Super Mario has made his iPhone debut, so what does this tell us about Nintendo’s future?

After years resisting calls to put its characters in apps, Nintendo has changed tack and Super Mario has made his smartphone debut with a running game. But does the company really understand how gaming has changed?

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Super Mario Run is Nintendo’s first smartphone game using Mario.

Published: 6:00pm, 16 Dec 2016Updated: 6:00pm, 16 Dec 2016

Nintendo is really getting serious about its play for mobile screens, launching its first real smartphone game starring its most iconic character, Mario.

The app, called Super Mario Run, hit Apple’s App Store on Thursday. For Nintendo fans everywhere, it’s the end of a long wait that started when the app was announced at Apple’s annual iPhone launch event in September. It’s also a key moment for Nintendo, which has had a hard time dealing with the shift to casual gaming on smartphones and has resisted calls to put its classic characters into apps.

Smartphones have introduced more people than ever to games – as illustrated by the Pokemon Go craze – but can also shift buyers away from game consoles and hand-held devices such as Nintendo’s 3DS. By making a mobile game, Nintendo is saying that it’s finally ready to imagine an audience beyond its own hardware.

So far, so good. Super Mario Run is a lot of fun. The designers have managed to make a game that blends nostalgia and the new technology of the touch screen well. The story, such as it is, is exactly the same – Bowser has taken Princess Peach and you have to save her – and you also must rebuild your kingdom. The setting is familiar, and goombas and koopas are still trying to block your way to your goal. Longtime Nintendo fans will see a lot they already love. But this time, they can play with one hand.

Super Mario Run has been streamlined for touch screen play.