May's NPD results have been shared, and the figures reveal that May has been a relatively quiet month for the video game industry.
The industry overall has seen a 19% drop in sales (for hardware, games, and accessories) compared to a year ago, and at $3.7 billion, this is the lowest monthly spending total since February 2020. Year-to-date spending has also seen a 10% drop compared to the same period in 2021, with subscription gaming the only aspect that's seen year-on-year growth.
However, the Switch has done pretty well, topping the hardware charts for last month in the US in both numbers of units and dollars. It's still the best-selling console of the year in the country in terms of units sold, too.
Looking at the games, Nintendo Switch Sports continues to do well, jumping from fifth to third in May and was also the best-selling Switch game of the month, overtaking Kirby and the Forgotten Land and LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga.
Overall, Elden Ring continues to dominate sales in the US and is still the number-one-selling game of the month and the year. But Pokémon Legends: Arceus is third in YTD sales while Nintendo Switch Sports sneaks up to 13th. And don't forget, all of Nintendo's sales figures don't include digital downloads, so these games may have done even better than they appear to have.
Nintendo Switch Sports continues to make an impact, then, despite the quiet month. We'll have to see if Nintendo's busy summer changes up the figures — but Nintendo Switch Sports is doing solid numbers and will likely continue to do so as the weeks go on.
As always, share your thoughts on the figures with us in the comments!
[source twitter.com, via gonintendo.com]
Comments 69
The dollar sales thing is very surprising
It probably helps that the Switch is easiest of the three consoles to locate.
sip
Mmm, yes. I can confirm that this dihydrogen monoxide is in fact, for all intents and purposes, without being unnecessarily verbose or tautologous, and without fear of contradiction, wet.
Good to see Kirby is still in the top 10 across all platforms, even if that probably doesn't mean much with how quiet the month was
@Silly_G You need to be careful with that dihydrogen monoxide stuff. I've read people that drink that substance will die.
Okay so I used to be excited whenever the Switch would break milestones, like when it broke 100 million, outselling Wii and PSX, but nowadays, I wonder if that success is really deserved.
My opinion on Nintendo has changed drastically throughout the Switch lifecycle. A company I once had a lot of respect for, a company that once treated their legacy content with the respect it deserved, is now a power hungry greedy soulless corporation that takes every opportunity it can to spit in fans faces.
The Mario ROM Collection being limited time for no good reason, Nintendo Switch Online forcing rentals like Adobe products, the Extortion Pack as a whole (really? Forcing a year’s subscription?), and shutting down the Wii U and 3DS eShops with no viable alternatives. NSO doesn’t count until it allows classic games to be purchased, rentals are never a substitute for purchases.
Sorry if this is unrelated but I had to vent my frustration with how terribly Nintendo has been handling itself, the greed, the disrespect towards its history, the axing of game ownership, etc.
If EA or Sony or Microsoft or Activision pulled a fraction of the cheap stunts Nintendo did during the Switch era, we’d never hear the end of it lol.
@ThomastheTankEngine Sorry to hear you missed out on the Mario collection But I've still seen it around.
@GrailUK oh I didn’t miss out on it, just think making it limited time was a bad decision regardless. My apologies for the confusion.
I wonder if the chip shortage is helping the Switch over PS5 and Xbox. I mean it is stopping the competition and slowing down the Switch life cycle.
@Rhum17 it also probably helps it has the most exclusive games worth getting
@ThomastheTankEngine : Adobe turned to the rental model during my film school days, and that put me off from ever supporting any of their products, even though I am well aware that they are among the industry leaders.
Had they not adopted that model, I probably would have sprung to buy the suite and purchase the new release every few years.
As a result, I've stuck to supporting companies that still sell perpetual licenses for their video/photo editing software.
But on the topic of NSO, I absolutely hate the rental model for such old games considering that they were available for purchase on previous hardware. The irony is that they would make several years' worth of NSO subscriptions from me (and many others, I'm sure) if they simply gave us the option to buy the games.
@Tyranexx : I'm already dead inside, so it must be working a treat!
@Rhum17 and also the cheapest...
@Silly_G exactly, and subscription and purchase aren’t mutually exclusive.
ITunes, Amazon Prime, GamePass, and PS Plus all have both subscribe and buy options. Adobe and NSO are the only “services” I know of that force rentals.
If a subscription service has to lock content to the subscription, it’s an objectively bad “service”.
@PokemonDMG I think the chip shortage has affected their plans, too. I mean, there’s an opportunity to keep selling through the Switch as it looks now, but Nintendo didn’t want to face the same backlash Sony and Microsoft have been getting for a failure of the retail channel. I think Nintendo wanted to release a better Switch, then slowly roll out its new hardware to the Lite and put out another product for the Switch family. Rather than creating confusion, they still released one SKU in 2021, but held off on new hardware until the supply was a little better. The Wii suffered from scalpers in its early days, so I understand why they did it and the opportunity to have Switch units on the shelf has helped a lot.
@johnedwin Indeed that’s a factor too.
@Arawn93 Yeah that’s true. As an XBox fan too, I admit the Series X is sorely lacking in exclusives. For me that’s okay, but I see how that’s an issue for the wider audience. Also, Nintendo first party games tend to be high quality.
@Rhum17 first excuse for a trashstation fanboy in denial.
@CorvoRevo I’ve never owned a PlayStation… My comment is in response to the chip shortage and that Nintendo is able to succeed by having a good console and have more available. If I wasn’t a Nintendo fan I wouldn’t read this site daily….
Ah, so Switch is doomed. Sounds about right.
Remember the WiiU days when everyone said Nintendo should go third party? Pepperigde Farms remember.
Great news. So awesome to see the Switch still selling great 5+ years in.
@progx I think Nintendo wanted to ride the Pony as long as possible and the pandemic, chip shortage extended the lifespan even longer.
@IronMan30 There's no way this company can remain solvent for 130+ years
@Nin10doh basically this. They're practically out of business as it is. There is some hope, though. For $1 US per day, you can help feed this poor company and maybe they'll survive.
@IronMan30 It's only a matter of time. Much like that one guy that keeps buying GTAV over and over again, whoever is still buying Switches have to run out of money eventually.
(I'm being silly but honestly, some folk actually sound like this lol.)
@rockodoodle if Nintendo was keen on riding the pony, then the OLED and Lite wouldn’t exist, especially the former. Sure, you can still get V2, but Nintendo is pricing it to move. By 2023, we should know what SKU is coming out, whether it’s another variant of the current Switch or a new one.
@Rhum17,
When the Switch was selling more than the PS4, it was because the PS4 was old and everybody had one, now the roles are reversed and the Switch is the older console, it's that nobody can find a PS5, which is rubbish, all you have to do is look on e-bay, there are loads of them.
@IronMan30,
It would be doomed if you could buy a PS5.
@CorvoRevo,
Denial is in Egypt isn't it.
@Silly_G Dihydrogen monoxide IS known to be fast-acting.
@johnvboy I have no idea what the PS sales are, I don’t follow that. Why does everyone assume I have Sony consoles? 😂 Ironic because I cannot stand PS, but okay… I just know when I go into a store there are tons of Switch and a few Series S. For those who aren’t dedicated to a brand, they may just pick up what’s available. I never said that’s the “only” reason Switch is selling well, just that it helps. Common sense states that it would have to be a factor. I happen to love Switch and own two
Only die-hards will fork over scalper prices on eBay.
@ThomastheTankEngine
lol,
EA, Activision, Microsoft all pull way worse stunts than Nintendo does. Both EA and Activision, for example, releases one unfinished game after another. Not unfinished like just lacking some content at day one, but unfinished like being unplayable mess. Microsoft doubles prices on Gold for no reason, disabling offline play in single player etc. Nintendo isn't perfect in any way, but they haven't really done anything really bad towards consumers this generation.
@RasandeRose I mean, you could argue those are bad, but they actually get called out on it, and typically backpedal. In your own example Microsoft backpedalled in response to backlash over raising the Xbox Live price.
And even EA and Activision are far superior in legacy content availability, despite their other flaws, than Nintendo. Many of EA and Activision’s old games are available for purchase on modern platforms. None of Nintendo’s old games prior to the Wii have that distinction.
I’d argue that Nintendo trying to axe game ownership (NSO forcing rentals for an increasing amount of systems and games) altogether is much worse than anything any other company is trying to do.
When Microsoft tried to take away game ownership they were ratiod so hard they did a 180 and their current console is backwards compatible back to the OG Xbox. Nintendo tries to take away game ownership and their fans cheer them on.
It’s a difference of how the fanbases respond, not a difference of what the companies themselves do.
You’re arguing in bad faith if you think EA or Activision or Sony or anyone has near the amount of defenders and good faith to burn as Nintendo does. That’s the point, not whether a company is scummy or not.
People can say "we need Switch 2!!!1" all they want, but while this is still happening, I don't see Nintendo in any big rush to put one out.
@Rhum17,
I think the PS5 was only just tracking behind the PS4's first year total, not too bad considering the supply constraints.
Agree availability is a factor, but the Switch will also be affected, although to a lesser extent.
@ThomastheTankEngine
I think it's actually way, way worse to release unfinished games or making new single player games unplayable even on ones main system when their servers are offline, than which particular service they use for 20 years old games.
In the end, I think NSO is an OK service, I think it should be more worrying that you actually can't play many new games on Xbox when they have a service malfunction. Nintendo killing game ownership?...umm, Nintendo is actually the one company that still prioritize physical releases and doesn't do DRM-checks with games you buy and play on your console. You only mentions their legacy content, but you totally ignore the DRM-checks on New games bcause then you can put Nintendo in a particular negative perspective while you ignore the fact that Nintendo is the only company that doesn't enforce DRM-checks on games you buy.
Obviously, Microsoft didn't do a 180-degree turn on game ownership. They just moved it a console generation forward and this time skipped the information about it to the consumers...
As I said, I would be more worried about new games I actually play than 20 yo games. At least, Nintendo is open and honest with how the system works. Nintendo can be criticized for a number of reasons, including NSO-service. But the fact is, Nintendo hasn't pulled a DRM-stunt like Microsoft or Sony have done (Gran Turismo 7), they also haven't done any micro-trans mess like, once again Sony with GT7. Im happy as long as Nintendo at least lets me play cartridge games offline and don't charge 60 USD for one additional kart in Mario kart.
Nintendo isn't a particular consumer-friendly company. But I don't think they are worse then their competitors. Some things they do better, some things they do worse.
@RasandeRose I agree. Many companies lack Nintendo's integrity.
@Arawn93 I would've said I prefer playstations exclusives but most of them are on pc now anyway lol
@johnedwin series S is cheaper if you want a home console & not a handheld
@RasandeRose oh I’m not saying Nintendo is the worst in every way or anything like that. I’m just saying I think going the Adobe route with their classic games is objectively a scummy decision. Availability of legacy content for a fair and reasonable price is very important to me. That availability means availability to purchase.
I didn’t mention DRM because I don’t think Nintendo isn’t enforcing it out of the goodness of their hearts. I believe they genuinely aren’t smart enough to enforce it, given how much anything regarding online or Internet terrifies them. I can assure you, just like they’ve done with DLC, subscriptions, microtransactions, paid online, and pushing digital games, Nintendo will get there soon. They’re always behind the curve technologically, so accept DRM for their next console.
In regards to game ownership, I wouldn’t even be surprised if Nintendo’s next console outright doesn’t even let you buy games. I’d wager they’d rather put all their games behind a subscription of five year installments of $1,000. Given how much Nintendo loves Adobe’s business model, why not lol?
@Would_you_kindly why would anyone want a series s instead of the more powerful series x?
@johnedwin I actually bought a Series S as my first Xbox. I bought due to it having the best legacy support of any modern console, and being able to play four generations worth of Xbox’s and some third party legacy games.
I didn’t own any Xbox before (PlayStation guy) and I didn’t have Xbox discs for previous consoles so it’s $200 cheaper for me to buy that and put the difference towards GamePass and games themselves.
I have the disc based PlayStation 5 as my main console for the generation, and can use that if I want to play Blu-Rays or DVDs. That and having lots of physical PS4 games.
Having an entry level Xbox was a really smart move by Microsoft. Xbox Series S is to the Series X, like the Switch Lite is to the Switch.
It’s a worthwhile purchase. I can play the Rareware N64 games that will either never come to Switch due to licensing, or will be locked to a $50 yearly rental, whereas I got all these games with Rare Replay as a one time purchase.
@ThomastheTankEngine
lol, Nintendo does enforce DRM in said service NSO, they further more enforce DRM with second Switch-systems, like the Switch Lite often is to Switch-owners, but somehow they wouldn't know how to implement it otherwise? I simple think you pretty much just don't have any idea what you're talking about. Furthermore, they implement micro-trans in their mobile games, but not in their console games. Somehow, you mean they know how to charge for DLC-content, but they at the same time don't know how to charge for DLC-content? They don't have an online store in which they are able to charge for content?
It's pretty obvious to me they simple made the decision not to implement DRM it for offline-game content or micro-transactions simple out of the reason they wouldn't want the backlash, esp. as they aim their product for kids and families
You seem to be very anti-Nintendo, you really blow up the negatives about the company basically only based on their legacy content on the Switch...and somehow you even manage to get the positive sides of Nintendo to be negative because maybe they will implement the negatives in the future? lol, Nintendo really can't "win" any points in your point of view, you even criticize them for bad stuff other companies do but they don't
It’s not surprising to see sales dipping compared to 2020. The pandemic boosted sales as so many people were left at home and the Switch was easy to get hold of. It also has a crazy library of superb games and it’s no wonder it’s still doing well.
Cloud gaming is marmite but the fact is that it makes gaming more accessible for those on a tight budget and you basically play AAA games without a console. That is going to keep growing and once Xcloud gets to 1080p at least - which by the way it should already be doing as Stadia managed it off the bat - it will grow more and more.
Nintendo are in such a strong position right now but the time is coming when they will need to either stick or twist.
@johnvboy that's true. PS5 is the ultimate gaming console. Greatness awaits!
@RasandeRose I assure you when it comes to Nintendo as a business I am definitely anti-Nintendo as any discerning customer should be.
When it comes to game development, I am pro-Nintendo. I won’t hesitate to tell anyone that as a game developer, Nintendo since the mid eighties to the present day is responsible for a large chunk of the best video games ever made. This is where the divide should be though. I support Nintendo as a game developer and not a corporation.
Do you think anyone whose a part of making some of the best games of all time has any say in Nintendo’s bad decisions? Do you think Sakamoto asks for Super Metroid to not be available for purchase, or that Aonuma asks for Ocarina of Time on Switch to run worse than original hardware, and to be behind a $50 yearly paywall?
I hope you don’t, and can separate these two parts of Nintendo. As it stands you ask why I’m frustrated with Nintendo. Why shouldn’t I be?
They got all this stuff right with the Wii. The Wii had killer exclusives, backwards compatibility, amazing respect for legacy content (both first and third party) with games purchaseable via Virtual Console, and lots of hidden gems and great third party titles exclusively made for the system or enhanced due to the Wii’s control scheme.
The Switch on that list only has the killer exclusives which is one point I’ll give Nintendo, every console of there’s has a great first party lineup.
The Switch equivalent of backwards compatibility is $60 Wii and Wii U ports.
The Switch equivalent of legacy content is a drip feed of a couple classics and mostly shovelware, with the kicker being that you can’t buy any old games and in the case of the “premium” tier runs games worse than original hardware.
The Switch’s third party support relies on stealing PlayStation and Xbox games for the sake of portability.
The Wii is called out for being underpowered and having a lot of shovelware, but the Switch is even worse in both those regards.
The Wii was more powerful than the PS2 and GameCube at least, while the Switch is barely more powerful than a PlayStation 3.
The Switch Eshop has several magnitudes more shovelware than the Wii did.
Oh yeah, did the Wii ever have drift with the Nunchuck and Wiimote? No? Something the Joycons still have.
How about homebrew capabilities? This is more personal but Nintendo’s iron fist of control really annoys me and the Wii’s homebrew capabilities soundly trump the Switch which still can’t be hacked.
Why shouldn’t I dislike Nintendo for failing not only where their competitors, Sony and Microsoft who allow purchases of classic games as well as backwards compatibility, but also fail in regards to their previous consoles? How am I anti-Nintendo for stating facts about how Nintendo’s new console fails in a lot of important areas?
The only areas the Switch is really better than the Wii is its excellent form factor and gimmick, and the fact that its an HD console, which is expected with technology moving forward.
@ThomastheTankEngine Nintendo is still a well respected dev with a lot of soul and it not hungry for money and the switch era is a positive golden for Nintendo and its fans
@Ayasplat yeah, well respected as a developer, not corporation. There is a difference.
I don’t think atrocious support for legacy content, limited time games, and flimsy hardware is exactly a golden era.
The true golden era of Nintendo, and the only good one, was when Mr. Iwata was the CEO of Nintendo.
@johnedwin well you said the switch is the cheapest console but it isn't the series S is (& it's much more powerful than the switch) the switch lite is cheaper but it's handheld only & I said home console
Removed - flaming/arguing; user is banned
@Ayasplat nice troll lol
@ThomastheTankEngine not trolling switch is a golden age
@ThomastheTankEngine Nintendo new and true golden age is switch
@ThomastheTankEngine
I actually think you're still totally unreasonable.
Your argument is still about 100% about the subscription service for the legacy games. It's a fair point, but you blow it up beyond all proportions to bash everything Nintendo does today, and does right with the Switch.
I mean, what is even this argument calling for?
"The Switch’s third party support relies on stealing PlayStation and Xbox games for the sake of portability."
If the Switch wouldn't receive any games that comes to Xbox and Playstation, I guess you would complain about that too?
"The only areas the Switch is really better than the Wii is its excellent form factor and gimmick, and the fact that its an HD console, which is expected with technology moving forward."
Well, you seem to base most of your argument on the ability to play legacy games. That is, to be fair, the only point I see in your argument.
"How about homebrew capabilities? This is more personal but Nintendo’s iron fist of control really annoys me and the Wii’s homebrew capabilities soundly trump the Switch which still can’t be hacked."
Switch got hacked back in 2017, right?
"Why shouldn’t I dislike Nintendo for failing not only where their competitors, Sony and Microsoft who allow purchases of classic games as well as backwards compatibility, but also fail in regards to their previous consoles?"
Interestingly, you still tend to ignore the facts about stuff like DRM and micro-transactions Nintendo's competitors been criticize for...but I guess that's only a negative if Nintendo does it? Or do you really only buy new game consoles to play legacy games, and it doesn't matter if you can't even play your new games because the servers for the DRM-checks are down? Or that Sony charges USD 60 for a single car in GT7? Why don't you, like, buy the original old consoles then if only the legacy games counts?
Man, you really don't like Nintendo
I bought an Xbox Series S a few days ago and I'm now playing Elden Ring. Games like Elden Ring, Yakuza, Sekiro are never coming to Switch. And more and more modern games will not come to the Switch as the technology gap increases between Switch and Xbox Series X-S and PS5. I love the Switch, but Nintendo needs to seriously think about a new one with updated specs.
@RasandeRose yeah, I dislike Nintendo as a business. What’s wrong with that? I already said that I support them as a developer.
I’ve criticized both Sony and Microsoft for having their consoles lack backwards compatibility as well. It’s why I’m not too fond of either PS4 or 360.
I do care about new games, but I want my console to be the complete package. If it can play old and new games both that’s ideal. If anything it’s you yourself who said you only cared for new games and that “20 year old games” are irrelevant. Gaming history will be wiped away because of people like you.
Do you not understand the appeal of say, on Wii, going from Chrono Trigger to Smash 64 to Pokémon XD, to Super Mario Galaxy?
You can’t do that at all on Switch, regardless of whether you pay Nintendo continually.
And on Xbox, you can hop from OG Xbox titles like Star Wars: KOTOR to XBLA games like Banjo Kazooie back to new titles like Forza.
The option to build a gaming library to your hearts desire is a console’s greatest strength. The PS1, PS2, GameCube, GBA, Wii, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S do this phenominally.
Something the Switch is lacking, unless you have countless $60 checks lying around.
Most of my points also boil down to other stuff as well. I mentioned hardware durability which the Switch does worse than the Wii.
Why does third party support on Nintendo consoles even matter when the games will exist on other platforms in a better state at a lower cost? Multiplatform games on Nintendo consoles are almost always worse.
Typically the best strategy is to have a third party game exclusive like Mischief Makers on N64 or have exclusive content like Link in Soul Calibur II on the GameCube. Or like the Wii just go all out and make whatever games you want, have fun with the hardware, Sin and Punishment: Star Successor, Red Steel 2, Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition, Madworld, The Last Story, Pandora’s Tower, etc. also Wiiware titles!
What’s the Switch equivalent? Octopath Traveller? That’s about it. When it comes to exclusive experiences (available for purchase), the Wii trounces the Switch. You got a Wii for the plethora of exclusive content and gaming methods the PS360 didn’t have.
@RasandeRose Like I said, the Switch shoplifts indies from PC and third party games from PlayStation and Xbox to pad out its library. It doesn’t really matter when its the most expensive version and will run and look the worst due to compromises. Why not put that effort into exclusive third party games?
Nintendo just doesn’t seem to care about bolstering the console with exclusives and just rests on the portability title.
On the topic of DRM and GT7, I didn’t buy it. Guess what? Sony has lots of great first party single player games, their bread and butter, that don’t have this problem, with lots of new games coming too that likely won’t stumble like Gran Turismo 7.
On top of that there’s reason to buy third party games on PlayStation since they’re cheaper and run better on the platform.
Plus, let’s remember another area Nintendo dropped the ball. PlayStation exclusives will get steep price drops after a year or so. Switch games from launch are still $60. This is worse than both PlayStation and Xbox deals, but also Nintendo’s own offerings.
Remember Nintendo Selects? Don’t give me that bs that the Switch’s popularity is why we don’t have it. The Wii was popular and had Nintendo Selects as well. Difference back then was who was leading Nintendo. It’s made all the difference with how Nintendo has fallen so far.
@ThomastheTankEngine
Your comments give me this vibe:
Yup, the Switch continues to lead the Ninth Generation sales. No need to make a new console any time soon, if ever.
@westman98 Have I got a great deal for you!
For only $999.99, you can be the proud owner of the Super Hyper Incredible Turbo Expansion pass! This product will let you play games from the NES-Switch!*
*Product only available in five year installments. Product is required to play NES-Switch games. Nintendo is not responsible for the probable glitches, save data loss, or potential brick regarding your system. Console sold separately. Batteries not included.
@ThomastheTankEngine
@IronMan30,
I am telling you, if Sony could have made 50 million PS5's last year, they would have sold 50 million, although that would have seen around 30 million unsold on Flea-bay.
@johnvboy no, è in austro-ungarico antico.
@CorvoRevo,
You try and tell this to people, and they don't listen, I mean we had one but the leg fell off.
@westman98 it's Nintendo's next console
@ThomastheTankEngine
???
Stay mad, I guess...
Fun fact: Switch has been on the market for 63 months and has been the best-selling platform by units for 50 of those months in the US.
Most of those 13 months where Switch wasn't the top seller by units was in 2017 and 2018.
@westman98 why? I can just buy games from Sony and Microsoft for keeps. Nintendo loses out on easy money. I keep the money.
Nintendo continues to make bad decisions you defend. If anything Nintendo loses.
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