The Nintendo Switch has been a remarkable hit, though its reign couldn’t last indefinitely. Approaching its eighth anniversary, the console is seeing a dip — with Nintendo reporting a 30% drop in hardware sales from the previous year, while game sales decreased by 24%. Faced with these figures, Nintendo had to revise its forecasts for the second consecutive quarter, now expecting to sell 11 million units in the current fiscal year ending March 31, down from the original 13.5 million estimate. They’ve also reduced their profit expectations for the year.
These declining numbers don’t come as a surprise. Despite delaying the announcement for the Switch 2 as long as possible, it’s been clear that the original Switch is winding down. In the fast-paced world of gaming, eight years is a lengthy lifespan for a console. Speculation and leaks about its successor, the Switch 2, have been circulating widely, and Nintendo’s once robust software lineup for the Switch is showing signs of thinning.
However, the drop in sales shouldn’t overshadow the tremendous success the Switch has enjoyed. To date, Nintendo has sold 150.86 million units, coming close to the impressive 154 million units sold by the Nintendo DS, which holds the spot as the second-best-selling gaming device in history. Even with the Switch 2 on the horizon, it’s likely that the original Switch will surpass that number and secure its place as Nintendo’s most successful console yet.
To clinch the title of the best-selling console of all time, the Switch would need to surpass the PlayStation 2’s massive 160 million lifetime sales. Achieving that ultimate milestone might be a stretch — but just barely.
