A new Pokemon mobile game is coming in 2020. The project is to be taken on by Japanese mobile developer DeNA, a company that has had a relationship with Nintendo for the last couple of years. What this game will be or how it will be monetized is something that’s certainly going to be interesting to see.
DeNA has a years-long relationship with Nintendo to develop mobile games for them. Their titles from the partnership include Super Mario Run, Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, and the upcoming Mario Kart Tour. Now, the Japan-based mobile developer is adding one more game into the mix with the announcement of a new Pokemon mobile game. The news was reported by Japanese journalist Takashi Mochizuki on Twitter.
One point in particular highlighted by Mr. Mochizuki is how Nintendo and the Pokemon company differ in their monetization strategies. Monetization is always the crux of whether or not a mobile game is fun or thought to be a money sink and the new Pokemon mobile game may be headed in a different direction than Nintendo’s past mobile offerings.
“Nintendo is cautious against charging people too much as it’s afraid of damaging the reputation of its characters,” Mr. Mochizuki said in a wire post highlighted on his Twitter. “Therefore Nintendo smartphone games, which include work with DeNA, haven’t resulted in the revenue the market expected.”
“But Pokemon Co., which manages Pokemon games, doesn’t share the philosophy with Nintendo, say people in the industry who have worked with Pokemon Co.,” he continued. “It ‘doesn’t hesitate to charge people through various channels, and they do that in a very smart way,’ one [source] said.”
Unfortunately, that’s all we have in the way of details about this new Pokemon mobile game. According to Mr. Mochizuki, it’s expected to release by or before March 2020. We’re sure to hear more details about this game in the coming months.
