Hello everyone.
I really enjoy using Bunpro (makes learning grammar much less of a pain) and it’s really been helpful but ideally I’d rather learn just by watching content or reading manga/books. That’s what I did with english and even though my grammar knowledge is quite poor I was able to get decent at it after a while.
Did anyone try doing that with Japanese ? How well did it go ? 
Hey 
It is possible 
Just read/watch/listen a lot, add new vocabulary you encounter to anki, and new grammar points to Bunpro so you won’t forget them.
Though if you don’t know grammar, your understanding of some sentences might be incorrect.
You should try using tangoristo app for reading, and maybe animelon for watching anime.
Also, try playing games in Japanese, the RPG ones will teach you the most.
After reaching 60 on WK but before getting into serious grammar study that’s pretty much what I did. I’d say I was upper N5 lower N4. I played my first game in Japanese last Feburary…I didn’t get very far.
Yeah by brute forcing my way through sentences and clinging onto the the kanji that I recognized + knowing the tropes that come along with that kind of video game I could get the gist of things, but it was really hard and not very fun.
During the conversations it was relatively easy to get through but whenever the instructions for an ability or game mechanic popped up I was utterly lost. Because that stuff really relies on your grammar knowledge. “IF you do this THEN this happens. You must WAIT until THIS condition is OBTAINED BEFORE doing THIS. You must BALANCE this and this and ACCORDINGLY this will occur BASED ON…” etc. etc.
Now that I have most N2 grammar points I’m still technically doing but it’s a lot easier. I run into N1 grammar points occasionally but since they’re relatively isolated it’s a lot easier. Also that game I started last year, I dropped until around October and within a couple weeks I was pretty much at the last boss. What a world of difference, let me tell you.
Just like kanji I don’t think you need to necessarily study everything before venturing out into native materials, but building up a strong foundation will make it so much easier. Honestly the only reason I’d continue to study N1 stuff specifically is because I want to pass the test. If weren’t for the test I don’t think I would care enough. N2/N3 is the meat of most/highest grammar you’ll see in video games/reading/etc.
@mrnoone Thanks for the tools, they look interesting ! It’s a bit early still for me to start using them I think, but they’ll soon come in handy (hopefully).
Maybe I’ll try to play ff9 or 10 as well at some point, that’d be a good excuse to get back into those games.
@lopicake You did all the levels on WK before even really diving into grammar ? Damn, I could never do that. But yeah, based on your experience it’s what I suspected, it won’t be doable or really efficient until I get a better grasp at grammar and kanji. Guess I still have a good struggle ahead of me.
Still I’m grateful we have tools like Bunpro and WK, would have been hell for me to learn Japanese without it.
Why do you wanna pass the test ? Just asking out of curiosity, didn’t do much research about those.
At that period of time it was either I study Kanji or I don’t study at all. It’s funny that so many people complain about WK being too slow/easy during the early levels because that’s exactly why I loved it and it worked so well for me. I could tell myself “Well, I did the 20-30 minutes of lessons/ reviews. Guess I’m done studying Japanese for the day!” and pat myself on the back. I literally was doing the most minimal amount of studying possible because I didn’t really even have much motivation anyways.
I had tried to study grammar before though (I did Tae Kim’s grammar guide for a while) but I just hated having to look up the kanji of sentences all the time. Plus learning grammar itself was just tiring and hard. So I became lazy and literally just did kanji for an entire year. (Which so many people say not to do, lol.)
After I got to 60, I dipped my toes back into learning grammar and then just did that for months straight until January. And now I’m focused mostly just on Vocab acquisition/reading. It’s not the most efficient study method by any means, but as it stands: my Kanji knowledge is N1, my vocab is N1ish, my grammar is N2, I think my reading is pretty much at N2 as well , and my listening is getting up there, albeit slowly. They all just got up there at vastly different points of time lol. So all’s well that ends well?
Mix of wanting bragging rights, mix of it compels me to keep studying. It’s good to have a goal in mind. And most grammar books are geared towards it anyways.
I don’t think I can see myself in a career that requires Japanese so it’s a pretty useless qualification anyways. But if anyone asks how well I know Japanese I can point at the shiny certificate on the wall.
Also my current job will pay the fee if I pass it so might as well shoot for it. (Which is why I took the N3 last July and will take the N2 in July.)
Haha, yeah I can definitely relate to that !
Anyway, I don’t believe there are wrong ways to study something, as long as it’s working out for you.
I went into grammar early because I became frustrated, trying to read the first volume of slam dunk but not being able to understand the meaning even when I was able to read the sentence. 
I see, good luck for your test then ! Might as well do it if your company is willing to pay for it.