Friend bought another old Japanese magazine that actually had an ad/review for Noah's Ark in it. It has some unique screens and goes a bit more into the plot than stuff that was posted here already. Scans are pretty giant so I'll just post the direct links: ptpimg.me/l8l2gy.png ptpimg.me/24trp6.png
I did a translation myself since I think it's a bit too much to convey just with ocr and machine translation.
It's the 22nd century. Plagued by environmental degredation, resource shortages, and overpopulation, humanity has set to constructing a base on Mars designed to have a closed environment akin to a pure Earth atmosphere. While waiting for construction to complete, suddenly a giant tower appeared, destroying the base in the process.
The tower that appeared on Mars was examined to be approximately 5 billion years old, somehow 400 million years older than the birth of the solar system itself. The protagonist decides to infiltrate the tower, and solve the mystery hidden inside.
Noah's Ark is an interactive adventure made up of 7 floors, although there is a clear difference between it and other similar games that rely more on constant puzzle solving.
This great adventure makes you think of a blend of the stories of Noah's Ark and 2001: A Space Odyssey, dragging the player through both future and past. Hidden in every floor are ruins of old worlds, deep histories of the birth of the human race, and a timeline spanning up until the creation of an even new form of life. Each riddle the player solves is a key to unraveling the history of the humanity.
The mystery of the creation of Earth, the secret of life, solving these will birth something new completely. You might be thinking "This seems like a pretty hard game to get into" after reading this far. But, the elaborate 3D graphics that give the world its life make the game beautiful to look at, and the new navigation system "Pathfinder System" makes it a breeze to move throughout the tower. There are also some scenes with a lot of action, so it's hard for the player to get bored.
In addition to that, there were 7 different companies commissioned to create design concept CG art for the game, so every floor has its own unique feel to it.
An interactive adventure that hides the mystery of the creation of Earth, and the creation of humanity, Noah's Ark, will be available for purchase on October 5th as a hybrid CD-ROM!
It's the 22nd century. Humanity has been working hard on constructing a base on Mars to relocate to, but the completion was interrupted when suddenly a giant tower appeared out of the ground...
Boasting a Pathfinder System that allows movement through videos, a story that takes you through a world with a mystical mix of ancient ruins and near-future.
From that Kenichi Shigeto, explore the perfected 3D graphics on floors that each have their own unique designers. Includes sound by Kazuhiro Nishimatsu who worked on the movie Crusher Joe.
What is it that the tower hides? Once you arrive to the 7th floor, find the surprising truth that will shake humanity to its core.
Level 1: What is the purpose of this lifeless world of ice...
Level 2: What will become of visiting the paradise of lies?
Level 3: Search the fountain of wisdom that overflows with joy.
Level 4: Break the spell of time and gain a new cycle of life.
Level 5: What is the book of hope that lies within the endless library?
Level 6: DNA plays a melody of the birth of life???
Level 7: On the final floor, all the mysteries will be revealed!
Knowing more about the plot it actually reminds me lot of Drowned God. In the pictures I posted there's a scene with a place that looks like Stonehenge, there's also Stonehenge in Drowned God. So I wonder if it's the same "actually aliens created humans" plot, but who knows.
Friend bought another old Japanese magazine that actually had an ad/review for Noah's Ark in it. It has some unique screens and goes a bit more into the plot than stuff that was posted here already. Scans are pretty giant so I'll just post the direct links: ptpimg.me/l8l2gy.png ptpimg.me/24trp6.png
I did a translation myself since I think it's a bit too much to convey just with ocr and machine translation.
It's the 22nd century. Plagued by environmental degredation, resource shortages, and overpopulation, humanity has set to constructing a base on Mars designed to have a closed environment akin to a pure Earth atmosphere. While waiting for construction to complete, suddenly a giant tower appeared, destroying the base in the process.
The tower that appeared on Mars was examined to be approximately 5 billion years old, somehow 400 million years older than the birth of the solar system itself. The protagonist decides to infiltrate the tower, and solve the mystery hidden inside.
Noah's Ark is an interactive adventure made up of 7 floors, although there is a clear difference between it and other similar games that rely more on constant puzzle solving.
This great adventure makes you think of a blend of the stories of Noah's Ark and 2001: A Space Odyssey, dragging the player through both future and past. Hidden in every floor are ruins of old worlds, deep histories of the birth of the human race, and a timeline spanning up until the creation of an even new form of life. Each riddle the player solves is a key to unraveling the history of the humanity.
The mystery of the creation of Earth, the secret of life, solving these will birth something new completely. You might be thinking "This seems like a pretty hard game to get into" after reading this far. But, the elaborate 3D graphics that give the world its life make the game beautiful to look at, and the new navigation system "Pathfinder System" makes it a breeze to move throughout the tower. There are also some scenes with a lot of action, so it's hard for the player to get bored.
In addition to that, there were 7 different companies commissioned to create design concept CG art for the game, so every floor has its own unique feel to it.
An interactive adventure that hides the mystery of the creation of Earth, and the creation of humanity, Noah's Ark, will be available for purchase on October 5th as a hybrid CD-ROM!
It's the 22nd century. Humanity has been working hard on constructing a base on Mars to relocate to, but the completion was interrupted when suddenly a giant tower appeared out of the ground...
Boasting a Pathfinder System that allows movement through videos, a story that takes you through a world with a mystical mix of ancient ruins and near-future.
From that Kenichi Shigeto, explore the perfected 3D graphics on floors that each have their own unique designers. Includes sound by Kazuhiro Nishimatsu who worked on the movie Crusher Joe.
What is it that the tower hides? Once you arrive to the 7th floor, find the surprising truth that will shake humanity to its core.
Level 1: What is the purpose of this lifeless world of ice...
Level 2: What will become of visiting the paradise of lies?
Level 3: Search the fountain of wisdom that overflows with joy.
Level 4: Break the spell of time and gain a new cycle of life.
Level 5: What is the book of hope that lies within the endless library?
Level 6: DNA plays a melody of the birth of life???
Level 7: On the final floor, all the mysteries will be revealed!
Knowing more about the plot it actually reminds me lot of Drowned God. In the pictures I posted there's a scene with a place that looks like Stonehenge, there's also Stonehenge in Drowned God. So I wonder if it's the same "actually aliens created humans" plot, but who knows.
This is awesome! Definitely makes me wanna play the game even more. Occasionally, I search for this game on Yahoo! Japan or Mercari, just in case it pops up again but obviously I've had no luck thus far.
Post by tussockythree68 on Feb 12, 2022 3:01:29 GMT
Saint, your contributions have been immeasurable. You and your friend are a couple of real ones. Every month we get a little closer to finding this game. Also, about the Drowned God thing, I would be very happy if the game we end up finding is anywhere as interesting as Drowned God (which it sounds like it will be). Also important to note that if the supposed release date of Oct. 5, 1995 is accurate that's almost a year before Drowned God came out, which would make this even cooler! Also, if the story really is that deep the game may need to be translated before we English speakers can properly enjoy it.
Post by tussockythree68 on Apr 19, 2022 3:32:06 GMT
In an act of desperation I contacted NEC using the inquiry form on their US website. I am not hopeful they'll respond. After all the game was made in Japan and by a subsidiary no less. Part of the reason I sent it through there was because they may be able to get me in contact with the right people. Anyway, about to go check my usual shopping sites for the game. Stay strong everyone. Don't let the dream die out.
In an act of desperation I contacted NEC using the inquiry form on their US website. I am not hopeful they'll respond. After all the game was made in Japan and by a subsidiary no less. Part of the reason I sent it through there was because they may be able to get me in contact with the right people. Anyway, about to go check my usual shopping sites for the game. Stay strong everyone. Don't let the dream die out.
You might be better off working backwards, GungHo bought all of NEC Interchannels game assets in 2007 apparently, if anyone responds to you there they might be able to figure out if they received anything in relation to Noah's Ark, even if only names of people involved in it, it would be a lead at least.
In an act of desperation I contacted NEC using the inquiry form on their US website. I am not hopeful they'll respond. After all the game was made in Japan and by a subsidiary no less. Part of the reason I sent it through there was because they may be able to get me in contact with the right people. Anyway, about to go check my usual shopping sites for the game. Stay strong everyone. Don't let the dream die out.
You might be better off working backwards, GungHo bought all of NEC Interchannels game assets in 2007 apparently, if anyone responds to you there they might be able to figure out if they received anything in relation to Noah's Ark, even if only names of people involved in it, it would be a lead at least.
Okay, I didn't know about the GungHo thing. I will most likely be contacting them soon. Thank you.
I'm just a simple man, trying to make my way in the universe.
So i've been doing a little digging on Interchannel itself, they had a european publishing arm in the mid 00s, the CEO was listed as Shigeki Takeuchi, who was also CEO of Interchannel itself for a time. Some sources say since 1995 which suggests he would have been around at the time Noah's Ark was published and may at least know who some of the people at Proforce were, however most of his profiles say he was CEO from 2005 onwards, still looking for info who may have actually been CEO around 1995. Anyway, he left Interchannel in 2009 to form a company called Intergrow, but retired in 2016. Apparently he still works part time in some companies he owns, one of which is Ninja Games Japan, could be a way of getting in contact with him. He also has a jp linkedin here but it hasnt been updated to reflect his retirement from Intergrow so i don't know if you'd reach him there. This facebook purports to be him too.
My thoughts are if we can get in contact with someone who worked at Interchannel at the time who can forward us to more people from Proforce, we might find someone who has a copy of the game data, and may be willing to share it giving its seeming abandonware nature.
EDIT: an addendum, Yasushi Kurokawa was CEO up until 2004 at least, i can't find any contact info at the moment, seems working backwards is still the best option, this time from Shigeki Takeuchi.
So i've been doing a little digging on Interchannel itself, they had a european publishing arm in the mid 00s, the CEO was listed as Shigeki Takeuchi, who was also CEO of Interchannel itself for a time. Some sources say since 1995 which suggests he would have been around at the time Noah's Ark was published and may at least know who some of the people at Proforce were, however most of his profiles say he was CEO from 2005 onwards, still looking for info who may have actually been CEO around 1995. Anyway, he left Interchannel in 2009 to form a company called Intergrow, but retired in 2016. Apparently he still works part time in some companies he owns, one of which is Ninja Games Japan, could be a way of getting in contact with him. He also has a jp linkedin here but it hasnt been updated to reflect his retirement from Intergrow so i don't know if you'd reach him there. This facebook purports to be him too.
My thoughts are if we can get in contact with someone who worked at Interchannel at the time who can forward us to more people from Proforce, we might find someone who has a copy of the game data, and may be willing to share it giving its seeming abandonware nature.
EDIT: an addendum, Yasushi Kurokawa was CEO up until 2004 at least, i can't find any contact info at the moment, seems working backwards is still the best option, this time from Shigeki Takeuchi.
I may attempt contact on FB. Thanks for pointing this out.
I'm just a simple man, trying to make my way in the universe.
Post by tussockythree68 on May 18, 2022 3:58:33 GMT
Okay, I messaged Shigeki Takeuchi. We'll see if he responds. Facebook has this feature where if somebody random messages you you have to accept their message before reading it, so I'm not hopeful he'll see the message and respond.
I'm just a simple man, trying to make my way in the universe.
It seems to be unrelated. The game's title "Noah's Ark" is generally written in katakana as "ノアズアーク" which is a direct transliteration basically reading "No-a-zu A-ku". In the case of the album tittle they seem to have the "No-a" part of the katakana spelling but the wrest is kanji it seems. (Being "No-a No Hakobune" or "Noah's Box Ship" which is the common way the term is translated with Kanji) This is just somebodies music that is also referencing the biblical story. Not to mention it seems it was released 10 years after the supposed release of the game.
I'm just a simple man, trying to make my way in the universe.
It seems to be unrelated. The game's title "Noah's Ark" is generally written in katakana as "ノアズアーク" which is a direct transliteration basically reading "No-a-zu A-ku". In the case of the album tittle they seem to have the "No-a" part of the katakana spelling but the wrest is kanji it seems. (Being "No-a No Hakobune" or "Noah's Box Ship" which is the common way the term is translated with Kanji) This is just somebodies music that is also referencing the biblical story. Not to mention it seems it was released 10 years after the supposed release of the game.
Okay
Please call me SWN or Wandom. She/he/they/it/ve Minor
