Kanji Training Games for Nintendo DS

[Satelle]

Hello!
Has anyone tried their hand at any Kanji Learning Games for the Nintendo DS? I have found there to be quite a selection of games available in Japan and in most, if not all cases, the games will work on all DS' around the world (thanks to the enlightened decision to make the handheld region-free). Playing a Kanji learning game on the DS is very appealing to me as I will be able to draw the kanji on the screen with the stylus and the games will correct you, so not only do you have an archive of characters to call up and memorise, you also get to practice your calligraphy skills. I have also noticed that there are myriad general vocab, grammar games available for the DS as well. so another powerful way to learn Japanese on the fly........now if only I had an iPhone to make use of the JPod apps......

Would love to hear of any experiences that you have had with these DS games and would like to know about some of the games with:

1) the best features and/or
2) the funniest gimmicks/most eccentric characters/most crazy plot lines (if applicable) etc.

I think that if I found a Math Blaster style Kanji game for the DS, I would be in heaven!!

Am considering buying "Nintendo DS Tadashii Kanji Kakitorikun Kanken NDS"
It looks like a good challenge.

[Taurus]

I've tried so many of these games that I forget which ones are good and which ones are bad, but I thought I'd pop on here to add my two cents, which is this: steer clear of My Japanese Coach and Mind Your Language: Japanese. Both of them are terrible.

[Earl]

Harsh. My Japanese Coach taught me how to conjugate godan verbs. Cant put a price on that.

[mslozada]

I tried many of these games. also the 200 Man Kanji game. I unfortunately can not recommend any of these games.

One problem is the writting practice. I tried to write a given kanji correctly so many times and the screen still wont recognize/ accept it.

It may be fun at the beginning, but soon you will know that ( Kanji ) books are a lot more fun than Kanji DS Games.

PS: although they are learning games; A game is still a game. I would recommend you to buy 1 game so you will know what I mean

[Satelle]

Mmm, indeed, a kanji game would of course be just another tool to complement my various books, charts and JPod101 lesson notes. These sort of mobile apps will definitely come into their own when I am stumbling through Japan when I visit for the first time later this year. Would much rather carry a DS with me than a fat old Kanji book!!

With handwriting recognition problems in mind, I did a little reserach (read: youtube review videos, other game site's reviews) and the Tadashii Kanji Kakitorikun Kanken game seems to be quite forgiving in that regard. So I have purchased it and when it eventually arrives I will give it the proper review treatment and post it on this thread.

As for the quirkier side of things, we have a game titled: Hissatsu Kung Fu: Kanji Dragon. In hilarious fashion, it involves "Kanji brawling" where you battle the AI in the writing of Kanji or their respective readings in hiragana to make your protagonist exchange or avoid blows. Hilarity!

[Taurus]

With handwriting recognition problems in mind, I did a little reserach (read: youtube review videos, other game site's reviews) and the Tadashii Kanji Kakitorikun Kanken game seems to be quite forgiving in that regard.

I think this is certainly supposed to be one of the better kanji drill games. But it's worth bearing in mind that all of them are pretty unforgiving when it comes to getting the stroke order correct. And it's also worth noting that all of these games are aimed at native users, so it's sometimes a struggle with all of the unfamiliar vocab etc.

[sortudinho]

I tried Japanese coach DS for awhile. I thought it was so general in some things. I stopped using it and moved to Japanesepod101 and iTouch apps (for reference)

But, I do believe that My Japanese Coach DS has kanji stroke orders in their dictionary you can practice from. However, from some of the reviews I've read, some people claim that some Kanjis are wrong.

[untmdsprt]

Hello all,

I've made this into a sticky so that everyone who has a DS can learn about all games that will help you learn Japanese. If the game requires a certain DS, please state the fact.

Oh, I do know that the Legend of Zelda has a feature that if you click on the kanji, it will show you the furigana. Please add games like this also.

Thankfully, Nintendo has made their portables region free so you can buy any game from any country. This isn't true of their consoles.

[ShiroiNeko]

I've tried so many of these games that I forget which ones are good and which ones are bad, but I thought I'd pop on here to add my two cents, which is this: steer clear of My Japanese Coach and Mind Your Language: Japanese. Both of them are terrible.

I agree with the comment about My Japanese Coach. The font size is so small that the kanji are very difficult to read, if not impossible for the more complex characters.

[cocomonk22]

For kanji, Kageyama Method: Tadashii Kanji Kakitori-Kun - Kondo wa Kanken Taidaku Dayo! covers all jouyou kanji, hiragana, and katakana. There are also example sentences where they give you the kana and you have to write the correct kanji. For each character you can see stroke order and can trace the shape.

For basic vocabulary, Anpanman to Asobo: ABC Kyoushitsu is very useful for starting out, since it uses pictures of objects/emotions. It is actually supposed to be teaching English, but it also has the kana and sound for Japanese words as well.

For a dictionary, Kanji Sonomama Rakubiki Jiten is good. You can search English and Japanese, so if you don't know the Japanese word you just write the word in English to find the Japanese. You can also hear the pronunciation.

[jbraswell]

I think that if I found a Math Blaster style Kanji game for the DS, I would be in heaven!!

I don't know anything about Math Blaster, but I'm guessing it helps train mental arithmetic/math? This probably isn't helpful at all, but a Google search for ニンテンドウ 算数 seems to have a lot of hits, including a game called 「算数DS」.

[john10074]

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[visisl124984]

Very good, thanks!

[gaghl641295]

I partially agree about Japanese Coach. I think it is a great starting tool if you are new to japanese, but I wouldn't stick with it for too long. After a while I'd start to look into more reliable sources...: J-pod, books etc..
As for kanji on the DS, i'm unsure but I've heard good things about "Deadly Kung-Fu Kanji Dragon".

[bigbagofthings_502701]

It won't be for Nintendo DS but I'm working on a game project where I'll eventually implement the 2000~ general use kanji for recognition purposes. I probably won't have a way to write it out but I could probably show stroke orders with an animation. I haven't gotten that far yet but I've made my own thread regarding the project. Check it out:

viewtopic.php?f=17&t=7286