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DS Brain Age & Big Brain Academy NA launch dates - Official PR
- Thread starter ziran
- Start date
Gaia Theory
Member
Is there any chance that there is video of the Prof. 3D head animating? I've searched, but only come up with gameplay vids that never happen to show the Prof...
Yep.Cheebs said:
Although I guess I want to be smarter too.
Come to think of it now that you put it that way, maybe they can tap into the same teenage crowd that spends 65% or more of its time taking online personality quizzes and such.Bowen_B said:
Okay, I'll listen to a guy who likes Advance Wars as much as I do.GDJustin said:Anyone who doesn't think these are gonna be runaway successes in America is... well... wrong
Brain Training is fun as hell. Japanese taste is inarguably different from American taste, but nothing sells THAT well for no reason. I've played Brain Flex, and its really fun
JoshuaJSlone
Member
Is "Brain Age" really the type of game an older person might like?
My grandma likes playing card games on PC and on dedicated handheld units, so I'd joked about her being the type of person to go for Ultimate Card Games. Once I got some spare money, though, I really thought it'd be cool to get her that and a DS, to sort of return the 1993 gift of a Game Boy from my grandparents. However, Ultimate Card Games was delayed past her November birthday. And then Christmas. And now Mother's Day. And let's face it, she's not getting any younger. So I'm considering alternate games she might like before Telegames gets finished with theirs.
Though I kinda worry about the offense of getting her a gift that blatantly asks if her brain is old. :lol
My grandma likes playing card games on PC and on dedicated handheld units, so I'd joked about her being the type of person to go for Ultimate Card Games. Once I got some spare money, though, I really thought it'd be cool to get her that and a DS, to sort of return the 1993 gift of a Game Boy from my grandparents. However, Ultimate Card Games was delayed past her November birthday. And then Christmas. And now Mother's Day. And let's face it, she's not getting any younger. So I'm considering alternate games she might like before Telegames gets finished with theirs.
Though I kinda worry about the offense of getting her a gift that blatantly asks if her brain is old. :lol
I was also buying this just to see why the hell it sold so much in Japan, but its a nice bonus if it has Sudoku. I do those all day at work while I'm waiting for my stuff to incubate (some are 1-2 hours long). That and crossword puzzles. You can find both in your newspapers or most news websites like the Post have them too if you want to try them out. But its the math stuff I'm really interested in seeing how they work.
sasimirobot
Junior Member
I love the Japanese version of this game. The simple math problem one is really fun to play against friends when you are drunk.
The one quiz with the dudes coming in and out of a house and you have to count them is SUPER HARD for me though.
I will have to pick up the english version just to see how they change some of the text related quizzes and daily questions and memory tests, plus SUDOKU rocks!
The one quiz with the dudes coming in and out of a house and you have to count them is SUPER HARD for me though.
I will have to pick up the english version just to see how they change some of the text related quizzes and daily questions and memory tests, plus SUDOKU rocks!
Galactic Fork
A little fluff between the ears never did any harm...
JoshuaJSlone said:
On the bright side, the question is asked in a way that the "old" answer is the good one! You WANT an old mature brain!
I think NOA is making a big mistake here. There's a massive opportunity to get into related-product sales by exploiting Prof. Kawashima and turning him into a brand in the US.
Here's how they should do it:
1. Keep the names of the games the same. "Brain Age?" WTF, Reggie?
2. Launch a massive marketing campaign using Prof. Kawashima. He doesn't have to know English for this to work, but it might help. Show commercials on TV, before movies in theaters, on planes, etc; newspaper ads, magazines, spam all print media.
3. Get permission to translate and republish his books in the US. Promote heavily alongside the game.
The marketing campaign should take the angle of introducing Kawashima to the US market. If he doesn't know English, let him give a short introduction in the commercials with subtitles or dubbed over, but accompanied by a TV Voice Guy or some other likable or known personality to carry out the rest of the piece. Explain the games, the books, make sure people get the whole idea. Do all of this in a light-hearted, quirky manner.
This has been pulled off before - reference personalities like Joe Isuzu or the Maytag repairman. I think Nintendo could have a pretty lucrative global mass media franchise, if they wanted to actually try.
Here's how they should do it:
1. Keep the names of the games the same. "Brain Age?" WTF, Reggie?
2. Launch a massive marketing campaign using Prof. Kawashima. He doesn't have to know English for this to work, but it might help. Show commercials on TV, before movies in theaters, on planes, etc; newspaper ads, magazines, spam all print media.
3. Get permission to translate and republish his books in the US. Promote heavily alongside the game.
The marketing campaign should take the angle of introducing Kawashima to the US market. If he doesn't know English, let him give a short introduction in the commercials with subtitles or dubbed over, but accompanied by a TV Voice Guy or some other likable or known personality to carry out the rest of the piece. Explain the games, the books, make sure people get the whole idea. Do all of this in a light-hearted, quirky manner.
This has been pulled off before - reference personalities like Joe Isuzu or the Maytag repairman. I think Nintendo could have a pretty lucrative global mass media franchise, if they wanted to actually try.
sasimirobot
Junior Member
Lhadatt said:
Yeah. I think they need that kinda tie in. The guy in Japan has a hit book(s?) and makes appearences on Japanese "Oprah" type talk shows. It could be the new Atkins diet for the brain if it is pushed right, but I dont think it will be.
JoshuaJSlone
Member
I'd buy a Dr. Angus-branded Brain Training game.
Galactic Fork
A little fluff between the ears never did any harm...
I wonder if they'll merchandize it in nonconventional places for video games. Like in bookstores. I could see my store selling some. Be interesting if they tried that.
The box art looks like it's the cover of book. That's clever.
Serious question, though. I've seen a few references to Sudoku on the internet... and that's it. Folks in this thread are acting like it's a nation-wide craze, with folks snapping books and items up at every store. I've never heard of it outside two net references, never seen it anywhere, and (as far as I was convinced) it was a niche thing. Where is the "NATIONWIDE CRAZE" aspect coming from?
Serious question, though. I've seen a few references to Sudoku on the internet... and that's it. Folks in this thread are acting like it's a nation-wide craze, with folks snapping books and items up at every store. I've never heard of it outside two net references, never seen it anywhere, and (as far as I was convinced) it was a niche thing. Where is the "NATIONWIDE CRAZE" aspect coming from?
DavidDayton said:
The craze even transcends nations! It has yet to hit America, but Sudoku is huge in Europe. I'm just gonna take credit here for breaking the Sudoku-in-Brain-Training news to GAF, but at the time I was led to believe this feature would be exclusive to the European version of Brain Training. Of course, why not include it in the US version as well? In retrospect, that's a no-brainer (pun not intended, honest!
).Galactic Fork
A little fluff between the ears never did any harm...
DavidDayton said:
I don't know how nation wide it is, but I know my store went, in the span of a month, from never carrying any, to having to expand our games and puzzle section to fit the loads of books we recieved. It is all selling really well too. It might be bigger in Europe, but at least here in my part of florida, I'd definitely consider it somewhat of a craze.
stephentotilo
Behind The Games
Every bookstore I go into in New Jersey has a dedicated Sudoku section right now, with somewhere between five and ten different volumes. This wasn't the case even six months ago. So, yeah, it's big.
EDIT after reading stephentolito's article--"only" 100 puzzles, though. I was expecting a Sudoku generator (though the handmade puzzles will probably be better than the ones that the generator on my computer spits out).
EDIT after reading stephentolito's article--"only" 100 puzzles, though. I was expecting a Sudoku generator (though the handmade puzzles will probably be better than the ones that the generator on my computer spits out).
So do you guys honestly think the average business man/housewife/blue collar worker/average 30+ joe will be more inclined buy a $130 system plus a $20 game because it now includes Soduku?
I can go to almost any bookstore/convenience store and pick up a Soduku puzzle book with 200+ puzzles for around $5, and that's Canadian. Or I can just get two puzzles for free everyday with my purchase of the Globe & Mail for 50 cents.
Brain Training will only succeed here if people want portable edutainment; plain and simple. Personally, I really don't think the adult version will succeed at all, as I'm of the opinion that the fad-like obsession over these in Japan will even fade by the end of the year. The children's version however I won't be surprised if it sells halfway decently.
We'll see. If anyone can do the impossible in the handheld arena, it's certainly Nintendo.
I can go to almost any bookstore/convenience store and pick up a Soduku puzzle book with 200+ puzzles for around $5, and that's Canadian. Or I can just get two puzzles for free everyday with my purchase of the Globe & Mail for 50 cents.
Brain Training will only succeed here if people want portable edutainment; plain and simple. Personally, I really don't think the adult version will succeed at all, as I'm of the opinion that the fad-like obsession over these in Japan will even fade by the end of the year. The children's version however I won't be surprised if it sells halfway decently.
We'll see. If anyone can do the impossible in the handheld arena, it's certainly Nintendo.
Jill Sandwich
the turds of Optimus Prime
Sudoku? That shit's gonna sell like gâteaux chauds
DefectiveReject
Banned
April 17th Release.
Mid March-Mid April is looking quite sweet for releases!
Metroid Hunters in USA (DSlite release IMHO, and Q2 in Europe for both these also DSlite release)
Mid March-Mid April is looking quite sweet for releases!
Metroid Hunters in USA (DSlite release IMHO, and Q2 in Europe for both these also DSlite release)
jamesinclair
Banned
DavidDayton said:
Head over to IGN gameboy its mentioned in the preview of a Sudoko game.
There was an article about it in the Boston globe the other day as well.
Smiles and Cries
Member
Nintendo seems to know about the Sudoku fad going around
Saw something on it on CNN I'm really not sure why people are crazy about it