bit-tech Shopping: UbiSoft Mind Quiz

Rating: 8

Time with product: 30 Days

Strengths: It does quiz your mind-- and very easily too. I usually wake up at about 5:30, and that's when I do my Mind Quiz problems.

Weaknesses: The worst thing I have to say about this game is that it's to easy, and to short.

Summary: I'll admit it, the gameplay isn't that good. And the game has lots of neat quirks, but it just doesn't work together as I thought it would. All right:THE BADThe worst thing I have to say about this game is that it's to easy, and to short. For someone who isn't even out of Middle School, it's a shame. The game should be a lot harder, and should make your mind think. It asks you to know something like this: 8 x 4 in something like 4 seconds. It's not hard to figure this one out: 32. The game is sort of a letdown when it comes to material like this, but occaisionally there is something that pops up that is worth it. 11 x 10 = ?? not something that I could come up with in the given amount of time, but a nice refresher. Also, the "mini" games that they have are very "mini" they tend to copy the Warioware material because of the randomness of a lot of the characters is like Warioware. Despite it's major flaws, there are some upsides.THE GOODIt does quiz your mind-- and very easily too. I usually wake up at about 5:30, and that's when I do my Mind Quiz problems. I do it in about an hour, so I can have breakfast, then at 7:00 AM, depart for school. The games inside of it pick up your brain in a sec-- and the loads of extra features keep the game going for a while, and in total I've spent about 30 hours on it, because it lets me do math and other games while being able to have some fun, and get rewards. The main characters are kind of weird, and the fact you have to press the 'o' button instead of the 'x' button is a bit weird, but is actually different, and refreshing. It looks like there are more goods then bad, but there is more good then bad, and is worth the 20 bucks (or less) that it now costs.

Rating: 6

Time with product: 1 Months

Strengths: Can Play For Short Amounts of Time

Weaknesses: Repetitive, Presentation

Summary: Mind Quiz is a brain teaser game that will quiz you in five different areas. Calculation, reflex, judgement, memory & Exam. After doing as many questions as you can finish in a short amount of time you will be graded on how fast you were and how many you got right. While it is an interesting concept and does has some cleaver questions and puzzles to solve it does get repetitive after awhile with the 5 main types and questions that will be repeated that you've done before. I would recommend Mind Quiz to gamers interested in a quiz type game as a rental or as a buy at a cheap price ($5-10 range) as while it'll be fun to some for awhile it is rather short lived and not for everyone.

Rating: 2

Time with product: 1 Month

Strengths: +easy setup, straight forward+good for little kids+loads quick

Weaknesses: -questions childish-boring graphics-not fun-stupid incentives

Summary: Similar to games like Brain Age, players can perform multiple exercises/tests to train their brain. Scores to these exercises are recorded, and the goal of this game is to improve those scores. In those exercises/tests players are asked various simple questions ranging from simple add/subtract math problems to simple memory games. Answers are assigned to the x, triangle, square, and circle buttons. Passing scores are awarded with trophies and other lame prizes like pictures. While games like these may work on the DS and Wii, without touch screen or motion sensitive control, the game is boring. Graphically there is nothing exceptional about this game. I did not find this game fun or educational at all. Mind quiz is only recommended for little gamers 10 and below.

Rating: 6

Time with product: 2 Months

Strengths: Most of the same game play from the popular Brain Age series, from the actual guy behind the Brain Age series

Weaknesses: Missing most of charm and style of Brain Age, weak graphics & audio, too much repetition

Summary: Nintendo hit a home run with its popular and highly-acclaimed Brain Age series for DS based on the brain training research of Dr. Ryuta Kawashima. Now publisher Ubisoft has enlisted the very same Dr. Kawashima to help them create a similar exercise in handheld mind games, but the results are decidedly mixed. Part of the Brain Age series' success on DS was based on Nintendo's charm/style and unique use of the DS stylus. On the PSP Ubisoft has no stylus to use, and on the more powerful PSP hardware, the graphics and audio of Mind Quiz come across as weak at best. Mind Quiz has recently started hitting bargain bins, and given that it has few brain training competitors on PSP, you might want to consider it for $10 or less. If you have access to a DS and the Brain Age series however, you're much better off sticking with the original DS games as they're a lot more fun to play.

Rating: 6

Time with product: 7

Strengths: Challanging puzzles. Helps keep your brain sharp.

Weaknesses: Lack of stylus really hurts.

Summary: Mind Quiz is probably to best "Brain Age" type of game on the PSP. It has the same feel as Brain Age, with its quick puzzles and challanges. The one thing that really prevents this game from being great is the lack of a stylus for the PSP. I find myself playing Brain Age more often than Mind Quiz because of this.