"Super Mario Run" was downloaded nearly 3 million times on the day of its release, eclipsing the record set by Niantic's "Pokemon GO" in July. According to analytics firm Apptopia, Nintendo's first Mario mobile game was downloaded 2.85 million times on Thursday, Dec. 15, the day it was released for iOS worldwide. In contrast, "Pokemon GO" was downloaded 900,000 times on its first day of availability.
But while "Super Mario Run" seems on-track to have the biggest launch in the history of mobile games, it should be noted that the "Pokemon GO" downloads jumped to 5.6 million by the third day of its release. Despite projections by some analysts that the side-scrolling auto-runner platform will be downloaded 1 billion times, it still remains to be seen whether "Super Mario Run" can sustain its numbers. The comparison with "Pokemon GO" may also be inappropriate given that "Super Mario Run" was made available in 150 countries at its release. Meanwhile, "Pokemon GO" debuted in July in just three countries. It got a staggered rollout to other parts of the world over the following months.
Both "Super Mario Run" and "Pokemon GO" are completely free to download, but the former offers a one-time in-app fee of $9.99 for the entire game to be unlocked. Despite this, the long-awaited mobile game is now the top-grossing app in the App Store in the U.S. It has topped "Pokemon GO," "Mobile Strike," and even Netflix. Apptopia acknowledges that the early success of Nintendo's new mobile game was due in part to the massive amount of promotion it got prior to its release. "Super Mario Run" debuted during a surprise onstage announcement at a recent iPhone event and has since been heavily promoted via TV and online ads, in the news, and in a live demo on "The Tonight Show" with Jimmy Fallon.
Nevertheless, CNBC reports that Nintendo investors have raised their concerns over the game's profitability. Investors reportedly remained cautious on Nintendo stocks, with shares falling 4.66 percent. This may be partly attributed to perceptions that the pricing of "Super Mario Run" is a risky strategy, given that the $9.99 price tag is higher than that of other mobile games. "Super Mario Run" will be available for Android in 2017.