Useful Tools

The hover dictionary program made specifically for VN readers.

The browser based dictionary extension that everyone loves.

• Marv's Yomitan Dictionaries — Comprehensive collection of Yomitan-compatible dictionaries. Get your monolingual dictionaries, frequency lists, and more here.

Modern fork of the classic texthooker. Best for most modern Windows VNs.

Script-based texthooker used for cases where normal text-hookers won't work. Many scripts for emulated games are available.

Replaced by textractor, but may work better with certain older games.

More bloated than all of the other options, but may work when the others fail and does have legitimately useful features. Apparently controversial for stealing code from Agent and Textractor, but must be included as a more modern texthooker. You better turn off the MTL if you actually intend to learn anything.

An optical character recognition program that can make reading Japanese text from visual novels much easier.

OCR popup dictionary tool.

GUI alternative to OwOCR with additional features for sentence mining. | Docs

OCR and dictionary tool that extracts text from any visual content and overlays it for seamless dictionary lookups.

Browser-based UI for displaying hooked text with Yomitan integration.

Alternative texthooker page with leaderboards. | VNCR Room

Texthooker page with graphs and reading statistics if you like seeing numbers go up.

Desktop overlay that displays hooked text with Yomitan integration. Sits on top of your game so you don't need to switch windows.

The most powerful spaced repetition flashcard program. Essential for long-term vocabulary retention.

• Kaishi 1.5k Deck — Beginner-friendly vocabulary deck with ~1500 common words.

Analyzes media difficulty with vocabulary statistics and unique word counts. Useful for gauging if a VN is above your level. | VNDB Character Count Script

Web-based SRS with built-in vocabulary decks for VNs and other media. Useful for pre-learning words before starting something new.

Controller-to-keyboard mapping software for using gamepads with visual novels.

Tool for using PlayStation controllers on Windows with advanced customization.

General-purpose window upscaler for Windows 10/11, useful for playing older games at higher resolutions.

Real-time shader effects for any Windows application, useful for enhancing visual novels.

Tool for running older games in windowed mode and fixing compatibility issues.

Small utility for quickly changing display resolution.

Simple python application that makes any window invisible until you hover over it.

Android application for playing visual novels made with the Kirikiri engine (.xp3 format files).

Privacy-focused Android app for running Windows games. Telemetry removed, no login required.

Android app for running Windows games using Wine and Box86/Box64. More actively maintained alternative to ExaGear.

Windows emulator for Android that allows you to play Windows games and visual novels on mobile devices.

Stream games from your PC to Android, iOS, or other devices using NVIDIA GameStream or Sunshine.

Android OCR dictionary app for Japanese. Works like Yomitan but for any app on your screen.

• Gaku — Updated fork of Kaku with continued development and improvements.

Android OCR app. You can disable the MTL and just use the OCR if you actually intend to learn anything.

Offline Japanese dictionary with handwriting recognition, deconjugation, pitch accent, and Anki export. No ads. Android only.

Offline Japanese dictionary with 200k+ words, example sentences, flashcards, floating pop-up, and Anki export. Available on Android and iOS.

EPWING dictionary reader for using Japanese monolingual dictionaries on Android.

Track your reading progress across visual novels.

Feature-rich visual novel tracker with VNDB integration and detailed statistics.

Automatic time tracking software to monitor your reading sessions.

Website and application blocker to help maintain focus while reading.

Advanced self-control filter with command line support for blocking distracting websites and applications. Only works with Chromium-based browsers.

Lightweight Windows time tracker that automatically monitors application usage.

Simple but powerful countdown timer for Windows.

Download manager for handling file hosting services and bulk downloads.

Essential archive tool for extracting VN downloads. Handles most formats including Japanese filenames.

Advanced screenshot and screen capture tool with automation features.

Virtual drive software for mounting disc images.

Linux compatibility layer for easily running Windows visual novels and applications with Wine. Works well with textractor.

Tool for running Japanese applications with proper locale settings without changing system locale.

• LE Shortcut Creator — Creates desktop shortcuts that automatically run apps through Locale Emulator. Saves you from right-clicking every time.

Fixes keyboard chatter where keys register multiple times from a single press. Supports per-key thresholds.

VN archive extractor that can open proprietary game formats for extracting assets like images and scripts.

Memory editor useful for bypassing gameplay sections or modifying in-game values.

Japanese site with walkthroughs and guides for visual novels. Helpful when you're stuck or want to unlock specific routes.

Japanese eroge database with walkthroughs and game information.

Chinese site with walkthroughs and guides for visual novels.

Aggregates example sentences from various sources. Helpful when you want to see how a word is actually used.

Search for Japanese sentences with native audio. Good for hearing words pronounced in context.