Body and Brain Connection for Kinect allows your family to take part in 20 unique activities that are designed to exercise your brain as well as your body.

One of the first things we noticed about Body and Brain Connection that made it unique from other Kinect games we’ve played was the ability to use both hands to control the action.  Although the Kinect is always scanning your whole body for control, this one tracks the movements of both your hands on-screen, and utilizes them in nearly every mini-game.

If you’ve played videogames with your family for a few years, you may be familiar with the Nintendo DS title Brain Age, which this game is very similar to.  The overall premise is that by exercising your brain, you will be able to have a lower (and healthier) brain, which lead to a better life.  So Body and Brain Connection provides you with recommended daily exercises and tests to help you progress to a better brain.

The game starts by asking players to take a brain age test, which is a combination of three of the game’s 20 mini-games.  Depending on how well you are doing, the game adjusts while you are playing to make sure that you are not presented with options that are overly difficult for your performance.

After you’ve taken your daily test, you are free to either participate in the recommended mini-games, or play any of the game’s 20 that you want.  There are lots of different types of mini-games, although most ask you to do most of the exertion with your brain, and then simply extend or kick with your right or left arms or legs to select the right answer.

The games are divided into five different sections:

Math – Includes Which is Bigger, Perfect 10, Math Jock and Meter Reder.  Which is Bigger asks players to decide which number or equation represents a bigger number.  Perfect 10 requires you to point to the two numbers which add up to 10 as quickly as possible.  Math Jock is a kicking game in which the missing digit from the equation will help you score a goal.  And Meter Reader asks players to continuously calculate a steady stream of numbers and indicated whether the total is above, below or equal to 10.

Reflexes – Includes Balloon Buster, Flag Frenzy, Pop Til You Drop and Follow the Arrows.  Balloon Buster requires players to pop balloons in a certain order.  Flag Frenzy asks players to follow verbal directions to raise the flags the right way.  Pop Til You Drop requires you to pop the balloon that is the same color as the word onscreen.  The game tries to be tricky though, with words written in different colors than what they say.  And Follow the Arrows is another tricky game in which you must point in the direction of the arrows, regardless of where they appear onscreen.

Logic – Includes What Time Is It, Time Bomb, Matchmaker and Off the Radar.  What Time is It asks players to line up hands on the clock to point to the correct “military” time.  Time bomb requires players to determing which bomb is counting down the fastest, and to swipe the appropriate arm or leg in time to knock it away.  Matchmaker requires you to find the two shapes which are exactly alike.  Off the Radar asks players to extrapolate on a radar position by placing their arms where they think they should be.

Memory – Strike a Pose, Flip & Find, Pizza Catch and Step Mania.  Strike a pose requires you to memorize poses and perform the one that is missing when they are revealed again. Flip & Find asks players to memorize the placement and orders of numbered panels.  Pizza catch sees players try and catch pizzas as they come down the conveyor belt, but they disappear right before they come out, so you have to remember where they were.  Step Mania is sort of like a memory version of hopscotch, in which players must walk down a sidewalk mimicking the step-pattern that was presented (example – left, both, right).

Physical – Traffic Control, Mouse Mayhem,   In Traffic Control, players act as a bridge in order to help different colored vehicles travel from one of three levels on the left side of the screen to one of three levels on the right side of the screens.  Mouse Mayhem is a whack a mole style game in which players must hit the mice in the pipes by swinging their arms and legs.  Touch N Go utilizes iconic Namco characters from Pac-Man and Dig-Dug asking players to multitask and help avoid pesky ghosts.  Mathercising is a tricky game in which you must identify what numbers are multiples of 2 or 3, but be careful because some are both and some are none.

Overall, we think Body and Brain Connection is a fantastic collection of simple to control mini-games that pack educational value.  You won’t be moving around as much as you do in other Kinect titles, but you definitely will flex your brain muscle even more than normal.  We definitely recommend this one for tweens and up, and most kids should be able to have success as well, although some of the math problems can ramp up in difficulty.  Body and Brain Connection is one of our favorite Kinect games we’ve played to date, with its simple controls, educational themes and multiplayer options. 

FROM COMPANY PRESS RELEASE:



Body and Brain Connection™ asks players of all ages must think fast and act even faster as they answer math, logic, reflex, memory and physical related questions using the full-motion capabilities of the Kinect sensor.  Body and Brain Connection challenges players to exercise both mind and body in the most cerebral and energetic party game ever from the originators of the video game brain training craze.

Body and Brain Connection is being developed under the supervision of renowned Japanese neuroscientist, Dr. Ryuta Kawashima.  In addition to his neurological work in Japan, Dr. Kawashima has also supervised the development of several best-selling games.  Dr. Kawashima’s previous efforts with video games proved to millions of gamers around the world how fun it can be to train your brain in minutes a day with simple brain puzzles.  His latest research shows that, in addition to simple daily mind exercises, brain activity is also jump-started by physical movement; thus resulting in Body and Brain Connection. The unique full-body motion Kinect sensor allows players’ bodies and minds to work in unison as they get up off the couch to work out problems in their heads and complete the answer with specific physical actions.

Body and Brain Connection includes numerous different activities in single player and multiplayer modes.  Players must use their arms, legs and minds to solve 20 fast-paced and exciting exercises as quickly as possible. A daily progress tracker makes sure that players are up-to-date with their current progress as they continue to stimulate both mind and body. Up to four friends can compete in fun and engaging activities as they strive for the fittest brain!

Body and Brain Connection will carry an ESRB rating of “E” for everyone.  For more information about Body and Brain Connection, please visit http://www.namcobandaigames.com, or http://www.facebook.com/namco.