The Nintendo Switch is Officially the Company's Fastest Selling Console Ever

ffronw

I am a meat popsicle
Oct 24, 2013
2,804
0
0
The Nintendo Switch is Officially the Company's Fastest Selling Console Ever

//cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/1368/1368309.jpgThe Switch has sold more units faster than any other Nintendo console, but it's till being outsold by The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Last month, there were estimates that the Nintendo Switch had sold roughly 1.5 million units worldwide [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/169789-Report-States-that-Nintendo-has-sold-1-5M-Switch-Consoles]. Fast forward to today, and Nintendo has finally announced its official sales numbers for March, at least in the US.

The numbers come from Nintendo of America, which cites NPD data that has the Switch at 906,000 units sold in March in the US. In announcing those numbers, Nintendo says that Switch is selling "faster in its launch month than any other video game system in Nintendo history." We still don't have worldwide sales numbers for the console, but Nintendo promised to provide those during its April 27 fiscal earnings report.

What's even more interesting in these numbers are the sale figures Nintendo shared for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The game sold about 460,000 units for the Wii U, and 925,000 for the Switch. If you're keeping track, that means that the Switch version of Breath of the Wild actually outsold the Switch itself. Nintendo addressed this, saying, "This may be attributed to people who purchased both a limited edition of the game to collect and a second version to play."

These numbers help to explain the rumors that Nintendo was planning to double Switch production [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/169824-Report-Nintendo-Planning-to-Double-Switch-Production]. These numbers may be the best in Nintendo's history, but they still don't match up to the Xbox One, which sold over 2 million units in its first 18 days, and the PS4 sold 2.1 million units in its first 14 days.

We'll see how the worldwide numbers stack up when they're announced later this month.

Permalink
 

Lori Croft

New member
Mar 14, 2017
4
0
0
That's pretty decent all things considering... however, the real question is if it can hold up post launch... like in a year from now like Xbox One and PS4 which continue to sell
 

gigastar

Insert one-liner here.
Sep 13, 2010
4,419
0
0
Lori Croft said:
That's pretty decent all things considering... however, the real question is if it can hold up post launch... like in a year from now like Xbox One and PS4 which continue to sell
Pay attention to software sales when the holiday season rolls around.

If people are buying lots of Switch games (realative to number of systems sold) then the thing must have some staying power as a gaming device.
 

Saltyk

Sane among the insane.
Sep 12, 2010
16,755
0
0
Lori Croft said:
That's pretty decent all things considering... however, the real question is if it can hold up post launch... like in a year from now like Xbox One and PS4 which continue to sell
My thoughts exactly. The real question is longevity. I don't think anyone questioned if the Switch would sell at launch. The real question is how well it continues to sell.
 

AzrealMaximillion

New member
Jan 20, 2010
3,216
0
0
gigastar said:
Lori Croft said:
That's pretty decent all things considering... however, the real question is if it can hold up post launch... like in a year from now like Xbox One and PS4 which continue to sell
Pay attention to software sales when the holiday season rolls around.

If people are buying lots of Switch games (realative to number of systems sold) then the thing must have some staying power as a gaming device.
This.

The Switch has a lot of interesting niche titles coming to it in the coming months, but longevity on Nintendo consoles is usually determined by the flagship releases. Moreso than any other console in the current gen.
 

Guffe

New member
Jul 12, 2009
5,106
0
0
I bought one so I hope the games will continue to be produced for it :D
So far I have used it daily, which is a lot of gaming for me....
 

cathou

Souris la vie est un fromage
Apr 6, 2009
1,163
0
0
ffronw said:
"This may be attributed to people who purchased both a limited edition of the game to collect and a second version to play."
Really, there's people that doing that for a game ? 25k people that are doing that ?
 

DarklordKyo

New member
Nov 22, 2009
1,797
0
0
Makes sense, considering all the hype that was generated, and the fact that, along with Nintendo's typical relatively high sales in America compared to Japan, as well as the fact that it was made for Japanese lifestyles (being a good entertainment investment for a culture constantly on the go).

All that combined, it'd be a massive fail on their part for it not to sell fast.
 

TheMysteriousGX

Elite Member
Legacy
Sep 16, 2014
8,300
6,798
118
Country
United States
cathou said:
ffronw said:
"This may be attributed to people who purchased both a limited edition of the game to collect and a second version to play."
Really, there's people that doing that for a game ? 25k people that are doing that ?
Yep. Also folks who bought it in the hopes of getting a Switch when production allowed for it.
 

Fox12

AccursedT- see you space cowboy
Jun 6, 2013
4,828
0
0
FalloutJack said:
I can't hear Nintendo over Persona 5. Sorry.
What's a Nintendo?

Hey, what? Did someone say something? SMT 5? It's faint, but I think I heard something in the distance...
 

FalloutJack

Bah weep grah nah neep ninny bom
Nov 20, 2008
15,489
0
0
Fox12 said:
FalloutJack said:
I can't hear Nintendo over Persona 5. Sorry.
What's a Nintendo?

Hey, what? Did someone say something? SMT 5? It's faint, but I think I heard something in the distance...

Funnily enough, it seems that with the way P5 was handled, those worlds are starting to crossover.[footnote]What with the way Shadows now contain SMT-style demons and spoiler-related reasons.[/footnote]