Animal Crossing and Fire Emblem will be delayed as Nintendo are looking to bring Super Mario Run to iOS and Android devices first.
Apple got things going at the iPhone 7 launch with a massive bombshell. Legendary Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto, graced the stage last night to announce new game Super Mario Run. While pretty much everyone is hyped for the game, two lesser known titles in the Nintendo universe saw themselves pushed to the back burner. Fire Emblem and Animal Crossing are two excellent series in their own right, but have sadly been delayed until March 2017.
Both titles were due to be released this autumn, as Nintendo carry on their expansion into the smartphone market. The delayed games were significant at announcement, as both would have been the first reputable Nintendo franchises in a long time, to appear on a non-Nintendo platform. That honour will instead be given to Nintendo’s most successful franchise of all time, the Super Mario series.
“After the launch of Super Mario Run in December, Nintendo plans to deliver its previously announced mobile device titles in the Animal Crossing and Fire Emblem series before the end of March, 2017,” Nintendo said in a press release.
Speaking to Polygon, Nintendo confirmed Super Mario Run had a hand in delaying Fire Emblem and Animal Crossing:
“Based on a variety of factors, we felt it was most appropriate for Super Mario Run to launch ahead of these other two apps,” the company said in a statement. “Our Animal Crossing and Fire Emblem titles for mobile will launch before the end of our fiscal year, which ends on March 31, 2017.”
Fire Emblem and Animal Crossing will be available on iOS and Android, and will be free-to-play.
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