Wisdom Tree

Lore & Background

Wisdom Tree was an offshoot of Color Dreams, a company based in Brea, California, started by Daniel Lawton in 1988. Color Dreams was one of the first companies to work around Nintendo's 10NES lockout chip and produced unlicensed NES games. Due to Nintendo's threats to stop selling games to retailers that stocked unlicensed titles, Color Dreams struggled to access mainstream retail channels. In 1990, Color Dreams formed Wisdom Tree to target Christian bookstores, which were not vulnerable to Nintendo's pressure because they did not sell video games. Wisdom Tree sent promotional materials, including 3-foot displays and VHS cassettes, to convince these stores to carry religious games. The effort proved successful, and the company sold 350,000 copies of its first release, Bible Adventures.

Reader's Guide

Wisdom Tree's significance lies in its creation of a niche market for Christian video games and its successful bypass of Nintendo's licensing system through alternative distribution. By selling in Christian bookstores, the company avoided the retail pressure that hindered other unlicensed developers. Its games, often partial conversions of Color Dreams titles, adapted Bible stories into gameplay familiar from popular titles like Super Mario Bros. 2 and The Legend of Zelda. The company's most notable technical achievement was Super 3D Noah's Ark, the only unlicensed commercial game for the North American Super NES, which used a pass-through cartridge to bypass lockout protection. Wisdom Tree's legacy includes influencing later retro reprints and digital releases, such as a 2015 PC port of Super 3D Noah's Ark on Steam. The company's games, while criticized for quality issues, demonstrated that a dedicated distribution channel could sustain unlicensed software production.

Did You Know?

• Wisdom Tree was formed in 1990 as a subsidiary of Color Dreams to sell Christian games in bookstores.
• Its first release, Bible Adventures, sold 350,000 copies.
• Super 3D Noah's Ark is the only unlicensed commercially released game for the North American Super NES.
• Wisdom Tree's games were often partial conversions of earlier Color Dreams titles.