Thursday, October 1, 2009

Who Has The Biggest Brain Cheats, Tips, & Tricks



So you want a bigger brain, do you? With people scoring well over 5,000 or even 7,000, one has to wonder how they do it. How did they get so good? How can you get better?

As most of you know, the game is made up of various mini-games that are meant to test different aspects of your brain, and the scores from each make up your “brain size.” As such, in order to get better, you have to practice all these different games, but if you play the classic version, you get them at random, which leads to a very basic tip.

Most of the top scorers have the Pro version of Who Has The Biggest Brain?, which allows them to select the mini-games they are best at, thus automatically improving their score. Of course, it’s not quite that simple. There are, in fact specific tricks you can employ for each mini-game.

The first category is for analytical ability. One of the possible mini-games you might come across here is “scales.” In this game you have to identify which object is the heaviest in a group. It starts simple enough with only one scale, but that number begins to grow as the rounds pass. However, there are some basic rules you can follow to speed up you analysis. Spend little time in the first rounds, if the object is on the bottom of the scale or at equilibrium with multiple objects, it is heavier. That alone will get you to the later rounds in 10 or so seconds.

Once you get multiple scales, though, you have to look at the image as a whole and not each individual one. Scan over the objects on the screen using your peripheral vision and if you see two of the same one at the top, they are not the heaviest, but if you see two or more on the bottom, then they most certainly are. This should get you at least 600′ish points if you practice, but if you’re looking for 1000+, you’ll have to get faster at the end rounds, in which case you can follow one rule: While not 100% accurate, the heaviest item will either be the most common item on the bottom scales or the least common, with only one or two objects on the bottom.

After you’ve gotten past the analytical game, it’s time to calculate (ugh… math…). Sorry folks, but there aren’t many “rules” here that can help you get around math. However, there are a few tricks beyond simply memorizing your multiplication tables all over again. So one of the games is “missing number” in which you do basic math: First and foremost, use the number pad, don’t use the mouse. Not only is it faster, but there’s a neat little trick for the game.

You see, if you have the right answer, it will check off instantly, but if it is wrong, you have a second or so to fix it. If you use the number pad, you can type in a number, and if the check mark doesn’t appear, you can press “delete” to change the number until you get it right. For example, if you have “12×7=” (which is 84), you can type the ‘8′ then 1, hit delete, 2, hit delete, etc. until it checks as correct. If you are quick enough you won’t get it wrong. Nevertheless, spending too much time on this trick eats up precious seconds that you will need for your score. Also, most of the answers are fairly similar, but presented in different ways (i.e. 3×5 is the same as (2+1)x5) so once you recognize those patterns, you will get even faster.

Next up is memory, and this one can be tough. One game that you might come up against is “shape order” which consists of being shown an order of shapes, and then having to emulate said order from memory. Basic memory techniques are what most use here. Consider when you would study for tests in high school (assuming you did). Was it not easier to remember things you said aloud? The same concept applies to this game.

Your brain processes audio data far faster and efficiently than the visual counterpart, and this habit alone will do wonders for your score. Also consider short one-syllable words, or familiar phrases common to you. The average human brain cannot hold many things within its short term memory for long, but by shortening the words or relating them to something familiar, the chances of retention are exponentially greater. As for the later levels, you will need to do the same thing, but apply the idea to sets of two or three. Once you get used to it, you will find it is much faster to remember three sets of two than it is recalling six individual images.

Now that you’ve made it this far, its time for some fun visual processing. “Asteroids” is one of the cooler mini-games in this section, where the game play is simply removing asteroids from play based on the numbers or letters printed on them. The object is to remove them from the least value to the greatest value. It’s pretty simple to do this one: All you need to do is create groups in your mind.

For numbers, group negatives and group positives. For letters, break the alphabet into sections (i.e. A – L). This creates a hierarchy in your brain and gives your thoughts a clear path to follow automatically rather than you having to think about it. Remove the asteroids that fall into the lesser sections, then move to the next section. Also, a number of players on this Facebook discussion thread found it useful to zoom out while in this game, making it easier to see everything on the screen and allowing for less mouse movement and greater accuracy.

That should give you at least a little bit of ammunition for you next crack at Who Has The Biggest Brain? There are a total of 12 different mini-games, so there are a lot more tricks to be learned. Nevertheless, these tips won’t get you that high score right away. Those people that have the 7000cm brains have put in a lot of time and practice, but most of them have probably used methods like these to get better. Of course, is you want to learn a little more, you can always check out the WHTBB Discussion Board or this handy site and mingle amongst your fellow brains. Good luck.

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