Early this week, Nintendo released its fifth mobile game, Dr. Mario World. The game modernises the classic action puzzle formula with a unique touchscreen twist and online multiplayer. So, how has it been received by the general public?
According to Sensor Tower Store Intelligence data, there were more than two million installs within the first 72 hours. In contrast, Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp had 6 million downloads in the same period, Fire Emblem Heroes had 4.9 million downloads and Super Mario Run had just over 4 million downloads. Dr. Mario, however, did rack up seven times as many installs as the brand-new IP, Dragalia Lost. In saying this, the Cygames-developed title had a rather limited launch.
In terms of in-app transactions, players have already spent an estimated $100,000 on Dr. Mario World since it launched. This makes it Nintendo's lowest grossing mobile game release so far. In contrast, Fire Emblem banked a cool $11.6 million over the same period of time, and even Dragalia Lost managed to pull an extra $150,000. Still, Dr. Mario World has done quite well when considering the series it is based on and the limited amount of marketing it received leading into its release.
Were you one of the people who downloaded Dr. Mario World in the first 72 hours? Have you made any in-app purchases yet? Leave a comment below.
[source sensortower.com]
Comments 57
Downloaded it, pretty fun and laidback. Hearts are annoying and you need a lot of coins to get something new
People using money on this. Imo. Crazy.
Stop bragging about money made by these godawful mobile games.
I played about 40 levels and some PVP. I was done by the time I’d run out of hearts so never felt any need to buy more. Not that I would have. Then I fired it up again yesterday and thought I’m done with this and deleted it.
I downloaded it, it’s my first Dr. Mario game and it’s different than what I expected. I always thought it was just a Mario themed Tetris, but Tetris it ain’t.
I’ve made it to level 17, but haven’t been able to pass it. I need to get rid of the one block in the middle, but it’s also the only block that my capsules just phase right through, preventing me from destroying it.
Up until then I was somewhat enjoying it. However, I still have unlimited heart energy. I’m not sure when the trial stage ends and the game turns on the heart meter for real, but after playing stage 17 a handful of times I can see it being the usual mobile game money scheme.
It’s a shame, I’d rather just pay for the game like Super Mario Run. Granted, SMR was pricey for what it is, but I’ve left mobile gaming long ago when it spiraled into the depths of thievery it currently resides in.
On a side note, I find the slight delay in loading the game, loading between levels, info/character screens before a level, and the 3 second warning a level is starting to be really annoying.
The rare mobile games I play are snappy and that’s what I want when I only play them for a few minutes here and there throughout the day. Just a nitpick though.
Oh well, back to Tetris it is.
It's actually a lot of fun. I bought diamonds.. Google offered me £2 off a £5vspend so I used that. Very addictive
I downloaded, played one stage, and deleted. Just seemed dull.
Played the crap out of Dragalia Lost for a while, though.
this'll be good for a laid back time, the online multiplayer really surprised me. some matches freeze up tho so i hope those get patched out soon
Dragalia Lost is the best one so far imo.
@Kang81 Just to be clear, Dr. Mario World isn't classic Dr. Mario. However, it's somewhat similar to a minigame called Germ Buster in some Dr. Mario games.
Enjoying this, passed 40 levels and a few PvP games. I don't see any reason to spend money on this, but I never do for mobile games anyway.
But I'll keep playing this for now anyway, its my current go-to mobile title.
Doesn’t look like a smash hit now, but I am sure Nintendo will be ok with the earnings
I downloaded and using the game. Very very fun. My first one was on the game boy. It's different, but I like it. I never missed a stage, always 3 stars, so I don't need hearts to buy until now.
Its alright, im to 98th level and it's just recently gotten to where the levels are super tight without spending. I don't have an issue throwing a few dollars into a game where it gives you some value progressing, but consumables in a puzzle game don't really do that for me. The multiplayer is quite fun, and you can play that all day. I'll likely chip away at this for a while but I don't see it having lasting appeal
Eh... No.
I prefer Dr. Mario games in physical from previous machines.
Even i still neglected my Dr. Luigi from my Wii U. 😅
@KoopaTheGamer
Ah, ok, was the original Dr. Mario more like Tetris? I thought it seemed that way when I was younger, but I wasn’t into puzzle games as a kid like I am now.
Sorry microtransactions are terrible. I'll skip.
@Galenmereth have you played any? For every 'free' mobile game that is blatently a cash grab there is one that is value for money, makes good use of the host platform and deserves to be played.
Apple keep software available indefinitely on their servers so a decade later you can still download old games (Good luck redownloading Wiiware purchases) and is Google delist games their source files can be obtained online.
In 2019 it is an outdated view to suggest phones are not a 'real' gaming platform and that mobile titles are inferior to console or PC titles.
I hope this game will perform better than animal crossing and super Mario run. Dr. Mario fits better in mobile gaming.
Am I the only one who thinks it is boring
@Kang81 Yeah, the classic is similar to Tetris and Puyo Puyo. It has stages with set number of viruses, and you have to connect 4 blocks (viruses or capsules) of the same colour to make them disappear.
Fire emblem heros brought in 11 million in 3 days?
What is wrong with people?
It’s great and gameplay fits for short bursts of gaming and I like it please don’t hate me
Played through the first twenty levels and promptly deleted it. It’s not worth my time I can tell
All with "Gambling mechanics in a game targeting Kids" 🙃
Funny how all the community outrage goes out the window when no longer convenient.
Downloaded it and played the free trial until I hit lv. 40....then the level grinding begins 😑 To get a new character you need 4000 coins but you only win around 150-200 per stage so that gives you an idea. Also I tried to link my LINE and Facebook accounts but only let's me link my Nintendo Account. Nowhere as addictive as the late Miitomo and Fire Emblem Heroes and ACPC are much more player satisfactory. In the meantime it's back to my 3DSXL.....
Hard, HARD pass on this. Not due to these numbers, or anything, though. I don't really care for Dr. Mario, and I despise mobile games.
I'm a bit burned out on Nintendo mobile games, so I'm abstaining from Dr. Mario for now, but I may come back to it later.
It is relatively non-invasive in terms of microtransactions. If it fails to meet financial expectations... I fear that will change.
@RadioHedgeFund Really? Try playing Flight Control, Trainyard, or the original Robot Unicorn Attack on a modern iPhone.
Played 3 levels, not really enjoying it. I have Dr. Mario on the my 3DS (I think it's a DSi game) that I can play for free.
@Agramonte More like people didn’t really care about this game before and after it was released. I’ve seen plenty of people hate on the loot box elements in Nintendo’s mobile games especially with MK tour.
I mean, $100,000 is probably the most a Dr. Mario game has ever made since the original title.
$100,000 is...not a lot...at all.
@Agramonte
If FIFA and NBA 2K were free-to-play and not annualized franchises, I'm sure people would be much, much more accepting of their scummy mobetization schemes.
@Agramonte
I'm outraged whether it be Nintendo or anyone else.
But you keep spinning your little narrative.
I’m hooked and I haven’t spent a thing. Stage 63 atm. Vs mode is pretty good fun
@somnolentsurfer but if you have an iPhone 4 or older knocking around you can still download and play them. I keep an old one around for this exact purpose.
@westman98 Wait, so now all publishers need to do is go F2P and it fix it all... I guess when the casino comps your room you do no gambling 🙄. Really, not an issue either way.
@SBandy I do not have "outrage" either way.
If you divide revenue into installation base you realize tons of people still just playing the game and not buying anything. Same way if you do it with the 45million playing FIFA. Tons don't buy it.
My problem is the self serving High moral ground nonsense - that seems to vanish from one publisher to the next for the exact same thing.
@Agramonte
I know there are people who blindly follow a publisher / company and overlook their particular faults whilst criticising others for the same thing but I didn't see anyone on this thread actually doing that and by you acting like people were you are just as extreme as they are.
Unless you can provide examples of course.
@SBandy Obviously "all the community outrage" would be to your point 1... and not really to point 2. Seeing how about an issue has been going on for ages and only a handful keep getting the brunt of it.
@Agramonte
You lost me. What points?
Correct me if I am wrong here but were you not making the accusation that a lot of Nintendo fans were giving a pass to the pay to win model of a Nintendo mobile game when they wouldn't for non Nintendo games?! But it appears you cannot actually back that accusation up with examples.
@SBandy
"You lost me. What points?"
1. "...people who blindly follow a publisher / company and overlook their particular faults whilst criticising others for the same thing...." (yes)
2. "...I didn't see anyone on this thread actually doing that." (irrelevant)
I am making the accusation that yes, Nintendo - and just about everyone else - gets a pass when it comes to "gambling mechanics that target our children" (not about P2W, this is about "Gacha systems") except when it is convenient to piss on the usual suspect.
@Agramonte
OK but with what you said here:
"Funny how all the community outrage goes out the window when no longer convenient."
You were clearly trying to have a go at people on this site when it wasn't happening. You were trying to bring a bit of drama where there was none.
@SBandy It still would be point 1. Actually the fact that there is no "drama" is what makes my point.
@Agramonte
I see through what you were doing. Other people can make up their own minds.
@Agramonte
Publishers going F2P and ending needless annualization won't
"fix" scummy microtransactions, but people would at least expect the need to monetization and understand why those microtransactions are there.
Fortnite is F2P, is not annualized, has non-scummy microtransactions, and is a huge success. A lot of games, including the annualized sports games and Nintendo's current mobile efforts, should follow that model.
@RadioHedgeFund the downside is apple keeps changing ios and if devs dont update their game, you cannot download or it might not run even if you can.
I have about 4 paid apps that i truly wish i could still use but were never updated to 74-bit
Was never a fan of Dr. Mario. Tetris is the only drop-down puzzler for me.
AC doesnt have the magic of console releases. I play Dragalia occasionally. But Mario Run is the only Nintendo mobile app I spent money on. And i am good with that. I enjoy mario run and hate micro transactions.
The only downside is even though mario is a paid app it still requires internet connection, which is lame and a pain where i live.
I downloaded it day one. I deleted it day one too. This game is a microtransaction orgasm.
@konbinilife this is why I keep said iPhone 4 knocking around. It is frozen in time and as long as it holds out those games will always be playable. It sucks that old games become obsolete as iOS updates. We've seen some older games like Rolando get rereleased which is nice.
@RadioHedgeFund
Yeah well. It's just the nature of computing I guess. It's not an isolated iOS problem.
I can't play some very old Window games on Windows 10 either. And need some tools like dosbox to play the really old games.
At least there are some tools for Windows, that makes me play some of the old games. We haven't seen similar tools for iOS, and probably won't see any because of Apple's strict policies around App Store, and no way to side load apps on iOS.
Both Apple and Google provides great tools for developers to upgrade their apps for newer versions of iOS and Android. So it's the publishers and content holder's responsibility to keep their apps updated. I do not think we can blame Apple or Google here. They have to move forward.
Uninstalled it as soon as I realized it can't be played offline.
@Kang81 I personally prefer the original Dr. Mario to Tetris. But YMMV. This version is like a cross between Dr. Mario and Candy Crush Saga.
I was quite enjoying this, not having ever played a Dr. Mario game before. But the stupidly limited hearts trying to extract my money, and repeatedly losing progress to lost connections were getting frustrating, so I thought I’d check out the original on Switch Online, and man is it hard! I’m a reasonably decent Tetris player (not amazing, but generally top 30 in 99, which I guess makes me above average), but gave up in frustration after a couple of levels of Dr. Mario. I guess you had to learn it before getting old.
@westman98 Well, for something like NBA2K - NBA and player union expects 155 Million each year from 2K, regardless if the roster/teams change or not. That is before a line of code is done. We all need to pay also.
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