Nintendo’s hybrid console, the Nintendo Switch, is currently relishing one of its most remarkable years ever since it was first introduced in 2017. Even as speculations and leaks about the anticipated Nintendo Switch 2 continue to proliferate across online forums, a new report has revealed that the Switch has contributed yet another noteworthy achievement to Nintendo’s catalog.
As reported by Circana (previously known as The NPD Group) in an article by Games Industry.biz, the video game sector in the United States is undergoing remarkable growth, poised to achieve a 3% surge and culminating in a total of $58.3 billion by year’s end. This upward trajectory is largely credited to hardware products, adding an impressive $7 billion to the industry over the last 12 months. Among these, the Nintendo Switch has emerged as a standout performer, boasting robust sales figures that have propelled it beyond the achievements of its predecessor, the Wii.
The seventh-generation console, which made its debut in 2006, has indisputably commanded Nintendo’s sales in the US for a solid decade until July this year. As it stands, Switch lifetime sales in the US fall short of the Xbox 360 by just shy of a million units and the PlayStation 2 by a margin of less than five million units.
Though Circana didn’t reveal the number of Switch sales in the US, Nintendo disclosed earlier in the year that the global sales tally stood at an impressive 129.53 million units, with the Americas accounting for a modest 49 million units. To trace the origins of the Switch’s extraordinary success this year, one needn’t search any further than the flagship first-party Nintendo game, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
This sequel to the acclaimed 2017 title Breath of the Wild launched in May and has already shipped over 18 million units. With the help of the fortuitous resolution of the global chip shortage, which had previously limited console production, Nintendo has been able to ramp up its manufacturing efforts, resulting in an influx of units to meet the surging demand.
Sony’s PlayStation 5 was among the consoles affected by the chip shortage, but ever since the Japanese manufacturer managed to steady its supply chains, it has now become the leader in hardware sales in the US, a trend that is predicted to continue until 2025. The new-gen console now holds a 5% lead over its predecessor, the PlayStation 4, in terms of units sold within a comparable timeframe and an incredible 87% lead when compared to the PlayStation 3’s lifetime sales.
Meanwhile, on the Xbox front, the Series X and Series S aren’t trailing as far behind, only 10% shy of the Xbox One’s performance. However, it’s the Xbox Series that holds the lead, outperforming its predecessor, the Xbox 360, by a 6% margin.
As Pokemon fans await the release of the Pokemon Scarlet and Violet expansions, with the first DLC slated to release on September 13, we can expect Switch sales to keep soaring as the console achieves more milestones.
