Study Japanese in Shashingo, an upcoming game about exploring and taking pictures in a miniature town

Publication date of the original Japanese article: 2021-02-12 11:27 (JST)
Translated by. Ari Clark

Shashingo: Learn Japanese with Photography (or Shashingo for short) is an educational program being developed by solo dev Ryan Pocock. It allows anyone to intuitively memorize Japanese vocabulary. Players can freely roam around a colorful 3D cityscape, created with Unreal Engine 4. When they snap photos of things in the city with the popup camera device, vocabulary words like “postbox” and “bicycle” are noted under the photo in both Japanese and English script.

The words are also read out loud by a recorded voice at the same time, so players can use both their eyes and their ears to memorize them. The more things the player photographs around the city, the more they can grow their photo album into a personal vocabulary notebook.

In addition to the mode for strolling freely around the city, the game also has a built-in mode for taking simple tests. Players can test their own vocabulary skills by finding and photographing the specified vocabulary item. Even so, since there’s no time limit, you can relax and progress through your studies at your own pace.

Although the main goal of the game is studying, its photography mode really goes all-out. It incorporates the concept of depth of field, and players can take high-quality photographs that make good use of bokeh depending on how the photo is taken. You can also apply a variety of effects to your photographs, and add a finishing touch with whatever tint you like best.

As you assemble an album of your favorite shots, you’ll naturally build up your vocabulary in the process. And the in-game settings can switch between Japanese kanji or kana and English (romaji) lettering according to your proficiency level. There are also plans to add support for controller input in the future.

The developer in charge, Ryan Pocock, is a freelance 3D artist based in Germany. His previous game development experience included Rolling Hills, a sushi restaurant-management sim which renders a charming cityscape that incorporated elements of Japanese-style design.

Shashingo is well worth checking out just for the grounded, lived-in feeling of its streets, with their convenience stores and outdoor air conditioning units. A warm and easy affection for Japan exudes from details like the cherry blossom insignia on the manhole covers, in the style of real ones in Tokyo. Even users who are actually Japanese will probably enjoy spending some relaxing time just taking photos in its lovingly crafted cityscape.

The latest information about Shashingo is available on the official Twitter account. We look forward to more news about what platforms it will be released for, and when the release will be.