Nintendo’s quest for mobile success has had its ups and downs to date. It’s enjoyed a modest share of (pocket) monster profits from Pokémon GO, while it has released three main games / apps of its own. The two most recent have had varied success, but Nintendo has confirmed a notable landmark for one in particular.

It’s confirmed that Super Mario Run has passed 200 million downloads, with over 90% of those outside of Japan. It’s also highlighted an increase in players following the recent major update (and discount). Nintendo does admit, however, that monetising the game (through its one-off purchase) is still an issue, as the game has “not yet reached an acceptable profit point”.

Nintendo states that it is, however, “on track” with its profit targets for Fire Emblem Heroes, with promotions and updates also leading to an increase in active users. The company is also keen to point out that sales (through microtransactions) are gradually improving outside of Japan.

Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp seems to be off to a strong start in Australia, too, and that’s an IP with undoubted potential for success on Mobile ahead of its late November global release. Overall, driven by Super Mario Run and Fire Emblem Heroes, Nintendo reported revenue of 17.9 billion Yen (approx $158 million) from mobile in its Q2 financial report.

It’s interesting to see the steady evolution of Nintendo’s efforts on Mobile; it still has the target of releasing 2-3 titles each year.

For now we await the global release of Pocket Camp – do you think it’ll be a success?

In what is now likely to be a regular update, we’ve been checking out which games are out early in this download week. With solid support for the Switch eShop we have release dates planned to tie-in with retail arrivals or multi-platform downloads; in crowded weekly release schedules ‘early’ arrivals can therefore fall through the cracks. We don’t want that to happen, do we?

Last week’s equivalent brought us four early games in the week, but this week we’re up to five. They’ll all be live through the course of the day (likely morning in North America, afternoon in Europe) – let’s get to it.

Perception (Deep End Games) – $14.99USD / £12.99

A definite win for marketing and savvy timing. This only arrived on other platforms earlier this year and was received quite positively; as you can see in the trailer above it takes the first-person scary house trope and adds a twist. The protagonist is blind, so you can only see the surroundings in limited details and outlines, effectively using sound as your guide. This is an enhanced edition that includes three options for playing the campaign and various adjustments designed to improve on the original.

King Oddball – (10tons) – $4.99USD – £3.99

This actually arrived on 30th October. You take control of a boulder (the King of boulders it would seem) with the aim of using your ridiculously long tongue to lick up other, smaller boulders, before launching them at tanks and helicopters. Despite sounding like something we’ve made up for the world’s earliest (or latest) April Fools article, the game is very much real and actually looks like a whole lot of fun.

One of the first games Ubisoft actually announced for the Switch, it’s now finally ready to make its entrance. Yep, it’s virtual Monopoly, though you can also customise rules and play shortened Special Goals games if you or the system’s battery are running out of time. 

Based on the PS4 and Xbox One title from 2016, this chaotic racer features more than 30 maps covering forest, desert, winter and farm environments. You’ll also find 84 skill challenges and 12 “authentic” events. There are also 6 officially licensed Monster Jam stadiums included, if you’re keen on that kind of thing.

Previously on 3DS, this beat ’em up-style title takes various IPs from the famous network and mashes them up into one adventure; it can be tackled solo or in local co-op. 

Those are your fresh eShop arrivals – will you pick any of these up?

Play Torment: Tides of Numenera for FREE starting now through Sunday at 1PM Pacific Time. You can also pickup Torment: Tides of Numenera at 55% off the regular price!*

If you already have Steam installed, click here to install or play Torment: Tides of Numenera. If you don’t have Steam, you can download it here.

*Offer ends November 1st at 10AM Pacific Time

The Gamasutra Job Board is the most diverse, active and established board of its kind for the video game industry!

Here is just one of the many, many positions being advertised right now.

Location: Hunt Valley, Maryland

ZeniMax Online is searching for an enthusiastic Lead Console Programmer to lead a team of engineers to bring a constantly-evolving AAA MMO client to next-generation consoles. 

Responsibilities:

• Develop and expand the ESO client on consoles
• Lead the development and software engineering of next-generation platform support
• Work with cross-team producers, engineers, and operations departments to bring together a complete next-generation console experience for players 

Requirements:

• 5+ years of game industry software development experience
• History of leading high-quality engineering teams
• Profound technical knowledge of Xbox 360/One and PlayStation 3/4
• Robust programming skills/experience in C/C++, Java, JavaScript, HTML, Python and ActionScript
• Credited on at least one published video game in a programmer role
• Strong architecture and low-level performance programming skills
• Strong communication skills
• Experience with network game client/server architecture

Desired:

• Next-gen console experience
• Previous MMO development experience

Interested? Apply now.

Whether you’re just starting out, looking for something new, or just seeing what’s out there, the Gamasutra Job Board is the place where game developers move ahead in their careers.

Gamasutra’s Job Board is the most diverse, most active, and most established board of its kind in the video game industry, serving companies of all sizes, from indie to triple-A.

Looking for a new job? Get started here. Are you a recruiter looking for talent? Post jobs here.

What does “entrepreneurship” mean in the context of the business of games and running a studio?

At GDC 2017, game industry vet Jason Della Rocca took the stage to try and shed light on that question, and in the process he made an important point: in games, being an entrepreneur means way more than just being willing to do the “business stuff.”

According to Della Rocca, taking entrepreneurship more seriously and adopting advanced techniques can give devs a leg up on the competition.

Citing examples and lessons learned from his time investing in over 20 studios, Della Rocca offered devs advice on everything from leading a team to securing funding to marketing your game and keeping your head straight throughout the whole process.

It was a very practical, useful talk that you can now watch for free on the official GDC YouTube channel!

In addition to this presentation, the GDC Vault and its accompanying YouTube channel offers numerous other free videos, audio recordings, and slides from many of the recent Game Developers Conference events, and the service offers even more members-only content for GDC Vault subscribers.

Those who purchased All Access passes to recent events like GDC or VRDC already have full access to GDC Vault, and interested parties can apply for the individual subscription via a GDC Vault subscription page. Group subscriptions are also available: game-related schools and development studios who sign up for GDC Vault Studio Subscriptions can receive access for their entire office or company by contacting staff via the GDC Vault group subscription page. Finally, current subscribers with access issues can contact GDC Vault technical support.

Gamasutra and GDC are sibling organizations under parent UBM Americas

Assassin’s Creed Origins has beaten Super Mario Odyssey to claim the top spot in the UK’s physical sales chart.

Both games launched at the end of last week, but according to Chart-Track it was Ubisoft’s historical action title which came out on top, and Mario was forced to settle for second place.

However, it’s worth noting that Assassin’s Creed Origins launched on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC, while Super Mario Odyssey was exclusive to a single console. In fact, if you look at the single-format chart – which breaks down game sales on individual systems – Mario’s latest outing is actually the UK’s number one, beating out the PS4 version of Assassin’s Creed Origins (which accounted for around 60 percent of that game’s total sales).

Odyssey ranks as the biggest Switch launch of the year, overtaking even the mighty Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The game’s release also spurred a 64 percent increase in Switch hardware sales compared to the previous week, allowing the system to pass 300,000 sales in the UK – although this is based on data supplied by retailers, and does not include figures sold directly by Nintendo via its online store, so the total is likely to be higher already.

Also of note to Nintendo players is the launch of Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus. While it’s not out on Switch yet, the sequel has made a somewhat disappointing debut on PS4, Xbox One and PC, only managing to reach number 4 in the chart. Week one sales are a massive 60 percent down on 2014’s Wolfenstein. Bethesda will be hoping that the forthcoming Switch port will perhaps fare a little better.

When taking all of the above information into account it’s worth noting that Chart-Track does not cover downloaded games, only physical ones.

Some may recall when Ripstone published Pure Chess on Wii U and 3DS, a game developed by VooFoo Studios. It was an impressive title (despite some nagging flaws) that offered cross-platform play and attractive visuals. A little while ago Ripstone confirmed that its own internal team was bringing Chess Ultra to the Switch, which should be rather enticing for those that enjoyed Pure Chess back in the day.

Now it’s confirmed for this week, arriving on 2nd November with a price tag of £9.99 / $12.49USD / €12.49 depending on your region.

A particularly pleasing feature will be cross-platform online play with Xbox One and PC, so it shouldn’t be too hard to find matches. A feature-set is below.

• Stunning environments and beautiful chess sets, including a ‘Fire and Brimstone’ chess set that literally burns
• 10 Grandmaster approved AI levels
• Comprehensive time controls, including Classical, Blitz and Marathon, all available online
• Intuitive local and online multiplayer with ELO ranking system
• Cross-platform online play against Xbox One and PC players
• Spectate and compete in Official Ripstone tournaments
• Numerous playing options including full touch screen and cross-table playing modes
• Over 80 chess puzzles
• Re-write the past by winning the biggest historic matches
• In-depth tutorials

Unique to the Switch will be ‘cross-table’ chess, in which you can lay the Switch down flat when undocked.

Will you be making a move for Chess Ultra on Switch?