[Article] Learning Japanese through Visual Novels

:reallyconfused:hmmm... maybe i have a guide book and naving a text book of japanese, and i know some few of hiragana and katana, i mean is what i should do if i studied a kanji of japanese, because tthe kanji from chine (mandarin) is look diferent from kanji on japan.....:cramming:

so please your enlightment...
i am a chinese from mainland china,i agree that japanese kanji look different from simplified chinese characters(简化字),even 简化字 are different from traditional hanzi,but if i memorize a little differences i can read them both(but i cannot write the other two).i suggest if you learn japanese you only learn japanese kanji,unless you wanna learn chinese,too.
and i am pleasure to discuss with hanji afterward.
sorry for my poor english:P
 
yeah....watching anime and playing VN really help me learn japanese...all i need is someone who can speak with:gotidea:
 
Hello, everyone! こんにちは、皆さん!

I skimmed through the thread and found some points where my experience learning Japanese on my own may help a bit.

If you're looking for a way to learn Japanese on your own without having to buy books, CDs, or the like, please continue reading.

Although the last post was quite some time ago, in case they're still interested, and for the people checking this out, here's my ten cents' worth:

First, as the author of this thread stated, you can learn Japanese through visual novels and animes. I totally agree.

This is how I'm doing it, and I've been having a blast for the past two years, killing two birds with one stone.

If you're looking to really learn Japanese on your own, then there are a few tools you'll need to arm yourself with before embarking on this perilous journey. If you're patient enough, then it won't be as dangerous for your computer and your head - high risk of getting infected by the urge to bang either, or both, against the wall.

Increasing your vocabulary and familiarizing yourself with grammar is the first important step, but you'll also need start on the basics of reading and writing at the same time.

I learned by picking up words from animes that kept popping up frequently, usually adjectives, and tried to confirm what I thought they meant with the jisho (dictionary). Knowing how Japanese words are written in romaji makes this task easier.

For this you'll need zkanji - a totally free downloadable English-Japanese and vice-versa dictionary from sourceforge. Having the Denshi Jisho bookmarked in your browsers will also be very helpful. The feature-rich zkanji can be quite a handful, but it will be something incredibly useful and what you're probably going to look for later down this road.

For the Denshi Jisho, please remember to look way down the landing page (lower left) and click Regular Site. The regular site or the old look is WAY BETTER than the new look for many reasons, but most importantly, it tells you the type of word (noun, verb, etc.), it lists down all the possible meanings for the word, and it also gives you the stroke order - how to write it - if you're really into learning how to write in Japanese manually (without the computer).

Another very useful guide is Tae Kim's Guide to Learning Japanese. It also contains a lot of what you'll need to start with in reading and writing; tons of resources that are completely free. Most of the grammar basics I learned, I learned from this guide. They also have the full manual on downloadable PDF so you can take it around with you.

If you're already well-versed with the kanas and are now trying to expand your kanji list, then you'll need Capture2Text (also free) by Christopher Brochtrup. I cannot overstate enough how this tool has helped me learn kanji faster from reading raw mangas. (Switching periodically from viewing the English version of the manga to with raw version helps with the grammar, too.) It captures the kanji from your browser or PDF viewer which you can paste on to zkanji or Denshi Jisho.

To practice reading kanji and to memorize it, ANKI is a very good tool. With it you can download lots of different learning styles for memorizing kanji. It even has a review where you can read full sentences in Japanese, further immersing you in fun. Although ANKI is very popular, there's a dark horse that I also love - KanjiGold (also completely free). It guides you through the grades in Kanji with the kana, English translations, uses of the word(s), and a quiz-like GUI that tests you on what you remember.

I'll keep this until here for now, but if you need further information on places out there that have made learning Japanese fun and free, do let me know. I've spent over two years scouring the web for these precious gems, and all the kind-hearted developers who made all this possible deserve to have more genuine appreciative attention laden on them.

Long live to freedom on the internet!:samuraihero:


PS

I'd really appreciate it if someone can let me know of a way to get animes with Japanese subtitles instead of English.
 
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I'd really appreciate it if someone can let me know of a way to get animes with Japanese subtitles instead of English.

Yes, I agree with you there. I'd like to try out watching English anime with Japanese subtitles. O; It seems to me like it'd be easier.
 
I've been her for more than five days and, apparently, animes with Japanese subtitles are either incredibly rare or no one knows of a way to get them. :forsaken:
 
Learn to read Japanese in 2 years time - by reading VNs and watching anime
This post has been updated to include Anime as a learning option as well
http://visualnovelaer.wordpress.com/2011/12/06/how-to-read-visual-novels-in-japanese-in-2-years-time-step-by-step-guide-%E2%80%95-learn-to-read-through-vn-or-anime/



it takes about 1.5 'productive' hours per day for ONE year and you will be reading in Japanese (I said 2 years in the guide because it's being realistic). this is the funnest method I know.
no need to drill through thousands and thousands of model sentences if you can just read VNs or watch anime. Also you only learn how to READ Japanese, you don't learn Japanese as a whole. you wont be good at speaking it, listening to it or writing it.

Your blog seems to be gone, but I'm sure you know that better than me~ Though you have any other source for the content.

I'm looking into using VN's and ITH too learn Japanese, and that might be what you are teaching about as well. But I never had a chance too see.
 
I've been her for more than five days and, apparently, animes with Japanese subtitles are either incredibly rare or no one knows of a way to get them. :forsaken:

you could try looking for the japanese sub here: http://kitsunekko.net/dirlist.php?dir=subtitles/japanese/
it doesn't have a Japanese sub for all anime, but it does have quite a lot.
just make sure the sub and the video have the same name, and the video player should auto-load the sub file :)
(you might also have to adjust the timing using a subtitle editor)


not sure why, but i get an error when trying to open the link...
 
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Thanks!:happytears: It does have quite a bit! Still trying to get around the srt files. Apparently, VLC won't always play it.
 
Thanks!:happytears: It does have quite a bit! Still trying to get around the srt files. Apparently, VLC won't always play it.

might i suggest upgrading to mpc-hc? it supports sub files just fine=p (be sure to follow one of the mpc playback guides for best quality)
also, depending on the sub file, you'll have to change the encoding
(right-click -> Subtitles -> Options... -> Default Style)
 
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Thanks for the tip. Trying it now. However, installing mpc-hc and making it work properly takes a bit of effort = more fun! :lmao:
 
I haven't been talking to Aaeru for a long time, when she come around over IRC I let her know about this.
I think she has import all that in FuwaNovel blog website instead of Wordpress.com
 
Could someone give me best way to learn Japanese PLEASE :) ?

Going to Japan and taking a Japanese language course would arguably be the best. You'd be able to immediately apply what you learned in class to real life scenarios (such as when shopping/ going to a restaurant/etc). Of course, you should also find a native speaker who's willing to guide you through the language. That way, you'd probably learn at least twice as fast, while still having fun with the language.

The second "best" way, for those who can't afford the time or money to do ^above, it's highly recommended that you get a good grammar reference book, a good Japanese to -insert your language here - and -insert your language here - to Japanese dictionary. Taking a Japanese language course might also help, especially in the beginning. But the most important aspect in learning the language is self motivation.
 
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Hey I know this is an old post but I was wondering if anyone had an archive of that guide since the wordpress page has been closed.
Thank you for your time!
 
This is what I am doing now. With the help of VNR I've learnt lots of new kanji and Japanese expressions after just several games. It's really amazing. Also, since different games have their own writing styles where some words and expressions are repeated over and over, you often have no choice but to learn them since you meet them so often. And the more different games you play, the more specific for them words you learn.
 
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DeadPotato wrote on Shine's profile.
links are down, a reupload would be appreciated. thanks, as usual

https://www.anime-sharing.com/threads/✨shine✨-240926-ホワイトピンク-【早期購入特典付き】大人赤ちゃんのためのエッチな保育園-甘園房-レズセックストレーニング2-~ドスケベママ先生たちのふたなり化媚薬で性欲暴走ケダ.1551074/
Jelly-filled Donut wrote on Ryzen111's profile.
Sorry, can you reup these too? All links are dead
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ybz378938171 wrote on Otokonoko's profile.
would you please re-upload RJ01153023 RJ01152809 RJ01020122 RJ01156030 RJ01133516 RJ01154585 RJ01154670 in mexa ? thx
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Jelly-filled Donut wrote on Ryzen111's profile.
Hi, this title is in need of an update. Do you have it?
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