Four years after its launch, Nintendo is discontinuing content support for the game Mario Kart Tour

In a communication sent to players, the company has officially announced that, starting from October 4, 2023, following the upcoming "Anniversary Tour" in Mario Kart Tour", all subsequent seasons will integrate content from previously featured tours.

The message explicitly conveys, "After the conclusion of the Battle Tour, commencing on October 4, 2023, there will be no further introductions of fresh tracks, characters, vehicles, or gliders." The company expresses its hope that players will continue to derive enjoyment from their Mario Kart Tour experience.

This disclosure implies that the imminent release of the sixth and final installment of downloadable content (DLC) for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe on the Nintendo Switch is a distinct possibility, given the historical pattern of new tracks often coinciding with the mobile version.

Moreover, the announcement of discontinuing support for Mario Kart Tour underscores a potential shift in Nintendo's mobile gaming focus.

In contrast to major publishers such as Activision and Take-Two, where mobile games consistently contribute more than half of their annual revenues, mobile gaming has represented only a minor share of Nintendo's earnings since it initiated its foray into mobile game development in 2016.

Four years after its initial launch, Nintendo is wrapping up content support for Mario Kart Tour. Among the eight major mobile games released by the company thus far, support has been terminated for five, including Mario Kart Tour.

Fire Emblem Heroes continues to be Nintendo's most successful mobile game by a substantial margin, as indicated by Appmagic data recently published by Mobilegamer.biz. It has generated over $810 million out of the estimated $1.5 billion earned from mobile games. Fire Emblem is reported to generate approximately $5 million per month.

Notably, Mario Kart Tour recently overtook Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp to become Nintendo's second-highest earner in the mobile gaming sector. It has accrued around $243 million from 230 million downloads and maintains a monthly revenue of roughly $2 million.

It's worth mentioning that in October 2022, Nintendo and DeNA removed a contentious "gacha" mechanic from Mario Kart Tour, which is estimated to have led to a monthly revenue decline of $1 million.