Only 5% of Super Mario Run’s 78m players bought the game
Cracks seem to have appeared in Nintendo’s premium mobile gaming strategy as the company released sales results for the $10 game.
Super Mario Run performed below expectations
The iOS-only smartphone game hit the market on 15 December and granted players a few trial levels before asking them to fork out $10 for full access – a high fee in an industry saturated with free-to-play titles.
The Japanese gaming giant said the game has been downloaded 78 million times, but behind the encouraging figures was another story; that only 5% of players followed through and purchased the game.
Amid a high-profile launch, boasting characters synonymous with gaming, the Wall Street Journal estimates revenue of $50m profit which could seem underwhelming, especially upon in the knowledge that top freemium titles like Clash of Clans that can muster that in the space of days with in-game purchases.
Bloomberg tech reporter Yuji Nakamura reports that Nintendo was expected to convert users in the double digits to the premium offering.