What you need to know
- Nintendo has released its latest report detailing sales and earnings over the past fiscal year.
- Nintendo Switch hardware and software sales have increased by 35.8% and 43% respectively.
- Lifetime hardware sales are now at 79.97 million units, surpassing the 75.94 million units of the Nintendo 3DS.
Nintendo has released its most recent financial report which encompasses their earnings throughout the last fiscal year, comparisons to previous fiscal years and predictions for future sales and earnings. The previous FY2020 forecast was to sell 24 million units for hardware, 170 million units for software. This has been updated to 26.5 million units for hardware and 205 million units for software.
Nintendo Switch hardware sales in FY20 Q1-Q3 were 17.74 million units, which rose 35.8% in FY21 Q1-Q3 to 24.10 million units. Software sales rose by 43% year-on-year, from 123.13 million units in FY20 Q1-Q3 to 176.10 million units in FY21 Q1-Q3. There were 29 titles that sold over 1 million copies, with Animal Crossing: New Horizons being the best-seller at 19.41 million units, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe in second place at 8.64 million units and Super Mario 3D All-Stars coming in third place with 8.32 million units. Ring Fit Adventure also sold a hefty amount, at 5.95 million units. It's no surprise, as many of these games have been cited as being the best Nintendo Switch games.
This means that the Nintendo Switch has officially surpassed both hardware and software sales of the Nintendo 3DS. The Nintendo 3DS had lifetime hardware sales of 75.94 million units and lifetime software sales of 385.85 million units as of the latest report. This puts the Switch below Game Boy Advance hardware sales, which sold 81.51 million units.
Nintendo's best-selling handheld system remains the Nintendo DS, which sold 154.02 million hardware units and 948.72 million software units. Their best-selling home console remains the Nintendo Wii, with 101.63 million hardware units and 921.85 million software units. The Nintendo Switch is still a ways away from being the best-selling system in either category, but it definitely has the potential to reach new heights, especially since it's only half-way through its life, according to Nintendo.
Gaming on-the-go or at home
There's a reason the Nintendo Switch has been one of the most popular consoles over the past two years. Its sleek design, versatility and seemingly endless pool of thrilling games make it a great choice for gamers of all ages.
