Nintendo Delays Launch of Smartphone Games – Stock Price Plummets

Have you been waiting for the much-loved Nintendo games to hit your mobile phone? Sorry to inform you but today Nintendo have announced that they have pushed back the much-anticipated launch of game service for smartphones to March 2016. Japan’s Wall Streets Journal Reporter Mayumi Negishi blogged on this disappointing news for both gamers and investors and it sure does show when you look at Nintendo’s shares, which fell down by more than 10 percent!

Nintendo’s entering the mobile game market was a new strategy announced by its previous chief executive who died of cancer earlier this year. Nintendo had previously stated it would introduce its first smartphone games by the end of 2015. So this means it was prime time to buy up shares as investors had hoped that would include it’s best-selling Mario video game franchise in the first line-up. Nintendo’s current Chief Executive Tatsumi Kimishima said the delay would help Nintendo concentrate on selling its existing consoles and game software during the year-end holiday season.

“The year-end is traditionally our peak season for sales,” told a packed news conference, when asked about the delay. “This way, we’d be able to introduce our new applications after the holiday season is over.”

Tatsumi Kimishima did not comment on whether Mario would come to smartphones, instead he focused on promoting the new social networking style game called “Miitomo” which will now be available in March. The news knocked Nintendo’s shares down by as much as 10 percent in morning trade this morning as DeNA Co, Nintendo’s mobile gaming partner fell as much as a staggering 19 percent.

This drop is a mighty shame for Nintendo as shares this year surged by more than 80 percent, aided by the success of the Wii U alongside the hype that the company would be entering the smartphone game market. What are your thoughts on the subject? Let us know in the comments.