Nintendo chills mobile ambitions after ‘Animal Crossing’ success

A gamer playing Nintendo’s Animal Crossing at home. Riding a surge in Switch popularity and investor confidence, the Kyoto-based company appears to have reassessed the mobile business and narrowed its focus to its own console ecosystem. — AFP

Nintendo Co is retreating from the US$77bil (RM329.40bil) mobile gaming arena after disappointing results deflated once-lofty ambitions, ending a multiyear effort just as the market goes through an unprecedented Covid-era boom.

President Shuntaro Furukawa proclaimed two years ago that smartphone games would be a US$1bil (RM4.27bil) business with growth potential, building on his predecessor’s promise that Nintendo would release two to three mobile titles each year. That spurred hopes among investors that the gaming powerhouse could carve out a substantial slice of the market. In May, however, the president adopted a markedly different tune, saying “We are not necessarily looking to continue releasing many new applications for the mobile market.”