Nintendo To Launch Its First Mobile Game in 2016

Nintendo will finally launch its very first mobile game next year, after a long-standing reluctance to releasing games on any platform not manufactured by the company itself.

The gaming giant finally conceded that smartphone games should feature in its future after witnessing the rate at which mobile devices were taking over from TVs.

The game will be called Miitomo (“Mii Friends”) and is set to launch globally in March 2016.

Speaking at a press conference, Nintendo’s new president Tatsumi Kimishima said that the new game will enable users to create a ‘Mii’ avatar that can go out an automatically interact with friends’ avatars.

Aimed at sparking more communication between friends, the game “might dig up some previously-buried topics of conversation” said the Nintendo boss, adding that gamers might “learn about a surprising side of your friend you’ve never seen before”.

The game will be free to play but will include in-app payments, while later games will be downloadable for a fee.

The company plans to launch five different mobile games by March 2017. No titles have been confirmed, but its likely that Nintendo’s most popular series, including Super Mario Bros. will be used for these games.

Image credit: Nintendo