Last year, Nintendo released its first ever mobile game for iOS users. The Super Mario Run app first launched on the App Store back in December 15. Ever since then, the app has been able to reach 78 million hits from iOS users. Surprisingly though, only 5 percent of players made a decision to get the full version of the game by paying $10 to unlock it.
Initially, Nintendo estimated that there would be twice as much paying users for the game, at least it had hoped it would. Despite this, the 5 percent figure still led the company to earn 6 billion yen (or $53 million) from the game. Comparing this with its toughest competitor, Pokemon Go, Niantic earned $143 million on its first month alone from the iOS App Store. The game was also downloaded 32 million times.
Then again, the 78 million hits Nintendo has accounted still does not include the numbers from Android users. Especially since the Android version of the game is still slated for a release in March, things could be looking good for the company.
While Pokemon Go's numbers seem far better compared to Super Mario Run's, it does not necessarily mean one is better than the other. As a matter of fact, it boils down to how well the app was marketed over the other. For one thing, Super Mario Run imposed an upfront charge to unlock succeeding levels after the first five. Meanwhile, Pokemon Go went a different route by offering in-app purchases that were far cheaper than the $10 unlock price Super Mario Run had.
Thankfully, this is only the start of what mobile games will be like with Nintendo. They are still about to release Fire Emblem Heroes on February 2nd as well as the Nintendo Switch on March 3rd. Super Mario Go is just one small part of the equation that will ultimately lead to Nintendo realizing how mobile can be a major source of income for the company.
from
https://www.wirefly.com/blog/news/only-5-percent-people-paid-unlock-super-mario-run