
Can you learn Japanese by solving puzzles? So to Speak is a game about wandering in Japan, looking at signs, overhearing conversations, and using context clues in the environment to figure out what it all means. No background in Japanese is assumed.
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About
Have you ever wanted to learn Japanese? Have you tried studying but feel like you aren't getting anywhere?
In So to Speak, you use context clues to guess the meaning of what you see and hear. Unlike other games and tools, meanings aren't revealed immediately. Every word is its own puzzle - to proceed, you must connect it to nearby objects or text with the same meaning. For example, you can drag a Japanese sign for "entrance" onto an actual building entrance located nearby or the English word "entrance" in the game's description of the entrance.
The game is a love letter to the Japanese language and the experience of wandering alone in another country. There are no drills, no fights, no minigames, and no distractions. The entire game is a series of situations, and each one helps you discover the meaning of something new.
Learn more than 650 words covering topics such as travel, nature, family, colors, numbers, time, and directions.
Explore cities, rural areas, gardens, and temples filled with signs and conversations to decipher along with clues to help you.
Grow your knowledge from simple words like "car" and "tree" to complex sentences like "The parking lot is for convenience store customers only."
Genres
Stats
All-time low is the lowest price we've recorded for this game since we started tracking it.
Languages: English
Engagement
Hours played at review time, across 40 reviews with recorded playtime.
Reviews
Themes across 40 recent reviews and how positive each mention is. A keyword signal, not full sentiment analysis.
positive critical· bar length = how often the theme comes up
Reviews
fornite is more fun
love it
Pretty good for learning common vocabulary and particles.
Loving the platform as a way to expand vocabulary!
"So to Speak" gives a very good and creative way to learn Japanese. The only negative I can think of is that I want to complete all the Hiragana in the logbook. I am very hungry for even more content.
Fantastic game, and such a great concept. Thoroughly enjoyed the demo and it has been fantastic for doubling down on learning in an interactive, visual and auditory way. All without it feeling like lessons! I truly hope for another installment in the series, yet I'm only on chapter 8! Thank you very much Devs, you really went above and beyond.
this game is amazing!! I've been loving it so far!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The calming soundtrack, the charming pixelart and light puzzle elements have something chill and soothing. It is a very stressfree experience. That is what I liked the most about the game and that would be the main reason why I would recommend it to anyone looking for relaxing 8 hours. When it comes to how much I learned from this game, it would be not much tbh. And I doubt that Im an exception here. According to the Steam achievements only about 6.8 % finished all 16 chapters. As I said before, this game is not stressful. You are never in a real rush and you can take your time. I think the main reason most people didnt finish the game is because of the Japanese writing system, especially Kanji. The game is full of it. There are probably other factors too, but this is something that I have noticed. However, I did enjoy getting through all of it and Im definetely playing this game over and over again to learn the different phrases and kanjis.
Great game for someone who's interested in learning more japanese on a casual basis (not taking any of the N1-N5 JLPT tests). For context, I have chinese language background so already know some of the kanji (but not the pronounciation). I learnt hiragana and katakana basics. With this background, travelling in Japan is already quite easy as I could sound out road signs/menu items. This game just helps reinforces and put them all together in simple phrases and giving more vocabulary in real life. Setting station entry/exit as one of the first few lessons is a nice touch for the tourists since it's one of the first things we'll see once we landed. :D
amazing language-puzzle game! I had SO much fun exploring the world!!! felt really sad when I saw The End screen :'3 so many clever ways that hint to the right answer. I loved the voices!! the voice acting is amazing. definitely reccomend it for ppl who love pixel games, puzzles and Japanese. Its a good game for the begginers, so dont worry if u think your Japanese language knowledge isnt enough. I wish there was even more! If this game ever gets any DLC with more areas and words\dialogues\kanjis I will def buy it.
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Trends
Concurrent players on Steam, sampled daily since tracking started.
Audience
Estimated from the language of this game's reviews — a proxy for where players are, not official Steam demographics.
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