Brainies, The

This prototype of The Brainies appears intermediate of the US and PAL releases. Thanks to drx and Hidden Palace for this release. By: Evan G Last updated: January 12, 2026

The Brainies is a puzzle game where you use a cursor to guide monsters to a coloured marker on the game board. It looks like it would be a good game for the SNES mouse, but it doesn't seem to work. While delving into this prototype, it appears the BIOS for the mouse exists in the game binary, but it is not enabled when you play the game.

This prototype comes from a collection that originates from Germany. It appears that it is a transitional prototype between the US release and the PAL release. The PAL game was not optimized for the region, and runs a lot slower than the US version, which means the timer runs slower. The prototype is already in the transition to being the PAL version (the controller graphics have been switched and it shares the slower run speed), but has a copyright date of 1993 (the final PAL version says 1994). Using a binary comparison, the prototype appears closer to the US version, though.

US final - title screen	PAL final - title screen

Prototype title screen

US final - controller instructions screen	PAL final - controller instructions screen

Prototype - controller instructions screen

The prototype PCB has a worn down label on the EPROM, and a label on the RAM chip that says "Brainies" on it. The date stamps on the CIC chip and battery indicates that this prototype was created in 1993 and was definitely postdating the US release.

Prototype - front

Prototype - back

Download the ROM image here