Please stop using the forum users as a scapegoat for the increasing lack of activity and dev interaction on this site, particularly when it has a lot to do with the devs themselves as to why you're seeing less traction. For one, I could have sworn one of your staff wrote up an excellent article on this, but forums and sites like yours are dying as a whole. Devs seek to advertise through standard social media instead as it's significantly cheaper, and more effective than sites like these. The reason why you see more vitriol today than you did nearly a decade ago is because more developers were putting out premium experiences back in the day, and the freemium mechanics were generally less eggregious, whereas today almost everything is a freemium time grind that manipulates the user by taking a good game and then tainting the crap out of it with inconveniencing mechanics to profit off of customer's frustrations as opposed to just being a good game. A lot of people are upset with the state of mobile gaming because of how unethical it has become. It's not surprising that less devs are excited to show off their new freemium game with all things said. Mark my words Eli, you're not thinking of the overall picture enough. If you punish people for having negative opinions on an open forum, you are going to lose even more people, and have even less traction. Also, as a super long time user of this site, I'd rather you not change the one mobile forum I love into an echo chamber because of "meanies" on the internet. Lastly, if you're a developer putting your art out into the world, let me give you a hint....grow a backbone. People will have harsh things to say on the internet. If you can't take that criticism, maybe putting something out for mass public consumption is not for you. Unfortunate, yes, but much like the state of freemium mobile gaming, that's just the way it is right now.
Just to say, I'm not playing this game, I have no opinion on it, I just wanted to see why this thread got so long so fast. The comment above is right on the money. If you want something to blame for people's attitudes to games and developers, look no further than the freemium business model. It's not like you can just say, "If you don't like freemium games, play premium games instead". Almost everything these days turns into freemium, and the devices they use to manipulate players into spending - either putting in barriers to play/progress, or selling RNG-based packs resembling slot machines - have turned previously good-natured gamers into jaded and cynical players. We're still here and sucking it up because the alternative is to give up mobile gaming altogether, something which is still unpalatable to me. Yes, I know that developers need to make a living, but many of these games go WAY over the ethical line. One of the best things I've heard happening to the industry recently is the new law in China requiring games to state the odds of items dropping in freemium game packs. It's about time that these "chances" to obtain items were actually fleshed out (i.e. you have a 5% chance to get X from pack Y). The developers don't want to engage on these issues as they know exactly what they're doing, they know players won't like it and can't defend it, but the industry is devoid of regulation and so they're all getting away with it. When the balance of power moves a little more in favour of the player, and game development focuses more on quality/innovation over A/B testing the colour of "buy" buttons, players will respond more positively in turn. At the end of the day, you get back what you put out there.
Wow what a heated debate. I'm afraid to post my opinion because it's based on emotion and not logic, but here goes! Hell yes! I've been waiting for the big N to enter and they have. Mario in bite size. Like every other mobile success it's quick, efficient, and completely playable on a "break". What more could you want? Anyhow... good job Nintendo. I can only see your success growing from here.
You totally can play premium ios games instead of free to play though. I buy, play and enjoy high quality mobile games/ports almost every single week of the year. This thread is for a premium game, and people are complaining about having to pay ten dollars for a Nintendo game.
I love this game, I love this site, and I respect everyone's opinion to not like it if they want. I don't mind the 3.5-star review, nothing there was inaccurate, and it was very professional. I, luckily, have the right not to be professional and bounce the rating up because it's Mario and I'm a fan-boy and I have more fun playing this than maybe a technically better game. Nintendo gave this a good effort, I don't feel they phoned it in, and I rate games based on how much fun I individually have playing them (this would be a bad system for a professional site but I don't work for one so WEEEEE!). I'm going to play this game for hundreds of hours until I get every coin, so 5-stars and here's hoping they make more!
I hope you realize that the race to the bottom happened because nobody wants to play a game with an upfront price. The dev's pricing schemes are a result of cheap casual gamers not willing to pay anything. Mobile gaming is full of that, everyone has a phone now, but not everyone can be considered a gamer then. The real reason devs CAN decide to pull away from flak off community sites like TA, is that these complaining bunch is a very minute fraction of the total market in the mobile gaming industry. So yeah, i dont usually side with everything Eli says, but im with him on this one.
The game is awesone.... I would gladly pay 10$ but the online requirement made me hesitate, i just bought super mario maker 3ds, gotta protectors, and pocketcard jockey this month... backlog oh backlog.... Anyway the game is awesome, the black coin hunting is fun... i'll buy it right away if its not required always online....
User level creation would be boss! Enjoying the game. Played through all levels and about a dozen matches. Now going to try to get all coins in levels.
The more I play it the better it gets. It's definitely the best runner that I've played, and honestly I think it's in the top half of Mario platformers I've played (and I've been playing Mario games since the mid 80s). The level design and controls are just perfect. I hate the online requirement (as I can't play it on my train journey to/from work), but that aside, it's just wonderful.
Love nintendo games long ago specially mario games title...bought!! Please nintendo making more great games!!
Yep, abuse is all it is. People often get confused when I talk about this like we're looking to turn TouchArcade into some kind of echo chamber, when in reality, all we're hoping to do is get rid of extreme attitudes. Feedback is fine, but when people insist the reason a developer made a free to play game is because they're a greedy shyster out to steal their money and manipulate them... Well, there's basically no room for discussion there, as everyone is immediately just put on the defensive. We'll think of how to start cracking down on this a bit more, as a few bad eggs are very much spoiling the bunch.
Wow. I'm a little worried after reading this article. I hope Nintendo sees it as an opportunity to improve on this product and other mobile products moving forward instead of a deterrent to making more mobile titles. I supported this one in hopes of getting an offline mode. Maybe they'll consider it now? I think this thread is full of more objections to being online than the overall cost. I love financially supporting games and franchises I like on mobile! However, I am still surprised that Nintendo's stocks fell after this release. Other than the connection issue, it's a fun and polished little romp made with replayability in mind. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2016/12/16/super-mario-run-nintendo-shares-fall-marios-first-iphone-game/
You know what would make this game 10/10? More harder levels (can be a dlc for a new story but it's very hard) And Level creator. I don't think anyone would regret spending 10$ if you could create and share levels.
Nintendo stock drops after every announcement, major release, or other company activity. The hilarious part is the media neglects to mention this every time it happens so they can have a headline along the lines of, "Nintendo releases new thing, stock price drops as investors worry new thing will be a failure!" Hell, it's a actual legitimate investment tactic often referred to as "buy the rumor, sell the news." But, hey, it fits the narrative of "Nintendo is doomed," so let's run with it.
As for the game, I like it. It's not so hard that I can't progress (and I suck at platformers) and overall, the quality and depth seem to be good, and hopefully this will keep being updated over the years. I took the plunge and so far don't regret it.
Doesn't surprise me. Even if this game was a total powerhouse (which it may be to some), I'd have invested my non-existent money in Nintendo around the announcement and taken it out again shortly before the release. People are naturally imaginative, turning this little game in their heads into a world of wonder and merriment which gives you real chocolate button rewards every time you complete a level. Nothing can compete with products of the imagination. It seems to me Nintendo thought they could crowbar techniques which worked twenty years ago onto a new paradigm. I suppose, never venturing into another's playground before, that's unsurprising, though it should have been obvious that Freemium is where the big bucks are at, and that the online thing may be a bugbear to that slither who do buy IOS games. I actually quite like their quixotic "This is how it should be because it's right!" 'tude to business. It's how I wish businesspeople were, instead of buying up the patent to aids medication then increasing the cost 1000% percent. Dogged ethics and heart should be championed, even if they may retreat to their Switch with their tails between their legs after this.
Wow it almost sounds like you would be employing the "buy the rumor, sell the news" investment strategy that results in these price drops in every stock on the planet. It's a good thing the people writing these articles don't have any investment background or they might actually understand how the market works beyond "Price go down, Nintendo bad."
Dude, you've gotta learn how to speak to people... I'm real here. You type words, I read them, and they can cloud my day. I was just scatting about the article, man. Yeah, I know nothing about markets and that kinda thing, but there's no need to be snarky to a total stranger who meant you no harm.
