Choose a game
An overview of every deck game, what each one requires, and how to pick the right one.
By YalangoUpdated September 14, 2026
Open any deck and choose Play to reach Choose a game. The deck page also lists them under Study modes.
The games
| Game | What you do | Needs |
|---|---|---|
| Mix | A rotating combination of the other games | Recommended default |
| Flashcards | Flip the card, then mark yourself correct or wrong | Any deck |
| Quiz | Pick the right answer from four options | 4 or more cards |
| Write | Type the translation | Any deck |
| Memory | Flip tiles to match each word to its translation | 4 or more cards |
| Hangman | Guess the letters before the hangman is drawn | Non-Chinese decks in a supported script |
| Hanzi | Practice Chinese characters with stroke order | Chinese decks with character cards |
| Audio | Listen and pick the right translation | Premium, and 4 or more cards with audio |
Mix is marked Recommended for a reason - it tests the same word in different ways, which is more effective than drilling one format. See The Mix game.
Session settings
Above the games you'll find:
- Exercises - how many items to play, from 5 to 50.
- Show first - whether the prompt shows the target or source word, or randomises per card. This applies to Flashcards, Quiz and Mix only.
- Pinyin - a toggle on Chinese decks.
More options live behind the settings gear during a game, and per-language defaults are in your language settings.
If a game is missing or greyed out
Games appear based on what your deck can support:
- A card only counts as playable if both sides have content. A deck of half-filled cards will report there's nothing to play.
- Quiz and Memory need at least 4 cards, because they need alternatives to choose from.
- Hanzi shows up only on Chinese decks, and Hangman takes its place on other languages.
- Hangman isn't offered for writing systems it can't sensibly letter-guess, such as Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Thai and the Indic scripts.
- Audio needs generated audio on at least 4 cards, and a language Google has a voice for. The deck page explains which of those is missing.
Which to pick
- Learning something new - Flashcards, or Memory for a light first pass.
- Checking you know it - Quiz is the easiest test; Write is the strictest.
- Getting ready to speak - Write and Audio, since both make you produce or parse the language rather than recognise it.
- Any other time - Mix.