In our house we just love to sit around the table and play games, especially quick-thinking question and answer games or yes/no games that reward speed and gut instinct by turning knowledge into a reflex sport where hesitation costs you dear and laughter is the typical consolation prize. Electronic reaction versions of these games amplify the thrill with lights, timers and sound cues that raise the stakes and make every right answer feel gratifying. One of these is No Brainer from Golden Bear Toys / Bear Faced Games, and it is a fast, family-friendly Yes/No party game that trades complexity for speed and communal chaos.
No Brainer is an electronic handheld game, a rapid Yes/No game with the premise being answering simple yes-or-no prompts featuring questions such as: things that hug, things that fart, things that are found in a toilet and things that have hands. And to make it more appealing to young players it looks like a mad scientist with a massive brain – or a massive brain on a stick! A game for 1 or more players, aged 8 to 108, it can be played solo, in teams or group play. And it has four modes that in can be played in: Expert, Party, Speed or No Brainer. It requires 3xAAA batteries (supplied) and can be played straight out of the box – no set up needed. Oh, and it should come with a big warning – IT IS VERY ADDICTIVE!
To play, just press the green play button (on the front of the handle / scientists body) and follow the prompts. You can select the different modes by pressing the green button on the back of the brain. Once the play button has been pressed the device will ask a question such as things that have hair and then start spitting out possible answers such as hands, librarians, helicopters, your legs or your ears. You get about a second to answer – shake forward to say yes or tap on the side of the brain to say no. Simple. With such little time to take in the question and get your own brain into gear to answer isn’t as simple as it sounds.
4 game modes to choose from:
- No Brainer: Solo game where players can beat their own high score.
- Party: Multi-player game mode for pass-and-play fun!
- Speed: Answer 10 very quick-fire questions to score, but zero time to think.
- Expert: Quick-thinking pros can answer tougher questions.
Overall, we have loved playing No Brainer, as solo games and multi-player games. If fast, fun and fantastically additive. It has a simple yes-or-no premise and players have to be fast to register their answers by shaking the brain forward for yes or tapping the brain on the side (so that it moves) for no.
The questions asked are not difficult, but the speed in which players need to answer gives you no time to think and can result in some hilarious answers: Things that are found on a bed – babies, your arms, a fart… These are simple, straightforward answers to a simple question that really you shouldn’t be getting wrong but the stress and tension of the very limited time does cause a lot of wrong (and funny) answers.
For me , my personal favourite is the No Brainer mode, challenging myself to beat my own personal best score. But I also like the Speed mode, which is a lot faster. Party mode is great for multiple players as is asks a few questions before telling you to pass it along to the next player.
Now while it is a fun game, if you want serious trivia then this isn’t the game for you. The questions are basic and the randomness of the selectable answers can verge on the silly side (although for me that added to its charm, and you will be surprised how often you get the answer wrong with having no time to consider the answer). Now for its limitations: it does have a finite bank of questions and answers which means that the novelty can wear thin after repeated sessions. The quality of the question varies with many leaning more into silliness rather than clever trivia (although I do prefer this especially when playing with children). And my last issue is that it doesn’t always register the YES prompt when shaking the head forward – we actually found it better to use our hand to move the head forward rather than shaking it.
We think No Brainer is a quirky, fun and simple trivia game that is perfect for a variety of situations such as a quick after dinner warm up for game night, sleepovers and it is also a good size for travelling with. It is quick to play and much more difficult than it sounds, even with simple questions and sometimes silly answers – the time pressure really does stop you thinking.
No Brainer will delight players who want immediate, simple fun with no prep needed. It’s great for solo or social play with the different modes and excellent for mixed age groups to play together. Great for short bursts of play and it will leave players giggling and with a smile on their face, win or lose.
Rating: 4/5
RRP: £24.99
Available to buy from Amazon here.
