Advanced Brain Trainer

Should we blame Carol Vorderman, Dr Kawashima, Sudoku or all three? Either way, Britain now has an obsession with sharpening its collective brain power, and Nintendo's legendary Brain Training series isn't being allowed a free reign on our neurons. No, the ability of the mobile to fit in everyone's pockets means it's the perfect device for daily tuition, so up steps Advanced Brain Trainer.

Though clearly treading on Nintendo's shoes, French developer FILAO has taken steps to ensure Advanced Brain Trainer is more than a mere copycat, adding original games and sprucing up concepts that Dr. Kawashima fans will find familiar. Even Kawashima himself is aped in the form of Dr. Ann Winters who is there, in theory, to guide players through the game's training modules and tests (although we will confess to a slight intellectual crush too). In reality though, Winters spends most of her time rating and slating your performance – of which the latter seems to come easier than the former.

Early games include matching shape patterns, simple maths problems, or tracking cars in and out of a garage. It's the last challenge that perfectly epitomises Brain Trainer's ability to mix it up. While it's easy to compare to Brain Training's Head Count, which tracks people in and out of a house, FILAO has added an extra test to catch you out. Instead of tracking cars, trailers also pass in and out of the garage in the midst of all the traffic, and you're not made aware of just which vehicle you should be tracking until it's all over. Unfair? Perhaps, but it certainly presents a challenge.

Like Brain Training, Advanced Brain Trainer relies on you coming back to it for daily training, as by practising the game's challenges regularly, your brain begins to function at a quicker and more accurate rate - at least that's how the theory goes. What is more likely however, is that you simply become more familiar with what's required. Of course, as long as you don't take its claims too seriously, none of this is especially important.

What is fundamental is whether Advanced Brain Trainer's recipe of daily tests is enough of a mobile fix to justify a purchase. On the whole, the answer is yes. While FILAO's effort is unlikely to bring you up to Ph.D level, it is an interesting sidetrack that's a perfect accompaniment for the mobile. What's more, some of the activities are genuinely engaging.

Of note is the play on the magician's cup trick, with players having to track cards as they are turned face down and switched around. Simple to describe, you're not made aware of which suit you should be following until all is (almost) said and done – just like the game's cars-in-the-garage task.

Still, such surprises eventually become the game's Achilles' heel. Once certain routines have been learnt, the whole process becomes a little sterile, as the tasks themselves become less demanding.

Advanced Brain Trainer also somewhat suffers with its controls. Many of the tasks require you to make your choices by tapping the corresponding number key. However, as some of the challenges involve numbers, it can be tempting to press the number rather than the button you need – it gets you thinking though and is likely to be a factor that affects gamers to varying degrees.

So for those wanting a solid brain training package – tasks aplenty, daily tests and monitoring of aptitude – Advanced Brain Trainer supplies on all fronts. It might not pass with flying colours, but it certainly provides a good secondary education.