Nintendo Special | Sight Training Diary: Adam Riley Tests His Eyes

Day One: 21st October, 2007

Anyway, with nice, clear visuals and a very intuitive set of menu screens, it means everything is a breeze to navigate through, which is exactly what is required for a product primarily aimed at the 'non-gamer' sector. So, getting on with the show, since it is my first time with Sight Training I am encouraged to go through an early test scenario. This is broken down into three quick sessions, the first being one where I must quickly tap on various red boxes as they appear on-screen, catching them before they then disappear once more. The second has a set of numbers flash briefly on the screen, leaving the gamer to then input the number afterwards on a standard number pad. Finally, the last test is the old coin under a cup game, where you must follow the cup with the coin in as it and two empty cups are spun around rapidly. Completing these three in the quickest and most accurate way leaves me with the sad fact that despite being 25, my eyes are apparently in their 40s.

Going off this result, the game then figures out the best day's training for my eyes, which this time is, quite unsurprisingly, 'Learn the Basics! Trial Workout'. To start with, the first task is Symbol Order, where there are twelve empty boxes spread over the two DS screens and a C shape appears in any of those boxes a total of three times, each time pointing in a different direction (up, right, down or left) and appearing in a random box. This re-occurs at a faster rate each time you input the three directions correctly. The goal of Symbol Order is to improve your Eye Movement and the ability to shift focus between targets rapidly, such as when you are reading. The breakdown of scoring is eight points per correct answer and two points for each speed level you reach. I achieved nine out of ten correct and reached a speed level of eight, meaning my total came to 88/100, which is an 'Advanced' rating and comes complete with a cool looking guy clicking his fingers. And because of the rating achieved, it appears a 'Hard' mode has now been opened for the next time this test comes around.

Completing the first test means I get the chance to stamp today's date, just as you do with Brain Training, and the reward for one stamp in Sight Training is that 'Custom Training' has now opened up, meaning any activity can be attempted as many times as desired. On to test two and this time it is Middle Match. This has players checking a 'C' symbol in the centre of the screen and then trying to find the corresponding directional 'C' on an outer circle of 'C's all pointing in different directions. At first it starts out quite simple, as you would expect, with the 'C' in the centre lingering for a while, giving your eyes time to scout out the 'C' on the outer circle that is pointing in the same direction. As it speeds up, though, the 'C's disappear quicker, meaning you need to rely on your peripheral vision to seek out the right answer. On my first go I got 88/100, meaning 'Advanced', reaching speed level 8, with 9 correct out of 10. The reason for practicing this one more is that it leads to being able to spot objects in an area outside your central vision, like when tracking an opponent's movement in sports whilst concentrating on what you are currently doing. It should be noted that failing to get the right answer on one particular level brings the speed level down a notch, meaning the levels of frustration are definitely reduced and you are not left floundering. But get many right answers in a row and the speed increases considerably and things do suddenly become very hectic indeed!

The third test is Baseball, where the aim is to tap the thrown ball as it either enters the on-screen box or reaches the white line on the gauge on the left-side of the screen. Depending on how well you connect with the ball you can score a Home Run, Triple, Double or Single...or just miss completely by swinging too early or late. This tests your Dynamic Visual Acuity and Hand-Eye Co-ordination in tandem, and clearly these two elements together are not my forte since I only got 54/100, being rated as an Amateur! Ah well, onwards and upwards...The fourth and final challenge is Boxing, where a hooded chap holding mitts lifts them up into different positions, sometimes one at a time, other times both together, and even does dummy lifts before lifting the other hand up quickly to try and catch you off-guard. The aim is to tap the centre of each mitt before he puts them down again. At certain times a directional arrow will appear on-screen and a quick stylus swipe in that direction is required to dodge his punch. This really does prove to be lots of fun and on the first go I ended up with Pro status due to a score of 90/100 (39 hits, 31 'clean'