Super Mario Run Is Half-Off for a Limited Time

Remember Super Mario Run? Yeah, it was that really great mobile game that, despite looking beautiful and being a joy to play, got slammed with terrible reviews because of its price-tag. No one could swallow the fact that Super Mario Run cost $10 to unlock, with many complaining that it seemed like more of a $5 game. Well, here’s your chance to grab it for $5! Super Mario Run just got a 50 percent price-cut on iOS and Android, but it won’t last long.

You’ve always been able to download and play Super Mario Run for free, but after completing the first world you’re asked to fork over $10 to unlock the rest of the stages, totally 24 in number. Most users turned away from the game from that point, and Nintendo reported in February that only about 5 percent of users who downloaded Super Mario Run elected to download the full game for $10. It brought in a lot of revenue, but not nearly as much as Fire Emblem Heroes, a free-to-play game with optional microtransactions.

The Eastern mobile market has been sending a pretty clear message to developers and publishers for years now: When you make a fantastic free game and give players the option to spend small amounts of money to enhance their experience, they will end up pouring in cash over time. Premium games with a one-time purchasing cost don’t perform nearly as well.

Super Mario Run and Fire Emblem Warriors provided Nintendo with first-hand examples how how both types of mobile delivery work with their own intellectual property, and the trends held out. Still, Nintendo has stated that it’s still trying to figure out the pricing structure that works best for its audience.

What that might mean for Animal Crossing we don’t know, but for now, please grab Super Mario Run for a fiver while you can. It’s a fantastic game!