Only days after a number of analysts said Nintendo would fail to reach its target to ship 38 million units by March 2019, a new report is now suggesting the Switch will outsell the PlayStation 4 next year.
According to the latest projections from Strategy Analytics' Connected Home Devices service, the Switch is expected to shift 17.3 million units worldwide in 2019. In contrast, Sony's combined PS4 and PS4 Pro sales are predicted to reach a total of 17.1 million. Microsoft's Xbox One and Xbox One X systems will remain in third place, shifting 10 million units.
The report also provided some more general facts. Sony continues to be the console market leader - with its systems accounting for nearly half of all video game consoles in use. Console ownership is also once again on the rise worldwide and the global retail value of the games console business is expected to reach $15.4 billion this year (2018), which is a 7.6% increase.
Do you think the Switch can outsell the PlayStation in 2019? Tell us below.
[source news.strategyanalytics.com]
Comments 146
"the Switch is expected to shift 17.3 million units worldwide in 2019. In contrast, Sony's combined PS4 and PS4 Pro sales are predicted to reach a total of 17.1 million."
That's such a negligible difference that there is no point in declaring winners and losers.
The only thing that is guaranteed is that Xbox will be in 3rd.
Just in time for the PS 5 to be announced...
How is this a surprise? Sony is gearing up for the PS5 and yet PS4 continue to fly off shelves still after 5 plus years. At this point nearly everyone that wants one has one yet it continues to sell extremely well.
Sony gonna have to discount the PS4 to playstation classic prices next holiday season.
I really don't understand why we need to compare sales figures, both the Switch and the PS4 are doing fine.
Doesn't really mean much, no PSX 2018 and no E3 2019 is pretty obvious that the focus is PS5.
Really depends on what games are actually released in 2019.
We know Sony will have Days Gone, The Last of Us 2 and Ghost of Tsushima. And possible Death Stranding.
Nintendo will need to match that kind of level if they want to do better. We know Fire Emblem, Yoshi, Animal Crossing and Pokemon are all expected.
I think they do need something else aimed at the older audience though. Either Bayonetta 3 or Metroid Prime 4.
I am just curious to see where Sony is going to take the PS5 and how Nintendo will respond. Will Sony go all in on raw graphical power? Will they double down on PSVR? Will the pull a "Playstation Move" and release the "PS Swap"? None of those routes would surprise me. And one thing Sony has proven to me over the years is, they aren't very creative. So I don't really expect anything brand new.
Nintendo should be working on a Switch plus/Switch Pro or something along those lines to release around 2020 if they intend to hold developers' interest in their platform.
@westman98 Agreed. 2nd place, with a difference so close, is definitely no Loser.
Although, if accurate, I think that it's a bigger win for Nintendo. It's 3 years on the market, and predicted to outsell (just barely) the market leader.
Will be announce Switch 2 and Switch VR Headset. After PS5 Release.
@Kevember and all you get in return is giving them $600 instead and a don't let the door hit you on the way out. They can only push the GPU so far and then comes if there is no audience diversity in the broader gaming community all you have is a expensive table weight. Nintendo is long term Sony is short term gains one will have staying power and the other hey look I can AAA games better but then again you have to buy 4K TV to enjoy it. That adds cost and most forget that.
@Kevember Well... It's definitely not bad news, is it?
Xbox, has been out for same amount of time as the PS4 and will never see those numbers...
2018, until recently, was pretty slow for Nintendo (in my opinion). I only bought 2 games this year. Also, after looking at the WiiU lifetime sales numbers, Nintendo has pulled off a small miracle.
@Wendigo Well Sony is skipping E3 next year, so you'll have to wait till 2020 for that announcement lol
It'll depend on the games and apps available on both, but remember that the PS4 has been out for a number of years now. The Switch, on the other hand, is still gaining momentum.
@ReaderRagfish: If the Switch's toaster accessory doesn't make my toast a light golden brown, I'm returning it. I don't need that kind of negativity in my life.
I should hope so. 17m PS4 next year would put it at 100m, that's probably close to a ceiling for a home console. Switch could be at 50 or 60m for a Nintendo hybrid portable, so it could easily do another 50m after that.
The fact that a five year old PS4 home console, in a market which was declared dead 5 years ago by nearly all of these analysts, could sell nearly as well as a 2 year old hybrid, is probably a better way to look at it, and Sony should be happy.
To put it another way - Sony's 5 year old home console is expected to sell more next year than Nitneod's previous home console sold in it's entire 4 to 5 year life.
This news isn't a win for Ntineod, it's a win for Sony. It's expected for a Ntinedo portable to sell well.
It's no secret to anyone since the Switch is outselling PS4 in Japan week by week now. It is only a matter of time before Switch completely took Japan over.
I’ve been on the fence about buying a PS4 for nearly 5 years. Waiting for a nice price cut on the Pro... 😂 RDR2 is the first game to make me seriously want to run out and get one.
@rjejr You're definitely right about Sony winning the Gen. Truthfully, I feel that they won the Gen before Switch even launched.
That being said, maybe my Nintendo Bias has gotten the best of me. I still feel that it's a Win.
Nintendo's handheld system always sell well, true. The Switch is no different. Although, I like seeing Nintendo play to their strengths. I feel that they are more relevant than they've been in a long time, and have carved out a more significant piece of the overall market.
@SwitchForce Problem is even Nintendo people are pushing for more graphics. Its probably a result of all the people new to Nintendo with the Switch.
That being said, you can get a 55" 4k tv for $2-300, so its not a big difference. Most people are predicted to have a 4k tv in the next few years.
What will Ps5 look like? Look at PC. Real time ray casting. 4k, 60fps (PC is doing 144, but whatever).
I thought Sony’s own market research showed there’s no demand for portable gaming devices when investors asked about Switch?
Sony is releasing the terrible PS1 Mini. How did they screw it up? Let us count the ways. 1) No analog controllers 2) No power adapter (I guess they expect you to use the one that Nintendo packaged with their classic systems. 3) Bad game list, it's like they didn't even try. 4) 9 of the 20 games are the PAL versions and they run at 50hz instead of 60hz. 5) An open source emulator that they took from the internet. As if they don't have their own PS1 emulator already! 6) No graphic options like filters or borders.
Moving on, they are skipping E3 for whatever reason.
They have thrown not only their hat into the censorship game, they have thrown in the whole suit.
What is going on with Sony?
No need to emphasize conjecture. All 3 companies are doing well. If the predictions are correct, we'll have another healthy gaming year all around.
Its since march 3rd 2017 i said "Sony your time is near".
@Dezzy You forgot about Luigis Mansion 3. That too has some hype around it. Both those last 2 could also come out and I have a feeling something Zelda is on the way as well next year.
I just want Nintendo to take an American football and spike it so hard on a Sony logo. - Down with SONY!
@rjejr go away Sony fanboy, wrong forum, wrong site, wrong discussion. The Sony empire is ended, pick your broken pride and gtfo.
@westman98 If Nintendo only does 17.3 million next year that would be a disappointment, though. Especially since the lineup will likely be much bigger than 2017 and a price cut seems not unlikely
Well yeah of course, Sony is approaching 100 million units sold, is at the end of it's current gen lifecycle, and doesn't have any blockbusters set until the middle or end of next year. If Nintendo DOESN'T gain some ground at this point, that means they're going to make some pretty big mistakes in the upcoming months.
@Frenean This site has turned into flame/clickbait central since Thomas left. Any headline/typo/poor reporting to get people frothing and start clicking and spamming terrible comments.
@roboshort
It looks like Switch sell-through this year will be in that 17 million units range, so with a substantially stronger first-party software lineup for next year and a potential price reduction and/or hardware revision, I too expect Nintendo to outperform those numbers.
@rjejr most of Sony's wins are more because Nintendo hasn't really cared about the console wars for years. I mean, Nintendo has always been ahead in handhelds sales mostly due to being cheaper. Even now Nintendo is a bit more focused on handheld stuff(including smartphones) while Sony more or less gave up on hand helds
Also the ps4 is a hybrid machine, it's more or less a console/computer hybrid. Hell you can run Windows 10 on the damn thing.
@rjejr
That means little when they’ve been having their best selling years. And they’ve got all kinds of games coming up in between like Kingdom Hearts 3, Devil May Cry 5, etc. Even if they are starting to wind down a little bit, if you take a look at their sales numbers they’re still among the best PS4 has ever had, and given it’s one of the best selling consoles of all time, this is still a pretty big shift of dynamics. Switch had far fewer impactful games first half of 2018, and still managed to rival PS4, even with the higher price tag and against the fact consoles typically sell worse in their first couple years. On top of that, Switch isn’t just going toe to toe with PS4 in its 5th year (even though it’s 5th year is amazing), it’s going toe go toe 1st year vs 1st year, 2nd year vs 2nd year, and 3rd year vs 3rd year. It’s rivaling its best selling years. There’s no way you can cut around that fact.
The common response I see is oh well of course, this is to be expected, I’d be concerned if they didnt, etc etc. but I don’t think it was expected and I certainly wouldn’t be concerned if they didn’t. All that would mean is that the Switch wouldn’t be able to overtake one of the best selling consoles of all time in one of its best selling years at 67% of the price with 3x as many years full of games in the library, and bigger profile games releasing at that, without any sign of momentum loss and still rip roaring through the sales charts.
So Switch is rivaling it period, and there’s no way to mitigate the significance of this. Not that it matters who sells more anyways. As far as we are concerned the only thing that matters is that these consoles do well enough to get games, and both of them are doing that much. Beyond that is just console war spat fuel. But credit where credit is due, and credit is most definitely due, and acknowledgement, especially with people chomping at the bit to foretell it’s future sales mediocrity. Before it launched half the people in this comment section were laughing and mocking saying it was the worst console they had ever seen in their lives, and it was going to fail horribly and Nintendo was going to get out of the console business. But ya, until PS4 sails actually decline and big games stop releasing, no argument can be made that this is expected. PS4 could be well on its way to 125 million. It’s not some dead dog like the Wii U or even a diminished platform like 3DS. If one didn’t know any better you’d think PS4 was in its prime judging by the sales numbers.
And being handheld is not an automatic cash machine. Switch isn’t some $120 clamshell with a game. It’s a $300 console selling for 50% more than the power home consoles. It’s too big to fit in a pocket. Switch isn’t selling well just because it’s a handheld. It’s selling well because it’s a genuinely awesome device regardless, and part of that is the portability but it’s appealing to a different market than their traditional handhelds appealed to. You could just as easily say “Well Sony consoles always do well”. So even if it is selling well because it’s a Nintendo handheld, it doesn’t change the fact we’re talking about a Sony console and that also always sells well, way better than Nintendo handhelds do in fact. And yet... Switch is going toe to toe, and at this rate it might even outsell the PS4 by the time the Switch’s lifespan is over. You just can’t mitigate that, or brush that under the rug like it’s nothing out of the ordinary.
Seems about right. The mainline Pokemon and Animal Crossing will do wonders alone next year. I wouldn't be surprised if PS4 exclusives like TLoU 2 and Ghosts don't even come out next year. But yeah either way, PS4 will go out with a bang and the Switch will continue its hot streak. And now with Microsoft finally waking up and realizing the importance of exclusives again, they seem to be pushing the Xbox One as it winds down and buying up studios. Sony and Microsoft aren't my cup of tea really, but it's nice to see the industry as a whole do well again.
@rjejr
I’d say it’s really very clear that figures like this are a win for both. I don’t know why you’re trying to play down the significance of figures like the Switch is doing. I could say ‘well, it’s expected for a Sony home Console to sell well’ and easily twist it the other way. I won’t though as if this is accurate Nintendo and Sony are in for great years.
MS, on the other hand....
@KryptoniteKrunch
It’s great to see forecasts of huge sales like this. Remember when some analysts were telling us that Console gaming was doomed?
@CorvoRevo
“The Sony empire is ended”
On an article forecasting 17 million sales for PS4 next year, taking it well over 100 million.
Go and have a lie down. You’re emotional.
Does anyone actually care about this stuff, outside of Sony or Nintendo? Are people still doing the "my team is winning!" nonsense?
@goggles789 Are people still doing the "my team is winning!" nonsense? Well in this case I am doing the 'Your team is shooting themselves in the foot' thing in reference to Sony. See post #25.
Who cares which one sells the most, except the fanboys and trolls trying to downplay the success of the console they don’t like?
They’re both well deservedly successful consoles. Cheers to both!
@justin233
PS4 is a worthy purchase for the Uncharted series alone. Hope you can get a good deal somewhere.
@Kevember,
Another way to look at that is the PS4 being 5 years old has had far more discounts.
Also lets be honest here the PS4's success is at the Xbox One's expense,if Microsoft get their act together next generation the difference between the two core consoles could be closer to the PS3,Xbox 360 generation.
"Watch out Sony"
There's a clickbait title for you. With nearly 90 million PS4's sold, Sony is reaching market saturation. Nintendo still has a long way to go in reaching those sales numbers so never mind if they outsell the PS4 next year. Besides, Nintendo isn't even competing with Sony.
@Crono1973,
All internet gaming forums have a small minority of fanboys,imo it's good for us to have a healthy console market where all the companies do well.
@Vriess,
But because of the wider mass market appeal of the Switch it could outsell the PS4,but like you say Nintendo are not competing directly with Sony.
I don't know why analysts even bother comparing Nintendo and Sony. They are not directly competing at all.
PS4 sales hit its peak in 2017/2018, after the Switch launched. That doesn't sound like the platforms are competing, but rather complementing each other.
The comparison between Sony and Microsoft makes sense because both companies create very similar hardware that share most 3rd party titles. In that case, Sony is absolutely blowing Microsoft out of the water, which explains why Microsoft is attempting to expand Xbox's horizons beyond traditional gaming via Gamepass and the rumored next-gen Xbox Scarlet streaming box.
Nintendo was a sleeping giant.
Sony bothered and wake him up.
Now sony will meet her DOOM!
Who even cares. One now old'ish console and one new'ish console. It's no big surprise. Let's see what happens when the PS5 and the updated Switch and head to head.
So what? They're not even really competing in the same market anymore.
Sony is serving the home console market while Nintendo evidently is serving the handheld market + everyone who wants Nintendo content.
@misterMike old enough having fun with sony funboys misterfunboy
.... and, there will be a new Switch and a new Zelda game and......
@misterMike Why dont u spent your time on something more interesting than bother me and playing consoles misterlazyboy?
I'd be interested in a discounted PS4 super slim model. Slim was a bit of a minimal trimming.
@misterMike As i see at least you have self knowledge. Good for u misterphilosopher.
Good for gamers
Certainly a shift in attitude towards analysts from the other article earlier in the week looking at the comments.
No matter what (yay ps is 5 years already) switch is doing amazingly well!! and totally deserves it!
PlayStation + Switch... Complete gaming bliss
But....nintendoomed? No? Ok then.
@WaveBoy
“When you own both a PS4 and switch. You get to experience the best of both worlds. You don't miss out. The consumer wins and you wind up rooting for both companies to excel”
Well put. (Although personally I’ve got an XB1X as well 😉 )
In Europe Sony wipe the floor with Nintendo
@Frenean i agree , who cares who has #1 spot. As long as each company is doing well and we continue to get great games I am fine with that. Some people act like they are getting something if one does better than the other
@Crono1973 ''2) No power adapter (I guess they expect you to use the one that Nintendo packaged with their classic systems.''
I'm sorry to break it to you buddy but the NES and SNES Classic didn't come with an AC adapter either. They're all USB powered devices, and you can just plug them into your TV. Not a big deal.
The PS4 has been out for five years and sold over 80 million.
They don't need to watch out at all.
"Fanboys arguing like crazy" Meanwhile me playing on the switch and waiting happily for the ps 5. Each have their pros and cons.
Just a reminder, consoles are dead. PS4 will flop, Switch will flop, ps5 will never be released...oh wait.
Well yeah, of course it's going to outsell the other consoles because it's 'portable' so has got an edge over the competitors.
I still use my PS3 because of Netflix, used to use the Wii U (but they updated it so much it's unusable on it now)
But to be fair, who cares?? They are two different consoles with different audiences. It just seems they send out these reports to get people talking about the report, otherwise it would be ignored by everyone as most people dont care.
The hell?! Analysts know nothing; one day is doom and the other is a smash hit. Make up your damn minds already!
The Switch better start outselling every other console. I mean they're 5 years old. The Switch is (at least for now) the new kid on the block. They need to show dominance to make people and most importantly investors forget about the Wii U.
Rather silly headline imo. They are at two completely different stages of their product lifecycle with different aims and with little overlapping sales base.
Switch is doing well, PS4 is doing well. PS5 will come out in a year or two. Done.
@Spoony_Tech The Xbox 360 lasted 8 years with continued support even now. All the OG Xbox games for the X1 are compatible with the 360.
The market doesn’t need a PS5 when it won’t offer much more than the X1X. Really they should concentrate on the PS4 for another 2 years, or release a version comparable to the X.
Ladies and gentlemen, we got em'.
I think it's a little bit of the blue ocean again that the Wii had where every Xbox or Playstation owner had a Nintendo system in their house, and I think that's sort of thing is happening again with the Switch. Based on that "we're number two but will become number one by default" strategy, I think it's very plausible.
2019...this will be the same year that Sony will announce their next console, so...duh, the sales will start to slow down. Other than that, one year of another company outselling it (again, for just that year) is just a dumb announcement. No matter what, for this generation (and technically, the Switch was mid with the Wii U in the beginning of it), PS4 is definitely going to stay at #1, considering that this past black friday, it was harder than h$$l to find one...where nintendo didn't even really have good deals. The Switch was selling too, but still, if nintendo released Smash for it around that time, they could have won the black friday market. Other than that, the Switch is doing really good and selling greatly! Good for nintendo, who definitely needed the strong sales after the disappointment of the Wii U. Other than that, Sony and Nintendo are 2 great companies with excellent IP's, the only thing I worry about, is nintendo losing gain once Sony and Microsoft ship out their next consoles...the Switch will be just relying on nintendo's games and indie games, and most of the indie developers will start moving to the next consoles.
Other than all of that, yeah, it's possible that nintendo could sell more than Sony in 2019...lifetime sales, could come close, but it all depends with Sony and Microsoft's next consoles. 2020 could even have Microsoft back on top (depending on if they actually start gaining more companies to get them exclusives). As for nintendo, after those 2 companies make their systems, nintendo will start working on their next to play catch up...let's just hope nintendo doesn't mess up and say that they're already working on their next one.
The PS4 already did it’s job in moving tons of consoles over its lifespan. The PS5 is in production right now, but I’m very happy that Nintendo smacked a grand slam out the ballpark with the Switch and I’m loving mine. The Wii-U in my opinion was mediocre and left a bad taste in everyone’s mouth.
I really enjoying both consoles & both companies so I’m glad to see they will continue to do well this year. That just means more games and future consoles will be incoming. I bought my two sons each a Switch for Christmas last year. This year they are getting a PS4 Pro and my daughter is getting her own Switch.
Reading some of these comments are just hilarious. Saying Sony's doomed when they just had to up their forecast for consoles sold. If selling 100+ million consoles spells doom then by your logic, I would say Nintendo has been doomed quite a bit in the past with the nes. snes, n64, gamecube, wii u......
@Shadowmoon522 lol if you think nintendo hasn't "cared" about the home console market, then you're just being delusional.
@Dezzy all three games by sony are in the similar genre of action games, nintendo games are no where near the same, so they just need to release some new games im still hoping for metroid holiday 2019(wishful thinking) nintendo games dont directly compete with any other systems games there is no comparison on sony system to mario, zelda, or really anything in nintys library. still waiting on a new mario kart theres no way a port of mk8 is all we are gonna get this gen i would be shocked cause thats just lazy on ninty otherwise.
If the switch ISNT ourselling a console that’s been on the market for 5 years and is about to be replaced there is a serious problem
@MrMetroid I said they didn't care about the console wars, not the market.
@Shadowmoon522 Ah my mistake then.
@CorvoRevo According to your profile you're a Ntinedo/PC gamer who's been here 18 months. That makes you the obvious fanboi and if anybody should gtfo it's you for being a hate filled troll. I'd report you but you're not worth anyone's time.
@Shadowmoon522 I'd say most of Sony's wins are b/c of their 1st party games and MS shooting itself in the foot, I don't think it really has anything to do with Ntineod. Even their Vita failure is as much their own failure - no games, expensive memory - as Nintendo's dominance in the handheld market. PSP sold 80m, it's their 1 portable hit, like Wii is Nintnedo's 1 console hit. So each company is capable, but it's the execution that matters more than the competition.
@JaxonH "Not that it matters who sells more anyways."
Tell that to the title, and the fanbois. I'm happy they're both doing well, more games for us, but it's a silly comparison. Switch is selling great, that should be all that matters, there was really no reason for that title, it's just a matter of opinion that could be expressed several ways, and I was just pointing out an alternative headline that would be just as accurate. Switch selling well is good b/c Wii U failed, comparisons to PS4 are fairly irrelevant. Comparisons to PS5 will be interesting, but probably also fairly irrelevant by the time it launches.
There was a lot of negativity on this site regarding the Switch and that has been squashed, and against the odds like you said. This statement is incorrect though:
"the fact we’re talking about a Sony console and that also always sells well, way better than Nintendo handhelds do in fact."
Sony consoles do NOT sell WAY BETTER than Ninteod handhelds. PS sold the same as Gameboy, PS2 sold the same as DS, PS3 sold the same as 3DS. And now PS4 is selling the same as Switch. That's not a surprise, it's the same as it's been for the past 20 years.
PS - 102m, GB - 118m
PS2 - 155m, DS - 154m
PS3 - 84m, 3DS - 73m
If you'd like you can add the GBA 81m in there as well. Sony does very well in the home console market, w/ 1 good portable the PSP at 80m, Ntinedo in the portable market w/ 1 good home console the Wii at 100m. Even their flops are similar, Sony's portable Vita sold 10m, Nintneod's home Wii U sold 13m. They are practically a mirror image of each other. And they complement each other well. MS meanwhile, mostly crickets.
@electrolite77 "are a win for both"
I think that's what I said. As usual I fell for the flamebait troll title WATCH OUT SONY and responded more to that than anything else. Sony needn't worry about it's soon to be last gen console compared to Nintnedo's current gen console. 17m is great for Nintnedo's 3rd year, 17m is great for Sony's 6th year. Nintendo should not be AT ALL concerned w/ outselling PS4 next year. And Sony should not be AT ALL concerned w/ the PS4 outselling the Switch, they have to worry about launching PS5 against the Switch. I should just skip the title, but instead I tripped over it.
Title triggered me, I triggered everybody else, huh.
Frankly its too different markets catering to different audiences so both sides win and both sides are happy. Those in the middle like myself and many others on here are even bigger winners
@Crono1973 It’s an interesting take, but it’s possible that Sony knows that the system will be used for emulation, so they are taking the Bethesda strategy and letting the fans fix what they borked. Also, in regards to your mention about analogue sticks, were there any notable games that utilized them? When I was a kid I don’t recall ever needing them for the games I played.
@Almighty-Koz Sony’s success largely comes from copying Nintendo over the years, so don’t you think there might be some games on there that, while different from Mario games, helped them stay extremely relevant?
If PS4 moves 17 million in 2019 it will be an amazing success. It would outsold the Wii
PS4 numbers not dropped since the Switch came out. And the Switch also doing well
Best to have both and not miss out on anything - quarterly numbers prove most people think that way.
sounds like someone forgot Sony still has 4 in the chamber before the ps5 release. Ghosts of Tsushima, Death Stranding, Days Gone, and The Last of Us part 2. That's not including big AAA releases like anthem, dmc5, and a whole lot of other games that aren't coming to switch.
Next year is a big year for PS4. The late adopters will be hopping on once the PS4 is forced permanently down to 200. I imagine we may even see 175 or 150 as Sony attempts to start making room for ps5 inventory for the dip in PS4 sales in 2020 won't require as many units to be on hand. Ps5 price tag will shy away a few early adopters. Maybe even encourage a few to late adopters that capitalize on the used games market to get a new PS4 as they wait for 2025 to come around.
So I feel like the swan songs of the ps4 will propel them to new heights with Sony moving closer to 25m units next year if not more. Sony will want to lock in that 100m sold as fast as possible so they can increase both consumer and share holder confidence. In fact I'd go as far as saying that Sony may go as far as having 100m sale on PSN and drop the system to 150 for a week and include a packin game around Septemberish.
In light of all the hoopla and switch fans being locked away playing smash, we will see most interest in the switch wane. Why by a 300 dollar handheld that plays first generation PS4 games, Indies, and Nintendo's fantastic library of titles. When the PS4 with it's massive library of titles only available on PS4 and xb1. There is also the discussion of ps5 games being impossible to Port to switch without huge compromises. So I imagine part of that audience will shift to save for the new machine and stop considering the switch. If Sony and Ms do as I expect, enhanced for ps5 might be something we see on PS4 boxes, further making the ps4 version something more interesting to consumers (I feel like scarlet will see the same treatment for xbone).
I can't say whether Nintendo will hit that Target of 17.3 million. However o do feel that there are a lot of claims being made here not taking a whole lot into account.
@Octane I'm sorry to break it to you buddy but the NES and SNES Classic didn't come with an AC adapter either. They're all USB powered devices, and you can just plug them into your TV. Not a big deal.
I have two power adapters with the Nintendo label on them. One came with the NES Classic and the other came with the SNES Classic.
You do know what I mean by power adapter don't you? The little black box that has a USB in and plugs into a wall outlet?
@goggles789 Most games supported them after they were released. I don't want to play Chrono Cross, for example, with Sony's inferior D-Pad. Sony seriously cheaped out on this thing and I am surprised to see anyone defend them for it but there's always someone thinking about the poor corporation.
Not a big deal. Sony already won the 7th generation. The switch is to be considered as a 7th generation system because of its hardware. Once they release a system that rivals in some way to the upcoming ps5 and xbox scarlet, then we'll talk. It's great nintendo is doing well but it won't change our life.
@rjejr
“Title triggered me, I triggered everybody else, huh. ”
😀 Seems like it. TBH if I’d seen all the replies you’d already got I wouldn’t have weighed in as well.
@NotSoCryptic
“So I feel like the swan songs of the ps4 will propel them to new heights with Sony moving closer to 25m units next year if not more”
“Sony may go as far as having 100m sale on PSN and drop the system to 150 for a week and include a packin game around Septemberish.”
“In light of all the hoopla and switch fans being locked away playing smash, we will see most interest in the switch wane”.
“However o do feel that there are a lot of claims being made here not taking a whole lot into account.”
Yes there are.
@NotSoCryptic
“Why by a 300 dollar handheld that plays first generation PS4 games, Indies, and Nintendo's fantastic library of titles. When the PS4 with it's massive library of titles only available on PS4 and xb1. ”
You said it yourself. Handheld. Comparing a handheld directly with non-handhelds doesn’t work. Portable systems have been selling for 30 years now, regardless of what Home systems are available.
@jly1987
That doesn’t really make sense. Successful Consoles have very good fifth and sixth years (PS1, PS2, Gameboy, DS, Wii, 3DS).
@Crono1973 Yeah I know:
@Crono1973 @Octane Everywhere but in the U.S. (maybe Canada too?) Didn't include the usb power adapter. We Americans got them though, thank goodness.
I believe it will outsell PS4. Heck I own a PS4 but I let my PS+ expire because I just don't touch it anymore. I have too much to play on Switch and more keeps coming out, including 3rd party titles.
@rjejr "A lot of Switch negativity on this site"
Yeah, I still don't understand it at all. It's a Nintendo fan site. How on earth are there so many people here that seem to hate the best game machine Nintendo ever made? It's objectively the post powerful console Nintendo ever made, and the most powerful handheld ever made, period. I don't understand at all where all the negativity on this site comes from. It's worse than "It's the Internet." Even freaking Kotaku seems to have more Switch positivity than NL....
@Heavyarms55 There's no reason to expect Sony isn't just doubling down on a faster PC every few years. That's really all they've been doing since PS2. Not sure why they choose to go head to head against the standard PC OS manufacturer. Their formula for now is focus on the exclusive games as the selling point, and just build a machine to boast about to suit the 3rd parties otherwise. I do predict a very slow start to next gen if so. There's little reason for a lot of people to move on to a system that does the same thing prettier when there's a ton of games already discounted on already discounted consoles now, and the leap to the next level won't be all that amazing from now on. I don't think PS5 charts will look like PS4 charts.
@electrolite77 "I wouldn’t have weighed in as well."
Always good to hear from you, agree or disagree, I value your opinion.
@NEStalgia "A lot of Switch negativity on this site"
I'm not going back to reread my post, it's too long, but I'm pretty sure I was talking about when it was first announced. The dock, the tablet, the Joycon, it all sounded horribly ridiculous, like a Leapfrog or Fisher Price toy, but priced like a home console, so I do think some of the negativity was justified. It's been a good 18 months, though most of this year was short on NEW 1st party games, so the negativity should have subsided by now, Labo didn't help that cause, but 2 years ago when ti was still NX and Wii U was an abject failure, yeah, negativity was a given.
I'm glad for the positivity now, just don't see the need to drag 5 year old PS4 into this for unnecessary comparisons. Switch sales should be compared to other Ntinedo home consoles and other Ntinedo portables first and foremost, let Sony worry about Sony.
@Crono1973 Oh I'm with you on that one. It's alarming that they didn't put a few obvious titles, like Castlevania: SOTN or Soul Edge or even Mega Man X4. Plus, from what I'm seeing that UI is ugly. If the modding and emulation scene blooms like it did on the Nintendo minis, I'll definitely get one, but if it doesn't? Out of the box it's very meh. Even the NES mini, which had a fairly lackluster selection still had some of their heaviest hitters.
@Trajan Oh, I didn't know that other countries didn't get power adapters.
I hope people don't allow this to be normalized.
@rjejr People think if you don't like one aspect of something, you must dislike the entire thing. These little websites breed these petty people that almost feel cult-like in their group-think. You speak against the "popular opinion," and you're labeled as a troll or something. People just can't stand having to deal with a little cognitive dissonance from someone disagreeing with their "favorite thing."
@Crono1973 Apparently it was some Nintendo thing. Some version of the 3ds didn't include one either. Very bizarre.
@Trajan Penny pinching.
@goggles789 Everytime I get called a troll for having an unpopular opinion I ask the accuser how they define 'a troll'. No one has ever answered. I mean, what's the point of participating in a discussion forum if only one opinion is allowed. Moderation here is very good, I am not talking about the moderators but rather some other posters. Not just referring to this site, in fact it happens more often on other sites.
@Crono1973 No, its just cutting something that wasnt profitable. Sony is more ruthless about profit, but we're starting to see Nintendo get like that this year. Hopefully they don't become what these other companies have.
It's the same as Nintendo dropping the Wii U. "But the Switch replaced it". Nintendo didn't discontinue the NES and SNES until 2003. Probably as they were transitioning away from making hardware in Japan.
@Crono1973 I totally get where you are coming from. It happens a lot on the internet. People have no tolerance for simple disagreement, yet, the only way to truly learn anything about yourself is to have discussions with people who think differently from you. I guess it's too much to ask for from a video game forum. Have you ever posted on Kotaku? Dear lord. That place is treacherous.
@rjejr You're talking like Reggie now. Quick, get the ammonia, get the bleach, make a cocktail!
@goggles789 Never posted there but places like Resetera, Neogaf and the Escapist are like that.
@Crono1973 Terrible places, too. But hey, if you are upsetting someone on the internet that usually means you are thinking for yourself, assuming it's based on the discussion, of course and not just insults! lol
@electrolite77
"You said it yourself. Handheld. Comparing a handheld directly with non-handhelds doesn’t work. Portable systems have been selling for 30 years now, regardless of what Home systems are available."
Hi, in 2018, this is nonsense. Portable gaming is dead. Long live portable gaming. Nintendo consolidated the two into a single unit. The switch is largely dependent on that well of games established on PS4 to not dry up. That Library is already getting title that can't run on Switch and has for some time. That problem is going ot get worse with the PS5. If you look at the Vita performance concerns will continue to get worse as the divide grows. Pricing will also be an issue. See Vita again. If you're getting more games that cant run on Switch and for significantly less. Well you find yourself with a portable facing the same issues the wii suffered from.
Don't get me wrong the Switch is everything the Vita should have been and it is leaps and bounds better than the Wii. However it has short comings that we're going to need to face. Overwatch, a 3 year old game that I still sink countless hours into still doesn't play on the Switch. There is a good chance that I'll be playing Overwatch on PS5 with 4K HDR at 60FPS. I'm already running the game at decent settings on my PS4. Games like RDR2 and AC Odyssey are not coming to the switch. The only reason to play Starlink on Switch is because of starfox.
Ultimately you miss the point. Just because you can take it on the go, doesn't mean you should. I feel like the Switch will still get good games, particularly from Nintendo. I'll love seeing more of the back catalog of Zelda titles come ot the system (Especially since I hate Breath of the Wild). I think Switch owners will be happy for the next 3 to 6 years with the switch well into the PS5's life. however they'll have to buy a next gen system too as the selection of titles sees a fall off of 3rd party titles. That price cut is gonna hurt.
@Octane In the US we got power adapters. Your picture didn't show up on this forum but it did show up in the email notification.
@NEStalgia "You're talking like Reggie now"
@goggles789 Pretty much.
@NotSoCryptic "I think Switch owners will be happy for the next 3 to 6 years with the switch well into the PS5's life."
That is some pretty short sighted view. If the ps4 was that much better than the Switch why are they in a short time making a ps5. The Switch shows that all the GPU power and 4K isn't what sells brings gamers of all age. PS has those one time hits but beyond that what others? PS isn't supporting their libraries. And also indie are coming to Switch because they sell get more exposures. Even on some Kickstarters game developers notice they have Switch as the first of those they want to get to after the PC. So that should tell you where the developers are looking in the coming years.
@SwitchForce
The PS4 will be 6 years old by time the PS5 launches. There is nothing Short sighted about a console with a 5 to 6 year life cycle. That's better than the life cycle of most cellphones and PC GPUs. It also takes about a year for a console to ramp up, in otherwords when a system slips into last gen, it tends to have a year of life or so left in it. Its the kind of thing that results in God of War 2 for PS2 to release 6 months after PS3 launched. It's the sort of thing that results to cross generational ports like we saw with Assassin's Creed Black Flag, Tomb Raider Definitive Edition, Madden 25, Battlefield 4, Injustice, Final Fantasy XIV, The Last of Us Remastered, Diablo III, Destiny, Alien Isolation, Shadow of Mordor, Little Big Planet 3, and a good number of other titles.
Basically its time for a new console generation. That posses a problem for switch. It came in late. Years late. Basically pulling the same BS sony pulled with the Vita "We can take current gen on the go, but not really, kinda".
"The Switch shows that all the GPU power and 4K isn't what sells brings gamers of all age." It also doesn't really provide a counter to this sentiment, nor does it provide any rhyme or reason why the switch is having success. I think we both can say its the games that sell a machine and its gimmick. Nintendo's success has in this century at least always been on the Gimmick. If that gimmick catches on we have DS, Wii, and Switch. When it doesn't we have virtual Boy, Wii U, and 3DS. keep in mind that the 3DS's first year was pretty awful with predictions of its demise. Nintendo had to pull out all the stops for the 3DS to save it. Inspite of the 3DS's success, it took good games to save it from obscurity. The 3D feature is largely ignored. The systme is not projected to sell as well as its predecessors. That's quite a ways to fall. Nintendo's gimmick is Portable gaming on your TV, Console gaming on the go. It's a good gimmick, its one consumers want.
This is where your argument starts to fall apart. It is GPU power that sells the switch. Good enough GPU and CPU to do what is needed to take what the bigger more capable machines can do on a smaller scale. Without that chipset in there, the switch is not capable. They could have made a 3DS for the TV without 3D, I guaranty you that it would not sell half as well as the switch. It's because the Switch can run games like DOOM, Wolfenstien, Diablo 3, and many of the popular indie games is the reason for its success. Big console experiences on the go.
Now you can kick 4K in the balls all you want. Doesn't change the fact that those machines particularly PS5 will have the muscle to do things well outside the range of the switch. You take away the thing that makes the gimmick work, you've lost part of your audience.
"PS has those one time hits but beyond that what others?"
I'm not entirely sure what you're trying to say here, but I'll do my best to address it. PlayStation or SIE puts out on average 3 big AAA titles a year and tends to support many larger titles (Death Stranding, Street Fighter V for example). They library is cultivated quite well and 3rd parties support it just as much. while it is impressive to see Bethesda put some of its games on Switch, this isn't universally true. This is where the "Beyond" I guess comes in, in your question. Where is EA? Where is Ubisoft? Where is Square Enix/Eidos? Where is Take Two? Where is Activision/Blizzard?
EA:
We all know EA has a stick up its butt about Nintendo, but we would be foolish to think that games like Battlefront 1&2, Battlefield, Anthem, Mass Effect Andromeda, Dragon Age (4?), and really anything they are working on would run on switch. So even if they didn't have this issue, we mostly would see Sports games from them. You wouldn't see the kind of support the Wii got with games like Dead Space Extraction and the like.
Ubisoft:
Well we got a mediocre port of South Park The Fractured But Whole. We got a project specifically tailored for the Switch that had mario tied into it (which was apparently a long game for ubisoft based on interviews). Then there is Star Link (I recommend this btw) which as far as I can tell isn't selling very well based on price cuts in stores these past few weeks. Where is Assassin's Creed Odyssey? Where is The Division? Where is Rainbow Six Siege? Where is Farcry 5? For Honor? Watch Dogs 2? AC Origins? Ubisoft clearly has no faith in these games running on Nintendo's machine. Based on how well these games have sold (if VGChartz is to be believed, normally I don't so just work with me here) close to 10 million copies or more is quite a bit. These games won't run on Switch. The next generation games have less of a chance of doing so. These are the big titles. Sony provided the performance to help cultivate their libraries.
Square/Eidos
This case is interesting. Square has honestly shown the best support with unique new RPG's build in a style 20 years old. Many of those games probably would have been on Vita if it hadn't been a failure and 3DS had there been no switch. We have seen Lost Sphere on PS4 so there is that. We are seeing a lot of early Final Fantasy games, remasters (which I expect) coming to the Switch. However there is no FF15 and the FF15 switch got is universally regarded with disgust. You're not going to see Shadow or Rise of the Tomb Raider on Switch either. Are you waiting for Deus Ex? That isn't coming either. The reason. Performance. These games don't run well on base PS4's, they barely touch 4K on the XB1X and PS4 Pro. A lot of these games have done well.
Take Two
Assuming Gearbox is still under that label, I doubt Borderlands 3 is being crafted for switch. RDR2 will not run on Switch and it is easily going to outsell much of what the switch has to offer. GTA5? A last gen game has not come to switch yet either (which honestly surprises me). RDR2 just wont run on switch. Granted L.A Noire is on Switch, but really we haven't seen much else. Aside from them trying to fill the sports hole left by EA, I just don't see strong support from them.
Activision/Blizzard
Well we are seeing older games like Diablo 3 make their way over to Switch. That's cool. However you won't see Overwatch on Switch. Overwatch players are a crazy bunch. There isn't much reason for them to care about on the go game, I think many of them would have something to say about WiFi Latency among other things. They like a solid frame rate when 12 ultimates are going off at once on screen during a critical moment in overtime. Something the PS4 and XB1 base models struggle with. Many of them have switch to the mid refresh hardware or bought a PC. I think that says something about where their priorities lie. Those fans threw a fit over 4K UI textures. BLOPS4 isn't on switch and neither is CoDWW2, I doubt either would run on it. Destiny 2? Say what you will, that game does have an audience, a loyal one at that. That community had a good chunk migrate to PC because of 60 FPS and resolutions north of 1080p. HDR I hear is a selling point as well.
"Even on some Kickstarters game developers notice they have Switch as the first of those they want to get to after the PC. So that should tell you where the developers are looking in the coming years."
That honestly doesn't tell me very much. There was a time PS Vita was listed before 3DS. Guess which machine is still around and kicking. I should know I kickstarted a few of those PS Vita campaigns because I wanted to be sure my system still had life in it years after sony stopped supporting it. Bloodstained got cancelled. Time Spinner runs like garbage. To add insult to injury indie games are finding a home on Switch like they did on Vita. You'll find the youngest machine gets the most attention because those machines tend to be content starved. Let's also explore the fact that a lot of Kickstarter projects tend to be terrible. Mighty No 9 was a dumpster fire, Timespinner was a disjointed mess, Yooka-laylee was critically panned. kickstarter is nice, but not everything is Banner Saga or Hollow Knight. It's just an anecdotal argument.You're going to find once PS5 releases (or Xbox Scarlet) that many of those kickstarter projects are going to ride the hype wave for that as well. You'll start to see PS5 and/or Xbox Scarlet first, not Switch. The reason is the ecosystem will be less crowded.
Full disclosure. I am a developer. I can honestly tell you the switch is winding down. I feel like the machine will continue to do well, but expect that momentum to slip. Expect great games from Nintendo. This isn't a doom and gloom post. It was never meant to be. Just a reality check. The fantasy world gamers live in where "Graphics don't matter" hasn't been true since those words were first uttered in the 90's. The visually most impressive and the most impressive simulations have always dominated. You need hardware for that. Strong hardware. your software does not exist without it. If your machine is no longer suitable to be the lowest common denominator, it gets reduced in priority. It doesn't matter how you feel about graphics or simulation. Expect 3rd parties to be less part of the future. Expect indies to follow the cheese. Expect Nintendo to continue living in its own little bubble doing what it does best, making games sing on their hardware, keeping its fanbase happy till they are ready to move on.
@NEStalgia Exactly, every new Playstation has just been a more powerful version of the exact same product. But the level of improvement from each one to the next has been decreasing. Sony has never really innovated with gaming. They just take what is there already and try to do it as well as they can. With PS4 they really nailed it. And the PS4 was aided by an awkward and weak competition from Nintendo (Wii U) and a device that was hurt a lot by serious negative press before launch from Microsoft (Xbone with all that talk of digital only and Kinect being always on and watching you, even though they changed it, that turned a lot of people away)
But now a PS5 that is just a somewhat better PS4 pro would struggle because it's not only competing with their own PS4 with a huge install base and already widely respected graphics, but it is also competing with Nintendo which now has a very different and successful device. They'll have to compete with those along with a growing PC gaming market and a stronger than ever mobile game market.
In the end, a PS5 that is just a console is gonna have a difficult time proving it's worth in the modern gaming era.
@NotSoCryptic
Full disclosure. I am a developer. I can honestly tell you the switch is winding down. I feel like the machine will continue to do well, but expect that momentum to slip. Expect great games from Nintendo. This isn't a doom and gloom post. It was never meant to be. Just a reality check. The fantasy world gamers live in where "Graphics don't matter" hasn't been true since those words were first uttered in the 90's
I see no evidence of that. Switch is projected to do just as well for its second year as the first, and the third year is on track to be even better than the first two. A lot of people only care about graphics. This is true. But a lot of people also care about gaming on the go. And a lot of people care about the best graphics when gaming on the go. And Switch is the Xbox One X of portable gaming devices. So anyone who enjoys gaming on the go and likes good graphics gravitates towards this system because it’s a powerhouse compared to last handhelds like 3DS or Vita.
A lot of people also just don’t care about the best graphics. Oh they matter, most definitely, but it’s not the defining selling point. Hence DS selling 150 million units. Hence PS2, the weakest of the 3, doing 155 million. Hence 3DS vastly outselling Vita. Hence the Wii outselling PS3 and 360. Hence Switch going toe to toe with PS4. When you look at the actual evidence I think you’ll find graphics aren’t as important as you say. They are most definitely a factor and they are certainly important to a large segment of the gamership, but I think you forget that the vast majority of people who buy consoles are not the people you see on fan sites griping about graphics. I’ve had 8 coworkers buy Switch and six of them were PS4 or Xbox One owners. Of course they like the great graphics of other consoles, but also like the unique appeal of Switch and playing games like Diablo and Skyrim on a portable device (3 of them bought for Diablo 3, one for Skyrim, and the one who bought got Skyrim got the Switch instead of a PS4).
I don’t think you’re doing doom and gloom or whatever you said, but I do think your viewpoint is misguided and simply not backed up by the actual facts. Not everyone are like PC gamers. And even of those that are, many love Switch.
@rjejr
I suppose they are closer than I led it to be. I just think about Nintendo’s best-selling handheld, DS, and PS2 sold more (only a couple million, but still more), and with 3DS, their current handheld, PS4 is now 10m ahead of it, give or take. And GBA was outsold by PS3. I guess the point I was making is that, it doesn’t make sense to use Nintendo handhelds doing well as an excuse compared to Sony consoles when Sony consoles technically do better (although perhaps a statistically insignificant amount more).
But yeah if you had an issue with the title that’s all you had to say. I wasn’t sure what you were going on about.
Btw, 2 more inducted at Switch world. Both of them for the Diablo 3 Bundle. 8 and counting. Pokémon Let’s Go is finally the game to get me into the series. I love that so much I went out and bought that polkaball plus. So much fun, I totally get the appeal of the series now. And Civilization VI, been having fun with that. Also Horizon Chase Turbo, which... wow. The game is surprisingly fantastic, like the perfect modern day Outrun. And Guacamelee, which I fired up after preloading Guacamelee 2, since I’ve owned the game on like three different systems and never actually played much of it. I am in awe of how fun that game is. Easily one of the best Indy games I’ve ever played and probably rivals even the best Metroidvanias.
@Heavyarms55 Nintendo will respond to the PS5 the exact same way they are with the PS4 right now.
@Shellcore Yeah, because now their forecast is positive for Nintendo...
@electrolite77 and you (and who liked your post) frequent the wrong site.
@Fandabidozi and Bloodborne
@CorvoRevo I replied because it's considered common courtesy to reply to people, it's a part of civil discourse. I did report you this time though because you seem unaware of the site rules about, well just about everything. You can take it up with management from here on out, my common courtesy reply is a 1 time thing.
@JaxonH Boy after being low key for awhile you've come back w/ a vengeance. And see where that got you. Didn't fair too much better for me either.
Been thinking about Diablo 3 for the kids and I, but this Christmas they are getting SSBU, Pokemon Eevee, Super Mario Party and XC2. I think that will keep us busy until my sons birthday in January. And I've never played a real Pokemon game either, just several of the free ones, it's my favorite price, and overpriced Rumble U on Wii U for about an hour, in which time I think I may have finished it. I think I played free Pokemon Rumble World for about 30 hours. Free may not always be perfect, but there is sometimes more fun to be had than paid games. Go is sort of fun now that I have a camera that supports AR. It was kinda useless w/o that gimmick. So I am looking forward to Eevee. Not sure how much I'll play it, but I should have some time to give it a go. I do need to rewatch 7 season of GoT before season 8 in April, so that will be taking up a lot of my time.
Maybe if your new developer friend worked at SwitchWorld he'd have a different viewpoint. Working there is practically a vacation.
@Heavyarms55 "In the end, a PS5 that is just a console is gonna have a difficult time proving it's worth in the modern gaming era."
And like you said they can only push the GPU so far but the software upgrades isn't going farther then it should otherwise. And that isn't anyone problem except Sony and doing Censorship doesn't help either. I think majority of Gamers knows what is and isn't in gaming. Trying to Parental Control them doesn't do your PR any good.
@Wendigo Sony needs to go away.
@Joe-b Why do you say that?
Just never cared for their products and somewhat bitter about a true video game company, Sega, finally getting it together with Dreamcast, and the ps2 didn't help them...Although I can't blame Sony 100%. SOJ weren't very smart and didn't cooperate with SOA so Sega's troubles were on them. So after Sega left the hardware market...I jumped ship to the other true video game company....Nintendo.
@electrolite77 it makes fine sense. PlayStation 4 is approaching 100 million global sales. There are much more people to potentially sell a switch to than a PS4.
@Wendigo PS5 won't be released until at LEAST 2020.
@NotSoCryptic
"Hi, in 2018, this is nonsense. Portable gaming is dead. Long live portable gaming. Nintendo consolidated the two into a single unit."
It's a portable. Just because it's something else as well doesn't mean it isn't. Because of that people know to expect something different, especially as it's very clear that it's a different proposition to PS4. Portables have been selling for 30 years now without getting anywhere near the same library as home Systems available concurrently. Any prediction of the future of the Switch that doesn#t take portability into Account will be fatally flawed.
"The switch is largely dependent on that well of games established on PS4 to not dry up. That Library is already getting title that can't run on Switch and has for some time"
How exactly is the Switch dependent on PS4 games? You say yourself, and repeat in post #131 that it currently doesn't get an awful lot of games that are on PS4. So how is it dependent on them? It doesn't add up. Switch is barreling along on a healthy diet of first-party games, indie games, last-gen ports, remakes, and a small proportion of current-gen titles available elsewhere
"It's the sort of thing that results to cross generational ports like we saw with Assassin's Creed Black Flag, Tomb Raider Definitive Edition, Madden 25, Battlefield 4, Injustice, Final Fantasy XIV, The Last of Us Remastered, Diablo III, Destiny, Alien Isolation, Shadow of Mordor, Little Big Planet 3, and a good number of other titles."
So hang on, current-gen systems are still going to get games for years? So even if Switch was dependent on them to sell (which it isn't) there will still be a selection to port. There will also always be hundreds of PS3/360 games just itching for a remaster/portable port.
"Ultimately you miss the point. Just because you can take it on the go, doesn't mean you should."
That is the point, You can take it on the go.
"The systme is not projected to sell as well as its predecessors"
Which predecessors, and projected by who?
"I think we both can say its the games that sell a machine and its gimmick....It is GPU power that sells the switch....It's because the Switch can run games like DOOM, Wolfenstien, Diablo 3, and many of the popular indie games is the reason for its success. Big console experiences on the go"
Come on now, what is the reason for its success? I can guarantee the last one on that list, while playing a part, only plays a small part. Switch is selling because of the hardware, because it is well marketed, because of the vast quantity of games on it and those huge first-party games. The likes of Doom are very welcome but the reason for its success? Not even close.
"The fantasy world gamers live in where "Graphics don't matter" hasn't been true since those words were first uttered in the 90's. The visually most impressive and the most impressive simulations have always dominated"
Again, this just isn't true. If graphics were king everybody would perpetually game on PC. They certainly wouldn't be on Vanilla PS4's when the Pro and XB1X exist. If it were true Gameboy/PS2/Wii/DS/3DS wouldn't have found the success they did.
"There was a time PS Vita was listed before 3DS. Guess which machine is still around and kicking"
The one that got past 15 million sales.
"Switch owners will be happy for the next 3 to 6 years with the switch well into the PS5's life. however they'll have to buy a next gen system too"
I don't see this as a problem. Switch isn't designed to supplant PS4 or PS5 and yet is is selling gangbusters as a complimentary system. Unless somebody attempts to surpass it as a portable/hybrid (very unlikely) it has a very big niche for itself.
Ultimately you're arguing a false premise. Switch doesn't need to replicate the PS4 or even PS5 library. Portables never have to, and it's a portable. Switch is purposely designed to be something completely different, currently only gets a small proportion of the PS4 library and is doing very well precisely because it is something different.
@jly1987
Depends what the ceiling is. Either way PS4 is just into its sixth year. Successful systems always sell extremely well at this point. It's very difficult and quite unusual for successful systems to get outsold at this point.
@rjejr
"Always good to hear from you, agree or disagree, I value your opinion. "
Thanks fella. Right back at you.
@CorvoRevo
Oh dear. Grow up.
@electrolite77 I'm getting too old for this.
@electrolite77
"Hi, in 2018, this is nonsense. Portable gaming is dead. Long live portable gaming. Nintendo consolidated the two into a single unit."
You don't understand the significance of this statement based on your response.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_king_is_dead,_long_live_the_king!
Portables as we know it are dead. The switch has redefined what a portable is. You need to look at the past 10 years through something more than a straw to understand this fact and why the switch actually rings the bell of an end of an age of how portables are done.
Which maybe why there is some confusion about "It needs PS4 games" and "It doesn't need PS4 games". This requires a bit more understanding of the last 2 years. Again you're looking at the statements through a straw, linearity and the progression of time and how things change over the course of time seems to be lost on you at this point. Re-examine: So look at what brings the switches popularity at launch. Playing games on a TV and on the Go. There is no line between these factors. It's a great gimmick executed correctly unlike the Vita. So playing something like DOOM a PS4 game or Wolfenstien another PS4 game is part of the systems appeal. There are a lot of games releasing in this way, especially indie titles.
So what's the problem, right! Switch should be able to cruise along just fine because of this. That is a correct assumption. However not the topic of conversation, which is whether or not switch will dominate or will its hardware sales start to slow. That's the problem. Part of your audience is big on Indie games coming tot he switch along with big AAA titles. Which in the last 2 years we've seen a lot of ports of 1st generation PS4 games and some remasters from last gen. While this is good, you eventually run out of games that are justifiably portable. So what happens then, you lose part of the appeal right. Suddenly you have all these games, but Bethesda throws their hands in the air and stops bringing their latest and more recent titles to the platform. They too have to remain competitive agianst other 3rd parties. Switch doesn't do that. So that leaves them with another option. Spinoff titles such as EA's Dead Space Extraction or unique versions of those titles such as those seen with The Force Unleashed on Wii or older games that were ported to GBA and DS way back when which were just reduced down titles. We saw some of that as PS3 and X360 fell from relevance. Destiny had features removed, left out, or was not brought up to date with the latest DLC (Rise of Iron I believe didn't get a 360 PS3 release). CoD got a watered down version. Assassin's Creed Rogue was released. This didn't resonate well with gamers, which is why that trend did not last very long. It provides a satisfying proof of concept that this is not acceptable. Nor should it be.
You see you can't look at all gamers as equal in their preferences. Some prefer RPG's, Some prefer shooters, RTS, platformers, and other genres. Some have favorite studios (like myself I love sony first party, Square Enix/Eidos, and Capcom). Those favorites don't always overlap with say someone who loves Nintendo First party and dreams of the next big Nintendo release. That also includes things Nintendo can't provide either due to lack understanding a specific style or not being able to provide it. Themes and aesthetics are just as important as the game play itself. It's important ot have as many gritty dark themed games as you do happy brightly colored titles. I enjoy both, but I'd find myself playing more Killzone, Tomb Raider, or Uncharted than say that Yoshi Yarn game, Mario Odyssey. I'd rather play Overwatch instead of Splatoon, I just enjoy the themes, the stories, the character designs, and the game play more. That's where the divide comes in. If games on PS4 start existing outside the realm of what is feasible on switch, then I have less reason to play on Switch. Which means those still on the fence who might say to themselves "Damn if only Destiny were on Switch, I would by one" will never do so. That's what makes next year so interesting, Metroid Prime is awesomeness, but how many Nintendo fans already own a switch? I'd imagine we're getting close to getting to the max owners of the system and we'll likely reach that entire userbase after Smash releases next week.
So this is where your confusion seems to come in. Switch will continue to get games from Nintendo. Some indies will ride out the next couple of years just like Vita until the next shiny thing comes along to distract them. However 3rd parties will dry up. The 3rd, 4th, and 5th gen PS4 games won't run on switch as those games will be running at a breaking point. I imagine we'll start to see a greater frequency of games running at 720p this year on PS4 which spells an issue for Launch Xb1 and more importantly Switch. That takes us to a space that is all to familiar to anyone who owned a GameCube or a Wii. Trust me it's not kind. You'll see some great releases from Nintendo and for Nintendo fans. However those looking for the next big AAA experience, they'll look else where. When it comes to 3rd party franchises like Assassin's Creed, maybe Mass Effect, perhaps Diablo 4, the next fallout, the next elder scrolls. Well they won't be found. You and I will still be here with our switches waiting for the next Zelda or Metroid etc. The gaming world will move on from Nintendo. People will be hopping on next gen. Nintendo will be forced to do one of two things. Launch a new switch with more power or ride out the generation with the switch replacing the 3DS fulltime.
You can say that Console gaming on the go is only a part of it, but lets be honest, thats it. We can't say its the games, because everything Nintendo has released up to this point has been Wii U titles with the exception of 3 to 4 titles. I have a suspicion about a few of them being Wii U titles converted like Breath of the Wild. Anyone who keeps a careful eye on gaming will tell you that a consoles success is built on its games. While Nintendo games can justify a purchase much like it did for the GameCube way back in the 2000's it wasn't enough to keep the console out in front and in the minds of the average gamer (not the first party fans). It's the reason the Wii for all of its success fell into obscurity last generation. No one cared. It's the reason the Wii U didn't sell like a beast. The Wii had literally nothing releasing on it in its final days. Nintendo had to pull two games out of mothballs in Europe and Japan just to release something for it. It's why the joke of the wii being senior citizens favorite dust collector is uttered today.
Now again being fair, I don't see the Switch collecting dust for the remainder of its life. I see the system hitting 60 million and then taking it easy as it tries to reach 80 million. Being the only handheld at present its very realistic to expect the 3DS to be outsold by the switch at some point. It's a better machine with better features. However we have no idea what Sony, Microsoft, or even Google at present have planned for the portable market. As I've speculated before, a PS4 Go could become a thing. With PS4 titles from the PS Store being its main source of games (as all of them are on there) and it being basically a PS4. With the promise of "Enhanced for PS5" also being a possibility that could cause some gamers to consider this hypothetical machine which docks to let them continue or cross save their game to a PS5 for 4K magic and Real Time Reflections etc. These are all things that could slow down the Switch even further in the future. However this is all way off topic.
My points are to outline the Switches falling out of hype mode as people start to realize the limits of the machine and that it's awesome hardware has its limits. That maybe those mobile chipsets aren't as caught up as these chuckle head reporters think. As I've re-iterated countless times. This is not a doom and gloom response. I'm not saying the switch will vanish from the face of the planet and Nintendo will be back in panic mode that their pride and joy isn't selling. They'll still make money, they'll still sell hardware, they'll still make games, and still have a fan base. I just feel that the hardware has now aged significantly like its competitions. It's going to start feeling that way and one of its selling points which is in part fueling its adoption rate will cease to be. It's other selling points like being the only place for Nintendo will still be there. It's selling point of still being a place to pick up the currently announced indie titles will still be viable so long as the indies don't flee the ship like they did the Vita, PS3, and Xbox One as soon as the new hotness came along.
I like my switch, but even I don't buy every indie game that comes along for it. I'm getting Bloodstained Ritual of the Night on PS4, for trophies and that sweet sweet 4K HDR. Ya I'll probably get the switch version for much the same reason as I have some games on Vita, yet again (that don't have cross play, buy, trophies, or save). It'll be purely case by case. Ya sure I'll get FF7, X|X-2, XII, etc for the Switch, but I'm an FF fan. They could put FF on my phone and I would... oh wait already have done that... that settles that. lol
Anyway I'm a little tired of this topic and I'm starting to run in circles with a lot of these responses. I just say this. Take my predictions as they are, a careful analysis as to why this analyst might be wrong. I could be wrong too. However I think this guy is throwing a hail marry as everything else I'm seeing over the past 40 years would seem to indicate this guy is completely off his nut. Fiscal year will end in march, which means next year, you won't have Pokemon and Smash to lean on. There is a lot happening next year that will influence consumer decisions on what to buy. A PS4 being 200 dollars with a game is very appealing, especially if that collection sees benefits on PS5, could work in a PS4 Go, and PS4 titles from 3rd parties just don't end up on switch. Let's just leave it at that.
@RadioHedgeFund I with you on that. Sony should keep the PS4 around for 2 maybe even 3 years before releasing the PS5 so it’s not just a small bump from the X1X. Heck I’d even argue having this console cycle around for 10 years.
I wish EA would release a retro sports pack with NHL 94 and other titles on it. If not that then maybe a top down arcade like NHL game. I’d love to have hockey on the go.
I’d also like to see some Dreamcast and N64 retro titles released on the switch.
@bond007 it would just be nice to see Desert Strike, Jungle Strike and Urban Strike on a Mega Drive/SNES compilation at some point.
EA more than any 3rd party publisher has such a rich heritage they rarely plunder. They didn’t even bother ROM-dumping on the Virtual Console on the Wii.
Some sort of EA Classic compilation with the 5 Strike games, Black, Future Cop, Arcticfox, SSX1-3, Crusader: No Remorse, Burnout 3, Age of Adventure, Mutant League Football, Freedom Fighters, The Bards Tale series, C&C, Red Alert, Mirror’s Edge, Populous, Road Rash 1-3, Shaq Fu and Ultima
@sanderev Where did I say anything about a release
So the newest generation of game console will outsell the previous generation? How is that news?
@Wendigo Sony will not announce the PS5 in 2019. The PS5 will drop holiday season 2020, they will announce it around E3 2020.
Source: I have none. But I do think so.
2019 will see an "updated" Nintendo Switch (either a Pro, or a Lite version). 2019 will also see an updated XBOX ONE S and X. Updated X with cheaper components to drive the price down, S without a Disc drive to also make it more affordable.
2019 will see a new PlayStation handheld.
XBOX Scarlet and PS5 will happen (announced and released) in 2020.
Prediction the PS Handheld will crash and burn after launch, XBOX ONE S2 and X2 won't bring any big meat to the table. So 2019 will be the Year of the Switch.
@sanderev
While I do agree 2020 is most likely for ps5 but to have a Switch Pro 2019 that is a far fetch idea. The backlash against Nintendo after only a year+ of the Switch isn't a good business model to retain Gamers in any respect. To do so would hurt more than help the Switch popularity causing a drive down in prices after 1+ year is a PR accident waiting to happen. Can you imagine the rush to GS to resell their Switch Non-Pro model. And the likely litigation against Nintendo cheating the Switch buyers. There is no prediction of Sony handheld - they did a excellent job of showing how they can kill their only portable Console Vita. And like Nintendo said they found a working model and don't need to compete again ps or xbox to make it. 2017, 2018, 2019....will be the Switch as it revolutionized portable/docking gaming in one hit. It'll be a long time before they catch up.
@electrolite77 @rjejr
please, take a room you two. There are childrens like me here.
@NotSoCryptic
Yeah there not much point expending more words to say the same thing. I personally don’t think the small number of current gen games the Switch shares with PS4 disappearing will make a huge difference. When PS5 comes around there will still be lots of ports of older games (which is what the Switch really shares with its tethered brethren-Skyrim, Dark Souls, Diablo 3, LA Noire, Payday 2, Resident Evil Revelations etc), Retro compilations, indie devs, mobile game makers (see Fortnite, Civ VI, FFXV Mobile), Japanese publishers willing to squeeze the likes of Valkyria Chronicles 4 and Disgaea 5 in. Very little of the Switch library is shared with PS4 that isn’t also one of the above.
I’ve seen other posters on here who are unable to get away with comparing Switch to other home systems (whether it be PS4 or in your case Gamecube), who play down the historical and continuing significance of portability, who overstate the historical importance of power, who extrapolate what they want Into what the system needs to survive, who simply can’t see a system prospering without the Destiny’s of the world. I’m sure I’ll see it again.
However as a postscript I must point out that “We can't say its the games, because everything Nintendo has released up to this point has been Wii U titles with the exception of 3 to 4 titles” simply isn’t true.
Of the Top 10 best selling Switch first party games as of September 30, 2 were Wii U ports and one a simultaneous release. The best selling Switch games is an exclusive. Of 22 games published on a Switch by Nintendo ( being generous and counting both Bayonettas but not the Torna expansion or Labo sets), 8 were on Wii U.
@NTELLIGENTMAN
Because it doesn’t always happen
@sanderev
I’m willing to bet actual money we don’t see a new Sony handheld. They’re not insane.
Incredible to see so many claiming that PS5 is coming next year, when we've known for months that it's not coming until 2021:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/next-playstation-is-three-years-off-sony-says-1527067818
They just released a mid-generation refresh, something that's never been done before, and there's still no pressing technological advancement making the current gen consoles look obsolete. At this point it will just be a raw horsepower increase, and that will net no real benefit in the games. Maybe ray-tracing will be key for the next gen, but we're a year or two off from that being really utilized right now. Also, Sony is dominating this gen and is in no hurry to take another gamble and risk losing the next gen to Xbox, as they did with the previous generation.
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