We Love It's Guide to…
Can you learn Japanese by solving puzzles?
Released 31 Mar 2025
drag a Japanese sign onto the real doorway to figure out what "entrance" means from context.
hear fully voiced conversations, then match what you hear to the right Japanese words to learn from voices, not just text.
turn on "No romaji" mode so the whole game becomes a hiragana-reading challenge on a second playthrough.
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.
Developed by Erik Andersen · Published by Erik Andersen
So to Speak has about 122 positive and 4 negative player reviews out of a total 126. We'll add a detailed breakdown here when there are more reviews.
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."
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux |
|---|---|
| Achievements | 16 |
| Age ratings |
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| Controller required | No |
| Demo | View demo on Steam |
| Website | Official website |
