Nintendo has announced that its Super Mario Run has become the fastest game ever to get 40 million downloads on Apple's App Store. Super Mario Run hit the milestone within four days of its launch, the Japanese company said.
However, Nintendo shares have lost over 10 percent since the game's launch as users have complained about the $9.99 in-app purchase fee and the Internet connectivity requirement.
Super Mario Run comes with three different modes. The first is the "World Tour" where players aim at a goal, the second is the "Kinopio Rally" where players compete with other players all over the world, and the third is the "Kingdom making" where players can make their kingdom.
According to a Japanese press release with quotes from both Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto, who led the development of "Super Mario Run," and Apple's Senior Vice President, World Marketing, Phil Schiller, the app ranks number one in the "Top Free" charts in 140 countries and is in the top 10 in the "Top Grossing" category in 100 countries.
While most mobile games are free to download and play, there are charges for extra content from within the app ranging from power-ups to in-game currency. Super Mario Run is free to download but requires a one-time $10 purchase to unlock all of its content.
The best selling console Mario game of all time is the original Super Mario Bros., which sold around 40 million copies as it was included with most new consoles.
Super Mario Run, released on iOS on December 15, 2016 (Pacific Standard Time), is not the first Mario game released on a non-Nintendo hardware. That honor belongs to the forgotten games like Hotel Mario and Punch Ball Mario Bros. for the Philips CD-i, and Mario Teaches Typing.
However, Super Mario Run is the first major effort by Nintendo in many years, and, unlike some of those earlier efforts, it was developed and promoted by the Japanese company itself.