Nintendo’s newest monetary outcomes have confirmed a milestone for Nintendo Swap gross sales that we knew was coming, however that’s nonetheless a significant achievement. The hybrid handheld has racked up over 122 million gross sales in its lifetime, inserting it forward of PlayStation 4 (117 million) and Nintendo’s personal venerable Sport Boy (118 million) because the third-best-selling recreation console of all time.
Solely PlayStation 2 (155 million) and Nintendo DS (154 million) have offered extra. With Nintendo projecting round 18 million gross sales for its present fiscal yr — a quantity the corporate says has been constrained by semiconductor shortages — and at the very least one or two extra years earlier than Nintendo introduces a successor, the all-time crown just isn’t but out of Swap’s grasp. It’s an unimaginable turnaround from Nintendo’s earlier {hardware} era, when Wii U flopped to a meager 13 million models offered (versus Wii’s 101 million), and 3DS, whereas performing respectably, solely managed half the gross sales of its predecessor.
However, there’s little question that Swap {hardware} gross sales are slowing, and there’s a query mark over what number of extra main first-party video games stay to propel them. After The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom in Might, Nintendo’s slate has Pikmin 4 due later within the yr, an undated Metroid Prime 4, and that’s about it. Nintendo is probably going weighing up whether or not its unannounced initiatives, and possibly even Prime 4, must be held again for its subsequent console.
In the meanwhile, although, Swap software program gross sales stay greater than wholesome. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet shifted an unimaginable 20 million copies of their first six weeks on sale, making this already the fourth-best-selling era of Pokémon video games ever. Splatoon 3, one other current launch, has cruised to 10 million gross sales, whereas the Swap’s high vendor Mario Kart 8 Deluxe has cracked the 50 million barrier with an astonishing 52 million copies offered, placing it in a really unique membership with the likes of Tetris, Wii Sports activities, Minecraft, and Grand Theft Auto 5.
Right here’s what the Swap’s all-time high 10 seems to be like now:
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (52 million)
Animal Crossing: New Horizons (41.59 million)
Tremendous Smash Bros. Final (30.44 million)
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (29 million)
Pokémon Sword and Defend (25.68 million)
Tremendous Mario Odyssey (25.12 million)
Pokémon Sword and Defend (20.61 million)
Tremendous Mario Social gathering (18.79 million)
Ring Match Journey (15.22 million)
Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Eevee! (15.07 million)
Total, Swap has reached 994 million video games offered, greater than every other Nintendo console (thanks, presumably, to its thriving digital market).
When Swap launched six years in the past, few predicted the platform — primarily based on {hardware} that was then already fairly dated — might attain this stage of success. However the simplicity of Nintendo’s pitch, combining house and handheld gaming in a single gadget, plus the normal energy of its in-house software program noticed it by. The query for Nintendo now’s whether or not to easily improve the Swap idea for a brand new {hardware} era, or strive one thing new. The previous looks as if a no brainer, however Nintendo is a stressed innovator, and lots of of its largest successes — together with the Sport Boy, the Wii, and the Swap itself — got here out of left area. Will it shock us once more?