TOKYO—After years of scoffing at the threat from smartphones, Nintendo Co. is doing an about face and entering an alliance with Japanese mobile game company DeNA Co. to develop games for mobile devices.
The announcement Tuesday means that Nintendo’s trademark game characters such as Super Mario and Pokémon could finally feature on smartphones and tablets. Such characters have been fiercely protected by Nintendo, appearing only on Nintendo platforms such as the Wii home console and 3DS mobile machines.
Both sides said they will build a global membership service for various devices including personal computers, smartphones, and Nintendo machines. The service is set to launch in the fall of 2015.
Tokyo-based DeNA, founded in 1999, has a reputation as an innovator.
