Last year, Nintendo (NTDOF) faced an unexpected dip in hardware, software, and digital game sales, which significantly impacted the company’s bottom line.
Nintendo’s latest earnings report, released on Nov. 5, revealed its net sales over the last six months declined by about 34%, compared to the same time period last year.
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Its operating profit, which is a company’s profit after paying operating expenses, also shrunk by almost 57% year-over-year.
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One key Nintendo product that consumers appeared to lose interest in during that period was the Nintendo Switch, which was first released in 2017 for $299. The gaming console’s unit sales decreased by 31% year-over-year, only selling 4.72 million units. Software sales for the Switch also declined by almost 28%.
The waning demand caused Nintendo to cut its sales expectations for the console for the rest of the fiscal year, which ends in March.
An attendee plays a video game on a Nintendo Switch gaming console during the Tokyo Game Show on Sept. 21, 2023 in Chiba, Japan.
Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images
Nintendo now expects to sell 12.50 million Nintendo Switch hardware units, 1 million less than it previously forecasted. It also predicts it will sell only 160 million software units for the console instead of 165 million.
Nintendo finally unveils a highly anticipated product
While the demand for the Nintendo Switch dies down, Nintendo has finally unveiled the product’s successor, Nintendo Switch 2.
The company dropped a trailer for the new product on its website, unveiling a few noticeable changes compared to the first Nintendo Switch.
First and foremost, the console’s screen is larger, and the kickstand is now shaped like a handle. Also, there are now two USB-C ports on the device instead of just one.
The Joy-Con controllers, which are attached on each side of the console, appear to magnetically connect to the console. Several buttons on the controllers also appear to be larger to match the increased size of the device. There is also a mysterious new button on the right Joy-Con controller.
Gamers who still use wired headphones can breathe a sigh of relief, as the Nintendo Switch 2 still has a headphone jack and accepts physical game cartridges.
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“Nintendo Switch 2 plays Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive games, as well as both physical and digital Nintendo Switch games,” said Nintendo in a press release. “Certain Nintendo Switch games may not be supported on or fully compatible with Nintendo Switch 2. Details will be shared on the Nintendo website at a later date.”
Nintendo will give fans a chance to test out the new console
Nintendo also said in the press release that it will unveil more details about Nintendo Switch 2 on April 2. The company will also hold Nintendo Switch 2 Experience events worldwide, where consumers can go hands-on with the gaming console.
Those events are set to take place in three major cities in the U.S.; New York, April 4-6, Los Angeles, April 11-13, and Dallas, April 25-27.
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The company will also hold those events in Europe, Oceania, Canada and Asia.
The Nintendo Switch 2 announcement is a major surprise since it was previously speculated that Nintendo wouldn’t announce the new product until sometime in March this year.
A February 2024 report from Japanese publication Nikkei stated that Nintendo delayed the release of the Nintendo Switch 2 because the company prioritized “taking measures to prevent resale and securing an initial stock of successor machines and an assortment of popular software from the time of release.”
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