Nintendo Switch Goes Gunning For PS2 As Best-Selling Console Of All Time
The Nintendo Switch is just one month shy of turning 7 years old and while there have been some iterative upgrades since the original model's release in 2017, the core hardware is essentially the same. Seven years is an eternity in tech, and the staying power of the Switch has it on track to potentially dethrone both the Nintendo DS and Sony's PlayStation 2 console in overall sales, which would make it best-selling console of all time. That would be the quite the feat.
As you might expect, Switch sales have slowed after steadily climbing and eventually peaking in 2020 (fiscal year 2021 for Nintendo). However, minor refreshes along with the addition of the Switch Lite have slowed its sales decline. In particular, the launch of the Switch OLED in October 2021 prevented what would have been a much steeper descent.
Source: Nintendo
Just as importantly, if not more so, the number of annual playing users continues to rise—the army of Switch users now sits at 122 million, according to Nintendo's latest tally. That's a remarkable feat for an aging console that, from its inception, lagged behind hardware from Sony and Microsoft in terms of raw CPU and GPU firepower. Valuable IP such as Super Mario and Donkey Kong, along with the hybrid-portable design, have given the Switch a remarkable amount of staying power.
The Switch is doing so well these days that Nintendo revised its sales forecast in its latest earnings release. Nintendo now anticipates selling 15.5 million Switch consoles by the end of its fiscal year (March 2024), up from 15 million previously. It also upward adjusted its software sales forecast by 5 million, to 190 million units.
Overall hardware sales of the Switch lineup currently stands at 139.36 million units. That puts it in third place on the list of best selling consoles of all time, behind only the Nintendo DS at 154.02 million units and Sony PlayStation 2 at 155 million units. The Switch has a real shot at leapfrogging both, especially when this year's holiday season comes into view.
The interesting wrinkle is that Nintendo intends on finally launching a next-gen Switch console this year, be it the Switch 2, Switch Pro, or Switch whatever. A recent press release by Altec Lansing for an accompanying product suggested the Switch 2 would launch in September, though after the news spread like wildfire, the company removed the release time frame and said it was only making an educated guess (cue the 'Sure, Jan' meme).
"For hardware, by continuing to convey the appeal of Nintendo Switch, we try not only to put one system in every home, but
several in every home, or even one for every person. Another objective is to continually release new offerings so more consumers
keep playing Nintendo Switch even longer and we can maximize hardware sales," Nintendo stated in its latest earnings report (PDF).
Even if a Switch 2 launched today (and it's not going to), the Switch 1/Lite/OLED would still have a great shot at surpassing 155 million units at some point. Barring something unexpected, it seems more of a matter of when, not if, the Switch will claim its place at the top of the list.
