Nobunaga Games
View the case- Brand
- Zipang
- Year
- 2023
- Objective
- Awareness
- Industry
- Finance
- Mechanic
- Simulation & Strategy
- Platform
- Web
- Agency
- Y+L Projects
Objective
Zipang, a Japanese online casino platform, operates under regulations that bar it from advertising or promoting gambling services directly. To reach players anyway, the brand went through its existing manga universe instead, using it to re-engage lapsed fans and pull in new signups while staying inside those promotional limits.
Solution
Players open a free browser game, no download required, cast as a new retainer to the temperamental warlord Oda Nobunaga during Japan's Sengoku era. A manga-style intro lays out six rewards on offer for finishing the story, then asks the player to enter their name before moving into a run of comic scenes, each illustrated with manga panels, while a face-based gauge tracks Nobunaga's shifting mood. Along the way the player spins a slot machine whose reels carry rice balls, fried tofu pouches, stag beetles, lucky sevens and Nobunaga's own face. Clearing the story unlocks real prizes, a gold coin, a stay at a castle or traditional inn, VIP tickets to a Kamen Joshi concert, premium rice or meat, and deluxe straw sandals, and funnels the player straight into registering on the Zipang platform.
Results
The campaign site drew more than 100,000 sessions, and over 1,400 players registered with Zipang Casino after completing the game.
- 1
The title screen displays the game's Japanese logo and subtitle, identifying it as a Sengoku-era survival simulation, alongside a sound toggle since the game is voiced.
- 2
A four-panel manga prologue introduces the player's new role serving the warlord Oda Nobunaga; a SKIP button lets the player bypass it.
- 3
Before play begins, the game previews six categories of real-world prizes at stake — a chip-winning split, premium rice and branded meat, a stay at a castle or traditional inn, a pure-gold coin, VIP tickets to a concert, and a joke prize of luxury straw sandals — framing what the session is playing toward.
- 4
The player enters a name into a text field; the confirm button stays inactive until something is typed, and the name is woven into the story that follows.
- 5
The core scene shows a Sengoku-era backdrop and a large lord character whose pose and expression shift with the story, alongside a gauge with a face icon that cycles through four states reflecting Nobunaga's mood toward the player.
- 6
The story unfolds through roughly a dozen manga-style panel cut-ins with sound effects layered over the scene, which the player pages through to advance the narrative.
- 7
Along the way the player picks up story items — including a rice ball, a nose hair, a fried tofu pouch, and a helmet ornament — each introduced with its own large cut-in and added to an inventory shown beneath the scene.
- 8
A slot machine is embedded into the scene, first appearing small before expanding to fill the screen; its reels spin with story-themed symbols, serving as a trial casino mechanic set inside the historical narrative.
- 9
The spin resolves through animated cut-ins, including a jackpot sequence where sliding doors open on a final reveal with a sound effect, and the resulting prize is displayed on its own card.
- 10
On completing the story, the player is prompted to open an account on the Zipang Casino platform, and separately encouraged to post their result on Twitter/X with a branded hashtag.
