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Nintendo Pushes 'Start' On Mobile Game Development

Mar 17, 2015, 7:09 AM by Eric M. Zeman

Nintendo today announced plans to develop games for mobile devices, including smartphones and tablets. The move is an about-face for the gaming company, which has steadfastly insisted on supporting only its gaming consoles. In order to kickstart its development efforts, Nintendo has partnered with DeNA, a Japanese mobile gaming company, to bring games to market quicker. Nintendo and DeNA are each investing about $182 million in one another, with Nintendo acquiring a 10% stake in DeNA and DeNA acquiring a 1.2% stake in Nintendo. Together the companies will launch a "multi-device membership service for the global market" in the fall encompassing consoles, PCs, tablets, and smartphones. "This will allow us to build a bridge between smart devices and gaming consoles," said Nintendo President Satoru Iwata. "It doesn't mean smart devices will eat away at gaming consoles, it will create an entirely new type of demand." Nintendo did not share details about the first game, but said it will not create "hand-me-down" versions of its existing games. Nintendo's most popular titles include Super Mario Bros. and Mario Kart. Nintendo has lost significant share in the gaming market due to its stubborn refusal to adapt to mobile devices. Sony and Microsoft, with their PlayStation and Xbox brands, have embraced console gaming and mobile gaming. Nintendo isn't giving up on consoles and is working on something called the Nintendo NX. Nintendo didn't provide any details about the NX.

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gloopey1

Mar 17, 2015, 7:37 AM

Super Mario & Zelda - Coming to a Tablet Near You

Oh yeah, it's on like Donkey Kong!

Doom Wolf

I really hope they just don't come up with a remake for the mobile. Also, that they don't charge you for unlocking stuff... since when did it become acceptable to pay for unlocking characters and items?

T Bone

I am all for them moving into mobile gaming...but there's no way that mobile gaming will ever be as good as console gaming or PC gaming. Not only are touchscreen controls fairly limited, but the size and scope of games are limited as well. There ...
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thebriang

Mar 17, 2015, 11:31 AM

If they were smart...

They would just create an official android nintendo emulator that links to the Nintendo Shop so people can pay for legit games.
Require it to sync with an official wiimote controller (or Pro), run it full screen and right there are profitable hardware and software sales.
Instead it sounds they are going to try to reinvent the wheel of mobile gaming with yet another third rate mobile gaming company who need to eat their share of the profits. Good luck with that, cuz that's never been tried before.
Maybe if you make them buy a figurine or three with an NFC chip in it, maybe that will make it sound cooler.
Or make it red and call it 3D something or other, maybe that's the key to mobile success for the Big N.
What a shame, so much wast...
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tonyc1978

With any other company i see this being successful! With DeNa, it will fail. DeNa has too many properties and they kill those with lack of fan interaction and genuine improvements. Want proof, look up Transformers Legends. its a sad money grab!

I...
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