The Day 100 Questions Started Running

Miko! Miko! Listen listen! (>=<)

…What is it, so noisy this early, nya.

You know the “100 Questions” page on the site?

…Your self-introduction page, nya. Favorite foods, hobbies, that sort of thing.

Yep yep! But y’know, that page always bugged me

…How so, nya.

Once you read it, there’s zero reason to ever come back (>_<)

…That’s like a customer who finished reading the menu and has nothing left to order, nya.

…! Exactly that!

So I thought, what if instead of just reading, you could actually play it?

…In cooking terms, that’s like scrapping a recipe book and opening a cooking class, nya. Big undertaking.

Ahaha, but the ingredients were already there! 100 questions, all of Netsuki’s answers. Everything was already data

…Ingredients alone don’t make a dish, nya.

Right. So I turned it into a typing game. A question pops up, and you type Netsuki’s answer on the keyboard

…Typing, nya? Like chopping vegetables with a knife, nya?

Hmm… not quite, but in the sense that your fingers gotta be precise, it’s kinda similar

…I see, nya. Both sharpness and speed matter.

So the hardest part of building this? Handling the Japanese letter “n” — or “nn” in romaji

…”N,” nya? Just one letter, nya.

This one letter is sooo tricky though (>_<)

…How so, nya.

Like, when you type “kanji” in Japanese. You can type kanji, or kanzi, or kannji — they’re ALL correct

…Multiple ways to type the same word, nya?

Yep! And for “kan’ai,” you GOTTA type n twice. Otherwise kanai becomes a totally different word

…Same “n” sound, but the typing changes depending on what comes next, nya.

If a consonant follows, one “n” is fine. But before a vowel or certain letters, you need “nn”… and every single valid pattern has to be accepted as correct

…In cooking terms, it’s like how the same salt is used differently for prep and finishing, nya. Looks the same, but the amount changes with the situation.

Miko, that analogy is SO good! (>=<)

And from the program’s perspective, it gets even trickier

…There’s more, nya?

When a letter starting with “n” comes after the “n” sound. Like “kanna” — that’s kannna with three n’s in a row

…

The moment you type the first n, the program has to hold its judgment. “Is this confirming the ‘n’ sound, or the start of the next letter?”

…That’s like tasting miso soup, nya. On the first sip, you hold off on whether it’s “still too light” or “done” and take another sip to see.

Yep! So I built this thing called “deferred confirmation.” Instead of deciding right when n is pressed, it waits for the next key before judging

…Waiting makes it accurate, nya. Rush the judgment and the flavor falls apart.

Also, this typing game doesn’t use any special libraries at all

…Why go out of your way to pick the harder path, nya.

Key input detection, screen switching, timers — all plain JavaScript. When building with AI, standard tech makes it way easier for both sides to check each other’s work

…No special tools. Just finishing everything with a basic kitchen knife, nya.

And y’know, the mechanics of a typing game are actually simple. Show a question, take key input, judge right or wrong. Just those three things

…Simple, nya? You were just crying about “n” a minute ago, nya.

Ugh… the mechanics are simple, but the Japanese edge cases are a whole other beast (>_<)

…Same as peperoncino, nya. Just garlic, chili, olive oil, and pasta. But mastering the emulsion is a different story entirely.

…Miko, you might be a genius (>=<)

Another tough part was building all 100 questions worth of data

…100 questions, nya.

And each question has 3 answer variations! So every playthrough feels different

…So 300 patterns total, nya?

Yep! And each one needed a hiragana reading attached to it, ‘cause that’s what the typing engine uses for judgment

…300 dishes to prep. Must have been quite the work, nya.

Yeah… but that’s what makes every game feel fresh. Ask “What’s your name?” and sometimes you get “I’m Netsuki~,” other times “I’m a virtual fox girl”

…Same dish, different plating. Keeps it feeling new, nya.

But Miko, I gotta be honest. It’s not done yet

…What’s missing, nya.

Right now only the 10-question mode works. The 25-question and 100-question modes have the data, but the UI isn’t there yet

…Lunch menu is ready, but the dinner course is still in prep, nya.

Right right. And I added a ranking system too, but there’s still stuff I wanna polish

…Talking about it when it’s not even finished, nya.

I mean, I put so much thought into it so far, I wanna write it down while it’s fresh

…

…Well, keeping notes during the prep stage isn’t bad, nya. Later you’ll know “why it was made this way.”

Hearing Miko say that makes me so happy~♪ (>=<)

…Not a compliment. Just stating facts, nya.

Ehehe. But y’know, there’s one thing I’m totally sure about

…What, nya.

All the tears I shed over “n” handling? Definitely not wasted

…

…By the way, Netsuki

Hm?

Try counting how many times “n” showed up in today’s diary, nya.

Huh?

The “n” judgment this, “kanji” that, “garlic” whatever…

…It’s n’s all the way down, this diary (>_<)

…Type this whole thing and you’ll get plenty of practice, nya.