N-Back – A Minimal, Adaptive Dual N-Back Game for Brain Training
10 comments
·July 3, 2025gregzeng95
Hi HN,
I built N-Back.net, a lightweight and responsive Dual N-Back task for working memory training.
I was frustrated by the clunky UI and heavy design of most existing n-back tools, so I made something clean, fast, and distraction-free. No login, no ads, no tracking – just cognitive training in your browser.
Key features: • Dual mode: visual + auditory • Adaptive difficulty: level up as you improve, drop down if needed • Dark mode and keyboard-only mode • Clearly differentiated letter sounds, carefully selected to avoid confusion • Performance tracker (WIP: I’m working on streaks and detailed history) • Mobile-friendly (works well on phones & tablets)
I’m planning to add: • Custom training modes (single-modality, color, etc.) • User-defined N range • Optional accounts for progress saving (but always optional)
Would love your feedback on: • UX flow and performance • Cognitive challenge balance • What would make you come back and use it regularly?
Site: https://n-back.net
Thanks for checking it out!
fouc
"do nothing" is too slow, need another key to hit to skip.
I would expect a final reaction time of under 100-200ms ideally?
doubledamio
This is very nice! But I don’t quite get how 70% is considered good performance — I managed to outperform that by literally doing nothing:
Game Complete!
Accuracy: 78.6% Correct Responses: 11 / 14 Average Reaction Time: 0 ms
alfanick
" Works on All Devices" statement doesn't seem to be true - I cannot press "space key" on my iPad (Safari).
visiondude
It’s hard to tell when a turn starts if the tile stays on the same square. Could you possibly add a quick fade animation to the tile?
indolering
Ahh, "brain training" - games you play instead of getting better at value added tasks. This shit doesn't generalize and the opportunity cost results in making you dumber, not smarter.
kqr
From https://gwern.net/dnb-faq:
> Performance on dual n-back has complicated correlations with performance on other tests of working memory or IQ, so it’s not clear what it is tapping into. (And the link between WM and performance on IQ tests has been disputed; high WM as measured by OSPAN does not correlate well with performance on hard Raven’s questions and the validity of single tests of WM training has been questioned .)
> Unfortunately, in general, IQ/g and memory don’t seem to be trainable. Many apparent effects are swamped by exercise or nutrition or by simple practice. And when practice does result in gains on tasks or expensive games, said benefits often do not transfer .
> Have I seen any benefits yet? Not really. Thus far it’s like meditation: I haven’t seen any specific improvements, but it’s been interesting just to explore concentration - I’ve learned that my ability to focus is much less than I thought it was!
It does however seem like maybe dual n-back trains concentration and focus and willpower?
> WM training helps alcoholics reduce their consumption and increases patience in recovering stimulant addicts (cocaine & methamphetamine). WM training has been shown to help children with ADHD and also preschoolers without ADHD; Lucas found behavior improvements at a summer camp.
gwd
But to GP's point:
> To those whose time is limited: you may wish to stop reading here. If you seek to improve your life, and want the greatest ‘bang for the buck’, you are well-advised to look elsewhere.
> Meditation, for example, is easier, faster, and ultra-portable. Typing training will directly improve your facility with a computer, a valuable skill for this modern world. Spaced repetition memorization techniques offer unparalleled advantages to students. [Lots more.] And all of these can start paying off immediately.
> DNB, on the other hand, requires a minimum of 15 hours before one can expect genuine somatic improvements. The task itself is unproven - the Jaeggi studies are suggestive, not definitive.
agumonkey
For people with brain damage it might be very very useful. At least dual-n-back.io gave me a way to train spatial and temporal memory when I had no options.
My personal experience with n-back mainly revolves around discovering the large variation in my ability to focus. Practisibg does get me better at the n-back task (not anything else as far as I can tell) but daily form determines results to a large degree. This effect seems to transfer somewhat: on weeks I'm overall worse at focusing on n-back I appear to also produce fewer commits.
But what determines this daily form I don't know. I suspect sleep, stress, and exercise has something to do with it.