Switch Overtakes Nintendo 64 Lifetime Sales, According To New Estimates

A flawed, but brilliant fallen warrior, who will never be forgotten

As soon as they release the Switch Mini. . .

The N64, possibly my favourite console ever? So many brilliant games. Back in the day I picked up a 2nd hand copy of Ocarina of Time from my local Electronics Boutique and I don't think I'm exaggerating to say that it changed my life.

I believe the Switch has the potential to become the second best selling home / hybrid console of Nintendo. I’d be surprised if it beats the Wii as that was a true “lightning in the bottle” moment and the landscape has since changed. It could however potentially reach 65-70 million and beat the NES.

so, nintendo confirms 32.27mio in December. VGChartz says it sold 217,096 in week ending 6 April making a total of 33.15 mio. So according to VG only 630k units were sold between jan 1 and 31 March which makes no sense at all as mediacreate sales alone counted 950K units to be sold in Japan alone in Jan-March perdiod

Didn't it surpass the N64 a while back?

The Switch was over 32.27mi in December and you gonna believe it only sold 900k in 3 months and 1 week? It probably sold that in US alone. Switch definitely crossed the N64 in February at the latest.

Why even post VGChartz, widely known for their wrong numbers, when we're getting official numbers next week?

Massive appreciation and respect for the N64. That launch with Mario 64 and that controller, genre defining. It changed the landscape and set the blueprint for not just 3D platformers but all 3D videogames. Goldeneye remains arguably the finest couch multiplayer to date. Ocarina was pure magic.

@Medic_alert Super Mario 64, Mario Kart 64, the Mario Party series, Star Wars Shadows of the Empire, Star Wars Rogue Squadron, Star Fox 64, Goldeneye, Perfect Dark, Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time, Waverace 64, Jet Force Gemini, Mischief Makers, Pokemon Snap, NFL Blitz, Cruisn USA, Mortal Kombat Trilogy, Rampage World Tour, Gauntlet Legends, Resident Evil 2, Starcraft 64, Command and Conquer, just to name a few of the titles that made an N64 a worthy purchase in the 90s. Also, 4 player capability. Nearly no load times.

Are those game sales only based on physical numbers? If so it makes sense that the N64 numbers are higher - when including downloadable titles I reckon Switch would be higher.

total figure is closer to 35.5 or more, we find out on thursday with N earnings, i thing total sales for the f yr will be between 18.2-19.2m

The numbers seems a bit low
The switch sold less then a million in 2 months? It sold about 300-400 thousands in Japan alone at that period

It would've been kinda funny if it overtook the N64 the day FF VII was released on Switch. Anyway, Switch is really going strong, that's good to see!

@Drussa whats your guess on total for the yr, i have it at around 18-19m

@RennanNT we get official numbers this Thursday (25th of April) if I am not mistaken

@Medic_alert Yes, for me I agree. That was the era I moved away from Nintendo consoles after owning them pretty much exclusively. So I missed out on the N64 and GameCube in favor of a PS1 & PS2. Didn’t go back to Nintendo until the Wii. Since then I’ve always owned a Nintendo & Sony console.

This of course is leaving handhelds out of the conversation.

If a Switch Mini does release this year, and we're counting sales of the Switch family as a whole, I imagine it'll just manage to top the SNES in a year or so.

@Medic_alert N64 only had a handful of really good games. No good RPGs. And I maintain that the controller looks like it was designed to be used by aliens.

Definitely my least favorite Nintendo system.

@jockmahon same here. i think anything between 18-19mio would be an excellent result from Nintendo.

@Drussa if they will hit those numbers, they will be just a bit off their original goal

I'm pretty sure it already did a WHILE back.

@Ooccoo_Jr Oooh, please elaborate. I've always been genuinely interested in personal stories about how a particular game has notably changed someone's life.

its our pleasure

But the Switch is still going to fail guys, just you wait. Any day now...

@Tantani they did 14.71mio up to December 2018. Japan sales are roughly 1mio. taking that America's, Europe plus rest of the world normally account for more than 2/3 of sales you could estimate that 14.71 mio plus 3-4 mio adds to anything around 18-19 mio units. Just a pure guess still but it would not surprise me and they would have done an excellent job if they make these numbers.

Conflicted emotions about this.

I can't be the only one who fantasises about being suddenly rich and gifting dozens of Switches to friends, family, and hospitals.

So Nintendo didn't even sell 1 million Switch worldwide in over 3 month? 🤔

I adore the sales success of Nintendo in consoles and games and toys. But @nintendolife what is Nintendo doing to offset the enormous carbon footprint of all the imported plastic we buy? I want us to enjoy the games without it literally costing the Earth. What forests is Nintendo planting to offset the huge carbon dioxide emissions it causes? Let's green gaming so it can be a perfect pleasure that actually helps save the planet from being cooked to death.

@gcunit Thank you for the interest. It's nothing drastic, I probably overstated it. It was the game that changed the way I viewed video games. It was the exact point that they ceased to be simply a fun diversion and instead were elevated to a form of art. When I was stuck I would go to bed thinking about the game and would get up in the middle of the night to try out a new theory. Everywhere I went in the world of Hyrule the game had predicted it and had something to reward me - an item, a cut-scene, a mini-game. The world building blew me away. This was like the heralding of a brand new medium for me.

I could probably write something about escaping into the world in order to escape my own real-life childhood trauma but I'll keep it light and just say that because of Ocarina of Time gaming was no longer a hobby, it was now an integral part of my life.

They sit next to each other on my shelf.

Please stop using the drab grey image, the red and blue version is 100 times better.

The Switch sold more than the Virtual boy and 64DD combined?!?!?!
I still remember, 2 years ago, a colleague telling me every single day that the Switch would be a failure, that it belonged in a museum as a relic of the past and the last Nintendo console. He obviously came from a different timeline.

Joke aside, I am always impressed by how Nintendo manages to recover after a major failure and still take risks with new things.

The N64 is still a joy to play, even if I'm thankful I never had to develop for it.

@Ralizah A handful? I bet $1 that you are under 30, and as such too young to have played n64 much.
Perfect Dark
GoldenEye
Conker's Bad Fur Day
Turok
Mario64
Donkey Kong64
Fzero X
Starfox64
MarioKart64
Zelda Majora's Mask
Star Wars: Rogue Squadron
Star Wars Pod Racer
Doom64
Rayman 2

I can keep going if you want.

@MrBlacky
Maybe that is the real story here. That NL reports this without having any official numbers from Nintendo to go by, OR having any semi-official (and very expensive) numbers from the market watch organisations.
In all likelihood, this number was achieved a good while ago.

@StevenG
ALL OF THE DAY BRO!! U-:}}}}}

But in all seriousness, you left out Extreme-G, Diddy Kong Racing, Wetrix, Smash Bros., Blast Corps., Wave Race, and Banjo Kazooie.

It would seem this was an article from January that got accidentally reposted. The Switch passed up the N64 sometime in January, as it was just a few hundred thousand shy of it at the quarter end.

The games sakes seems low. But we have to count the changing landscape of today with the large number of indie titles not being counted I guess. Those will probably hurt retail sales a bit. However, the numbers are quite high anyway for Nintendo since it’s mostly first party games who have sold really large amounts. The N64 had a bit better third party support, not by much but still.

@FX102A,

The Switch is on track to beat the Wii,and considering Nintendo normally have a home and handheld console to sell,Nintendo will want the Switch to outsell the Wii,a Switch mini will boost sales.

@Pod And you forgot Kirby, Castlevania, Gauntlet, Carmageddon 64, Cruis'n USA, Mario Party, Mega Man 64, Mortal Kombat Trilogy and many more.

And we’ve still got Pokémon, Animal Crossing, Fire Emblem and Metroid to come.

@StevenG
Many more? Scarcely a handful more I dare say!!!
Killer Instinct Gold, Turok 2/3/Ragewars (mostly for the multiplayer), Banjo Tooie, Jet Force Gemini, Snowboard Kids, Glover, Paper Mario, Goemon's Great Adventure, and for some reason still not mentioned Ocarina of Time.

Wait, how many fingers are on a human hand?

@FX102A I think 65-75 million would not be a good number for the Switch. It should sell over 20 million this fiscal year which would put it at like 55 million already. So I'd guess it will probably get close to the Wii's sales or pass it.

I utterly adored N64 and to this day like it much more than Playstation, and I had a Playstation first. While the Playstation did have great games and a larger library, I was and still in the camp of preferring cartridges for their durability. I knew many kids who saw their games ruined by scratches and damage. And though the N64's library was smaller, I liked it better. Mario 64 easily beat out Spyro for me. Nothing could touch Mario Kart. Pokemon Stadium and its ability to connect with the Game Boy titles, Goldeneye, Star Wars Rogue Squadron and Shadows of the Empire. Just to name a few titles I adored and feel hold up much better than the Playstation titles from the same era.

Though Playstation did have Twisted Metal and Tekken and of course the infamous jump of Square to Sony with the Final Fantasy titles...

Back to Switch, like @Fandabidozi said, we still have Pokemon, and Fire Emblem this year for sure, Animal Crossing most likely (though the total silence about it scares me) and Metroid next year. All of which will be major console sellers. And that's not even touching any of the as of yet unannounced titles to come to the Switch. I've 90 games for the Switch now. Which is more than I have owned for any other console ever by a landslide! (though the Switch is the first new console to have come out since I got a full time job, and that's probably a big reason)

N64 and GameCube are both brilliant consoles. With so many good games and switch is going that way too. Wii was awesome but games needed more control options and classic controller compatibility should have been standard on all games.

Switch is back to dodging a gimmick but embracing cool features into traditional gaming.

Wii was a moment in time that captured “even grandma” wants one.

N64 legendary game list is epic and GameCube 3rd part support was brilliant. Switch hopefully will combine both over time. Units sold will mean 3rd parties that do can no longer ignore hopefully

@Ralizah I quite liked the N64 controller. It could he held 3 different ways to play games. Bare in mind this was before Dual Analogue controls were out. At the time games were not using Analogue (on consoles at least). With this controller there is no compromise on D Pad Position or Analogue Position, like with today’s controllers
I get that there are people trying to access the Analogue stick from the left side, but that is the wrong way to use it

Edit. Golden Eye has a novel way of using Dual Analogue controls with using 2 controllers

Yeah, the SNES is the next Nintendo system to overtake, but what is the next system overall?... Oh...

@chardir That'd be the GCN.

The Xbox One is the next console to surpass.
In all likelihood, the Switch will at the very least catch up to Xbone sales with its current rate, and I'd dare say it'll pass Xbone sales up.

Looking forward to the reactions of Xbone fanboys.

@Fandabidozi Don't forget Luigi's Mansion 3! The Switch's library of games will be legendary.

Nintendo switch Pro and Mini will do just that.

Together with good games

@cfgk24 ...what?

This holiday season 50 million will be easily surpassed.

Oh man, it seems some people have problems with their eyes. When they see the word RUMOR, they read CONFIRMED.

alot of old games coming back to life.

I have very fond memories of the N64 but it's no surprise to see it being surpassed by the Switch, nor is it surprising that the N64 is well ahead with game sales. Let's face it the N64 library is far superior to that of Switch at the moment which as far as great Nintendo exclusives are concerned reads Mario Odyssey and Smash with arguably Splatoon 2 to add to that list

@Illusion theres plenty more you could add to that but it does show you how much better the N64 library was than the Switch has right now

@Drussa Glad you mentioned this. I stopped trusting VGChartz a while now. Their so called "sold" data has been inconsistent so many times that it's now hilarious.

The Switch is gonna be the most successful Nintendo console.

Not surprised but glad to see. The N64 was a good console, but it also marked a time for me when Nintendo's 3rd party went downhill. The library it had was good, but it was also the time for me when Mega Man left for PlayStation, along with a ton of RPG's.

The one thing I like most about the Switch is how it seems to be get so many of the games Nintendo gamers may have missed out on over the years, from the Mega Man X Collection to all of the Final Fantasy games. The Switch is almost my favorite console now, under the SNES. Give me a few of those and I may change my mind.

Still blows my mind to see how low some of these classic Nintendo systems sold especially compared to Sony. When I was growing up I felt like everyone had an NES/SNES/64. I guess it was the gameboy line that they really banked on. Glad to see the Switch is having success as the industry needs Nintendo at the top of their game.

I still regret missing the N64. I wanted one sooo badly as a kid. I've played a couple of VC entries and some enhanced ports/remasters (namely OoT and MM 3D) that originated on the system though.

...I know this is probably a stretch, but I'd love to see a N64 Mini.

It won’t be long now before the Nintendo Switch outsells the xbone!!!

VGchartz? Gaming Intel? Sort yourselves out Nintendo Life ffs.

Edit:

@ryancraddock you are responsible for both articles referencing these dodgy websites as your source. You are letting the side down.

N64, to me at the time, seemed to be a console for kids at a time when I was approaching my mid-teens. I remember my then best friend getting an N64 and I had opted for a PlayStation. I did look down on him a bit. But he was spoilt and his parents bought him a PlayStation too not very long afterwards. In conclusion: biscuits.

@MJL I don't know if those are based on physical or not, but don't forget that the N64 was on the market for 7 years by that time, so the average owner would have more games across 7 years than they would over 2 for the same size userbase. It's amazing it's as close as it is, software is clearly selling almost twice as much per user as on the N64 (assuming that software sales are spread evenly, big assumption but...)

@Mfreddy22 That's a solid catch. I have often wondered this too. It wasn't until the PSOne that we have systems selling over 100 million but I would have thought the NES sold 200 million as a kid. I wonder if it is because we played them as kids, but the parents really didn't play as much, but now a lot of us are parents who play and the kids play, essentially doubling that number?

@Pod don't also forget about Turok 2, Quake, Quake II, KI Gold, MK Trilogy & WWF No Mercy

@Drussa Exactly what I was going to say. Glad I’m not the only one who sees how stupid these numbers are. But it’s not surprising, given that it’s kind of widely known that VGChartz has a spotty track record and aren’t exactly quote-worthy.

Sounds fitting, My favorite console of all time is switch, followed by the n64.

Sales are going to explode this fall. Pokemon will sell millions of consoles for Nintendo and if they release the mini, it could be months of massive sales. The Switch is awesome.

"The data comes from VGChartz"

lol

Not at all shocked that Switch has surpassed both the N64 and GameCube. While I had a certain amount of love for both, or at least a handful of games on both, neither one were exactly Nintendo's finest. The Switch is a completely different story. While I'd love to see Nintendo double their first-party output on the Switch, at least it's been getting an even mix of the "best of Wii U" and some great new titles. All the poor N64 ever got was Mario 64, GoldenEye, and a marginal F-Zero game. Oh right, and that amazing Superman cart. I actually bought that. So stupid.

LOL @ VGChartz.

@Lionyone - please say you're trolling 😂 Green gaming? Carbon footprints? If you wanna enact industry sweeping green guidelines, I hope you're prepared for the moderate increase in prices that would passed on to the consumer.

@andywitmyer Not trolling at all. See David Attenborough documentary from last week: "Climate Change: The Facts". Time is soon running out to avert irreversible climate change because we can't do things like freeze icebergs or freeze methane deposits in permafrost. We've got maybe 10 years to take action. Prices may need to rise but more than that gaming companies need to adopt green practices. One example is gaming companies planting trees to offset their carbon budgets.
These issues are so serious that last week in London alone over a thousand people willingly got arrested as civil disobedience to call on governments and companies to act now on climate change before it's too late. Gaming companies can give us green gaming but us gamers need to ask them for it. We can have our fun and be green with it. It's not one or the other.

N64 is so Great!