Nintendo Switch lifetime sales surpass 139 million units, sales continues to cool

Nintendo recently released its financial report for the quarter ending in December 2023, and the Switch is still a hot item.

As of December 31, 2023, Nintendo has sold 139.36 million Switch, Switch Lite, and Switch OLED consoles. These numbers cement its position as the third best-selling game console of all time in the world. By region, the Americas have sold 53.85 million units, Europe has sold 36.15 million, Japan has sold 33.34 million, and all other regions have sold 16.03 million.

According to this report, the Switch became the best selling console in Japan last year, supplanting the Nintendo DS (which sold 32.99 million units during its lifespan).

However, Nintendo's report shows a continued decline in sales numbers year-over-year. Between January 2022 and December 2022, the Nintendo Switch family moved 14.91 million units, while sales from January 2023 to December 2023 only managed 13.74 million units, a decrease of 7.84% between years.

This decreasing growth in sales may be attributed to the Switch's relatively long lifespan. The console is coming up on its 7th birthday, and rumors of an imminent sequel console have been steadily swirling.

Unsurprisingly, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdoms and Super Mario Bros. Wonder were big sellers last year, hitting 20.28 million and 11.96 million units, respectively. These numbers are made more impressive when the release dates of each game is considered; Tears of the Kingdom released in May 2023 and Super Marios Bros. Wonder released in October, giving each title only 7 and 2 months, respectively, to move as many units as they did.

Overall software sales were down 4.7% year-over-year, although digital sales grew by 11.7% year-over-year.

Nintendo saw a huge boon in mobile and IP-related businesses (e.g., licensed revenue). The Super Mario Bros. Movie led the charge in this market segment and greatly contributed to a 93.4% year-over-year growth in licensed product sales.

Overall, Nintendo is sitting pretty. From March 2023 to December 2023, the company netted J¥408.041 billion (roughly $2.76 billion) in profit, an increase of 15% from the prior period.

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