At 17 million shipped, Switch 2 remains the fastest-selling console in history…
Maybe not the news some of us disillusioned with Nintendo want to hear, but it is the news. The Switch 1 has also become Nintendo’s best-selling console ever (and in my opinion, will likely stay that way).
The key is, Nintendo produces more Switch 2 on release than Switch 1. Also when Switch 1 got released, nobody knew how hot it would be, as the last console prior to it was the Wii U flop. So given those two points, its only logical that the Switch 2 sells more on launch than the Switch 1 did. The question is, how long this will last.
Unless there’s a prolonged software drought, analysts say that if it did this well during the holiday, it will probably do just fine into the future. Switch 1 numbers are a high bar to clear long term, but it’s on pace to outdo most consoles historically. In less than one year, it’s already putting up numbers that rival what the Gamecube or Xbox did in four or five years.
Would switch 1 have done anywhere near what it did without pandemic? Every last model of the DS is still incredibly expensive on the aftermarket, due to pandemic. Before that used consoles of previous generations were pretty readily available at cheap prices.
Point being if pandemic made even a bygone generation of handhelds revitalized and holding value for 5 years. It’s impact on Switch 1 sales cannot be underestimated.
We’ll see how the holidays go for Switch 2 without the power of FOMO and existential nomadic existence.
There was a whole price fixing thing for retro games that happened in the same time frame, so it’s not an experiment that could be run with only a single variable. Old hardware is going to become more expensive as time goes on, as it becomes harder to source; young people are finding a curiosity with old tech that has no mandatory online connectivity, for a host of reasons; and quite honestly, the Switch 1 launched with Mario Odyssey and Breath of the Wild in its first year, with Smash soon after, Mario Kart 8 being one of the best-selling games of all time even before the pandemic, and Animal Crossing would have done gangbusters regardless. I’m convinced the pandemic had little to do with its success, even if Animal Crossing has a major chapter in it.
You are not logged in. However you can subscribe from another Fediverse account, for example Lemmy or Mastodon. To do this, paste the following into the search field of your instance: [email protected]
Welcome to the largest gaming community on Lemmy! Discussion for all kinds of games. Video games, tabletop games, card games etc.
Rules
1. Submissions have to be related to games
Video games, tabletop, or otherwise. Posts not related to games will be deleted.
This community is focused on games, of all kinds. Any news item or discussion should be related to gaming in some way.
2. No bigotry or harassment, be civil
No bigotry, hardline stance. Try not to get too heated when entering into a discussion or debate.
We are here to talk and discuss about one of our passions, not fight or be exposed to hate. Posts or responses that are hateful will be deleted to keep the atmosphere good. If repeatedly violated, not only will the comment be deleted but a ban will be handed out as well. We judge each case individually.
3. No excessive self-promotion
Try to keep it to 10% self-promotion / 90% other stuff in your post history.
This is to prevent people from posting for the sole purpose of promoting their own website or social media account.
4. Stay on-topic; no memes, funny videos, giveaways, reposts, or low-effort posts
This community is mostly for discussion and news. Remember to search for the thing you’re submitting before posting to see if it’s already been posted.
We want to keep the quality of posts high. Therefore, memes, funny videos, low-effort posts and reposts are not allowed. We prohibit giveaways because we cannot be sure that the person holding the giveaway will actually do what they promise.
5. Mark Spoilers and NSFW
Make sure to mark your stuff or it may be removed.
No one wants to be spoiled. Therefore, always mark spoilers. Similarly mark NSFW, in case anyone is browsing in a public space or at work.
6. No linking to piracy
Don’t share it here, there are other places to find it. Discussion of piracy is fine.
We don’t want us moderators or the admins of lemmy.world to get in trouble for linking to piracy. Therefore, any link to piracy will be removed. Discussion of it is of course allowed.
The key is, Nintendo produces more Switch 2 on release than Switch 1. Also when Switch 1 got released, nobody knew how hot it would be, as the last console prior to it was the Wii U flop. So given those two points, its only logical that the Switch 2 sells more on launch than the Switch 1 did. The question is, how long this will last.
Unless there’s a prolonged software drought, analysts say that if it did this well during the holiday, it will probably do just fine into the future. Switch 1 numbers are a high bar to clear long term, but it’s on pace to outdo most consoles historically. In less than one year, it’s already putting up numbers that rival what the Gamecube or Xbox did in four or five years.
Would switch 1 have done anywhere near what it did without pandemic? Every last model of the DS is still incredibly expensive on the aftermarket, due to pandemic. Before that used consoles of previous generations were pretty readily available at cheap prices.
Point being if pandemic made even a bygone generation of handhelds revitalized and holding value for 5 years. It’s impact on Switch 1 sales cannot be underestimated.
We’ll see how the holidays go for Switch 2 without the power of FOMO and existential nomadic existence.
There was a whole price fixing thing for retro games that happened in the same time frame, so it’s not an experiment that could be run with only a single variable. Old hardware is going to become more expensive as time goes on, as it becomes harder to source; young people are finding a curiosity with old tech that has no mandatory online connectivity, for a host of reasons; and quite honestly, the Switch 1 launched with Mario Odyssey and Breath of the Wild in its first year, with Smash soon after, Mario Kart 8 being one of the best-selling games of all time even before the pandemic, and Animal Crossing would have done gangbusters regardless. I’m convinced the pandemic had little to do with its success, even if Animal Crossing has a major chapter in it.
Wait, are you dismissing the impact of pandemic as the single biggest factor in handheld sales from 2020-2021?