English training software with voice clips on the DS, the future of language learning?

By Spencer . December 20, 2006 . 6:47pm

Interchannel is jumping on the make useful tools for the DS bandwagon with a tool to help master beginners English broken down into ten minute lessons. Besides having quizzes and matching, Interchannel’s program has speech recordings so you can hear 2000 phrases. While this isn’t going to come over to the USA, the base program would be great for other language training games. Maybe the program can be tailored for schools. Imagine running through lessons on your DS and beaming quizzes back to teachers. Muzzy DS anyone?

TAGS: Nintendo DS

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jeffk

I'd love to see an equivalent released here that teaches Japanese. I wonder what the demand would be like.

stonerocker

This has potential, but really I don't think it will go much farther then this. People wio want to learn a different language are probably not going to buy a DS to do it. And most people who own a DS aren't going to want to spend time learning how to speak a different language on it. However, I may be wrong. If they market the product really well then it's possibly the DS might catch on as a learning tool. Also depends on how good the program actually is.

Feanor

How does this differ to Talkman?

Ichigo

I think this "game" has lots of potential, but probably only in Japan. I mean, they already have tons of kanji learning games and a few Japanese/English dictionary games. As always, the U.S. and Japanese markets are very different; a good example is how popular FPS are in the U.S., whereas in Japan, they are not. However, as many of us are import gamers, we still win -- if the U.S. doesn't get this, we can always import.

Cless Alvein

I really wonder if people who bought this program will continue using it even after the DS is phased out as an "old system". Learning a language takes more than a couple of minutes a day on a DS, so if the purpose of the program is to learn a language, those who are dedicated will most likely have to carry the DS around like a PDA. Not that that's a bad thing.