The ability to download full retail games on 3DS hasn't gone down too well with Mario fans in Japan, nearly all of whom chose to grab his new quest via traditional retail outlets.
Nintendo boss Satoru Iwata has told Wall Street Journal that just five per cent of sales in Japan were downloads.
Japan's other digital offering, Brain Age sequel Demon Training, faired better with 20 per cent digital sales.
Iwata suggested that a greater portion of people bought Brain Age digitally because of the convenience of playing the mini games daily without having to carry/swap cartridges.
The CEO called initial digital sales "a good reaction" to the new initiative