Record Sales And Industry Rankings
The Nintendo Switch has become the company’s best-selling console, passing 155 million units sold since its launch in 2017 and overtaking the Nintendo DS as Nintendo’s most successful gaming hardware.
The milestone places the Switch behind only Sony’s PlayStation 2 in the global rankings, after the PlayStation 2 sold more than 160 million units following its launch in 2000. The Switch saw a sharp rise in sales during the pandemic, which contributed to its long-term performance.
Nintendo announced the figures in its latest financial report, which also showed the company’s shares falling 11% after investors raised concerns about software sales and rising memory chip prices.
Switch 2 Sales And Investor Concerns
Despite the market reaction, Nintendo said its successor console, the Switch 2, had made a “good start” since its release in June 2025. The company said the device had sold 17 million units by the end of the year.
At a post-results briefing on Tuesday, Bloomberg News reported that Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa said higher memory chip prices could weigh on profits. The cost of many electronic devices could rise in 2026 because the price of RAM, once among the cheapest computer components, has increased sharply.
Games Line-Up And The Pandemic Effect
Industry analyst Christopher Dring said expectations for the original Switch were “very low” at launch, and said its performance can be linked to the strength of Nintendo’s game catalogue. He said franchises including Mario, Zelda, Pokémon, and Mario Kart all released their most successful titles during the Switch era. He added that games such as Luigi’s Mansion and Mario Party also sold tens of millions of copies.
Dring said the pandemic also played a role, as lockdowns pushed more people toward gaming at home. Freelance video games journalist Rachel Watts said the console became widespread during that period. “Everyone I knew had a Nintendo Switch,” she said. She added that Nintendo’s focus on games for younger audiences, combined with the console’s handheld design, helped widen its appeal.
Questions Over The Next Console’s Ceiling
The success of the Switch has raised questions about whether the Switch 2 can reach similar levels. Chris Scullion, deputy editor of Video Games Chronicle, said factors such as US tariffs and “the current economic situation in many of Nintendo’s major markets” could limit how far the new device can go.
He said that while the Switch 2 is expected to sell well, Nintendo may have to accept that it could fall short of the original’s record. “While Switch 2’s success is all but guaranteed, Nintendo might have to settle for it ‘only’ selling a lot, rather than it selling more than any other Nintendo device before it,” he said.
Featured image credits: Flickr
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