Ever since Nintendo first unveiled Super Mario Run, people have been waiting for the plumber's big debut on mobile devices. While it wasn't the perfect situation for anyone not using an iOS-based device, it's at least a sign that Nintendo has big ambitions in the mobile space outside of its own mobile video game console devices. So while Android users are still waiting to endlessly run with Mario, at least it's going to happen at all.
Nintendo wouldn't be Nintendo if it didn't balance the good news with some news that would inevitably trouble some folks out there in the wild. So when the company confirmed the mobile game would cost $9.99, it truly wasn't all that surprising. The game's free to download initially, but then, after a set period of game play, users have to fork over the cash to get access to the full game.
Super Mario Run features six worlds, with each world consisting of four levels. 24 levels in all for the "Tour" mode, what's essentially the single player campaign. It's a traditional story, with Mario saving Princess Peach from the nefarious Bowser.
The title also includes Toad Rally, which is an asynchronous multiplayer mode where the player races another player, all in an effort to collect more coins than the competition and earn Toads to join their kingdom. This is accessed by earning Toad Tickets, which players can get from bonus games and running through the Tour.
I paid for the game as soon as I was able, and I've been playing it every day since launch. I think the game's a lot of fun, and while I made it through the Tour mode pretty quickly, I still have to go back and collect a lot more coins before I will be truly done with it. Super Mario Run is fun enough that going back and replaying levels isn't an issue at all.
And then Toad Rally is competitive enough, especially for someone like me who loves leaderboards and competition, that spending a lot of Toad Tickets all at once, to just keep earning those Toads, is enough for me to keep coming back without a second thought.
Paying the $9.99 was worth it, is what I'm saying.
Nintendo has added a new mode recently, one where you can directly challenge friends in a "Friendly Run" mode, and there are new holiday-themed decorations for the player's kingdom, too. These are little additions, but for someone who wants to keep coming back, they are certainly better than nothing.
But that appears to be all Nintendo's doing. The company has confirmed it won't be adding any major DLC to the title in the future, either paid or free. I can understand why that would be less-than-stellar news for a lot of people, especially those who might have been on the fence with the $9.99 to begin with. If you don't think there's enough content with the initial game for the cost, then this is definitely not good news.
I never really expected Nintendo to add any content. I think it would have been a great bonus, but I've said in the past I think Nintendo plans on using these mobile games as basically teasers for their full titles on their own consoles. Nintendo wants you to play Mario on the iPhone, and then buy more full-featured Mario games on their own hardware. They can do that by keeping those features on their own hardware.
What do you think about Nintendo's strategy, though? Did you pay for Super Mario Run and think that's worth it? Or did you hope Nintendo would be adding extra content along the way? Let me know!