Super Mario Run is a 2016 game created and released by Nintendo for iOS devices and later for Android devices. It is Nintendo’s first mobile game based on one of the company’s longtime and important video game series.
In Super Mario Run, players control Mario or other characters as they move automatically across the screen. Players must time jumps to collect coins and avoid enemies and obstacles. Like other Super Mario games, the story involves Mario rescuing Princess Peach, who has been captured by Bowser. Players also help rebuild the Mushroom Kingdom, which was damaged by Bowser. The game was developed with help from Shigeru Miyamoto, the creator of the Super Mario series. Most of the development team worked on the original Super Mario games, and the game includes gameplay ideas similar to those games, adapted for mobile devices. The first four levels of the game are free to play, but players must pay a one-time fee to unlock the rest of the game.
Super Mario Run received mostly positive reviews from critics. Many praised the game’s fun replayability and engaging gameplay. However, some critics noted that the game’s price was higher than other mobile games, and it requires an internet connection to play. The game reached 50 million downloads in its first week, making it the most downloaded mobile game at that time. By September 2018, the game had been downloaded 300 million times.
Gameplay
Super Mario Run is a side-scrolling, auto-runner platform game. The story starts with Mario accepting an invitation from Princess Peach to visit her castle. When he arrives, he sees Bowser kidnapping Princess Peach and destroying the Mushroom Kingdom. Mario must stop Bowser and save the kingdom. In the game, Mario automatically runs from left to right and jumps to clear small gaps or obstacles. Players tap the touch screen to make Mario jump over larger obstacles; the longer the screen is touched, the higher Mario jumps. Like other Super Mario games, players must guide Mario over gaps, onto enemies, and into coins to collect them. The goal is to help Mario reach the flagpole before time runs out and collect as many coins as possible. Players can also swipe and hold the screen in the direction opposite to Mario’s movement to stall his jumps and move him slightly. Standing on pause blocks stops the timer and Mario’s running, while blocks with arrows change the direction of Mario’s jump. Bubbles are items that send Mario backward, letting players repeat parts of the level. If a bubble is available, it automatically saves Mario from dying. Otherwise, players must restart the level. Players can collect normal coins and find special coins in each level. To collect all coins, players first find five pink coins, then unlock five purple coins, and finally unlock five black coins. This requires at least three playthroughs of each level.
The game also includes a mode called "Toad Rally," where players compete against recorded games from other players. To access Toad Rally, players need Rally Tickets, which can be earned by completing levels, trading My Nintendo coins, or completing in-game tasks. Playing any game mode earns coins that can be used to buy items for building and customizing a "Mushroom Kingdom" in a third gameplay mode similar to FarmVille. Players can gain or lose Toads, which are characters that live in their Mushroom Kingdom, through Toad Rallies. Players can also unlock other characters, such as Luigi, Princess Peach, Toad, Toadette, and Yoshi. These characters have slightly different abilities, but they are not required to complete levels.
Since its release, Nintendo has added updates with new features. For example, a "Friendly Run" version of Toad Rally does not require Rally Tickets but can only be played five times per day and does not earn coins. An easy difficulty mode helps players complete levels in World Tour by giving unlimited bubbles and removing the time limit, but coins collected in this mode do not count. Another update increased the maximum number of Toads from 9,999 to 99,999 and added support for Game Center and Google Play Games achievements. A later update added nine new levels, courses, Princess Daisy as a playable character, and new buildings. These can be unlocked by completing goals and challenges. The new levels are themed as "a forest, a ship full of coins, and an airship armada," and a new game mode called "Remix 10" challenges players to run through ten short levels in a random order, with each level taking only a few seconds to complete.
Development
The game was created together by Nintendo and DeNA. Takashi Tezuka was the game's designer, and Shigeru Miyamoto was the producer and director. This was the first game Miyamoto was heavily involved in since 2007's Super Mario Galaxy. The development team was mostly made up of the original Super Mario team. Super Mario Run uses a similar 2.5D graphic style to New Super Mario Bros. The game's three gameplay modes were created at the same time by different groups in the team. The game was built using the Unity engine. Before the game was released, Nintendo's Reggie Fils-Aimé said it would not be available on the Nintendo Switch because the Switch's system is different from the game's design.
Nintendo was unsure about making games for mobile devices when mobile gaming started in the early 2010s. The company wanted to keep its famous characters only on its own hardware. At that time, Nintendo's president, Satoru Iwata, believed that making mobile games might cause the company to lose its identity. By 2014, Nintendo saw that the mobile market was growing and affecting its sales. Hardware and software sales dropped, and the company had a $240 million loss that year. The next year, Iwata changed his mind and partnered with DeNA to bring Nintendo's brands to mobile devices. The first game from this partnership was Miitomo, based on Mii avatars from Nintendo's console games. Separately, Nintendo worked with Niantic and The Pokémon Company to create Pokémon Go.
The idea for the game came from earlier ideas for Mario games on the Wii, including one where players would control Mario to match music rhythms. This idea was later used in New Super Mario Bros. but led to the idea of a simpler game. Nintendo was also inspired by players who complete games quickly, called speedrunners. These players often kept Mario moving forward constantly, and Nintendo wanted to let all players experience this. They also noticed speedrunners could do difficult jumps quickly, so they added special blocks in Super Mario Run to help players do similar jumps easily. Miyamoto said this would let new players enjoy the fun of skilled Mario gameplay. The game was designed to be played with the phone held upright, which gave developers more ideas for using the screen's vertical space and made controls easier.
Super Mario Run is the second mobile game from Nintendo's partnership with DeNA and the first mobile game to use one of Nintendo's well-known intellectual properties. Miyamoto explained that some of Nintendo's games had become too complex, making it hard to attract new players. The company believed that mobile games with simple controls could reach a wide audience and bring players back to their consoles. While it was possible to move existing games to mobile with on-screen buttons, Miyamoto thought this would not be as creative. Instead, he wanted to use the unique features of iPhones to design a new kind of Mario game.
Release and updates
The game was introduced by Miyamoto on September 7, 2016, during Apple's yearly iPhone event. It first became available in 10 languages across 150 countries. Super Mario Run was released for iOS devices on December 15, 2016, and for Android devices on March 22, 2017. The iOS version works on both iPhones and iPads. Nintendo used a freemium model, but instead of requiring ongoing payments for more levels, it offered the game as a free demo with the first world unlocked and a single payment to access the rest. This pricing helped parents understand the costs upfront. To prevent piracy, Nintendo added a system that requires an internet connection to play. Polygon believed Nintendo chose to develop the game for iOS first because of its better security and more consistent environment compared to Android.
Since its release, Super Mario Run has received updates that expanded support for Nintendo accounts or changed gameplay. An update in January 2017 added "Easy Mode," reduced the number of Toads lost in Toad Rally, and included Korean language support. The game launched in South Korea on the same date. An April 2017 update allowed players to use Miitomo through their Nintendo Accounts to add friends already linked to their accounts and customize Mii icons, including using costumes they owned. A major update in September 2017 introduced Daisy as a new character, along with World Star and the Remix 10 game mode.
Reception
Super Mario Run received "generally positive reviews" from critics after its release. It had an average score of 76 out of 100 on Metacritic. Glixel said the game was easy to play but had satisfying challenges. IGN agreed, saying the game was fun to play again and again, and it captured the charm of the Super Mario series. However, IGN also said the game did not have many new ideas compared to other Super Mario games.
Some players were not as happy with the game. The BBC reported that after three days, the game had an average rating of 2.5 stars out of 5 on the App Store. Players often complained about needing an internet connection to play and the fixed price of $10, which was higher than similar games. The Toad Rally mode was also a topic of debate. Some players liked it, but others said it was too hard for less skilled players and questioned why the game needed a system for entering races.
Industry analyst Michael Pachter said the low player ratings might be because the game used a different way to sell it compared to free-to-play mobile games. He explained that many mobile gamers prefer games that give a lot of free content before asking for money. GamesIndustry.biz agreed, saying mobile gamers dislike games that require paying to continue playing. Polygon said Nintendo kept some practices from its consoles, like the Friend Code system, and did not plan for expansions, which might have upset mobile gamers. Nintendo’s president, Shigeru Miyamoto, later said the game’s price was a mistake.
Super Mario Run was nominated for awards, including "Best Mobile Game" at The Game Awards 2017 and "Best Mobile/Handheld Game" at the 17th Game Developers Choice Awards.
After the game was announced, Nintendo’s stock price rose, similar to when Pokémon Go was released. Financial experts said Super Mario Run would be more profitable for Nintendo than Pokémon Go because Nintendo would keep most of the money from sales. Nintendo’s stock price increased by 2.8% after the release date was announced.
App-tracking service Apptopia reported that Super Mario Run was downloaded 2.85 million times on its first day on iOS, earning over $5 million. It had 40 million downloads in the first four days, more than Pokémon Go in its first week. App Annie estimated that about 1 million of those downloads led to purchases, with 55% from the United States, earning $14 million. The iOS version was the tenth most downloaded app in 2016 and the top free game in 2017. By the end of 2016, the game had about 150 million downloads, reaching 200 million six months later.
However, the game did not meet expectations in Japan. After its release, Nintendo’s and DeNA’s stock prices dropped over 7%. By December 26, the game was no longer the top-selling app in any country, though it remained a top download in 63 countries. Nintendo’s stock price dropped 18% in the first two weeks of release. Newzoo estimated the game had 90 million downloads and earned $30 million by early 2017. Nintendo reported 78 million downloads, with over 5% of users buying the game, earning ¥6 billion ($53 million). The game sold 4 million paid downloads by January 2017.
Nintendo had expected 10% of downloads to result in purchases. By February 2017, Nintendo said 20 countries accounted for 90% of the game’s revenue, and it was close to meeting the 10% goal. However, Nintendo’s president, Tatsumi Kimishima, was disappointed when the iOS version did not meet revenue expectations. A later mobile game, Fire Emblem Heroes, had fewer downloads but earned more money. Kimishima said Nintendo learned from Super Mario Run and might use different payment methods in the future.
Soon after the game’s release, fake versions of Super Mario Run appeared on Google Play. Some of these clones had harmful software that collected user information. Super Mario Run was the most downloaded Android game in 2017.
By July 2018, the game had earned about $60 million. As of September 2018, it had 300 million downloads worldwide, with 10% from Japan. In January 2020, it was Nintendo’s most downloaded mobile game, with 244 million downloads. As of 2025, it was Nintendo’s fifth highest-grossing mobile game, with 384.4 million downloads and $96.6 million in revenue.