I have also wondered this a lot, but a big thing that's ignored is that a lot of these console/portable games don't translate that well to a touch device. For example, there is a reason why there aren't a lot of great racing games on iOS, and in my opinion it's because tilting the device left and right to steer just isn't as good of a mechanic as a d-pad. I am convinced that a game like MarioKart just would not be as fun without the physical buttons. The same applies to a lot of the classic side scrollers like Mario: without buttons they get a little frustrating. So far the best solution I've seen for porting is to put up virtual buttons, which in my opinion don't work well at all. You need to be looking at the action, not concerned with where your fingers are.
This, along with the focus on casual play, is part of the reason why you have a different class of games succeeding on iOS, such as endless runners. Since the controls are harder to get right on a touch device, we see simpler controls succeeding (such as helicopter style "just touch or don't touch" in Jetpack Joyride or simple swipe/tilt in Temple Run).
Now, that's not to say that:
1. Nintendo couldn't write all new games using their IP/brands/characters custom tailored for iOS/Android/touch. In fact, this would probably be the best approach.
2. Nintendo couldn't think up a way to fix this for existing games.
However, my only point is that the idea that Nintendo could just dump their entire libraries into iOS and resell every game they've ever made is a bit naive. But who knows, maybe they would suck but everyone would buy them anyways because they're "Nintendo". I don't think that's Nintendo's style though. I think Nintendo more so than Apple believes in the idea that if you care about software then you'll make your own hardware, or at least, if you care about software you will tailor the software to the device it is running on.
This, along with the focus on casual play, is part of the reason why you have a different class of games succeeding on iOS, such as endless runners. Since the controls are harder to get right on a touch device, we see simpler controls succeeding (such as helicopter style "just touch or don't touch" in Jetpack Joyride or simple swipe/tilt in Temple Run).
Now, that's not to say that:
1. Nintendo couldn't write all new games using their IP/brands/characters custom tailored for iOS/Android/touch. In fact, this would probably be the best approach.
2. Nintendo couldn't think up a way to fix this for existing games.
However, my only point is that the idea that Nintendo could just dump their entire libraries into iOS and resell every game they've ever made is a bit naive. But who knows, maybe they would suck but everyone would buy them anyways because they're "Nintendo". I don't think that's Nintendo's style though. I think Nintendo more so than Apple believes in the idea that if you care about software then you'll make your own hardware, or at least, if you care about software you will tailor the software to the device it is running on.