Which old or new games should I start playing to help me learn Japanese?

Well, there you have it: I'm trying to learn Japanese. Again.

You may remember that I said this very same thing (well, not the "again" part) a couple of years ago. Unfortunately, after memorizing the language's katakana and hiragana syllabaries and then beginning the process of learning actual words and grammar, my studies fell off a cliff. I don't remember what prompted that plumet, but I'm pretty sure it had to do with a deluge of freelance writing assignments.

Dragon Quest (Famicom)

Given the amount of time that has passed since that original, aborted attempt, I basically was forced to go back to the beginning for this second one. I'm already back to where I left off, though, thanks in large part to a couple of handful of apps I added to my phone a couple of weeks ago.

I'm going to keep using those apps, as well as a few new ones and even the GENKI series of textbooks, to continue my studies, but I also want to toss some slightly more entertaining, real-world "lessons" into the mix this time around. Specifically, I want to use Japanese games to bolster what I learn about the language via the above-mentioned applications.

Some of the games I'm currently considering for this endeavor:

Bitamina Oukoku Monogatari (aka Great Greed, GameBoy)
Chocobo no Fushigina Dungeon (WonderSwan)
Dragon Quest (Famicom)
Lunar: Samposuru Gakuen (Game Gear)
Madou Monogatari (Game Gear)
Mother (Famicom)
Pro Tennis: World Court (PC Engine)
SaGa (GameBoy)

I'm not far enough along in my studies to understand all of the Japanese text these games are sure to throw at me, but I should be able to understand the bulk of the katakana that pops up, plus I plan to regularly look up words that make use of hiragana.

Mother (Famicom)

I pretty much pulled the selections above out of thin air, by the way, so if any of you know of other games--I'm especially interested in hearing about any Japanese 3DS, DS, PSP or Vita games that could help me expand my vocabulary--that you think would be useful for this purpose, please share their names in the comments section below.

Manual Stimulation: Lunar Samposuru Gakuen (Game Gear)

I'm just going to say this right off the bat: the instruction manual produced for Lunar: Samposuru Gakuen (aka Lunar: Walking School--and by the way, I know the title in the header above is missing the colon; the fact is, I just couldn't handle two colons pressing against each other like that) is one of the most impressive I've come across so far, especially in terms of manuals produced for portable games.



After all, more than half of its many pages are filled with beautiful, full-color illustrations (like the ones below).



I believe this is the island on which the game takes place, by the way, although don't quote me on that.



Likewise, I'm pretty sure the folks featured on the following pages are Lunar: Samposuru Gakuen's main characters.







Are the gal and guy below the game's antagonists? Again, I don't know, but I'd be willing to bet that's just who they are. They certainly look ... villainous enough, don't they?

It was worth every penny (or, I heart my copy of Lunar: Samposuru Gakuen for the Game Gear)

Actually, I don't know why I decided to imply in the header above that I spent a pretty penny on this particular pick-up, as in reality it only set me back a few bucks (about 30 of them, if memory serves).

Even if I had dropped a boatload on the copy of Lunar: Samposuru Gakuen seen in the photos below, though, it would've been well worth it.

Why? For starters, there's its deliciously colorful cover art (above).



That's not the only reason I consider this Game Gear title to be well worth the 30 or so smackeroonies I spent on it, though. Another: its completely brilliant instruction manual, which not only is surprisingly thick (especially for a portable game) but is filled with fabulous illustrations like the ones seen above and below.

In case you've never heard of it, by the way, Lunar: Samposuru Gakuen (aka Lunar: Walking School) is a Japan-only spin-off of Game Arts' well-regarded RPG series, Lunar. (Here's a video of the game's English fan-translation in action, in case any of you are curious.)

I've had this game on my "to buy" list for some time now, but I'd basically given up on ever acquiring it due to the fact that it tends to fetch high prices on eBay.

So, when I came across this particular copy and saw it was being sold for a virtual steal, I couldn't help but pick it up. The question is: when I finally get around to playing it, will I be able to understand any of it?