"I know the face, but the name just won't come to me."
Sound familiar? You're not alone. PetaName is a free memory training app that helps you remember faces and names—using methods backed by cognitive science research. Play a game, and let your brain do the rest.
■■ How to Play ■■
📣 Name Call (Main Mode)
Name each character as they appear, then recall their name when they return. Simple yet deep. Play solo against the CPU, gather friends around one phone, or race online with players nationwide.
🧠 Card Memory (Biz Training)
Characters introduce themselves with a business card. After a short break, answer: "Who was that?" Add fields like company name, title, and phone number—perfect prep for sales calls, interviews, and conferences. Snap a business card → memorize → review before the meeting. The WhoWas feature is built right in.
📚 Historical Figures
Learn the faces, names, and achievements of 15 great figures—including Oda Nobunaga, Darwin, Marie Curie, and more. All portraits are rendered as avatars, so there are zero photo copyright concerns.
🃏 Pair Hunt
Classic memory matching with face cards and name cards. The perfect "memory gym" workout after you've learned the names.
📖 Story Mode (Sci-Fi Novel Game)
"Project Noah" — The distant future. The sun has become a red giant. Aboard an ark departing Yokohama for a planet 49 light-years away, you must learn the names of eight scientists. Your choices and what you remember change the ending. Fully bilingual (Japanese / English).
■■ Who Is This For? ■■
・Anyone who struggles with new coworkers' or clients' names
・Sales reps, recruiters, and anyone who meets lots of people
・Job seekers preparing for networking events
・Students who want to memorize historical figures
・Brain training enthusiasts
・Anyone who's ever panicked before a meeting thinking "who was that person again?"
■■ Features ■■
✅ Completely free to play (optional in-app purchases for extra characters)
✅ Fully bilingual — Japanese & English
✅ Text-to-speech reads names aloud for audio reinforcement
✅ Historical figures from Japanese & world history included
✅ Works offline — train anywhere
✅ Upload real business cards and face photos to create your own study deck (mobile only)
✅ Unobtrusive ads that don't interrupt gameplay
■■ Backed by Science ■■
The memory training in this app draws on established research:
・Speaking a word aloud improves recall (MacLeod 2010 — the Production Effect)
・Active recall beats passive review (Roediger & Karpicke 2006 — the Testing Effect)
・Names are uniquely hard to remember (McWeeny 1987 — the Baker/Baker Paradox)
・Deep processing strengthens memory (Craik & Tulving 1975 — Levels of Processing)
Ready? Let's make sure you never have to say "I know the face, but..." again.
Brain game: remember faces & names. Free. Photos, biz cards, quiz.