The president of Nintendo says Switch gross sales will proceed so long as there’s demand, however dwindling gross sales recommend that gained’t be for lengthy.
It’s been obvious since final yr that Nintendo is winding down assist for the unique Switch and saving its most enjoyable video games for the Nintendo Switch 2, which is because of launch someday later this yr.
Switch homeowners do have Metroid Prime 4: Beyond and Pokémon Legends Z-A to sit up for this yr, however these are generally assumed to be cross-gen releases for the Switch 2 (although insider claims say this may not be the case for the brand new Pokémon sport).
The likes of the brand new Mario Kart and an anticipated new 3D Mario platformer will little question be unique to Switch 2. Yet this doesn’t imply Nintendo will abandon the unique Switch immediately.
Nintendo just lately shared its monetary outcomes for the third quarter of its fiscal yr (October 2024 to December 2024). This is the primary of those to observe the Switch 2’s reveal, though for the time interval in query the brand new consoles remained a secret.
When talking throughout an earnings name with traders, president Shuntaro Furukawa, through Japanese outlet Sankei, stated that the unique Switch will nonetheless be bought ‘so long as there may be demand.’
Furukawa apparently didn’t point out something in regards to the unique Switch persevering with to obtain new video games, however feedback he made in 2023 urged this may very well be the case.
It would make sense for Nintendo to maintain supporting the unique Switch even after the Switch 2 launches. Not all people will probably be ready or keen to transition to the newer console and after practically eight years in the marketplace, the Switch has too huge of an viewers to fully abandon.
Lifetime gross sales for the Switch now exceed 150.86 million units. As such, it wouldn’t be stunning if Nintendo launched cross-gen titles that may be performed on the unique Switch however provide some efficiency or visible advantages when working on Switch 2.
It’s actually going to be attention-grabbing to see how way more demand for the unique Switch there may very well be. For the present fiscal yr, Nintendo hoped to promote roughly 13.5 million consoles by the top of March 2025, however was compelled to trim that forecast to 12.5 million final November, because of a 31% drop in gross sales.
It seems that was nonetheless too optimistic as Nintendo’s latest hardware forecast has lower that estimation down once more, to 11 million models. For the primary three quarters of the fiscal yr (April 2024 to December 2024), it has bought 9.54 million consoles, which is 30% lower than what Nintendo managed in the identical interval the yr earlier than.
If Nintendo does meet its goal, that may put the Switch at roughly 152 million models, which suggests it nonetheless gained’t fairly surpass the Nintendo DS’ 154.02 million gross sales to grow to be the second best-selling console ever (first place is the PlayStation 2 at ‘over 160 million’).
You’d suppose the dwindling gross sales could be partially attributed to anticipation for the Switch 2, however Furukawa disagrees. ‘We don’t suppose the impression of refraining from buying [because of Switch 2] is that nice,’ he advised traders, however didn’t present any different clarification.
Furukawa additionally described the yr as far as ‘strong’, regardless of the necessity to revise Nintendo’s targets. Super Mario Party Jamboree has been the corporate’s greatest performing sport of the fiscal yr, having bought an estimated 6.17 million models by the top of December 2024 following its October launch.
People are someway nonetheless shopping for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe too, with an extra 5.38 million models bought. In third place was The Legend Of Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom at 3.91 million models.
Email gamecentral@metro.co.uk, go away a remark under, follow us on Twitter, and sign-up to our publication.
To submit Inbox letters and Reader’s Features extra simply, with out the necessity to ship an electronic mail, simply use our Submit Stuff web page right here.
For extra tales like this, verify our Gaming web page.
MORE: Nintendo Switch 2 Experience tickets are being bought on eBay nevertheless it’s a rip-off
MORE: Nintendo loses authorized battle in opposition to Costa Rican grocery store known as ‘Super Mario’
MORE: Is Nintendo Switch 2 accessible to pre-order within the UK?
