Nintendo Launching Super Mario Run App for iOS Dec 15

Nintendo Co. plans to launch its highly anticipated mobile app "Super Mario Run" on Dec. 15, charging $9.99 in the U.S. for people who want to play the full game.

Most mobile games are free to play and generate revenue by selling virtual goods designed to enhance the player's experience. Mobile games are expected to reach $36.9 billion in global revenue this year, according to research firm Newzoo BV.

"Super Mario Run," Nintendo's first-ever smartphone game featuring one of its iconic characters, will be among the more costly games available when it launches. Among paid games available today, prices range from 99 cents to more than $20. Some of the most popular paid games include Microsoft Corp.'s "Minecraft: Pocket Edition" and Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.'s "Heads Up!"

Nintendo surprised fans and investors when it announced "Super Mario Run" -- a side-scrolling run-and-jump game familiar to Mario fans -- at an Apple Inc. iPhone event in September. On Tuesday, the company said people can play parts of the game's three modes for free.

Nintendo didn't say whether "Super Mario Run" will work with Switch, the new console-handheld hybrid device due for release in March. The game will launch for iPhones and iPads in 151 countries and regions, and arrive on Android devices at a later date.

David Gibson, an analyst at Macquarie Securities, said $10 is a premium price and that people were expecting the game to cost between $3 and $5. "You'd see much bigger adoption if it was a more reasonable price," he said.

After previously long resisting the smartphone space, Nintendo in March took its first steps with "Miitomo," a free social app it developed in partnership with DeNA Co. Two more apps based on popular Nintendo games—the role-playing franchise "Fire Emblem" and the community simulation "Animal Crossing"—are due this fall.

Write to Sarah E. Needleman at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 15, 2016 11:05 ET (16:05 GMT)

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