Switch ended up selling 4m units in Japan for 2023, that’s the biggest sales for a platform on its 7th year, over 1m units above the Nintendo DS at the same time.
Switch ended up selling 4m units in Japan for 2023, that's the biggest sales for a platform on its 7th year, over 1m units above the Nintendo DS at the same time.
Will be interesting to see how it does this year, a large drop in sales is very much expected. pic.twitter.com/l3CCTVkVfR
— Game Data Library (@GameDataLibrary) January 11, 2024
by Turbostrider27
12 Comments
It’s impressive that it keeps selling well until today
If I read that graph correctly, Switch is selling better in its 7th year than PS2 ever did in its lifetime in Japan. Why exactly are people insisting Nintendo desperately needs to release a new system again?
Switch is currently ~1 Million units behind the DS lifetime sales in Japan. Surpassing it to become the best-selling console in Japan of all time is only a matter of time at this point. It might even happen by the end of this FY.
I think more than just console sales, the software sales are really impressive on the console. Despite remaining outsold by the DS, there are multiple Switch games that have outsold the best selling DS games by several million copies.
And this is why Nintendo is waiting so long to announce their next console. They can. They do it with their games all the time too. They completely finish a game before announcing it, and even then they only announce a few months before release, and even then it’s only when they think the market is ready for it. There’s a substantial list of completed Nintendo games that were just never released as a result of this (Star Fox 2 being the most prominent of example). I think the NS2 is done, and I even think they have some games ready, but why announce anything when the old console is still selling so well?
I bought my switch when I travel last year to Japan. Was cheaper than in my country and also was tax free.
Ive owned a regular switch for 3 years and I’m about to buy an OLED one. People in 2039 will be making YouTube videos about why they are buying Nintendo Switches in 2039. I’m a fortune teller!
I wonder if Switch will surpass the PS2 sales for the title of most prolific console of all time??
It would be smart of Nintendo to have Switch 2 cross compatible with Switch games. They can continue to release a few more titles into 2025/2026 to maintain OG Switch sales for a few more titles.
I definitely see Prime 2+3 remasters being dropped on both as we STILL wait for Prime 4 with a potential enhanced Switch 2 version.
Then there are the Zelda Windwaker and Twilight Princess ports that have been sitting and apparently complete for a years now, likely held off and meant to be dropped in off years waiting for the next big Zelda.
This just shows to me that they can really take their time and develop. Switch 2 to be amazing. No cut corners or anything else and just be “Soon ™” to everyone asking about it.
The long tale of the Switch sales is in part due to the pandemic and the accompanying component shortage and hardware price rises. The PS5 seems to have benefited too, not so sure about the Xbox Series X and S though. The sales jump for PS5 was more recent it must be said, during component shortage its availability was hit hard. This [Statista](https://www.statista.com/statistics/1339466/global-ps5-console-unit-sales-quarter/) chart of quarterly PS5 sales has some interesting numbers.
But we tOtAlLy NeEd A sWiTcH 2 *right now*, amirite?