American video game retailer GameStop has revealed its latest financial results for Q1 2018, with drops being present across the board in comparison to the same time last year. Of course, Q1 of last year saw the successful launch of the Switch, and it was likely expected that revenue would be down without such an event to boost sales, but the console is still performing well for the store on the whole.
The company's CFO Robert Lloyd has stated that there is still a "very steady level of demand for Switch", suggesting that the console's initial hype hasn't worn down too much over the last 15 months. He also mentions the "surprising" success of titles like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which continues to sell well each and every week.
“… with respect to the Switch we did very well at the launch. It was the hottest thing that customers could get their hands on. We sold a lot of it in the two months of the quarter that it was in the marketplace. I think that we are seeing a very steady level of demand for Switch right now and a very steady level of demand for the Switch games. It’s surprising when I read the reports on a weekly basis how well even Zelda which launched a year ago continues to do on a week-to-week basis.”
It certainly feels like the Switch is on course to be a very successful milestone in Nintendo's hardware history, and maybe the company's target to shift another 20 million consoles this financial year is very much in sight. Hopefully we'll have a clearer idea of the Switch's future after tomorrow's E3 Direct.
[source nintendoeverything.com]
Comments 44
Please, Nintendo.
Just announce about Animal Crossing for Switch and 20 million unit shipped will be No Sweat !
Fallout 4 keeps making the charts despite its age. Why are they surprised that a game that isn't a blemish on a beloved franchise also keeps selling?
I'm pretty sure my current relationship will last at least as long as it takes for my GF to finish Zelda, as I'm the one with the game and system
I'll buy 2 Switches, one for my girlfriend and one for myself, once Animal Crossing comes out. I'd prefer to get a more portable Switch "mini" as the size of the current model doesn't appeal to me but I'll do whatever I have to do to play a new Animal Crossing on day 1.
What's more surprising is the price of Zelda still hasn't come down yet and it's still selling well.
That's what happens when you make a console that people actually care about.
@Spoony_Tech I think everybody knows Nintndo 1st party titles keep their price for 2 or 3 years. If the game were on PS4 or X1 sales would slow down while people waited for the game to drop to half price but that wont' happen to Zelda until 2020 when the Select line launches. Unless they decide to launch Zelda Complete this holiday with the DLC for $60, but they wouldn't announce that until the September Nintendo Direct. I know Nintnedo doesn't do those, but they dont' usually have Zelda Explorers Edition and $20 single player DLC for multiplayer games either. Nobody announces single player DLC for multiplayer games, it's usually the other way around. Maybe SFV.
Looking forward to this E3 for a lot of new game announcements and the September Direct for complete editions, amiibo, and maybe new hardware configurations or bundles for the holidays.
I bought my Switch on launch and still play it basically daily. However I haven't touched BotW in a while. Still, considering how utterly obsessed everyone was with it, this site alone putting out about 37 BotW articles everyday for several weeks, it really isn't surprising that it continues to sell well.
The Switch has a lot of solid games to date, with, even without the soon to be announced E3 content, a lot of good titles lined up in the coming months. So of course the machine is still selling well.
Besides, if my prediction is right and SSB Switch is a new title, not port, that game alone will probably move 2-3 million Switch units. I mean SSB on Wii U sold 5.3 million copies on a System with about 20 total games. The Switch has many more games than that and will be getting SSB too. Win Win.
@Anti-Matter i think Pokemon and Smash will just do that.
but, i agree with an Animal Crossing announcement on Switch. would make the switch more then just 20 million sales.
Why is the continued success of Zelda surprising, even over a year on? It is a truly beloved franchise... makes sense that most people who pick up a Switch would want it.
Even if Nintendo announced no new 1st party games at E3 the 20 million goal would be super easy thanks to past titles, Smash and Pokemon Let's Go.
I hope Nintendo kills it at E3 tomorrow. I want a genuine surprise
My Switch is just 3 weeks old. My first Nintendo console! Bought it with BotW and Xenogears Chronicle 2, but so far I've only played BotW.
I just can't put it down!
I think Nintendo's sales goal of 20 million for this fiscal year is ambitious to say the least unless the Direct sees them coming out swinging. They need to get everybody super pumped for the Switch again.
@Anti-Matter
Haha my bad! Xenoblade it is XD
Because BotW is that awesome!!!
@dethkult
Welcome to the Nintendo family, friend. You picked two great games to start off with. And heavy games too! You'll be busy for a while.
BotW is one of the most incredible experiences I've ever had from a game in a long, long time.
@MoonKnight7
Thanks! And yeah, BotW sure is something. I've only defeated the beast at Zora's Domain and that was a week ago. Now I'm just roaming around, soaking it all in. XD
Nice to see the Switch continues to do well. It's a great console, far better than the Wii U.
Doomed.
The Nintendo section at my local gamestop is only about a third of the size of the xb1 /ps4 sections but it is right up front as soon as you walk in. We were just there yesterday and was definitely the most populated however. Happy to see they're doin well on the retail side!
I'm predicting we get a dirt-cheap VR headset this year along with the follow-up to Wii Sports, with Animal Crossing and Fire Emblem coming in the middle of next year and Metroid Prime 4 (VR) coming at the end of 2019. We'll find out tomorrow.
When other big games like Monster Hunter, Pokemon, and Smash Bros. arrive, those alone should be enough to push the sales past 20M for the fiscal year. While the early part of 2018 was admittedly bare (my lone big purchase was Attack on Titan 2), the second half of the year is shaping up to be another monster (no pun intended) half for Nintendo!
@buxner oh man, Wii Sports is one of my favorite Wii games. Would love for a new Wii Tennis! (I'm not too keen on the less-pure Mario Tennis, and the Tennis World Tour was a disaster.)
@SomeWriter13
I think you can try Go Vacation Switch.
There was a Tennis gameplay on the Wii version.
Also, you can use Mii on Go Vacation Wii (Still no confirmation if you can use Mii or not for Switch version, but i guess it will be added with Mii).
I'm sure announcements in the upcoming days will boost those numbers even more!
@Anti-Matter: To be fair, both names are part of the overarching Xeno series meta. That's about all they have in common though!
@dethkult excellent, welcome, hope you enjoy your Switch and games!
its not surprising.
the switch holds the best two games ever.
best zelda game ever(at least one of the best)
the best mario game ever produced.
and even the best mario kart game ever, and that in its first years.
it's quit rare to see a launch like that, on any system.
super smash brothers and the launch of the nintendo network, will at least push the console to a total of 32 million units within 2 years since launch.
and then we dont even speak about fortnite and pokemon hype that is gonna break lose very soon.
nintendo is gonna crush every competition after the summer.
still it can be a better place if there would be more a+ 3th party titles.
@Dpishere,
I don't see any evidence to say the Switch's popularity is diminishing and the console is still at full price,the console has had a steady stream of games released on the e-Shop since launch,I must admit some more big game announcements would help,but the console is hardly in a decline at this point.
Nintendo always have bumper holiday season sales,I would expect a massive push at the end of the year.
@johnvboy I never said it was at a decline, just that in order to hit 20 million sales they will need some big hitters in order to get enough momentum to generate that amount of sales. Last fiscal year the Switch was crazy popular and still didn't hit those numbers, I don't see how this year is going to top the last one.
The 3 games that are always going to sell well are Mario Kart, Mario Odyssey, and BotW. They are the essential games for any new Switch owner.
@Spoony_Tech People will pay for what they consider quality.
Psychology stuff set aside, the fact remain that in general I've found more enjoyment and playtime out of a selection 80$CAD(69.99USD?) games than the ones I purchased for only 25-30.
Though to a degree it may be that the prices lead me to be much more careful about the purchases I make than I do with cheaper games, which is probably why I ended up tossing a lot of cheaper games aside.
In a way I think it even lead me to develop of saving up for full priced games at their full prices than to gamble too much on sales or cheaper-priced games.
Overall.... even with the higher price I've weirdly felt I saved more money with the full price stuff than cheaper stuff because it's coincidently led me to also be more careful about purchases.
For example: though I've been looking for a jRPG on Switch since a while... I have yet to buy Xenosaga 2 because though it's a fullprice RPG... it's also one I know may very much not be the kind I'd enjoy compared to something like Octopath Traveller.
Had it been cheaper I might have purchased Xenosaga 2 and nonetheless still end up feeling like I'd wasted my money because I'd have gambled on assuming that "just maybe" the game's mechanics would jive with me even if I had my doubts they likely wouldn't.
So people buying Zelda because they know it's got the quality and they know the gameplay mechanics/etc may mesh well with them is not surprising out of a 80$.... because they know that they might still come out winning out of that single 80$ purchase than they might have felt buying four 20$ games that would all have ended being set aside at some point or another after only hours of playing.
@johnvboy To be honest... knowing we're getting more informations about Smash Bros basically tomorrow...
Well, I half wonder if the lighter offering of early 2018 was to make way for a weightier half specifically after making fans hungry after they all purchased the new console.
Perhaps also just something more mundane like a pacing hiccup because some titles may have been ready only later than expected and so on(after all, the Switch was a surprise even for Nintendo and it's closest partners.... the Pokémon company purposefully didn't have any games ready because they were absolutely certain the console would fail for example).
@Anti-Matter yeah I'm very interested in that game, also!
Think about your statement of Nintendo being able to sell MORE Switch's this year compared to last in contrast to your statement about Switch sales being DOWN compared to last year. It's going to take one hell of a holiday season (without mainline Pokemon too) in order to not only catch up to last year's sales, but to surpass them! It's not a guarantee like you seem to think it is.
@johnvboy look at weekly Japanese sales. Compared to the prior year, they're consistently lower, same with NPD sales charts. Now take that as you will, but generally lower sales means lower popularity.
@PALversusNTSC uh, not to rehash stuff, but fanboys insisted that Smash 4 would make Wii U jump off shelves too...
@Anti-Matter probably 20 million for Japan alone! LOL Really, Animal Crossing dominates Japan, not so much for the West, but it OWNS Japan.
Nice to see that Zelda does so well. But don´t milk the franchise like what you guys are doing with (for example) Kirby, please Nintendo! Don't get me wrong, I want to see something Zelda at E3. But not tons of weak stuff!
@pika677,
I still think whatever Nintendo ship to Japanese stores sells out,and if Nintendo thought the Switch was struggling they would of had a price drop by now.
I am pretty sure Nintendo know what they are doing and they will meet their 20 million target by March 2019.
@Ludovsky,
Why would anyone outside of the internet hardcore forums think the console would fail?.
I think people need to stop this whole "Nintendo do not know what they are doing thing" imho.
Nintendo had a massive success with the DS and Wii U with around 250 million hardware sales...off the backs of consoles that were lower powered and had no AAA third party support...even the Wii U and 3DS have racked up 85 million sales between them...and this is seen as a poorer result,I bet if you said to Microsoft it would sell 70 million Xbox One consoles this generation,they would take it and run.
Mario kart 8 is a perfect example as the game sold 8 million copies on the Wii U,and has now sold 9 million on the Switch...yes Nintendo does not have a clue what they are doing.
@johnvboy That's why I feel even a lot of "unlikely" port of past games that didn't do super well despite being decent to great quality if more likely than some people think.
Because a LOT of Switch players are new players or returning ones(who may have been on hiatus for a while) the Switch is not "only" a good plaform for new games. It's also a perfect "Second Chances" console, especially now that Nintendo has that Featured tab finally they or third parties can re-release and then even chuck them at that Featured tab for the added maintained visibility even in spite of the releases cycles that would have buried them under tons of latest releases shortly.
To be honest my only complaint is sometimes I wishes there was a way to get both newest releases and featured ones on the same page, a bit like the day of the Wii U eshop but it's not a major thing.
Seeing Gamestop comment's anyway has been a reminder of how the Switch still managed to remain "solid" and "stable" even during what was perceived a "slump" in term of releases.
And then again, why wouldn't it? It already has solid games so for someone only getting the console now it's not like the early 2018 "slump" of major releases is that much of an issue when they're just getting to play 2017's major offerings.
Perhaps it was half intentional, knowing many people may get a console during the holidays and thus knowing they would likely be busy playing 2017's releases for the first time during the early part of 2018... so leaving truly new release for later in the year also allows them to get those new releases when they've very much played all they could of last years's game.
And let's be honest, for someone who only got Mario or Zelda in 2018 alongside a new console.... both of these games are meaty offerings in term of gameplay and raw playtime both.
@johnvboy you mean this? https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2018/05/a_cheaper_customisable_nintendo_switch_2nd_set_has_launched_in_japan_without_a_dock
Oh look, A PRICE DROP! Next argument?
@pika677,
It's not a price drop it's a Switch available without a dock,it's aimed at people that want another console but do not want to buy the whole thing again...and to be honest it's not that sweet of a deal...at least that's what everyone posted on here when it was first announced.
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