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Nintendo to make games for smartphones, tablets

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Image: Nintendo

18 March 2015

It seems characters like Mario, Kirby, Link and Donkey Kong could be popping up on smartphone and tablet screens for iOS and Android. Nintendo has confirmed it will partner with Japanese developer DeNA to create the games.

The firm said the new titles made for smart devices would include “iconic game characters”. It also said the partnership is aimed at complementing the console side of the business and extending its reach.

“To ensure the quality of game experience that consumers expect from this alliance of Nintendo and DeNA, only new original games optimised for smart device functionality will be created, rather than porting games created specifically for the Wii U home console or the Nintendo 3DS portable system,” said Nintendo in a statement.

Details such as availability about the new titles will be made available in the near future.

Nintendo and DeNA also plan to launch an ‘online membership service’ which will be accessible from PCs, smartphones, tablets and Nintendo systems. It is scheduled to launch this autumn despite the pending closure of Club Nintendo.

The deal states that Nintendo will also acquire 10% of DeNA stock (15 million shares) worth around 22 billion yen (€168 million). DeNA will acquire 1.24% of Nintendo’s stock for roughly the same price.

During the press conference detailing this new partnership, Satoru Iwata, president of Nintendo, confirmed the company is working on a new dedicated games platform called Project NX. This could well be the successor to the Wii U.

“As proof that Nintendo maintains strong enthusiasm for the dedicated game system business let me confirm that Nintendo is currently developing a dedicated game platform with a brand new concept under the development codename NX,” said Iwata. “It is too early to elaborate on the details of this project but we hope to share more information with you next year.”

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