September 8, 2026 · 3 min read
Meet Playable Language Minis
Minis are short, story-driven language adventures built around real conversation — and the first episodes are free. Start with Pride & Prejudice, Sherlock Holmes, or Café Nollie.
Minis are short, story-driven language adventures built around real conversation and real langauge practice.
Instead of completing an exercise, you step into a scene. Characters talk to you in the language you’re learning. You decide how to respond. The conversation continues based on what you say.
And yes — you can actually type your own response.
There isn’t always one “correct” answer waiting for you. The point is to understand what’s happening, figure out what you want to say, and keep the story moving.
Reading is the gameplay. Conversation is how you play.
And the first episodes of all the minis are free so you can give it a try! And we’re cooking up more minis right now so there will be new episodes to play!
Start with a classic
Our first Minis take you inside familiar stories and cozy little worlds:
🍂 Pride & Prejudice
Meet Elizabeth Bennet, hear the latest gossip about a certain Mr. Darcy, and find yourself pulled into Jane Austen’s world—one conversation at a time.
🔎 Sherlock Holmes
Join Holmes and Watson at 221B Baker Street as a new mystery begins. Observe carefully. Ask questions. And try to keep up with Sherlock.
☕ Café Nollie
A cozy original Mini set in the world of the Great Head where a simple conversation over coffee becomes your chance to practice navigating everyday language naturally.
And coming this October…
🧛 Dracula
A darker, moonlit Mini for spooky season. We’ll say no more for now.
The Minis currently support Spanish and Italian, and they’re designed to meet you at your level rather than dropping you into a wall of language you can’t understand.
Why we made them
Playable Language Minis are fun on their own, but they also let us finally show you the idea at the heart of Wordlark Hollow instead of trying to explain it.
Wordlark Hollow is the much bigger adventure we’re building: a cozy language-learning RPG where exploring the world, meeting its characters, solving problems and following stories all happen through the language you’re learning.
The Minis take that core idea and put it into something you can experience in about five minutes.
So if you’ve ever looked at Wordlark Hollow and thought:
Okay… but what does “playable language learning” actually feel like?
Now you can find out.
And there’s more coming
The free episodes are only the beginning.
We’ve added a new $10 Playable Minis reward to our Kickstarter. Back at that level and you’ll receive one month of Playable Language access, including Pride & Prejudice, Sherlock Holmes, and new Minis and episodes as they’re released during your month.
It’s also a Kickstarter backer special: $10 for the month instead of the regular $15 price — a 33% savings.
And if you’ve already backed Wordlark Hollow at $35 or above, good news: Minis are included! You don’t need to change a thing. 🎉
Most importantly, every pledge helps us keep building Wordlark Hollow.
Go play
We could keep explaining how this works.
But that’s exactly why we made the Minis.
Step into a story. Talk to someone. See what happens.
And if you enjoy them:
Get the $10 Minis tier on Kickstarter →
Already a backer? Please share a Mini with somebody who’s learning Spanish or Italian. Getting these little stories into people’s hands during the final weeks of the campaign could make an enormous difference for Wordlark Hollow. 💜