Nintendo’s Super Mario Run is a landmark game for the company- it is the first game developed by Nintendo that will not be on their own hardware. Instead, it will be launching on iOS devices, with an Android version soon to follow. Unlike Miitomo, which wasn’t really a game, and Pokemon GO, which was not Nintendo developed, Super Mario Run is unabashedly a Nintendo game coming to mobile devices- for many, that can be exciting.
How exciting? Exciting enough that the game is expected to make a staggering $60 million in its first month, according to SuperData. “After a long period of having no clearly defined mobile strategy, Nintendo is entering the mobile games market at an opportune time,” SuperData said in a statement. “Right as the market is cluttered by an abundant offering, the Japanese giant enters with a highly visible franchise. Beyond the success for Nintendo, other publishers will be watching to see if a $10 premium model will work on mobile from here on out.
“The nostalgia factor plays a key role here, as an entire generation of gamers suddenly, and finally, finds itself able to play one of their childhood franchises on their phone, two weeks before the holidays.”
So the same kind of strategy that made Pokemon and the NES Classic Mini so successful this year. $60 million for a premium, iOS exclusive mobile game, though, sounds like a lot of money- let’s wait to see if Nintendo’s mobile offering takes off.