Yesterday, Nintendo unveiled its new mobile app Miitomo. Some folks were underwhelmed! They might be counting Nintendo out. Don’t count Nintendo out.
In a newly published interview with Nikkei, Nintendo boss Tatsumi Kimishima briefly mentioned some of the Kyoto-based game maker’s ambitious plans.
Kimishima explained that Nintendo started first with Miitomo because a communication app like this was key when people opened accounts. “If we localize it into eight languages,” he said, “we can expand it to over 100 countries.” (The assumption is that we can probably expect the same widespread releases for future apps, too.)
When asked when this localization will take place, Kimishima replied, “I want to do it as soon as possible. This is because our goal is to increase the number of My Nintendo members. It would be good if we reached one hundred or two hundred million members.”
The app is free, but it’s not simply for communication. Nikkei asked if Nintendo was going to lose money on it, but Kimishima explained, “If you want to dress your Mii in certain outfits, it’ll be so that you can select and purchase them. Also, it will have game elements.”
Kimishima mentioned that Nintendo still isn’t ready to talk about the NX until next year, but added, as Nintendo has previously, that it “offers a totally new experience.” According to the Nintendo president, he wants the NX to be adopted quicker than the 3DS and the Wii U.
Nikkei asked Kimishima where he ideally saw Nintendo in three years, and the exec said, “There’s a potential for the biggest profits ever. I don’t think the Wii and the DS’s sales period is our ceiling.”
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