Skip to main content

The context you need, when you need it

When news breaks, you need to understand what actually matters — and what to do about it. At Vox, our mission to help you make sense of the world has never been more vital. But we can’t do it on our own.

We rely on readers like you to fund our journalism. Will you support our work and become a Vox Member today?

Join now

Super Mario Run’s poor reviews have knocked billions off Nintendo’s market cap

More than half of App Store reviews give it just one star.

Mobile Action

The reviews are in for Super Mario Run — and they aren’t good.

A majority of the 70,000 App Store reviews globally give the highly anticipated game just a single star, and the average rating is barely over two stars, according to analytics firm Mobile Action.

Super Mario Run is getting an average of just two stars in App Store reviews.
Mobile Action

The poor responses have sent Nintendo shares tumbling, with the stock down more than 7 percent on Monday.

But the trend started almost as soon as the game came out. Criticism of the game focuses on the fact that it costs $10, with relatively little game play available before that fee kicks in. And even when you do pay, many say the game just doesn’t offer enough.

While the game does include three different modes, including one that lets you build your own Mushroom Kingdom, there is a considerable feeling that none are as rich and compelling as they could be.

Despite the negative feedback, the pace of downloads remains strong, with Super Mario Run remaining atop the Apple free download chart. Estimates of just how many people have downloaded the app range from 11 million to 30 million downloads globally.

But Mario got a huge boost from Apple, which has promoted the heck out of the game, from social media pushes to devoting the top of its App Store to a banner ad to having the game running on all the iPhones in its stores. (Here’s our complete guide to the game.)

And bad reviews or not, plenty of people are forking over the money for the paid version, with Super Mario Run currently the highest-grossing iPhone app. Total revenue thus far is pegged at $9 million globally, Mobile Action said.

Neither Apple nor Nintendo immediately offered a comment on the bad reviews, but it clearly is bad news for both. For Nintendo, Super Mario Run represents their first big foray into mobile games after years on the sidelines, while Apple was hoping that its exclusive would give phone buyers another reason to choose iOS over Android.


This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

More in Technology

Technology
The case for AI realismThe case for AI realism
Technology

AI isn’t going to be the end of the world — no matter what this documentary sometimes argues.

By Shayna Korol
Politics
OpenAI’s oddly socialist, wildly hypocritical new economic agendaOpenAI’s oddly socialist, wildly hypocritical new economic agenda
Politics

The AI company released a set of highly progressive policy ideas. There’s just one small problem.

By Eric Levitz
Future Perfect
Human bodies aren’t ready to travel to Mars. Space medicine can help.Human bodies aren’t ready to travel to Mars. Space medicine can help.
Future Perfect

Protecting astronauts in space — and maybe even Mars — will help transform health on Earth.

By Shayna Korol
Podcasts
The importance of space toilets, explainedThe importance of space toilets, explained
Podcast
Podcasts

Houston, we have a plumbing problem.

By Peter Balonon-Rosen and Sean Rameswaram
Technology
What happened when they installed ChatGPT on a nuclear supercomputerWhat happened when they installed ChatGPT on a nuclear supercomputer
Technology

How they’re using AI at the lab that created the atom bomb.

By Joshua Keating
Future Perfect
Humanity’s return to the moon is a deeply religious missionHumanity’s return to the moon is a deeply religious mission
Future Perfect

Space barons like Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk don’t seem religious. But their quest to colonize outer space is.

By Sigal Samuel