Nintendo and DeNA’s first mobile game 'Miitomo' delayed until 2016

Nintendo announced at an investor’s meeting on Wednesday October 28 that Miitomo, Nintendo’s first smartphone project with DeNA, will be delayed until 2016.

IGN reported that in a translation by The Wall Street Journal from Nintendo president Tatsumi Kimishima, Miitomo is going to be “free-to-play, with attractive add-ons that people can pay for.” Other smartphone games will be “pay-to-download.”

IGN also reported that Nintendo added in a statement after the presentation that Miitomo is:

“a free-to-start communication application that helps friends share fun personal facts and interests. Consumers create and use their own Mii characters to engage friends in a welcoming social environment, answering questions and sharing information to discover more about each other and what they have in common.”

The game is designed to appeal to a large demographic of smart device users, starting with introducing them to Miitomo and then eventually taking those interactions further through future applications.

Nintendo confirmed during the meeting that Miitomo and other mobile titles won’t launch until 2016, with Kimishima stating that the delay is due to “the need for more lead time to fully promote and explain Miitomo.” Miitomo will be promoted after the holiday season.

Nintendo’s partnership with DeNA was announced in March. Nintendo said that DeNA would handle the service-oriented operations while Nintendo would mainly handle development. The partnership between the two companies promises five more titles through 2017. Some analysts predict the “bigger” franchises won’t be revealed until sometime next year.

Miitomo is not the first mobile game Nintendo has announced. Earlier this year, The Pokemon Company announced Pokemon Go for mobile devices. They also released Pokemon Shuffle for iOS and Android, and Pokemon Trading Card Game for iPad.

-----

Source: IGN

Image: Wayerless