10 Crazy Unlicensed Video Games You’ve Never Heard Of

10. Super 3D Noah's Ark (Super Nintendo Entertainment System)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbJdS-nLjQY There was a company that made unlicensed NES games by the name of Color Dreams. Their games weren't any good, but they were clearly making an effort and the graphics of their titles were at the level of games from big name, licensed publishers. Eventually, they branched off into games with biblical themes released under the Wisdom Tree imprint. Why religious games? It's simple: They had a reliable channel of independent retailers that would carry them in the form of Christian book stores. As Wisdom Tree, Nintendo flexing their muscles to keep them out wasn't a concern. Even if it was, it the risk of bad publicity for Nintendo was too great. After all, they wanted to teach kids about the bible using the most popular video game console around. Their greatest achievement was Super 3D Noah's Ark, the only unlicensed SNES game released in the United States. Players familiar with more violent games quickly noticed that it was like a really weird, sanitized version of Wolfenstein 3D, the classic, pioneering first person shooter. But instead of shooting Nazis, you're playing as Noah and knocking down animals with your slingshot. For years, the rumor was that Id Software gave Wisdom Tree the code as revenge for Nintendo censoring the SNES port of Wolfenstein 3D to remove the Nazis, but it was actually a straight up license agreement. Of course, none of that addresses the matter of who felt that "religious themed first person shooter" was something to run with.
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Formerly the site manager of Cageside Seats and the WWE Team Leader at Bleacher Report, David Bixenspan has been writing professionally about WWE, UFC, and other pop culture since 2009. He's currently WhatCulture's U.S. Editor and also serves as the lead writer of Figure Four Weekly and a monthly contributor to Fighting Spirit Magazine.