Mario Run's Failures Could Spell The End Of Nintendo Mobile Adventure

The recent release of Mario Run has resulted in a number of events. People don’t seem to be happy that the whole game isn’t free. Negative reactions towards the asking price produced negative reviews of the game. Such feelings have resulted in ‘disappointing’ sales of the game, causing Nintendo’s stock to take a hit.

[Thatguy-310]

10$ for a run game??? Yea that's not going to work. I don't know how Nintendo expected people to throw money at them.

[Neonridr]

depends on how much content is there I guess..

[tehpees3]

Hopefully this proves Iwata was right. He was never convinced by smart phone gaming.

[LOL_WUT]

Maybe I'm being generous but this game should've been $5 at best ;)

[MyDietEqualsGames]

"Hopefully this proves Iwata was right. He was never convinced by smart phone gaming."

THey tried to do it THEIR way. They always try to do things their way. You don't just come into mobile and expect things to go your way, even if you are Nintendo.

You'd have thought they had the analytical data to help them avoid this.

[freshslicepizza]

micheal pachter already predicted this, it should have been free to play with in game purchases like so many other mobile games. but nintendo can never go with the status quo, always thinking their games will never devalue.

the game looks great but the controls are super simple, so why is it $10? its a running game and because nintendo made it now it should be $10?

[darthv72]

Well, maybe by the time it comes to android it will be $5...?

[InMyOpinion]

It seems to be working just fine for them...

http://n4g.com/news/1996584...

[MVGeneral]

@In my opinion
Are you serious? Did you even read the article? You fan boys need to wake up.

Downloads don't mean sales. Meaning people downloaded it thinking it's free but only the first part was free. Then people were asked to pay $10 for the game. And mobile gamers are spoiled so they didn't pay. And it didn't translate to sales. Hence why their stocks went down.

[joab777]

It doesn't prove Iwata right, it proves the execution and pricing wrong. People would pay a ton to play older Mario and Zelda games, and would pay a ton in Micros for these games. It's just gotta be done right.

Mobile makes 95% of its money from micros. It's absurd how much is made by these games that are f2p.

[PixelGateUk]

It's worth remembering that this is their first game. Miitomo was just a social media app, Mario Run is their first full game release on mobile.

Nintendo's sill figuring out the market. It's not exactly the most predictable of markets either given how wildly games/apps can rise and fall within any given month

[-Foxtrot]

Well no offence they've had plenty of time to study the market but why would you try to move onto a new market when they don't even understand the one they are original on...home consoles.

[dohji]

What about Pokemon Go?

[Jmanzare]

Pokemon wasn't developed by Nintendo it was developed by Niantic

[oof46]

@Jmanzare: Even though, they still can see what worked and didn't work.

[UltraNova]

There have been numerous examples with mobile releases that if Nintendo bothered to draw from, or even cared, they would could release the perfect game for mobile. There are no excuses the game should have been free to play with in game purchaces.10 bucks for a forgetable run mobile game? Common Nintendo!

They fully deserve all the negative backlash.

[yeahokwhatever]

That's the problem, there's no need to "figure out the market" when it's this mature. We have data. Tons of it.

[maybelovehate]

That is what, the price for a decent lunch. Gamers should try getting a job and stop whining so much

And of course this is followed by a bunch of whining lol. If you would rather buy a lunch, great but please stop crying.

[PixelGateUk]

For sure, but it's still a stumbling block effecting the game apparently

[WeAreLegion]

I would rather have the decent lunch. And clearly...a lot of people feel the same way.

[tracerBullet]

The game is the price for a decent lunch... but it's also 1/6th of the cost of Final Fantasy XV (or any other full fledged console game). That seems like a little much to me.

I think if we're going to compare costs, we should compare to things that are more closely related.

[thejigisup]

I don't spend $10 on a shitty incomplete, or paywalled lunch. $5 for the bread portion on my grilled cheese sandwich, no thanks.

[CrimsonWing69]

You seem to not understand that when people don't want something they don't pay for it. You might not have the mental capacity to understand perceived value. Not everyone feels the same way about a product that you do and it's a better value for that lunch for some than this game.

No offense but are you mentally challenged?

[TheDivine]

Totally agree. Gamers should get a second job so they can afford Nintendo's mobile games.

[MVGeneral]

No. The only people that will pay for a game are core gamers. Or parents of core gamers (if their young and have no job). Mainstream and casual gamers won't spend too much. A great example was the massive amounts of people who bought nintendo wii. None of them ended up buying games except for 1 or 2. Same with mobile gamers. Majority of them want it free. Why pay $10 for a good mario game. When other great mobile games, that are arguably better, is free.

[TheUndertaker85]

Buying lunch makes a lot more sense rather than buying a $10 endless runner game which are available in large amounts for free

[-Foxtrot]

For the amount of levels aswell which are super short and easy...Nintendo won't even be updating it.

[--bienio--]

I did that and Waste 7.99£. Never Again :/

[Simon_the_sorcerer]

You could have picked up some pretty decent games via Steam, PSN or XBL with that cash...

[thejigisup]

You should've just bought lunch bro

[Silly gameAr]

But, it has Mario in it. MARIO!

[nitus10]

You know not everyone likes Mario games.

Most people like particular genres and stick to them although within those genres they can still be picky.

[Simon_the_sorcerer]

That´s a lot of cash for a game like that...

[XanderZane]

Played the first 3 sections of the games and was ready to go to the first castle and they wanted me to pay to continue. lol!! Sorry Mario, Homey don't play that. At least let us get through the first level. The game should have been FREE to start with. Then charge $5 after the 1st two levels. Then another $5 after completing the 4th level. The game is alright, but nothing spectacular. The full game could have been $5 or $6 honestly.

@nitus10
Pay to win? lol!! You eventually will have to pay the full price of the game to beat it no matter what. The term, "Pay To Win" is more about paying for content that give you an advantage (or win) over other gamers who don't pay for the extra content.

I agree with "instantstupor". That's why I said , "The full game could have been $5 or $6 honestly." I was just suggesting an alternate paying method to get to $10 for the game.

[nitus10]

I can understand a pay to unlock where first one or two levels are free but what you have described is "pay to win" and that is the point where I delete the game.

[IanTH]

@nitus10 That isn't pay to win. He isn't paying to complete the levels, he's just suggesting the purchase price be broken up differently. More free levels to whet the appetite, then try to go for that $10 but by breaking up the current levels into two $5 packs. I don't think that would have solved any problems though. Game shouldn't cost more than $5. Most really premium games on mobile top out at $6.99 (most, not all). So many good games for $7 and less, with far more content. Whoever did the market research for the price point is definitely not long for their profession.

[n1kki6]

The average conversion for mobile apps is 3-5%. Nintendo converted 4% at $10 for 4 million in revenue over 24 hours, hardly a failure.

[Kran]

Yet if it was free to play, they'd be rolling in money.

PEOPLE ARE ACTUALLY COMPLAINING IT'S NOT FREE TO PLAY AND THEY DON'T HAVE PAYWALLS EVERY 5 SECONDS.

[OhMyGandhi]

I believe that there a plethora of issues as to why Mario Run didn't work out as well as planned. I don't really think price has anything to do with it. First and foremost, Mobile gaming on smart phones has done it's own thing for nearly 10 years. We've become accustomed to games, even good games coming onto the marketplace offering (at times) the entire experience for free, with additional DLC available for a few bucks more if people wanted it. The endless runner subgenre of mobile gaming was immensely popular....5 or so years ago.

The decision to price it as they did perfectly reflects how tone deaf they can become as a company. What I wished to have heard or seen is knowledge of similar, competing games in the category that have gone completely free. One of my favorites from several years ago was a game like "Run Roo Run", stupidly addictive, rock solid gameplay mechanics, and a metric ton of levels....for a buck.

I am not going to pay 10 bucks just because Mario has his face in it. There are countless other games that have done what Mario has done without charging insane prices.

But this is the crux of issue. It's not that just pricing, it's that when people wanted Mario on smart phones, who the hell thought that an endless runner was the answer? Smart phones are capable of so much more, and the experience does NOT have to be dumbed down for no reason.

I feel like gamers in general have become smarter with their money this generation. I feel like when we don't like something, we are vocal about it. Nintendo put an endless runner up for 10 bucks, and surprise, surprise, people aren't chomping at the bit. Sure, when things were getting hot and heavy around 2008 or so, we all were crazy for the N's touch for some good ol fashioned mobile gaming experiences and wanted to see what they could bring to the table. But SO MANY other developers have been "inspired" by the Nintendo of yesteryear and have released really good games for free or a buck or two - that is the problem, and it shows that Nintendo just either didn't realize or hadn't done the research to make a much more informed decision on their venture into this market.

[OldDanNew]

Who said it has failed? What an odd article.

[PixelGateUk]

Did you ignore the post or? It literally gives you context for the title.

[OldDanNew]

I just wondered who said the sales were ‘disappointing’. I know the share price has taken a hit but the game is broadly well reviewed and has been top of both charts for nearly a week. Not saying that’s not underperforming against some expectations perhaps, but by most measures that I can find it’s doing OK, despite concerns on price and connectivity.

[ShottyatLaw]

No, it's a fair question. They're also reporting that it's tracking ahead of Pokémon Go and other mobile titles. I don't keep up with that market too much, but $25+ million and 5 million downloads sounds pretty good.

[WeAreLegion]

Both charts?

[MVGeneral]

@RickyDinkyDan
& @Shottyatlaw

It was downloaded a lot. More than 30million supposedly. But hardly anyone bought it after the trial run. It's free to play for the first level or so. Then it charges $10.

[PixelGateUk]

'but by most measures that I can find it’s doing OK'

When was OK good enough for a huge company such as Nintendo?

[ShottyatLaw]

1996?

[kingjames18]

Is that a Trick question? N64=ok , Gamecube=ok, Wii=great saleswise, WiiU=horrible, Switch=I don't want to know...(Im pessimistic)

[x_BlackRose]

Since when was the N64 "ok"? Nostalgia aside, it's one of the most well revered and quality game consoles of all time. Don't give me that bs about graphics compared to PS1. Don't pass off crude opinions as fact

[Utalkin2me]

@x_BlackRose

Talk about throwing opinions around as fact.

[Mr-Writer]

@black Rose

By the fact it lost to PS1 and started the decline of Nintendo has a home console power house.

The PS1 shat all over it from a great height.

[Huguinho]

the kind of article n4g loves so much

[mad-dog]

The kind of Headline N4G loves so much.

[mad-dog]

Agreed. The Price is a failure. That's all.
Not that i bought it, but my Girlfriend did. She thought it was kinda short. There are other modes though.
But the gameplay was pretty good. Not how i want to play Mario though.

[Phil32]

The purpose of Nintendo entering mobile, according to the late Satoru Iwata, was to get greater brand awareness and perhaps people transferring over to Nintendo hardware. With Pokemon GO, we saw just this due to increased sales of Pokemon Sun and Moon compared to past installments and even past installments increasing in sales after many years being off sales charts. To say this mobile venture is doomed because fickle investors and a fickle stock market didn't turn out the greatest is disingenuous at best and intellectually dishonest at worst.

[Momo118]

lets hope not. older nintendo game seem ideal for mobile phones. they just need to change the way they approach the platform

[tehpees3]

No. The problem is smart phones are not gaming devices under any game developer's IPs. Not EA's. Not Konami's. Not Capcom's. Not Sony's. Not Microsoft's. Not Nintendo's.

[MonsterChef]

Umm what does your reply even mean? Last I checked EA has plenty of games available for smartphones. Hey I'm with you, I don't see phones as direct competition to gaming, but the real world and data don't back up that narrative. Whether you like it or not, the Mobil games space eats away to the handheld gaming market.

[tehpees3]

MonsterChef

I'm saying it isn't a reliable market. Yes the games sell but the people buying don't stick around enough to keep you in business. This whole thing about mobiles is a myth that gained credence. The market for mobile games is a fad market, if that makes sense. It isn't a market where dedicated players are buying games all the time on a frequent basis and thus not worth the stock these analysts and investors have constantly put in it.

That is why companies bail on it so fast after trying their luck.

[LOL_WUT]

They should just bring their VC to mobile IMO ;)

[WeAreLegion]

Emulators. We already have all their games on phones. ;)

[TheUndertaker85]

If an endless runner is priced at $10 where others are free and don't force transactions I wouldn't want to see what Nintendo believes VC games are worth on mobile. Particularly when VC games are already available free via other alternatives.

[Phil32]

It's weird to me how gamers and fans of Nintendo wanted them to do F2P and microtransactions for Super Mario Run, things that I thought were cancer to gaming, but now gamers want Nintendo to do that?

[Angeljuice]

It's on smartphone, it has nothing to do with gamers as such.
Nintendo don't have an army of fans on smartphone, so when they try to change the way a game is funded, they don't get the benefit of the doubt.

Again, it isn't gamers and it isn't fans of Nintendo, it's the real world (outside the gaming bubble).

[PixelGateUk]

I genunily think it's just teething pains for Nintendo. The mobile game market is so alien to the traditional video game market. There's also the problem of releasing it in various countries and platforms. Run is not out on android yet, which is a huge market within itself. Nintendo aren't exactly known for keeping in the loop with modern consumers these days

[Phil32]

Then it's a problem with mobile, devaluing games and products so people expect and feel entitled to get games free or ridden with microtransactions, developer livelihoods be damned.

[jaymacx]

@Phil32 You are exactly right! $10 isn't a lot of money and from what I played its better than most mobile games. My son (early elementary age) loves the game. People just want everything free! I personally prefer the upfront pay now method than the micro-transaction route.

[Gh05t]

@Philip32
Right... Because it was the consumers who force fed the developers microtransaction and cheap free games.

Yeah that's right it was other developers so how about you shove it with your "developers livelihoods" rant. It's supply and demand and as long as the supply from DEVELOPERS of cheep and free games exist the demand for overpriced runners will be low.

There is nothing more special about this game than the Rayman run games for 1/3 the price, Nintendo was trying to be greedy.

[MonsterChef]

People on here don't ever see the real world. I mention time and time again how Nintendo's dominance is at risk because of Mobil phone games and they pass me off as ignorant. They fail to see that parents (the ones that but things for their kids) seem to prefer to just give their kids one device that fits all.. That is why I'm certain that the switch will fall. It'll start off strong but buy the next holiday season, sails would have plateaued by then

[-Foxtrot]

It's not that...it's just people in general don't think it's worth that price for the content given and the fact Nintendo says they won't be adding new worlds/levels.

[OldDanNew]

Well, they added a new mode today.

[WeAreLegion]

They want cheaper. Not F2P.

[Aloren]

I don't want it to be f2p with microtransactions, but I see no reason why it should be this expensive when games like Rayman jungle run, Leo's fortune, or Limbo are half that price or less.

[stokedAF]

Drop the price. It might piss off a few people that already bought it but it could dramatically change the course of the sales.

[kylethemurphy]

I think $10 instead of something like $5 is what is souring people. I don't do a ton of gaming on my phone but $5 seems like a great value for a AAA mobile game. $10 for a runner? I'm sure some people don't mind but that's not my flavor of entertainment.

[stokedAF]

I agree. I don't think anyone wants microtransactions so I don't know where the "it should be free" argument keeps coming from. If it was 3-5 dollars I think a nicer chunk of the 30 million that dled the trial would have purchased.

[mad-dog]

That is exactly it. People are used to two dollar games. This game would have sold tenfold if it was 4,99.

[TheUndertaker85]

An endless runner game is in no way AAA. Even $5 is pushing it.

I can buy full Grand Theft Auto games right now on Android for $5. An endless runner definitely doesn't provide the value of GTA, Mario branded or not.

[Big_Game_Hunters]

Pokemon go is the most downloaded mobile game of all time, Mario run has "dissapointing sales" according to who again? Sorry i'm having a hard time finding that official quote, gonna have to link it to me.

Anyway Pretty sure Nintendo's mobile " adventure " isn't ending anytime soon.

[PixelGateUk]

Pokemon Go had no input from Nintendo what so ever. The only link between the two in Nintendo has a fairly sized share hold in the Pokmon group. In fact, by your comment --

''Expectations for the Mario app were heightened by the summer craze for "Pokémon Go," a free-to-play smartphone game developed by a Nintendo affiliate.

But analysts pointed to differences between "Super Mario Run" and "Pokémon Go." The Pokémon game earns revenue from small in-app purchases by players, such as virtual incense to lure the animated creatures appearing on screen. Co-developer Niantic, a spinout from Google parent Alphabet Inc., has been adding fresh content to keep players' attention.''

Anyway, you only reacted to the title so hopefully this is useful to you

[Big_Game_Hunters]

No i read the whole thing, Using Stock changes for an entire company and Unnamed/unspecified Anlysts, really isn't the strongest evidence to support Mario run's "failures" and Nintendo ending its mobile "Adventure".

[earlygreenway]

Its a meant to spark quality discussion. Post something BGH! I'd be happy to join a conversation.

[maybelovehate]

I plan to buy it once it is available for Android.

[badz149]

Nah...pretty sure the game will be pirated like crazy on Android. Why do you think they chose iOS?

[yomfweeee]

Can you pirate games that require connectivity to their servers? I didn't think you could.

[Utalkin2me]

@badz149

Pretty sure games that require you to connect to their servers can not be pirated.

[badz149]

really? I am an android user myself but don't really know how android app pirating is done nowadays. but this game is always connected type? WTH?

[xX1NORM1Xx]

If they wanted to make an endless runner they should have released it years ago when that type of game was huge nows more puzzle match 3 type games maybe a reworked dr mario woukd have been better

[Ra3v3r]

This is also a misconception that Nintendo have done little to address. People have seen MARIO running non stop and assume it's an endless runner where in reality its short, roughly 60 second long SMB levels with jumping, enemies and mechanics that change your direction of movement and the objective is to improve your score and collect the special coins. 24 levels, 3 difficulties and rally mode. The should have put the ghost house in the trial to show people it doesn't involve endlessly running left to right.

£8 is too much for some people but dismissing it as a simple endless runner is probably a bigger reason for some people not to even consider the purchase.

[kylethemurphy]

Has Square Enix gone through this much shit on one of their $10-$20 Final Fantasy mobile remakes?

[earlygreenway]

well, because they are ports, you know exactly what you are getting. FF with its turn based game play has a natural home in mobile gaming IMHO. Your changing the essence of Super Mario for this iPhone game. I think its too big a leap. I think the price tag is for the IP.

[kylethemurphy]

They still felt heavily altered graphically and not even in a good way. Mechanics were left untouched but I don't remember this much fuss over the FF games that were essentially the original with plain android menus and graphics that were antialiased to a super smooth blur. And FFIX is still 20.99.

[DarXter]

Except that those games contain roughly 50-70h of gameplay...

[Soc5]

Just release Punch Out!

[PixelGateUk]

Or Mario party...oh wait, that could work?!

[ILostMyMind]

Welcome to the gaming market for smartphones !!

[NotanotherReboot]

Nintendo...just go third party. You keep making stupid mistakes and you can only keep making stupid mistakes for so long. You're still great at making proper games (not this mobile junk) and that should be your focus. Leave the hardware side to the other companies.

[jholden3249]

Nintendo is standing by their principles of not ripping people off with microtransactions.

But if people wanna whine and cry because they WANT to be nickel and dimed, I say let em!

Go ahead Nintendo, nickel and dime the livin *** out of people. It seems to be what they want, and you'll make way more money too. So screw em. People are too stupid for their own good.

Just be sure to keep that "pay up front for everything" as an option.

[SynestheticRoar]

Stay in your lane.

[Fist4achin]

Mobile games can be very lucrative, but the mobile market can also be very finicky.

[earlygreenway]

Doesn't MarioKart seem like a more logical mobile game?

[SunnyZ]

Doesn't have to be the end.
Could be the beginning of a new future where Nintendo are not massive douchebags.

HAHAHA who am I kldding.

It's the end.

[Dan_scruggs]

This is getting insane. I look on the app store and the game is at the number one spot of top grossing games. Seriously. What else do people want?

[sk8ofmnd]

Foxtrot at top:

I couldnt have said it better myself 😂

[originaljohn]

I cant say I agree with this view on Nintendo's mobile business. Miitomo is obviously a trojan horse to get people signed up to MyNintendo, which I feel will turn out to be a master stroke when we get all Nintendo Switch details this Jan. I can remember Nintendo expecting 10 Million downloads for the App. At this moment I don't have the overall user figures but it's sitting on google play in the 5 - 10 million bracket.

Pokemon Go has been extremely successful for Nintendo on 2 fronts.
1) They own a massive hit IP in the mobile market - the author downplay's Nintendo's involvement and ownership of the 'Pokemon Group' which I assume in this case is the Pokemon Company (owned by Nintendo, GameFreak & Creatures).
2) This has increased sales of existing Pokemon games on Nintendo's own hardware - the author does't even mention this, probably doesn't even know it's happened. Pokemon Go also raised monumental awareness of the brand before Pokemon Sun & Moon launched on the 3DS both record breaking releases for a handheld with less users then it predecessor.

Super Mario Run has also been incredibly successful in the account that it's outpacing Pokemon Go and has only been released on one mobile platform (iOS).

So in summary Nintendo have been involved in 3 mobile Apps which have propelled them from non existent in the mobile business to one of the main players in 2016.

[TheUndertaker85]

1) Pokemon Go is developed by Niantic Labs. Nintendo only has rights to a fraction of Pokemon Go. So in this instance no, Nintendo does not own Pokemon Go or even hold a majority of the stock. https://www.bloomberg.com/n...

2) Used game sale increases also do not help Nintendo.

Pokemon Go also released exclusively to iOS on inception. Further download counts do not represent sales as there's the free trial version included in the very same download count. Reports suggest that Nintendo sees 4% conversion to the paid product.

Miitomo isn't revolutionary in terms of what has been available by any means with the product being left out of the conversation even by Nintendo.

[SarcasticDuck]

i just gave it a 5min. check and i must say, it's not even a game i would play like crazy for free. a 10$ pay wall is f`cking stupid in this game. Microtransactions is the way to go in mobile games but at the same time i'm afraid of what someone like Nintendo might block behind pay walls if they change it to a microtrasaction game

[kevnb]

I think expectations were simply too high.

[Rachel_Alucard]

It's dumb when you realize you can buy TWEWY, FF6, dragon quest 8, and san andreas for a similar price point on both ios and android

[_LarZen_]

LOL! Failure? It has made 14.000.000 dollar in 3 days.

[n1kki6]

The hell are people talking about. The average conversion for mobile apps is 3-5%. Nintendo converted 4% at $10 for 4 million in revenue over 24 hours, hardly a failure.

[plmkoh]

Reasonably quality titles like Hitman, Lara Croft, Deus Ex GO are $5 at launch and often 0.99c on sale. There is no way this Mario game with less content can charge $10.

[NohansenBoy]

Nintendo just doesn't understand modern gaming.

[NeoGamer232]

So how do people expect Nintendo to make money from Super Mario Run?

They say $14 is a bad price, so what is the right price where Nintendo gets to make a profit?

You get 6 worlds with four levels each. Which ends up being $2.33 per world. Or .58 cents a level.

I guess people think it would be better to be gouged to buy coins or having to spend 100's of hours to unlock each world/level for free.

That is the problem now. Every game is free and the developers are monetizing through trickle transactions. Whereas Nintendo comes out and says pay this price to play infinitely free of constant trickle charges or ads and gamers cry foul...

I know people that have spent hundreds and thousands of dollars on games like WoW, Clash of Clans, Eve, etc. Yet a single $14 charge is too much. Whatever.

[arkard]

The damn thing made 14million dollars in 3 days! It's a run game, I'm guessing the costs were no where near 14 million.

[OtakuDJK1NG-Rory]

First of all. Nintendo was never taking mobile seriously.

[ghaleon1980]

What a joke, Tsk tsk for approving this article N4G. Super Mario Run is actually being downloaded faster than Pokémon Go. 21 million in revenue in the first 4 days. See the article below.

http://www.businessinsider....

[ozstar]

If you believe stock brokers have any idea about videogames, ive got some Sega shares to sell you. The fundamental ignorance of investors is plainly obvious to anyone playing videogames. Article is bait.

[N8]

I could never pay $10 for a mobile game. It's a mobile game smh.

[Manubiggs]

The target audience who spend much more than that on gems will buy it an dthey possibly don't read reviews. It has been downéloaded 37 million times so far ... this is just the beginning.

[KuroKiko]

Well.. Oddly Nintendo fans will surely buy anything with a Nintendo brand on it. You can rehash a handheld for a couple of times and they will still buy it.

[CrimsonWing69]

It just isn't an interesting enough title for me to spend $10 on, sorry I'm not a Nintendo fanboy that'll eat up anything with the Nintendo brand on it.

[x_BlackRose]

Jump to conclusions much?

[productivity]

It's 12.99 Canadian to play the game, you get 3 really bland levels and that's it. You have to pay to unlock 99% of the game. I don't mind paying for a game but when you have something like Pokemon Go that doesn't charge you for anything unless you want to spend money then that's a problem for Mario Run.

[Hotabang]

im someone who hates dlc's and hates microtransactions, I found that $10 for this game is pretty good. I dont usually play mobile games, but this one is so well made. The mechanics are so simple but the level design is so good, it can get very challenging. Keep in mind each level can be played 3 times (pink, purple, then green coins, it gets harder each step. I.e: world 1-1 can be played 3 times, the different colored coins unlock after you collect the previous one).

However, for people who are used to tapping on "free" or "$0.99" this can come as quite a shock. People should remember that there are no micro-transactions in this game but, again, this is nintendo's lack of awareness on how mobile gamers (both casuals or not) work. (for example: pokemon go is being played by people who have never played a game before or never even knew what pokemon was and they threw so much money on microtransactions there)

EDIT: Just realized that i have to be online to play this game.... 3 hours before my flight -____- I really wanted to go ham on it on the airplane ride, fk this game lmao

[spartan112g]

After reading these comments, I'll say that 90% of you don't understand the state of the mobile market and 98% of you don't understand how the stock market works enough to realize that they go down because people sell. Not for any other outside reason. They go up when people buy stock and it goes down when people sell. A bunch of people were probably just cashing out.

Also, if you're whining about a quality game being $10, then don't buy it. God forbid a company try to take the mobile market seriously.

[acekaze]

I agree nintendo went with the wrong model, they should have made the game free to play, then you die you cant play anymore! Wait 1h for lives, then pay your eyes off for a damn live, just like every single damn free to play game out there that I tryed and stopped playing because I hate waiting, and I really am not going to payfor something has Trivial has "lifes" in a game, all said and Done, I like paying for my games, and playing, how I want, when I want and the way I want depending on the content the game has I might end up shoving the 10 bucks.

[Unborkirkster]

i think this is a case of Nintendo yet again being over confident in their brand. Its their hubris... they can't just rely on their brand recognition and justifying selling a mario game for 10 bucks. Their software sells very very on their hardware but thats just it, they have no competition in that regard. They need to learn to be competitive if they want to survive and they are having a hard go at just that..

[madpuppy]

Nintendo was all aflutter after seeing how well the Poke'mon GO mobile game did, they smugly thought that they were going to have the same success except they were too greedy to follow the same model as Poke'mon GO. and are now hearing https://www.youtube.com/wat... to all that sweet Mario money.

[mad-dog]

Dumbass Headline. Mario Run's failure is the Price.
There are no failureS.

[MilkMan]

6 worlds, 24 levels.
download for free, play a few levels then pay $10 bucks for the real game. NO IAP EVER.
I don't see what the problem with this is.
You have folks that pay millions (not kidding) on ridiculous play to win games on their cells and you never hear a peep.
Nintendo wants to give you a nice, full game for a good price and they get scolded.
The thing is, mobile markets are the absolute retarded second cousin six times removed of gaming.
It's not about quality or value for dollar, it's about feelings.
besides most game are throwaways.
Personally, Ive tried "gaming" on my cell, it's just not even close. It's a weak semblance of what could be. distractions like candy crush and Mario run are fine because they require little to no brainpower, just mindless thumb pressing. Anything more complicated than that and you are swimming in dangerous waters.

Nintendo is Nintendo, they are treading new waters here and they are seeing what sticks and what doesn't. I'm sure they thought as well as I thought that one price and you're done is a good thing for mobile, but obviously, it isn't. Cell phone customers want to pay 5 bucks per level to get more coins so that they can unlock the next two levels and pay more money to unlock special powers for mario at 2 bucks per pop for single use.

The fact that android was not upon its initial release was a mistake, but one Nintendo will learn from.

If their mobile efforts don't do well, then the Switch is in a dangerous position to be the pole bearer for making money.
Not sure id like to be in that position.

[EdMcGlone]

Amazing how people complain about microtransactions and shovelware on phones, but then when someone credited comes along and offers a quality game at a standadlone price, people still complain anyway. There's no pleasing most people.

[Artemidorus]

Price is too high.

[Kyizen]

The free to play model would of worked for this. 10 lives and if you run out got to wait, get lives from friends, or pay for more. Transactions for mario suits, other characters and color swaps. And then worlds which require friends to unlock or pay to proceed. They would make bank...

[kaiserxblue]

who's this idiot that wrote this article, he knows shit and it's not even funny.
Recently Nintendo has announced 40 million downloads until now...yes I know it's donwload and not purchases,
But even if they sell 2 million out of the 40 million it's like 20 million dollars and apple only keeps 25% of that income so Nintendo just made 15 million dollars for a mario run game. Don't tell me you in 4 days. So don't fuking say this was a flop and that Nintendo already is R.I.P. in the mobile market.
Not to mention that it's not even on android yet for business reasons.

[xtheblackparade]

Giving up after a single failure. I don't think that's how Nintendo got established in the world.

[Sentionaut]

This is a terrible article.

[PixelGateUk]

read the title boom

[KakashiHotake]

It seems like for every great decision Nintendo makes they always cancel it out with an equally dumb decision.

[joab777]

It's the content being offered. Yeah, if it's a complete rpg then $10 is fine. Even if they released Mario World or Mario Galaxy they could get $10, bit for a runner?

I don't get why they didn't do f2p and add micros for simple stupid things. A bunch of people would drop a ton of money on this game if it were free. It's psychological, but it works. We would rather give you $20 in increments than $10 at one time.

[mastershredder]

It's not the fact that they are trying to make as much money as possible on a game, it's the fact that Nintendo has stooped so low as to make a running game. That's really thinking outside the box Nintendo. You have had over 10 years to take notes, create and release something to mobile (even though you have been resistant as heck), but what do you release? just another runner, but this time...Mario. You so don't get it... and your appetite for consumer base $ is pretty sickeningly obvious.

[joab777]

40 million downloads in 4 days! No, it's just the beginning!!

[CoryHG]

The game is enjoyable. However it crashes whenever i try to link facebook account. There isn't a lot of replayability if you don't buy it though.

[Fantasticzig]

I honestly don't get the hate. I'm enjoying the hell out of the game. Rally mode makes it endlessly enjoyable. I still haven't gotten all the special coins (each of which unlock a secret world), which would take a LOT more time than it does to breeze through the levels/story. Tons of unlockables and surprises through Rally. The game keeps on giving. They should have included a feature that lets users design and share their own levels. Maybe then more people would find it worth $10. But personally, I have to assume the haters simply haven't done much more than breeze through story.

[Nes_Daze]

WiiU failed, Super Mario Run fails, and Switch will fail. The Wii was luck, a fad, that's why the WiiU failed and Nintendo was forced to abandon the name, I said it all along, even when the odd console launched. I hope Nintendo soon returns to their roots instead of continuing to make a quick dime off casual gamers, if this continues, they might as well scale down, just like their share price is doing.

[Avalanche]

i feel like if nintendo sold 40 copies of this game its a success because of how little effort/money went to this.

ITS ALL PROFIT