Mario Nintendo.jpg

With the unveiling of Super Mario Run there's a lot of talk around Nintendo, its brand and its potential profitability. Share prices have jumped, which is something we've seen before with Pokémon GO; there's certainly a sense that bringing Mario to mobile is a key moment for Nintendo's efforts in the sector, and can have a positive impact on existing hardware sales and the upcoming Nintendo NX.

That's certainly the focus of this article by The Wall Street Journal (subscription based), which consults a variety of analysts about Super Mario Run and its importance to the broader Nintendo picture.

To get the NX part in first, article author Takashi Mochizuki cites analysts as saying they expect details on the system "by early October". That's certainly logical, as hitting a March release requires a period of time to reveal the concept, build anticipation and line-up pre-orders and retail relationships.

In terms of Super Mario Run, Dr. Serkan Toto is referenced as predicting one billion downloads for the game, which would be hugely impressive; bear in mind Pokémon GO has only just hit half that number, 500 million downloads, and it's a record breaking app. Long term it could be possible, though, and it was clarified that this is referencing downloads of the free initial offering; players will have the choice to pay a one-off cost for the full game.

WSJ points out that, in the case of Pokémon GO, there were increases in sales of main series Pokémon games on the 3DS alongside the app taking off, which we've seen in chart results. Hideki Yasuda, an analyst at Ace Research Institute, highlights that smart device releases join other efforts from Nintendo in serving as marketing efforts, increasing brand awareness and directing consumers to its dedicated gaming products.

Smartphone games, theme-park projects and all other character-licensing deals are just a marketing tool for Nintendo to let people become interested in its console games.

That goal to guide smart device owners and other consumers back towards Nintendo's consoles can, as we argued recently prior to Super Mario Run's unveiling, be a significant positive for the company.

Do you agree that success for the Super Mario Run game can be a benefit to systems like 3DS and NX, and do you believe analyst predictions of an NX reveal by early October? Let us know in the comments.

[source wsj.com]