Update, August 27, 2019 (2:30AM ET): Nintendo was originally scheduled to launch Mario Kart Tour on mobile before March 2019, but the company then delayed the release to a vague summer window. Now, the House of Mario has announced a specific launch date for the mobile title.
Nintendo of America announced on Twitter that Mario Kart Tour launches on September 25, and it’s opened pre-registrations for the new title too.
Pre-registration for Mario Kart Tour is now available! For more details, please click here: https://t.co/loB3wf6eOv#MarioKartTour will be available on 9/25. We hope you’re looking forward to getting behind the wheel of this new game! pic.twitter.com/afPFp94iNi
— Mario Kart Tour (@mariokarttourEN) August 27, 2019
Nintendo has also updated its list of launch countries for the game, and it looks like pretty much every major country is included on the list (from Albania to Zimbabwe).
Can’t wait to give it a go? Well, you can pre-register for the title via the button below, and you’ll be notified when it’s available. Hopefully the game isn’t pay-to-win in its final state…
Original article, January 31, 2019 (5:25AM ET): It’s been almost exactly a year since Nintendo revealed plans to bring its hugely popular Mario Kart series to mobiles. The Japanese gaming powerhouse said the Android and iOS game would launch before March 2019, but after months without hearing the faintest rev of an engine, the company has now confirmed Mario Kart Tour has been pushed back to a Summer release window.
Nintendo announced the delay within its quarterly earnings report for Q3 2018. The extra time is apparently necessary “in order to improve quality of the application and expand the content offerings after launch,” the report reads.
It’s a shame that we’ll have to wait a bit longer until the Mushroom Kingdom’s greatest racers hit the track on mobile, but it’s probably best Nintendo takes its time with it considering the ridiculously high bar of quality the series is known for.
The second part of the statement suggests that Nintendo wants to ensure the game remains fresh with updates after its initial launch. That should help avoid some of the same criticisms levelled at the first mobile Mario game, Super Mario Run, which got off to a great start but quickly became stale and underperformed against the company’s expectations.
Nintendo’s report also showed that its mobile offerings are yet to pay off in the same way as its other businesses. Analyst Daniel Ahmad highlighted the massive gulf between Nintendo’s mobile revenue (2 percent) against other platforms, with the Switch home-handheld console topping the lot with a huge 90 percent share.
Revenue from smartphone games during the holiday quarter was 14.6 billion Yen, up 31% YoY.
The increase was primarily due to the launch of Dragalia Lost. However, Nintendo still seems to be underperforming in this segment imo. pic.twitter.com/kd94Y5QM6s
— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) January 31, 2019
There are encouraging signs, however. Boosted by the launch of free-to-play RPG Dragalia Lost and the continued success of Fire Emblem Heroes, Nintendo’s revenue from mobile title jumped up by 31 percent year on year. The 14.6 billion yen ($134 million) total represents the highest return since the company announced plans to enter the mobile sector way back in 2015.
Are you happy to wait a little bit longer for Mario Kart Tour? Let us know in the comments.