It looks like Nintendo, after years of failing to follow in the footsteps of its most fierce competitors Sony’s PlayStation and Microsoft’s Xbox, is set to venture into gaming applications for phones. The revelation that they had finally shaken off their aversion to non-console platform gaming and were taking what has been described as a “drastic, bold shift in strategy” was revealed in an announcement by Nintendo on Tuesday. The company’s president Satoru Iwata suggested that the shift in tactics was in order to enable it to reach hundreds of millions of new users.
The Facts behind the Headlines
The Wall Street Journal reported that Nintendo will be partnering with DeNA Co.; the renowned Japan based mobile gaming company, to develop “gaming applications’ for non-console devices such as smartphones and iPads. This may mean that you would be able to play some of Nintendo’s most iconic games including your favourite Super Mario Bros. game on your phone, where ever you are and whenever you want to.
Although this announcement may have come as a surprise to some fans, it is difficult to see how they would have been able to continue to survive without doing so. After all the world of mobile gaming has steadily increased in recent years and has moved on from the free to play games that DeNA pioneered for the commuters of Japan before even Smartphones were created. While Nintendo have so far resisted the urge to make their games available on smartphones and tablets, they have been left with little choice to evolve as the market has expanded.
The Bottom Line
Nintendo will therefore of course, even with its legions of followers, be facing some stiff competition and will really need to come up with some gaming applications that will blow users away. This competition is not, of course, just coming from XBox and PlayStation. There is now a huge variety of gaming applications available, with online gambling applications and video slots games applications among the most popular. This is of no great surprise when you have a closer look at some of the games on offer, the improved quality of mobile graphics and the thrill provided by live gameplay.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL18yMRIfoszFLSgML6ddazw180SXMvMz5&v=ONsp_bmDYXc&feature=player_embedded
Originally published March 25, 2015. Updated November 29, 2022.
