Kanji Drop - Learn kanji & words

Overview

Kanji Drop is a puzzle game that blends language learning with addictive gameplay. In this title, falling blocks carry kanji or radicals, and you eliminate them by forming complete kanji or words—earning points and triggering powerups. Whether you're a beginner or advanced learner, you can import familiar flashcard decks (like Anki, WaniKani, or Koohii) to suit your study path. Every time you form a kanji or word, its meaning and pronunciation are voiced aloud, and animations help with stroke order. A switchable learning mode gives extra time for reflection, while hints and highlighters assist when stuck. It’s both fun and effective for mastering Japanese characters.

Blocks descend, and you merge them to create Japanese characters known as kanji or words! 

This is perfect for you if:

1) You're just starting your journey with Japanese and are looking for an enjoyable method to effortlessly learn a variety of kanji; or

2) You possess advanced Japanese skills and seek a fun game to test and enhance your abilities; or

3) You enjoy brain training applications and want one that allows you to exercise your mind while picking up a language with minimal effort and plenty of enjoyment -- it’s BrainTraining++! 💪🧠

More:

--I appreciate you taking the time to explore my app! As a solo developer, my goal is to make learning enjoyable and straightforward! :-D It has received recognition from several platforms!

--Japanese kanji-laden blocks fall, and you aim to clear them by creating words and using kanji-related power-ups through combinations to form more intricate kanji. 

--This approach serves as an excellent introduction for beginners learning kanji, offering a delightful alternative to flashcards for more seasoned learners since you can import decks from various sources, making it a fun game overall!

--Additionally, there are engaging mini-games and targeted learning resources that keep you immersed in kanji and vocabulary while playing! This complements other apps and materials wonderfully!

Are you fed up with games where you invest substantial time yet achieve little? 

If you'd prefer to utilize your time more wisely and have fun in the process, give KanGenius Japanese Kanji Drop a try, where you - yes, YOU - can effortlessly discover how to read Japanese! You'll find yourself in a relaxed atmosphere, effortlessly absorbing a wealth of kanji and vocabulary! No pressure, just enjoyment!

Learn with this fun game：

==Japanese kanji are ideograms used in the language, representing concepts such as gold, fish, sun, etc.! Now you can learn these characters through a falling block puzzle game featuring emojis to aid your understanding, power-ups linked to kanji, and a complete glossary. 

==You can refine your study list to focus on kanji from the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) Levels 1 to 5! You can also revisit kanji based on your textbook lessons - Nakama, Genki, & Tobira! 

==Furthermore, there’s a learning mode available, providing extra time between kanji! Learning kanji has never been this enjoyable and accessible!

==Master Japanese kanji by dropping blocks to form characters and words! Create kanji from their components and words from additional kanji! Explode them by forming words or filling your limit meter, causing a chain reaction!

==Explore all Japanese jouyou kanji for leisure or expertise. Every time you construct a word or kanji, its meaning is pronounced aloud, and you'll also hear their pronunciations. You'll gain insights into how to build kanji from their parts, similar to the methodology presented in Remembering the Kanji, Vol. 1, by James Heisig. Included within the app are narratives from that book, animated stroke order diagrams, and a collection of your preferred kanji.

[Check out our latest media coverage!]

- GamesKeys mentions Kanji Drop as a Top Puzzle Game when stuck at home!

- Tofugu blogs about Kanji Drop!

- Chopsticks NY writes about Kanji Drop! (page 18)

- A discussion of Kanji Drop on WaniKani

- Gaming/culture blog, Sanctuary of Mana, interviews me!

[Play a game to train your brain!]

Whether you're planning a trip to Japan or just want to keep your brain sharp, Kanji Drop will give you something to show for the time you put in. Whoever said playing games is a waste of time never tried Kanji Drop! You'll be surprised how quickly you will be able to recognize Japanese/Chinese characters wherever you go!

[Kanji Drop is great for classrooms!]

Studying for the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) or studying from a textbook? Kanji Drop has you covered. You can select to learn kanji just for your JLPT level or from textbooks such as Genki and Nakama! The app also includes a full glossary complete with animated stroke order diagrams! Don't get burned out from studying by writing and rewriting kanji -- play a game and practice the fun way!

[The Reviews are in!]

"We rarely post an entire blog dedicated to one learning app – but we think that this is hands down the best video game that you can use to improve your Japanese learning (and it’s also free)."

"It’s a great way to learn kanji for beginners, and a fun alternative to cards for advanced students, since you can import your Anki, WaniKani, and Koohii decks, as well as a fun game in general"

"Kanji Drop is also a kind of anti-stress for the eyes and brain, which makes learning Japanese through this game not only unique and interesting, but also enjoyable and relaxing"

"[U]sers will be pleased with the colorful design, which allows them to escape from external stimuli and plunge into the world of learning the language of the great samurai with joy."

==Kanji Drop was added to the list of the Best Apps to Learn Japanese!

"You can really tell this game has a soul. It has so much put into it. I'll overlook how complicated the GUI is but man, this is amazing! So many different functions, descriptions to help memorize, quizzes, lists of combined kanji for all the symbols, you can click on the combined ones to memorize those too. Simply wonderful. Hell, the kanji blocks even have a barely visible background to help you subconciously memorize it. Simply wonderful, I haven't seen a better app for this. So underrated!" - WS, Android User

==We are on a mission to make learning more accessible and fun! Please support our cause.

Ever play a game and then feel accomplished, only to have the feeling fade immediately when you realize you actually did not do much for yourself intellectually or professionally?

What if you could play games that were just as fun, but when you're done, you not only feel as accomplished but now you know something new - like a new language.

That is the mission of Riot Shield Games and we need your help! Please make an in-app purchase or click on our crowdfunding links here to support us. Thank you!

Chinese Drop also available!

Download now!

This app is designed for all skill levels! It begins at a beginner level and offers assistance when you encounter difficulties. The more you play, the more kanji you will recognize!

[Note: Ensure to set the Text-to-Speech Engine to Google Text-to-Speech Engine to hear spoken Japanese under Language and Input in your device settings.]

FAQs

1.How do you play?

Blocks with kanji or commonly found parts of kanji fall down. You keep them from rising to the top by combining them to form words or other kanji. When you make a word, it blows up the blocks around it! When you make a kanji, though, the pieces combine into one block and it changes color. When you do this, the meter on the right fills up. When it reaches the top, a lot of kanji blow up! You will also release bonus blocks from time to time that give you a powerup! See if you can collect them all!

2.What are the controls?

No swiping! Just tap the left side of the screen to move the blocks left and tap the right side of the screen to move the blocks right. Tap and hold the bottom to make them fall faster or tap the column the block is in and it will drop faster! Again, you do not need to swipe at all!

3.Why can't I hear spoken Japanese words?

Trust me, the app has spoken Japanese! Sometimes your phone settings need to be changed. Here's how to do it:

For Android phones, please go to Settings -> General Management -> Language and Input -> Text-to-Speech. Make sure your Preferred Engine is the Google Text-to-speech engine. You can check other settings by pressing the gear icon near it. You may also want to install data for English and Japanese. You can also search for "speech" in the settings menu.

If that does not work, or if you have this problem on a non-Android phone, please email info@riotshieldgames.com for one-on-one help! Thank you!

4.Why can some kanji combinations occur, like 寸 and 口 making 舌? This doesn't make sense!

- Well, you are very observant! But, trust me, a lot of time and energy was put into this and it does make sense, despite first impressions. Kanji Drop is based on and uses, with permission, content from Remembering the Kanji, vol. 1 by James Heisig.

- In it, he explains how you can think of 寸 (measurement) and 千 (thousand) as being made from the elements 十 (ten) and 丶 (a drop). In 寸, 丶 is surrounded by 十, and in 千, 丶 is on top of 十. So, it's easy to see they are made from the same parts! And since 舌 (tongue) is made from 十,丶, and 口 when you break it all down, it can be created from pairs of kanji like 寸 and 口 as well as 千 and 口.

- You'll find that this makes the game much more interesting, giving you more options. Case in point, let's say you had a block with 口 and to its left, you have a block with 丶. If the next falling block has a 十, you want it to land on the 丶. Now, you want it to make 千 so that it combines with 口 to make 舌, but with this system, even if it makes 寸, it will still combine with 口 to make 舌 as all its basic components are there: 十,丶, and 口.

- You'll find yourself developing a deeper understanding of kanji as you draw more connections between them!

5.How do I close ads?

Wait for the ad to finish and look for the 'x' in the upper left or upper right corner. It's usually white in color and appears once the ad has played. If you want to disable them completely, please read the next question!

6.How do I turn off ads?

Just buy coins from the store. Look for the yellow icon in the upper right with the "$" in it. Whenever you make a purchase with real-world money, it turns off all ads - and you get in-game coins to spend on powerups!

7.What are the weird letters in parentheses in the definitions?

Those are parts of speech. You can learn more about them here.

8.The game is too fast! What do I do?

- This is by design! When the blocks fall quickly, it forces you to recall faster. This will help your learning tremendously.

- If it's still too fast, you can select "Easy Mode" from the Settings Menu (red button with a gear icon) where the speed is capped and you can increase the amount of time between drops by increasing the time to view the information from the last word or kanji you made.!

- You can also buy a powerup from the store. Click the yellow button with the "$" in it in the upper right and look for the powerup with the turtle!

9.How do I change the language of the game?

From the main menu, press the button in the upper left with the flag on it. You can learn Japanese from French or Spanish with speech in both languages! If you speak Japanese, this is a great way to learn English.