Sony has officially confirmed its plans to release around six smartphone games by April next year, on both Android and iOS. The Japanese giant also announced that its working on a total of 10 mobile gaming titles, which include the likes of Arac the Lad, PaRappa the Rapper, and Everybody’s golf.
The games will initially be released in Japan, and later in other Asian regions, said executive director at Sony’s mobile gaming division, Tomoki Kawaguchi.
Notably, Sony’s announcement comes just a week before Nintendo’s Super Mario Run arrives on iOS starting December 15. Besides, Sony is also trying to cash in on the mobile gaming rage in Japan, as more than half of the company’s $12.4 billion revenue is generated from this category.
Sony did launch some mobile games through its music business, but hasn’t launched even one PlayStataion-branded mobile game.
That said, industry experts suggest that it’ll be rather hard for Sony to become a major success in the mobile gaming segment. The reason being the lack of popular characters like Mario or Donkey Kong. Nintendo’s early stint in mobile gaming has been quite remarkable, thanks to the success of Pokemon Go developed by Niantic.
Meanwhile, Nintendo’s Super Mario Run will be available to play on iOS starting December 15. The game gets inspired by Nintendo’s classic smash hit Super Mario Bros, and will be playable on the iPhone, the iPad, along with the iPod Touch running iOS 8.0 or above.
Super Mario Run will be available for downloaded for free, and players can try a few elements of the game’s three modes at no cost. In addition, a one-time purchase of $9.99 gives you unlimited access to each of the game’s three modes.
Super Mario Run is a side-scrolling endless runner. The caharcter is in continuous motion as you navigate your way jumping and evading oncoming obstacles and enemies to reach the end. A tap on the screen makes Mario jump, while long-pressing the screen propels him higher and longer in the air