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What to expect from Nintendo on mobile in 2018

Link to the future

What to expect from Nintendo on mobile in 2018
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Nintendo has been a mobile game developer for just over a year now. Its journey started with Super Mario Run in December 2016, ran through Fire Emblem Heroes in February 2017, and finished with Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp in November 2017.

Nintendo president Tatsumi Kimishima has said that the company is intending to establish a trend of releasing two to three new smartphone applications every year. Other reports suggest that Nintendo is considering increasing its mobile output by working with more developers.

All of which begs the immediate question: what exactly are we expecting to see from Nintendo on the mobile front in 2018?

Here are some initial thoughts has we approach the New Year.

Zelda mobile

Reports from the first half of 2017 suggested that Nintendo would follow up a mobile Animal Crossing in late 2017 with a mobile Zelda game. Sure enough, Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp launched in November, which gives us some confidence that we could be playing Zelda on our smartphones in early 2018.

Those reports don't mention how this mobile Zelda will play, only that it is being co-developed by Japanese mobile specialist DeNA.

Combined with the nature of Nintendo's mobile output to date, we're not expecting this mobile Zelda to be a miniature epic to rival Breath of the Wild. So how will Nintendo keep that essential Zelda essence? This is going to be interesting.

READ: Zelda on mobile - What might it look like on iOS and Android?

Mario Kart

We have no solid information on a mobile Mario Kart, but the idea seems to make a certain amount of sense.

Casual arcade racing games have been a staple of the mobile gaming market for years, and the move certainly wouldn't be a great technical challenge. Indeed, Mario's old rival Sonic has already shown that a fully fledged karting game can thrive on smartphones.

Another interesting point in mobile Mario Kart's favour is to look at the last proper Mario Kart. Mario Kart Deluxe 8 on Switch might have only launched in April 2017, but it was essentially a re-release of the three-year-old Mario Kart 8.

We're due an all-new karter from Nintendo. Might it be mobile?

Pikmin

Again, we're firmly in the realm of speculation here. What's more, Nintendo's Pikmin franchise isn't one of its top tier properties, which would suggest it might not be a mobile priority.

However, the more we think about it, the more we think that Pikmin could find a welcoming second home in mobile. There's the whole casual real-time strategy angle for one thing, which would suit the format's touch-driven controls.

There's also Apple's recent augmented reality push with ARKit. Pikmin's world features tiny plant-like creatures collecting real world objects in recognisable - if super-sized - environments. It's not hard to imagine the appeal of these adorable creatures scurrying around on our living room floors and kitchen tables.

READ: Pikmin on mobile - What might it look like on iOS and Android?

Kirby

Kirby is Nintendo's dependable odd job man - the unshowy back-up who can float in on a moment's notice and pick up the slack while Mario and Link are in their trailers rehearsing their lines.

He seems to be perfect for mobile, simply because Kirby can turn his blobby hand to anything. He can do platformers, pinball games, golf games, puzzlers and more.

Rather than a mobile mini-game compendium, though, we'd rather see something like Kirby: Power Paintbrush on mobile. This line-drawing platformer, where you sketch out a path for Kirby to follow, would put that touchscreen interface to perfect use.

READ: Kirby on mobile - What might it look like on iOS and Android?

What are you expecting or hoping to see from Nintendo's mobile division in 2018? Let us know in the comments below.
Jon Mundy
Jon Mundy
Jon is a consummate expert in adventure, action, and sports games. Which is just as well, as in real life he's timid, lazy, and unfit. It's amazing how these things even themselves out.