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Nintendo Technology IOS

Nintendo's shares slump following the release of Super Mario Run as investors get spooked by the new mobile focus

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By Tony Connelly, Sports Marketing Reporter

December 19, 2016 | 2 min read

Nintendo’s foray into mobile games appears to have dented its brand value with shares in the Japanese company falling in the wake of Super Mario Run’s release.

Super Mario Run

Super Mario Run

The videogame giant saw around £1.6bn wiped off its value on the Tokyo exchange, representing a 5% decline in the company’s worth.

The slump coincides with the release of Nintendo’s iOS game titled 'Super Mario Run' which has been met with widespread critical acclaim. The game currently resides in the number one spot on Apple’s 'Top Grossing' charts across 14 different countries and has topped the 'Free' category in almost 70 countries.

The game is partially free to play with users being able to play the first few levels before being offered the full game for £7.99.

It appears that despite the success there are a few factors which have spooked investors. The pay model has been once source of criticism with comments on the game’s iTunes review page complaining about having to pay after three levels. Other criticisms include the requirement for an internet connection to function and crashes.

The premium price in addition to a lack of in-game micro transactions appears to have turned off investors, particularly those familiar with the product cycle of free-to-air games.

While Nintendo released Its social media app Miitomo earlier this year and had a stake in the hugely popular Pokemon Go game, Super Mario Run marks the first time it has released one of its flagship first party games and the success of it could be crucial in helping the company market its console business.

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