Luke Smith, former mop-headed Kotaku writer and current moppier-headed 1Up news editor, totally whipped me in a little impromptu game of Big Brain Academy on the Wii, during the NYC event.

In my defense, the game was in Japanese and some Wii pimp was trying to explain the game to me as Luke zipped through the, apparently, timed match. The winner of the game is the first person to get 12 questions right.

It was kinda cool. Once the game started we both had to zip through a bunch of short, Brain Age meets Warioware split-screen challenges.

In one challenge you're given a total and a column of squares with numbers on them. The object was to remove the squares until the remaining numbers equaled the total shown on the screen.

In another challenge, half the screen is filled with an almost Tetris-like image of stacked blocks. The other half of the screen is filled with a bunch of blocks. The object is to remove blocks from the bottom screen to match the top image.

The final challenge I can remember was having to use the pointer to match a picture by moving objects around on part of the screen.

The quick match I played with Luke was fast-paced and fun and, as I mentioned earlier, felt an awful lot like a Warioware game. I think this is another game with great potential, especially given the dual-screen multiplayer mode.

Hit the jump for the official spec sheet. Brian Crecente

Big Brain Academy (temporary name)
Format: Wii
Date Available: TBA
ESRB: RP (Rating Pending)
Game Type: Fun Mental Training
Accessories: TBA
Players: 2
Developer: Nintendo

KEY INFORMATION
The Wii Remote controller's hands-on control makes playing a cinch. This rethinking of the popular Nintendo DS game will test players' brains with fun problems and allow people of any age to play together. Multiplayer versus and co-op play modes also have been added, allowing players to use the title as a brain-training exercise or a raucous party game.
The Wii Remote's hands-on control makes playing the game a breeze, and revamps the DS game that exercised players' minds with enjoyable brain-teasers.
In addition to single-player mode, there are versus and co-op multiplayer modes that people of any age or education level to play together.
Mii data compatible.

Special powers/weapons/moves/features: The game features a two-player versus mode that uses a split screen. The same problems will appear in a different order. The first player to get 12 correct answers wins.