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GungHo and Nintendo collaborate on a Mario flavoured Puzzle & Dragons for 3DS

Mobile titans meet handheld legends

GungHo and Nintendo collaborate on a Mario flavoured Puzzle & Dragons for 3DS

While it's the Pokemon franchise to which Puzzle & Dragons invites the most obvious comparisons, an upcoming collaboration with Nintendo sees GungHo's mobile phenomenon cross over with another of the firm's iconic series'.

Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition will see GungHo's mobile game – which has garnered more than 32 million downloads in its native Japan, as well as an impressive 6 million in North America – given a Mario-themed lick of paint for a brand new Nintendo 3DS title.

It's interesting to see Nintendo, the old guard of traditional handheld gaming, striking such a deal with GungHo despite its typically sceptical view of mobile.

Old meets new

However, having a game as popular as Puzzle & Dragons in its roster, especially with the combined appeal of gaming's most iconic characters, can hardly do the 3DS any harm – particularly in the Japanese market.

It's also significant that this is a game made on Nintendo's own terms. Not yet prepared to bend the knee to the likes of Apple or Google, Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition is set to be released only on the 3DS, with no in-app purchases either.

Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition for 3DS will launch in Japan on the 29April.


Features Editor

Matt is really bad at playing games, but hopefully a little better at writing about them. He's Features Editor for PocketGamer.biz, and has also written for lesser publications such as IGN, VICE, and Paste Magazine.