Not many Western people use it, but LINE is used by basically everyone in Japan. LINE is a messaging app not unlike WeChat or WhatsApp, and it comes with some special images kind of like how Facebook messaging uses GIFs. Some of these images are animated, but most are static images of cute, funny, or weird characters. The Japanese call them stamps, but for some reason we foreigners call them stickers.
These stickers give your messaging a personal touch, and its actually quite indicative of a person's character is like seeing what stickers they own and use. Yep, I wrote "own." You see, stickers cost some money, but not directly. You can exchange yen for LINE coins and spend those on your digital messaging goodies. However, I'm a pretty cheap person, so I use LINE points to get things on LINE. These are the free currency that you can use for the digital embellishments. Getting them is easy, but it can be really tedious. Here's how you can get those points.
In the LINE app, you can go to the wallet tab to see your current balance of Yen, LINE Coins, and LINE Points. You can also see a lot of other options that are available to you, such as coupons, online shopping, and even insurance. I've personally never used any of these services as my limited Japanese keeps me from taking advantage of them. The only features I've used on this screen is the sticker shop, the theme shop, and the LINE points.
Going into the LINE points menu shows you a bunch of ways you can earn points. For me, the best option is the application option. This option lets you download featured apps for free and earn points for it. Payouts can be as high as 300 points, or as low as 10. Either way, it's a great way to find new games and apps for free currency. Each app has different conditions for getting points though, and the conditions would all be written in Japanese, so Google Translate is a good friend for this situation. Some apps do have multiple day conditions, so be sure to check with Google-sensei often.
Another easy way is to simply watch the video advertisements that LINE offers to hand out LINE points for. As of writing this post, there's been a bit of a drought in this field, but there was a time where there were dozens of videos available. The payout for watching these is quite small, however, so it really does feel like a grind watching the videos. Still, if you want to have them running in the background its a really easy way to do it.
The third easy way is by reading some articles. I can only read a handful of kanji, and my Japanese vocabulary is limited to the point that my girlfriend thinks I talk like a toddler. In any case, you can access the reading material by tapping on the picture featured on the details page. There's a bit that says wait time, but that usually doesn't mean much. Once you go through the material you are given a screen with the option to get points or close.
The other options available look to be very good, but again, I have very limited Japanese. The 'free' menu looks to be for trials of a service, and I am hesitant with those conditions for gaining points. Trials, in my experience, are a good way for companies to hit you with monthly fees if you're not careful, and I am not the kind of person to dig through the terms and conditions of cancelling a service in English, let alone Japanese. The 'mission', 'quick rewards', and 'big rewards' options are more or less the same, but with different conditions for the trial periods. Again, with these menus, Google Translate is your best friend.
The other options on the LINE Points menu are more or less paid options. You seem to have to spend money to get these points, and there are various goods and methods to go about it. Some of these options are really good to check if you are proficient enough in Japanese without having to rely on Google Translate, as they probably go well with some of your purchases.
That's it. That's the run-down of getting LINE points. I know a few people that haven't bothered with this option, mostly because they don't have the time or patience for it, or they have disposable income (another possibility is that they have more self-respect and dignity than I do.) Now you know the ways to get points so you don't have to spend money on stickers or themes. Obviously these methods take some time to be worth it, as the average sticker set is about 100 LINE points, but in the long run its still good to save a yen here and there.
Thanks for reading!
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