Nintendo goes mobile

Smartphones have taken over our lives in terms of communicating with peers and sharing our lives with strangers.

Since the widened availability of all kinds of technology, Nintendo has been forced to step up its game by launching multiple mobile apps for smartphone users.

Nintendo released “Fire Emblem Heroes” for Android and iOS on Feb. 2. The game is a strategy-based simulation that takes players through various battles to unlock heroes. The app was based off of the video game series “Fire Emblem,” a role-playing game available to many platforms like the GameBoy Advance, GameCube, and Nintendo’s newest creation, the Nintendo Switch.

“Fire Emblem Heroes” had such a popular response that Nintendo has decided to release a series of apps that are designed based on popular video games.

 Nintendo plans to release “Animal Crossing,” based off  the 2012 video game “Animal Crossing: New Leaf.”  “Animal Crossing” allows players to be Town Mayor in a new town and interact with citizens. 

The “Super Mario Run” app was released for Android this month after being previously released to iOS users in December. 

“Miitomo,” the very first mobile app Nintendo released in March, 2016, is a communication app that allows players to interact with their friends through their Mii Avatars. The app didn’t receive good reviews. Many users decided to stop playing because of how simple the contents were.

Nintendo invested in the latest Pokemon app, “Pokemon Go,” in July 2016, but Nintendo will not directly profit from the augmented reality game, leading to a loss of $6.7 billion in Nintendo’s market value according to engadget.com, a technology website.

 Nintendo hasn’t had a mass release of popular applications since 2006, when they released the Wii, which has become less popular as cheap mobile games have come to light. 

Many companies have changed their platforms to fit their audience’s needs. But none have innovated like Nintendo, abiding to the progression of technology and releasing classics since 1889.

Nintendo has been the first major gaming company to expand their platform to theme parks, toys, at-home consoles and now, apps. These changes have been drastic, but they may be the best business moves that Nintendo has made.