Japanese video game maker Nintendo saw its stocks on the Tokya Stock Exchange jump after the company reported its Mario Kart 8 game surpassed the 1 million units in the United States and the Pokemon Co. announced it was releasing a card game app for the iPad.
That's good news for the video game company after being faced with continued losses as Sony and Microsoft continue to dominate the industry, especially in the U.S. But the announcement set off a ripple affect and the company's stocks rose four percent to 11,740 yen, its highest point in four months.
For the company stuck in a downturn, the 1 million units is only the second game to surpass that mark for the Wii U, with New Super Mario Bros. U being the other. And with Pokémon going to have an online trading card game for the iPad, the company believes it is on the right track to getting back its place in the market.
But some argue it does little to change the perception that Nintendo currently has in the market, and especially the American sector.
"We have been here many times before in regards to Nintendo's tentative plans to introduce some of its characters for smart devices," said Amir Anvarzadeh, a manager of Japanese equity sales at BGC Partners Inc. in Singapore. "This latest Pokémon cards plan, which is already out on PCs, is hardly a change in its direction."
In May, the company posted last year's financial results and it was hardly positive, with the company reporting that it had more operating pitfalls that previously expected, Tech Times reported.
It was the third straight year in the red for Nintendo, which in the 1990s was the dominating force for gaming and platforms, but as Microsoft and Sony improved their consoles, Nintendo struggled to maintain its edge. Although briefly it saw a boost with the launch of its Wii console, the Xbox and the PlayStation remain at the summit for video gamers.
The company still believes it can recover and compete.
"With respect to Wii U, while five key first-party titles, such as Super Mario 3D World, New Super Mario Bros. U, and New Super Luigi U became million-seller titles, the Wii U business as a whole showed slow growth," Nintendo said [pdf] in a financial statement.
The hope with these new games is that it can help bring Nintendo back into the fray and continue to develop games that users want to play.
