The console handheld hybrid Nintendo Switch has crushed all other video games consoles in its home country of Japan. Since its release in March 2017, the Nintendo Switch has become the best selling console ever in the region.
With the Nintendo Switch 2 on the horizon for a 2024 release date with support for DLSS and ray-tracing, Nintendo is set to continue its domination of the handheld market. While Sony is reportedly working on a PSVita successor, Nintendo currently has the market cornered.
Nintendo’s recent financial reports, via VGC, reveals that the Switch has sold 33.34 million units in Japan. This means that the console has passed the Nintendo DS, the previous best-selling console in the region, which sold 32.98 million. Of course, the Switch is also still available for sale meaning it could become even more popular.
At the time of writing, the Nintendo Switch still needs to sell around 15 million units to beat the global best-seller: the Sony PlayStation 2. With the console’s successor already on the horizon, it seems unlikely that the system will be able to cross that threshold, but there’s still time.
Nintendo currently predicts that the Switch family — consisting of the base model, Lite and OLED — will hit 141.12 million global units by March, the system’s 7th anniversary. With this in mind, it does seem possible that the console could barely scrape by as the world’s best selling console by the time it’s discontinued.
With Nintendo Switch 2 dev kits already in the hands of hundreds of game developers, the next Nintendo console is already shaping up to be something special. Judging by the Nintendo Switch 2 processor leaks, the new console will have processing power similar to a PlayStation 4, meaning ports of games like Cyberpunk 2077 may be possible on the go.
There is currently no concrete release date for the Nintendo Switch 2 at the time of writing.