Nintendo’s first foray into original mobile games is coming to an end. As Polygon reports, Nintendo and developer Cygames are gradually shutting down the gacha fantasy RPG Dragalia Lost. The last big content update arrives March 31st, when new characters come to the game. After that, the producers won’t provide new content updates apart from those for “certain quests” and the main story, which wraps up in July.
Dragalia Lost itself will shut down at an unspecified “later date” following the core campaign’s end. There will still be “summon showcases” and event revivals until the full shutdown, the companies said.
The companies didn’t explain the decision. Dragalia Lost wasn’t strictly a failure. Sensor Tower estimated the game earned $146 million in revenue by October 2020, roughly two years after launch. It also had 3.9 million installs across Android and iOS, and in 2019 had made more money than every Nintendo mobile game beyond Fire Emblem Heroes. Dr. Mario World shut down sooner, in November.
The title has lately faced stiff competition from heavyweights like Genshin Impact, however. And as Niko Partners analyst Daniel Ahmad observed, Nintendo hasn’t exactly been rushing to expand its mobile catalog — the only release in the past two years was the licensed Niantic game Pikmin Bloom. Nintendo may be consolidating around adaptations of well-known franchises, such as Super Mario Run and Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp.
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