Imagine trying playing a game like Story of Seasons (the latest Harvest Moon title), Tearaway or even Super Mario 3D Land, on an iPhone, iPad or mobile Android device, without the help of a dedicated GamePad.
Developers would be forced to crowd countless buttons onto a tiny screen that was never designed with gaming in mind in the first place.
This is something retro emulators often end up doing, and although games are still playable with this control method, the experience is never as enjoyable as it would have been on the original console the game was intended to be played on. The number of times I’ve accidentally turned my vehicle in the wrong direction while playing Grand Theft Auto III on my Nexus 4, because the game’s virtual directional pad is too close together, is frustratingly significant.
The same can be said about other console-to-mobile ports like recently released Tomb Raider and Bioshock, and countless other games. Sure, you could argue bringing along a compatible controller would solve this issue easily, but do you really want to lug a gamepad around along with your smartphone, just to play a game? This would defeat the purpose behind on-the-go portable gaming.
Continued: Dedicated handheld gaming consoles aren’t going anywhere
Kind of an interesting read, and makes sense of Nintendo's zero intention of porting their games to mobile. Nintendo is very particular about the game experience, and mobile would simply not cut it.