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Kana Quest

Kana Quest feels like a great game for the right kind of gamer. If puzzle-based challenges like Sudoku are things that engage you I think this game will have a lot to offer.
Kana Quest Game Cover
68%Game Brain Score
story, music
gameplay
87% User Score Based on 24 reviews
Critic Score 74%Based on 5 reviews

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Nintendo SwitchLinuxPCMac OSWindows
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Kana Quest Game Cover

About

Kana Quest is a single player casual puzzle game with a anime theme. It was developed by Not Dead Design and was released on March 11, 2020. It received mostly positive reviews from critics and positive reviews from players.

Kana Quest is a puzzle game that teaches you how to read Japanese Hiragana. Each puzzle is a grid of different Hiragana that can be moved around. Adjacent Hiragana will connect to each other if the pronunciations share a common sound. So a Ka and a Na would connect as they both have an "a" sound. The player will rearrange the Hiragana to make one continuous connection between all the Hiragana in a…

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Kana Quest screenshot
Kana Quest screenshot
Kana Quest screenshot
Kana Quest screenshot
Kana Quest screenshot
Kana Quest screenshot
Kana Quest screenshot
Kana Quest screenshot
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87%
Audience ScoreBased on 24 reviews
story6 positive mentions
  • Beautiful and detailed pixel art with a charming and relaxing soundtrack.
  • Engaging puzzle gameplay that introduces new mechanics progressively, keeping the experience fresh and challenging.
  • Helpful educational tool for beginners to memorize Hiragana and Katakana, blending learning with entertaining puzzle-solving.
  • Save system is unreliable or broken, causing loss of progress and frustration.
  • Lack of an exit button and limited UI options such as no window resizing or resolution settings.
  • The game focuses more on puzzle mechanics than effective language learning, making it less suitable as a standalone Japanese teaching tool.
  • story
    16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Kana Quest does not feature a traditional story mode, instead focusing on teaching and reinforcing kana character recognition through puzzle gameplay. It is praised as a visually appealing and effective learning tool for beginners, combining educational value with enjoyable puzzles rather than narrative depth.

    • “From what I could tell from the developer’s comments and store page, Kana Quest set out to do two things: (1) be a helpful tool for beginners to learn/test their kana memorization and (2) have Kana Quest be fun and worthwhile no matter what level someone may be at.”
    • “If you have an interest in learning kana and are truly committed to doing so, Kana Quest will certainly aid you in your studies in a fun, memorable way.”
    • “Maybe lacks customised level mode; and no story mode.”
    • “Please don’t expect Kana Quest to be able to teach you Japanese on its own: that’s not what it’s for.”
    • “Kana Quest is a cute, friendly game that aims to teach you kana character recognition as you work through its numerous match-em puzzles.”
  • music
    13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in the game is widely praised for being relaxing, pleasant, and well-matched to the visuals, with varied tracks across different worlds that prevent repetitiveness. Many users find the soundtrack calming and enjoyable, enhancing the overall chill and kawaii aesthetic. However, a few note that the music can become repetitive during longer sessions.

    • “The music never gets old, with a vivid, synaesthetic joy of a soundtrack playing in the background.”
    • “The background music is relaxing and fits in well.”
    • “Each world features different music, so you won’t be listening to the same song repeatedly, keeping a relaxing tone that pairs well with the beautiful backgrounds.”
    • “The music gets a bit repetitive after long sessions.”
    • “The backgrounds are a visual experience, and the music is also incredibly dull.”
    • “Each world features different music, but it does not prevent the soundtrack from feeling monotonous.”
  • gameplay
    7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay is engaging and keeps players intrigued by gradually introducing new mechanics and puzzle elements as they progress through different worlds. While the phonetic rhyming and slide-puzzle controls add uniqueness, some players find certain mechanics frustrating, and the music can become repetitive during extended play. Overall, the evolving challenges maintain excitement and freshness throughout the experience.

    • “The gameplay remains entertaining even if you already know the kana, thanks to the engaging puzzle element.”
    • “As you progress through the worlds, extra mechanics are revealed, keeping things fresh.”
    • “You’re given a couple levels to get used to it before previous mechanics from other worlds are put in.”
    • “Frustrating because you have to guess the exact combination to earn a gold rating, and some mechanics are just a pain (especially the glass tiles) and the music gets a bit repetitive after long sessions.”
    • “The game uses a phonetic rhyming match mechanic with slide-puzzle controls.”
    • “Each world, aside from the last, introduces a new mechanic.”
  • graphics
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's graphics are praised for their appealing, kawaii art style that creates a calming and pleasant atmosphere, complemented by a soothing soundtrack. Overall, the visuals contribute positively to the relaxing gameplay experience.

    • “This is an aesthetically pleasing game, and a completely fine puzzle game.”
    • “I love the music and the artwork; it's very calming and chill to play.”
    • “The artwork is very kawaii and the soundtrack is pleasant.”
  • humor
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor is sweet and enjoyable, adding a fun and surprisingly amusing element to the experience.

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74%Critics’ scoreBased on 5 critic reviews
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Frequently Asked Questions

Kana Quest is a casual puzzle game with anime theme.

Kana Quest is available on Nintendo Switch, PC, Mac OS, Windows and others.

Kana Quest was released on March 11, 2020.

Kana Quest was developed by Not Dead Design.

Kana Quest has received mostly positive reviews from players and mostly positive reviews from critics. Most players liked Kana Quest for its story but disliked it for its gameplay.

Kana Quest is a single player game.

Similar games include Zenge, nasin sona musi, Japanese Dungeon: Learn J-Word, Learn Japanese To Survive! Hiragana Battle, Wagotabi: A Japanese Journey and others.