Nintendo’s ever-popular mascot will be making the jump from console to mobile later this year, under the title of Super Mario Run. Revealed during Apple’s conference earlier today, the surprise announcement was made by none other than the creator of the character himself, Shigeru Miyamoto, followed shortly after by a Tweet from Apple, confirming that the platformer will be released exclusively on iOS devices this December.
An epic moment. Mario is heading to iPhone & iPad. #SuperMarioRun. Only on the App Store. https://t.co/RUoFlEfsyP pic.twitter.com/JATw7l30xb
— App Store (@AppStore) September 7, 2016
So, how exactly will Super Mario Run work, given mobile devices don’t have the traditional input system of consoles? Cleverly, you won’t need to press any buttons to make Mario move, as he’ll always auto-run across any given level in the same vein as a side-scrolling game, with the main player input coming in the form of utilizing different jumps to navigate obstacles.
Three modes will be available at launch, a standard mode that pits you against existing courses, one where you compete against other people’s play data and a third that lets you build and customize your own Mushroom Kingdom using coins collected in the other two. In-app purchases will be present, too, but they won’t be required to enjoy the full game.
Expect more news on Super Mario Run over the coming months.