After eight years on the market, Nintendo's sales have dropped significantly, primarily due to the absence of major blockbuster games to boost demand.
According to Nikkei, Bloomberg, and Nintendo's official data, Switch console sales fell by 46.3% year-on-year to 2.1 million units, while software sales dropped by 41.3% to 30.64 million units in the April-June quarter. These declines are largely attributed to the high sales base set by the release of the popular game *The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom* in May 2023.
Revenue from Digital Sales dropped 32% to JPY80.7 billion (US$514 million). Revenue from Mobile and IP-related income fell to JPY14.7 billion, a 53.8% decrease due to the high base effect driven by The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
Overall revenue for April-June 2024 fell 47% year-on-year to JPY246.6 billion. Operating profit decreased by 71% to JPY54.5 billion, and net profit dropped 55% to JPY80.9 billion, the first time since July-September 2017 that Nintendo has reported a profit decline of over 50%.
The Switch series, launched in March 2017, has now surpassed all previous Nintendo consoles in terms of lifespan. While it's typical for sales to decline as a console ages, Nintendo did not provide any new information about a next-generation console during its latest earnings call.
Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa announced in May 2024 that the next-generation console would be unveiled by the end of March 2025. As a result, the Switch will continue to be a central part of Nintendo's business until the new console is released. In September 2024, Nintendo is expected to release new titles in the The Legend of Zelda and Mario series.
