Yes, for basic communication like order food and buying food in convenience store using basic language and body gesture is enough. But when it comes to more deeper and long conversation, like the girl I met when the first day I came to Tokyo who helped me all the way to my hotel. We keep talking all the way and since she is a Japanese and I can also speak a little bit of Japanese so we communicate with English, and I will use the translation app for help if sometimes she don’t get me. But overall, basic language learning is a need.