Nintendo Switch has been named America’s fastest-selling home video game console, beating the previous record, also held by Nintendo with the Wii, released in 2006.
The console-portable hybrid sold 4.8 million units in the US during its first ten months on sale. Additional figures show that the Switch sold 10 million units worldwide in the nine months following its March 3rd release.
This news is quite the reversal of fortune for Nintendo; the Switch’s predecessor, the Wii U, was a commercial failure, selling only 13.5 million units worldwide during its entire time on sale. Due to its positive reception, the Switch has secured much more in the way of third-party support from developers like Bethesda.
Nintendo’s own critically-acclaimed triple-A titles like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey are complemented by adventurous ports of third-party favourites like The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and DOOM.
By comparison, it was recently announced that Sony’s PlayStation 4 has sold 70.6 million units since its release in November 2013.
Analyst Comment
I had the chance to try the Switch over Christmas as some of my family brought their console along. It is a clever design with great performance – I’m not surprised that it has proved popular! (BR)
