator, librarian, astronaut, investor, fashion stylist, diplomat, cave man, Isaac Newton, poet, banker, doctor, musician, etc.

There are five different categories of tests with three activities per category. The categories are (followed by their activities):

*Think (Logic-themed questions)
*Analyze (Reason-based questions)
*Compute (Math-themed questions)
*Identify (Visual-themed questions)
*Memorize (Memory-based questions)

Practice mode

Practice mode allows the player to select which specific exercise he or she wants to do in order to train their brain. The tests consist of tests available in the Test mode. Each mode has three difficulty modes, and the player can earn either a bronze, silver, gold medal, or a Platinum medal for achieving a certain brain mass in each difficulty mode.

Versus mode

In Versus mode, players can compete to determine who has the heaviest brain. Anywhere from 2 to 8 players can join a hosting player whether or not they themselves have a copy of the game.

Reception

As of March 31, 2008, "Big Brain Academy" has sold 5.01 million copies worldwide. [cite web |url=http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2008/080425e.pdf#page=6 |title=Financial Results Briefing for the Fiscal Year Ended March 2008: Supplementary Information |publisher=Nintendo |date=2008-04-25 |format=PDF |pages=6 |accessdate=2008-08-03]

ee also

*"Brain Age" and "Brain Age 2"
*"Brain Boost"
*"Brain Challenge"
*""
*""
*"Minna de Kitaeru Zenno Training"
*"Professor Kageyama's Maths Training The Hundred Cell Calculation Method"

References

External links

; Official websites
* [http://www.bigbrainacademy.com/ Official Big Brain Academy Site]
*Nintendo.com|id=YL1awWIMJtgpOaH5ooJiPOOv82UPSl6l|title=Big Brain Academy
* [http://media.nintendo.com/mediaFiles/gG6JjlkZ3yPmXxao4UolWxA7wimkt1xx.pdf Big Brain Academy instruction manual (PDF)]

; Reviews
* [http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ds/bigbrainacademy Big Brain Academy at Metacritic]

; Interviews and media
* [http://www.gamespot.com/ds/puzzle/gentlebrainexercises/index.html Gameplay Videos at GameSpot]