Super Mario Run: the plumber fits in one hand

GameSuper Mario RunMobile

Miyamoto unveiled it himself on stage at an Apple keynote. Released on iOS on 15 December 2016 and then on Android in March 2017, Super Mario Run is the mascot's first game built for the smartphone: an auto-runner you can play with a single thumb. This guide walks through its three modes, its business model — a first for Nintendo — and its tidal wave of downloads.

In September 2016, on stage at an Apple keynote, Shigeru Miyamoto himself unveiled Super Mario Run (a title kept exactly as is): the mascot's very first game designed from A to Z for the smartphone.

The idea fits into one sentence: Mario runs on his own, and all you do is tap the screen to jump. A Mario you can play one-handed, on the subway or while waiting in line — and a business model that, for its part, would spill a great deal of ink.

Contents

• The first Mario born for the smartphone
• Gameplay built for a single thumb
• Three modes at launch
• A business model never seen on mobile
• A tidal wave of downloads
• A turning point for Nintendo on mobile
• Quick facts
• FAQ

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The first Mario born for the smartphone

Until then, Nintendo had always refused to bring Mario to mobile, judging smartphones a poor fit for its philosophy of play. Super Mario Run marks the break: it is the series' first original platformer designed for touchscreens.

The release came in two stages. On 15 December 2016 on iOS (iPhone and iPad), then in March 2017 on Android. Launching first as an iPhone exclusive was no accident: Miyamoto had shown the game a few months earlier, in September 2016, right on Apple's own stage, alongside the iPhone 7 — a moment that still stands as a symbol of the two giants drawing closer.

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Gameplay built for a single thumb

The principle is devastatingly simple. Mario runs to the right automatically and clears small obstacles on his own: all you handle is the jump. A quick tap triggers a small hop, a long press a big leap, since the length of your touch on the screen sets the height.

The game adds a few subtleties to keep things from turning monotonous. Pause blocks let you freeze the run just long enough to take aim, while Mario automatically vaults over certain pits and bounces off walls. The goal of every course: reach the finish without falling while collecting as many coins as possible, including the famous pink, then purple and black coins which sharply raise the challenge each time you take on the same level again.

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Three modes at launch

At release, the game is built around three complementary modes:

• World Tour: the main adventure, made up of 24 levels spread across 6 worlds, punctuated by showdowns with Bowser and Boom Boom. A bonus world, the World ★, adds extra courses to unlock.
• The Toad Rally: races of about a minute against another player's “ghost” — their recorded run data. The aim is not to finish first but to win over as many Toads as possible with your acrobatics, in order to lure them into your kingdom.
• Kingdom Builder: a mode for building and decorating the Mushroom Kingdom, where you spend the coins you have earned and where the Toads you recruit unlock buildings and characters.

A later update, in autumn 2017, grafted on a fourth mode, Remix 10, which strings together ten mini-stages back to back — but the three original pillars remain the heart of the game.

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A business model never seen on mobile

This may well be where Super Mario Run is at its most surprising. While mobile gaming runs on ads and micro-transactions, Nintendo went with a “free to try” (free-to-start) model.

In practice, the first levels are free, then a single purchase of €9.99 unlocks the whole game, its 24 levels and every mode. No subscription, no ads, no chests to open: you pay once, exactly like a traditional game. An unusual bet, praised for its honesty but seen as expensive by part of an audience used to everything being free.

The real sticking point lies elsewhere: a permanent internet connection is mandatory, even to play World Tour on your own. A requirement tied to anti-piracy protection, but heavily criticised, because it makes the game unplayable on a plane or out of network range.

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A tidal wave of downloads

Commercially, the launch was colossal. The game passed 40 million downloads in four days and broke the launch record held until then by Pokémon GO. Over the years, it went past 300 million downloads, one of the biggest mobile launches in history.

The flip side is the conversion rate: only a small fraction of players actually paid the €9.99, which fuelled the debate over the price. On the content side, the game's replay value rests heavily on the characters you unlock: Mario is there from the very start, followed by Luigi, Peach, Yoshi, Toad and Toadette — Peach frees herself once the adventure is wrapped up — joined later by Daisy, who arrived with the Remix 10 update. Each one is earned through Toad Rally and Kingdom Builder.

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A turning point for Nintendo on mobile

Beyond the numbers, Super Mario Run marks Mario's true debut on the smartphone and confirms the shift towards mobile that Nintendo began with its partner DeNA. It sits alongside other in-house apps such as Fire Emblem Heroes, released hot on its heels in early 2017.

The game also works as a full-scale test: Nintendo used it to gauge the general public's appetite for Mario on a phone, while defending the idea that a mobile game could sell at a fixed price rather than live off micro-payments. Few publishers followed suit, but the choice remains emblematic of how Nintendo approaches mobile: its own way, even if that means going against the current.

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Super Mario Run at a glance

French name	Super Mario Run
English name	Super Mario Run
Japanese name	スーパーマリオ ラン (Super Mario Run)
iOS release	15 December 2016
Android release	March 2017
Type	“Auto-runner” platform game (mobile)
Developer / publisher	Nintendo
Price	Free to try, €9.99 to unlock everything

🍄 Want to keep the adventure going? Discover our Mario toys in the shop.

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FAQ

• Is Super Mario Run free?
  It is “free to try”: the first levels come at no cost, but unlocking the full game (24 levels, 6 worlds and every mode) takes a single purchase of €9.99. No subscription, no ads, no micro-transactions.
• Can you play it offline?
  No. A permanent internet connection is mandatory, even to play World Tour on your own. That constraint, tied to anti-piracy protection, was one of the most frequent criticisms aimed at the game.
• What are the game modes?
  Three modes at launch: World Tour (the adventure), Toad Rally (one-minute races against other players' “ghosts”) and Kingdom Builder (construction). A fourth mode, Remix 10, was added in autumn 2017.
• Which platforms did it launch on?
  On smartphones and tablets: 15 December 2016 on iOS (iPhone, iPad), then March 2017 on Android. It is the first platform game in the Mario series designed specifically for mobile.
• Which characters can you unlock?
  Mario is playable from the start. Then come Luigi, Peach (freed at the end of the adventure), Yoshi, Toad and Toadette, followed by Daisy with the Remix 10 update. You earn them through Toad Rally and Kingdom Builder.

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