Frequently Asked Questions
Mastermind Japanese is an adaptive study app by Jason Kobayashi. It uses your answers in the app to suggest practice and bring back things to review.
The current beta is built first for serious JLPT N5 learners who can read kana and have some prior Japanese exposure. Use it alongside a class, textbook, or other Japanese study. It is not a from-zero course or a replacement for a teacher.
The beta has a Mind Map of 534 concepts suited to JLPT learners. Practice includes questions, cards, listening, reading, sentence building, speaking checks, verb drills, and kanji writing. You can save bookmarks. The scope hovers around N5 and is growing fast; it does not cover all of N5.
Practice items connect to specific grammar, vocabulary, and kanji concepts. Your answers help decide what needs review. Mastermind picks a practice type first, then adjusts the item within it. Some sentence questions also explain why they were chosen.
Use the latest Chrome, Edge, or Safari with at least 360 pixels of available page width. Older versions, Firefox, Brave, and Chrome on Android may work, but are not officially supported. You can view the Mind Map in 3D or 2D. Try 2D if the 3D view feels slow. For speaking practice on iPhone or iPad, use Safari. Other iOS browsers do not include speaking practice.
Browser RequirementsJason Kobayashi, a software engineer in Tokyo who has been learning Japanese for over 30 years. He directs the AI used to build Mastermind.
No. Mastermind is a study companion for learners with some prior Japanese experience. The content hovers around N5 and does not cover all of it. It learns from practice recorded here, and does not replace a teacher or using Japanese elsewhere. N4 and higher levels are planned.