SAN FRANCISCO, Oct 18 — After announcing 10 million Switch console sales in Europe last week, Nintendo’s North American figures now add 15 million to the global tally, with its Mario Kart, Legend of Zelda, Super Mario and Super Smash Bros games clearing 6 million copies each.
Crediting its 15 million sales milestone to the combined popularity of the Nintendo Switch (with detachable controllers and TV connector) and new Switch Lite (built-in controllers, no TV port), Nintendo has announced its current games machine as the best-selling console in North America for 10 months in succession.
Adoption has been up 20 per cent in comparison to January to September 2018.
(Back in July, Nintendo had announced 14.83 million unit sales in North America, 9.6 million in Europe, and 12.44 million from the rest of the world.)
Nintendo’s own-brand Switch games Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey and Super Smash Bros Ultimate have all sold more than 6 million copies in North America, with another ten having cleared the 1 million mark.
Nintendo praised Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, Minecraft and Fortnite for having achieved “significant sales,” while Stardew Valley, Cuphead, the Overcooked! series and Untitled Goose Game were highlighted among titles from independent development studios.
Next up for the Switch are the releases of Ring Fit Adventure (classic Switch only) on October 18, Luigi’s Mansion 3 on October 31, and Pokémon Sword and Shield on November 15.
The Nintendo Switch launched in March 2017, with the Switch Lite debuting September 2019 at 2/3 the price.
Though not as phenomenally impressive as equivalent sales of the Nintendo Wii, the Switch’s uptake remains ahead of the PlayStation 4 at a similar point in its lifecycle, to the tune of 1 million units.
Ring Fit Adventure in particular, which combines elements from Nintendo Wii bestsellers Wii Sports and Wii Fit, could attract major interest outside the usual gaming demographic and nudge the Switch’s performance further towards that of its 2006 ancestor. — AFP-Relaxnews
