Nintendo lowers sales forecast with Switch performing ‘below expectations’

The Switch has topped 150.8 million lifetime sales but Nintendo has conceded the aging platform is performing ‘below expectations.’

In its fiscal report for the nine months ended December 31, 2024, Nintendo explained Switch hardware sales declined by 30.6 percent year-on-year to 9.54 million units. Software sales dipped by 24.4 percent year-on-year to 123.98 million units over the same period.

That downturn resulted in consolidated net sales tumbling by 31.4 percent to 956.2 billion yen ($6.15 billion) over the past nine months. Profits fell by 41.9 percent to 237.2 billion yen ($1.5 billion).

Digging into those numbers, Nintendo said titles released during the current fiscal year delivered “steady” sales. That includes The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom and Super Mario Party Jamboree, which sold 3.91 million copies and 6.17 million copies respectively.

It also benefitted from the longevity of catalog releases like Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, which sold 5.38 million units over the past nine months. The kart racer remains the best-selling Switch title of all time with over 67 million lifetime sales.

The Switch, however, is a console in decline after eight years on shelves and Nintendo has acknowledged that by downwardly revising its sales forecast. The company now expects the Switch to sell 11 million units by the end of the current fiscal year–down on the 12.5 million units it previously forecasted.

It has also lowered its full-year software sales forecast by 6.3 percent to 150 million units.

Nintendo highlights Switch player count with hardware and software in decline

Despite that revision, Nintendo said the Switch is “still being purchased by many people” and now boasts 129 million annual playing users. The Nintendo Switch OLED Model is currently the most popular console in the family in terms of hardware sales.

Elsewhere, Nintendo noted that digital sales fell by 29 percent year-on-year to 245.8 billion yen ($1.58 billion)–largely due to a decrease in sales of downloadable Switch software.

Sales also fell by 33.9 percent year-on-year within the company’s mobile and IP related business, but that decline accounts for a substantial decrease in revenue related to The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

Looking ahead, Nintendo reminded investors (as if they needed telling) the newly-unveiled Switch 2 is slated for launch in 2025. It also confirmed it will release a number of notable first-party titles this year including Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, Pokemon Legends: Z-A, and Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition. 

The company now downwardly revised its consolidated forecast and expects to deliver net sales of 1.2 trillion yen ($7.7 billion) and profits of 270 billion yen ($1.73 billion) by the end of the fiscal year on March 31, 2025.

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