The Nintendo Switch had an amazing 2017 as it closed the year with 10 million units sold so far. The console’s innovative hybrid technology and a library of awesome games made Nintendo’s comeback device a huge success that surprised everyone in the gaming community. Now, Nintendo is reportedly doubling up the production for their console, which clearly shows that things will not be slowing down for the Switch.
In a newspaper interview translated by Nintendo Life, Nintendo President Tatsumi Kimishima, spoke to the Kyoto Shimbum newspaper and announced that the company is setting a goal for the Switch to sell 20 million units in the next fiscal year (ending in March 2019). Given Nintendo’s amazing sales record of 10 million units last year, this new goal doesn’t seem to impossible to achieve. However, in 2017, most of the Switch’s success is largely because of the amazing games that was released for the hybrid system. Games like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey, Skyrim, Splatoon 2, and other popular games drove Nintendo’s sales to the roof. The question now is, will they be able to achieve the same success as last year?
Although it is still too early to tell, I believe that Nintendo will be able to reach their target sales as long as they continue to support and encourage third party developers to release games for their system. Nintendo is also still yet to release numerous first party titles that will definitely drive sales even further. I can already imagine the console’s sales to skyrocket if the company were to release popular exclusive franchises to the Switch such as a new generation of Pokémon games, Animal Crossing, Smash Bros., and many more. Finally, the overdue Virtual Console, that has been popular with the 3DS and Wii U, will also be a great feature for the Switch that will definitely bring in more players. Just imagine all the GameCube games that you can play on the go.
In the end, as long as Nintendo maintains a library of awesome games, reintroduce the Virtual Console, and encourage even more third party developers to release for the Switch, then the 20 million target will probably be reached even before the fiscal year ends.
Are you part of the Switch’s first 10 million? If not, what keeps you from buying the Nintendo Switch? Tell us in the comments below. You can also check out our last year's picks for the 5 best Nintendo Switch games here.
