'Super Mario Run' updates: pre-registration period for Android users has began

After the timed exclusivity deal with Apple, Nintendo will finally release "Super Mario Run" on Android soon.

This week, Nintendo already allowed Android users to pre-register on Google Play to let them have the chance to download the game as soon as it goes live on their devices.

To pre-register, Android users must go to the Google Play Store app on their devices and search for the "Super Mario Run" using the search bar. Then they have to tap on the game then click on the green button on the right to sign up for the notification for the upcoming game.

However, Nintendo has yet to announce the official release date of "Super Mario Run" on Android devices. But Nintendo President Tatsumi Kimishima told Japanese newspaper Kyoto Shimbum that the game will be available for Android users sometime in 2017.

The side-scrolling, auto-running video game was first released for iOS devices for free on Dec. 15. It was the first mobile game that was released by the Japanese game developer. The game has been downloaded for more than five million times during the first day of its release. The game also earned as much as $5 million due to in-game purchases since players need to pay $9.99 to unlock all the game's levels.

In "Super Mario Run," players need to control Mario as he runs from left to right automatically and jump around to avoid obstacles along the way. Players must also tap the screen to help Mario jump over large obstacles. To succeed in the game, players must finish passing through all the obstacles in the fastest possible time.

Aside from "Super Mario Run," Nintendo is also planning to come up with at least three new smartphone games that it will unveil sometime in 2017. Yet details about the upcoming smartphone games remain scarce at the moment.