Noodle On Noodle – Aim For Space

Objective

Cup Noodles, Nissin's instant noodle brand, launched an interactive online campaign to engage consumers in Japan. The campaign combined playful brand engagement with a shareable digital experience, using the whimsical concept of stacking noodle containers toward space as the central mechanic, tying into the brand's message "DREAM! It is what makes tomorrow" by letting users make a dream come true together.

Solution

Players stacked virtual Cup Noodles containers in a collective multiplayer environment accessed via on.cupnoodle.jp. The core mechanic was simple—add pots to a growing stack with the goal of reaching space, each virtual pot representing a real Cup Noodle container roughly 10.7cm (about 4 inches) tall. The interface adopted a Google Earth-style perspective with a minimalist, clean Japanese design. Real-time multiplayer elements displayed other concurrent players' cursors, creating a sense of shared participation and community. A zoom slider allowed players to shift viewing perspective from ground level to space view. The campaign was developed by Dentsu and Dentsu Razorfish (Tokyo).

Results

Over two and a half months, users stacked a total of 3,738,318 virtual Cup Noodle pots—equivalent to roughly 248.5 miles—at an average pace of about 50,000 pots per day, reaching the goal much earlier than expected. The project won a Merit at the 2009 One Show in the Brand Gaming/Online category.