Videogame maker Nintendo Co. is unveiled its first game for smartphones during a strategy briefing for investors in Tokyo. The covered the event live.

10:40 pm | Thanks

Thanks for following our live blog!

10:40 pm | Wrapping up

In conclusion, Nintendo has introduced its long-awaited and highly anticipated first smartphone app, called Miitomo, but pushed back the release date to the spring of next year. The title is a new franchise for the company-- first of five smartphone apps Nintendo plans to release by March 2017. But we're not sure whether to call Miitomo a game. Users will design their own avatars, or miis, to communicate with other users.

Nintendo is saving its most famous character, Mario the plumber, and others for a later date. Analysts say the company probably didn't want to risk Mario on an unproven mobile format, but might introduce him later.

Nintendo also said it was creating a new membership service, called “Nintendo Account,” to connect users of its hardware as well as PCs and mobile devices. It said it would use a cloud-based service to transfer data between mobile games and console games.

10:30 pm | Show is over | by Mayumi Negishi

And ... that's it. Aside from introducing Miitomo, a lot of cryptic talk, which reminds me of how good Nintendo is at keeping mum.

10:28 pm | The challenge | by Mayumi Negishi

Mr. Kimishima: How can we make a completely different kind of game that nobody has ever thought of? It's the same issue we have always faced.

10:20 pm | Few details on NX | by Mayumi Negishi

Nintendo is playing coy on NX, its next-generation console system. Guess we are just going to have to wait for more details.

10:17 pm | Miyamato on NX | by Mayumi Negishi

Mr. Miyamoto chimes in on NX. "We are going to be far more aggressive in using our IP, and not just stop with licensing, as in the past. The first example is Amiibo. We want our IP to better reach more children, and smart devices is just one vehicle."

10:12 pm | Shares tumble

Nintendo shares now down 7.5% on the news.

10:11 pm | App or game? | by Mayumi Negishi

On second thought, not clear whether Miitomo should be called a game. It looks more like a communications app with Mii avatars that can be ported to games on Nintendo hardware.

10:07 pm | DeNA partnership | by Mayumi Negishi

Curious about how the DeNA and Nintendo partnership is going. Senior Managing Director Shigeru Miyamoto says DeNA will focus on operation of the games. Which suggests game design is all Nintendo.

10:04 pm | Reason for delay | by Mayumi Negishi

On the reason for the delay of the smartphone app, Mr. Kimishima says, is the need for more lead time to fully promote and explain Miitomo. The company is busy promoting other titles in the pipeline right now, he says. It will start promoting Miitomo after the year-end holiday season. Says this will have little impact on earnings.

9:58 pm | Long-term strategy | by Mayumi Negishi

The five smartphone apps won't soon comprise half of sales, Mr. Kimishima says. Nintendo's goal is to use smart devices to increase the value of its IP, which will help sales of both software and hardware, he says.

9:55 pm | Working with DeNA | by Mayumi Negishi

Senior Managing Director Shigeru Miyamoto says DeNA will help operate the smartphone games, while Nintendo will focus on ways to guide users to its hardware.

9:51 pm | Miitomo designed to encourage interaction | by Mayumi Negishi

In the new Miitomo game, users will design their own avatars, or “Miis,” to communicate with other users. Executive Shinya Takahashi says that Nintendo will find ways to encourage people who are hesitant to talk to share things about themselves.

9:50 pm | Miitomo first of five | by Takashi Mochizuki

Miitomo is the first of five smartphone apps that Nintendo plans to release by March 2017.

9:47 pm | Miitomo | by Mayumi Negishi

Looks like Miis go ahead and communicate with other Miis without your knowledge. This will help people who are hesitant to talk about themselves to communicate with others, and reveal a side of your friends you never knew, Mr. Kimishima says.

9:46 pm | Nintendo introduces Miitomo | by Mayumi Negishi

The new smartphone game will be “Miitomo”. It will be free to play, with attractive add-ons that people can pay for, Mr. Kimishima says. Other smartphone games will be pay-to-download, he says.

9:42 pm | Presentation ends... | by Mayumi Negishi

And that's it for the presentation. Questions beginning.

9:41 pm | Smartphone launch pushed back | by Mayumi Negishi

Launch date of Nintendo's smartphone games has been delayed. Launch will be March 2016, not year-end. Nintendo eyes global launch, depending on the game.

9:37 pm | Linking mobile and consoles | by Takashi Mochizuki

Nintendo will use a cloud-based data service to transfer game data between mobile games and console games.

9:32 pm | Membership service | by Mayumi Negishi

Nintendo's new membership service will be called "Nintendo Account" -- it will connect hardware users, as well as PC and smart device users, Mr. Kimishima says.

9:29 pm | Amiibo sales breakdown | by Takashi Mochizuki

Amiibo sales regional breakdown. Blue is north america. Red Japan. Green Europe. Zelda most popular in US, Europe. pic.twitter.com/Om09or5nqK

— Takashi Mochizuki (@mochi_wsj) October 29, 2015

9:26 pm | Can't meet demand | by Mayumi Negishi

Nintendo can't keep up with demand for "Animal Crossing" amiibo cards. Mr. Kimishima apologizes, says will start sales of a new round of shipments today.

9:24 pm | Amiibo shipments | by Mayumi Negishi

Amiibo figurine shipments worldwide hit 21.1 million at end-September, up from 14.7 million at end-June.

9:23 pm | Splatoon... | by Takashi Mochizuki

Splatoon us A great game. Know many people who bought Wii U to play the game. pic.twitter.com/lUXkOMfFPY

— Takashi Mochizuki (@mochi_wsj) October 29, 2015

9:20 pm | 1 million in sales | by Mayumi Negishi

Looks like "Super Mario Maker" hit 1 million sales in just three weeks. Mr. Kimishima notes that like "Splatoon", a single hit game can change the course of hardware sales.

9:18 pm | Targeting women | by Mayumi Negishi

Mr. Kimishima notes that 70% of "Animal Crossing" fans in Japan are women, and that Nintendo will be pushing more games to win more women users this Christmas.

9:17 pm | Titles for holiday season | by Mayumi Negishi

CEO Tatsumi Kimishima says there are more titles--unannounced--coming this year to promote both Wii U and 3DS during the year-end holiday season.

9:14 pm | Buzz or hospitality? | by Mayumi Negishi

I know these things shouldn't make a difference, but when servers come around pouring coffee into fancy cups for reporters and analysts, you get the feeling the company has something exciting to share -- at least something it feels good about. Or maybe it's just Kyoto hospitality.

9:11 pm | Kimishima begins... | by Takashi Mochizuki

Nintendo CEO Kimishima begins his presentation. pic.twitter.com/pRNjXSgm4K

— Takashi Mochizuki (@mochi_wsj) October 29, 2015

9:10 pm | Outlook for consoles | by Takashi Mochizuki

The outlook for existing consoles, which are already struggling, doesn't look promising. "Tough times ahead for Nintendo's Wii U console and 3DS handheld device because rivals are already moving on to the next-generation technology, such as virtual reality," says Kamada, of Tokai Tokyo Securities.

9:07 pm | The lineup | by Takashi Mochizuki

All stars.. pic.twitter.com/5wlostGmh5

— Takashi Mochizuki (@mochi_wsj) October 29, 2015

9:05 pm | Big potential in smartphone games | by Takashi Mochizuki

The five smartphone games Nintendo plans to release with DeNA by March 2017--if all are successful--can become an additional pillar to support the company. "Nintendo could generate ¥6 billion in operating profit a year from one smartphone game," says Kamada of Tokai Tokyo Securities.

9:04 pm | Here we go! | by Mayumi Negishi

And here we go! The execs are in. The room is packed now with analysts and reporters, and the flashes are popping off like crazy.

9:03 pm | Theme park updates | by Takashi Mochizuki

In addition to smartphone games, Nintendo CEO Kimishima hinted yesterday that the company would offer some updates about its theme-park partnership with Universal. But nothing about sleeping sensor QOL, it seems.

9:01 pm | Iwata's blue ocean | by Mayumi Negishi

Mr. Iwata liked to talk about the “blue ocean” — that there are expanses of untapped, unexplored creative potential, and that’s where Nintendo likes to go looking. Eager to know what type of new game play Nintendo is experimenting with.

8:59 pm | Hints about the NX? | by Mayumi Negishi

I hope Nintendo will slip in a hint or two about the NX. We know that Nintendo has begun distributing software kits. We also know that the NX will have a console and at least one mobile unit, and will have a more powerful chip.

8:56 pm | Membership service | by Mayumi Negishi

We will also be on the lookout for details of the new membership service that Nintendo has promised to launch along with its smartphone games. The late president Satoru Iwata promised that would include multiple devices--the 3DS, the Wii U and the next video game system, the mysterious NX.

8:55 pm | Holding out hope... | by Mayumi Negishi

It makes sense that Nintendo would want to test the smartphone waters with other games before risking a taint to heavyweights like Mario, Pikachu or Link. Still, as someone who grew up with Famicon, it’s hard not to hope…

8:53 pm | Voters weigh in | by Takashi Mochizuki

More than half of respondents think the first title won't be Mario.

What a timing to have this function on twitter! My question is, "what IP Nintendo would use for 1st smartphone game?

— Takashi Mochizuki (@mochi_wsj) October 28, 2015

8:51 pm | Shares flat ahead of briefing | by Mayumi Negishi

Nintendo’s shares are flat. Looks like the market is waiting to see what comes out today, instead of yesterday’s earnings, which missed analyst expectations. Read WSJ Takashi Mochizuki’s take here.

8:46 pm | Wait for the big guns? | by Mayumi Negishi

Some analysts and game industry people expect Nintendo to hold off on bringing their biggest games to smartphones until next year.

2) Don’t get your hopes up too high for Mario. But I heard Nintendo and DeNA are planning to pull out the big guns (bigger IPs) next year.

— Dr. Serkan Toto (@serkantoto) October 27, 2015

8:32 pm | Connecting smartphones and consoles | by Takashi Mochizuki

Nintendo's smartphone games will be popular if they become data-compatible with console games, meaning a player can use smartphone game data to play console games, analysts say. "A key is whether Nintendo, through its unified member service, can seamlessly connect smartphone games and console games," said Osamu Kamada, an analyst at Tokai Tokyo Securities.

8:20 pm | It's anyone's guess | by Mayumi Negishi

Nintendo yesterday said it would announce its first smartphone game today. All of Nintendo’s treasure trove of IP is up for grabs, so it’s anyone’s guess what it might be. What we do know is that Nintendo and partner DeNA have promised five new games by March 2017, that they will be aggressively operated, and Nintendo will not just port older games onto smartphones.

8:01 pm | Programming note | by WSJ Staff

We're less than an hour away from the start of the briefing. Stay tuned.

8:00 pm | First-half operating profit | by Takashi Mochizuki

For the first time in five years, Kyoto-based Nintendo on Wednesday reported an operating profit for the first half of the fiscal year. But the results fell short of analysts’ expectations, reflecting weakening momentum for the company’s Wii U console and 3DS handheld devices, both of which have been on the market for several years.

7:56 pm | About-face in strategy | by Takashi Mochizuki

Nintendo's move into games for smartphones, which we'll hear more about today, represents an about-face for a company that has preferred to rely on its traditional, console-based games model. Analysts say the new smartphone business could generate meaningful sales for Nintendo, which has struggled in recent years.

6:17 pm | Programming note | by Mayumi Negishi

Thanks for stopping by the live blog. We’re waiting for Nintendo’s strategy briefing to start in Tokyo at 10:00 a.m. Japan time.