This article comes from cooperative media iFanr, INSIDE is authorized to reprint.
From “Pokémon GO” to “Super Mario Run” to “Holy Fire: Heroes”, the old console manufacturer Nintendo’s “Road to Mobile Games” started late and was slow.
However, the mobile game market, which has only lost three sub-digits, is becoming more and more important for Nintendo. Nintendo’s latest financial report (for the six months ended September 30, 2017, which is also the first half of the 2018 fiscal year), mobile games have become one of the top three financial reporting topics as important as Switch and 3DS.
In terms of financial data, Nintendo’s cumulative turnover from April 1, 2017 to September 30, 2017 was 374 billion yen, an increase of 173.4% compared to the same period last year; operating profit turned into a profit and reached revenue of 39.9 billion yen.
The main reason for the rise in Nintendo’s performance is the good business performance in all aspects. Hardware such as Switch, 3DS, New 2DS, Mini SFC, etc. have been sold, and several first-party games in software have also been sought after by players. It is worth mentioning that the mobile game business also brings good income to Nintendo.
Mario mobile game downloads surpassed 200 million and will launch a new mobile game “Animal Crossing: Pocket Camping Plaza”
At present, Nintendo has 3 mobile games: “Pokémon GO”, “Super Mario Run”, “Sacred Fire: Heroes”.
During the financial report meeting, Nintendo introduced that “Super Mario Run” had been downloaded more than 200 million times worldwide, 90% of which came from outside Japan. However, from the perspective of financial income, Nintendo does not think this is a successful game:
We have not yet reached an acceptable profit point…
“Super Mario Run” officially met with players more than a year ago. On September 7, 2016, at the Apple press conference, Shigeru Miyamoto, the “Father of Mario”, visited the scene to demonstrate the “Mario Mobile Game” to the audience.
However, due to the free download and experience of part of the game content of “Super Mario Run” and the payment to unlock all the functions of the game, the player’s tendency to pay is not strong. Therefore, industry insiders believe that “Super Mario Run” did not bring Nintendo the expected benefits because of the “defects” of the payment model.
In contrast, Nintendo’s later “Sacred Fire: Heroes” “Class Gold” ability is more surprising.
In February of this year, “Record of the Holy Fire: Heroes” was officially launched on both iOS and Android systems. “Sacred Fire: Heroes” adopts the “drawing card”-based in-app purchase method. Players need to purchase the item “オーブ” through recharge to summon some rare hero cards.
Regarding this game, the financial report also confirmed a heavyweight message:
“Record of the Holy Fire: Heroes” will add traditional Chinese subtitles by the end of this year, and Nintendo will also include Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau and other places, as well as Thailand and Singapore.
Nintendo’s financial report also mentioned the latest information on the upcoming new mobile game “Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp” (Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp).
Long before the launch of “Pokémon GO”, the game industry predicted that Nintendo would have two well-known IPs on the mobile game stage, namely “Animal Crossing” and “Sacred Fire Falling Down”.
Today, the completion of this prediction is close to 100%.
A week ago, Nintendo officially announced an introduction video for the mobile game “Animal Crossing: Pocket Camping Plaza”, and said that “Animal Crossing: Pocket Camping Plaza” is expected to be officially launched in late November, landing on the App Store and Google Play platforms.
And “Pokémon GO”, as Nintendo’s “first mobile game”, has also received a hot market response. But it is worth noting that “Pokémon GO” is not entirely Nintendo, and its income contributes only a limited amount to Nintendo’s total revenue.
The production company of “Pokémon GO” is Niantic. Nintendo, Google, and Pokemon Company have jointly invested US$20 million in Niantic. At the same time, Nintendo holds a 32% stake in Pokemon Company, and the remaining stake is jointly held by Game Freak and Creatures Inc.
In view of this, Nintendo did not mention the specific operating conditions of “Pokémon GO” in the financial report.
As for Nintendo’s future layout in the field of mobile games, the official said that in addition to operating the games that have already been launched, it is expected to launch two to three new titles each year.
The total sales of Switch reached 7.63 million, and the total sales in the first year will exceed the historical total sales of Wii U
In addition to its performance in the field of mobile games, the business development of Nintendo Switch has also attracted much attention.
During the financial reporting period, Switch hardware sold a total of 4.89 million units, and a total of 22.02 million copies of all games on the Switch platform were sold. Counting the sales of the previous season, a total of 7.63 million Switches have been sold since its launch.
The hardware is strong, and the software is not to be outdone. The global sales of “Color Jet Team 2” newly released on the Switch platform in the second quarter were 3.61 million units, and the global cumulative sales of “Mario Racing 8 Deluxe Edition” released in the first quarter were 4.42 million units. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 》Global cumulative sales of 4.7 million sets, and the cumulative global sales of 1.35 million sets of “ARMS”.
The fiery performance of the Switch makes Nintendo confident in future sales. In the financial report, Nintendo increased its estimated Switch sales this fiscal year from 10 million units to 14 million units.
If the goal is fulfilled, Switch will also set a record — surpassing the total sales volume of the previous generation host Wii U throughout the life cycle, which is only a year of release.
In addition to the Switch, Nintendo’s 3DS and Mini SFC also delivered good results.
In terms of 3DS, the new model New 2DS LL was launched during the financial reporting period, with hardware sales reaching 2.86 million units, an increase of 5% over the same period; a total of 13.82 million sets of all games were sold, a decrease of 28% over the same period last year. In terms of game content, “Echo of the Sacred Fire: Another Hero King” and “Metro Warrior: Sams Returns” all received good reviews.
The re-engraved host Mini SFC, which was released a few months ago, also demonstrated the power of feelings with sales. Fans who love Nintendo vowed with real money in the “Lesson”:
Buy, buy, buy! Nintendo’s fried rice is delicious!
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