After weeks of proudly touting record-breaking sales by Nintendo’s latest console, the big N has finally posted concrete data certifying the Switch’s impressive commercial performance. NPD has confirmed March as being the first month since October 2016 that the PS4’s streak on top of the charts has been broken.
After the underwhelming performance of the company’s previous home console, the Wii U, the Switch appears to have rebuilt momentum and steadied the ship, at least for now. It should be noted that the Switch’s strong early sales do not guarantee its prolonged success moving forward. The Wii U itself had a decent early showing, only to peter out after the initial rush of early adopters.
We’re looking back on Nintendo’s console launch history, crunching the numbers to discover how the Switch compares to some its best selling hardware.
Nintendo N64 – 500,000 Units Sold in 4 Months
Repeated delays caused Nintendo’s N64 console to miss launching before the arrival of Sony’s PlayStation and Sega’ Saturn. Yet the console still recorded a strong commercial launch, muscling its way onto the home console scene. The N64 quickly swept Sega Saturn aside but was ultimately unable to compete against the PlayStation, which would go on to dominate the fifth console generation.
3DS – 380,000 Units Sold in 7 Days
Nintendo’s 3DS console has defied popular belief that smartphones would nullify interest in handheld gaming, continuing to sell respectably worldwide to this day. The console did not, however, enjoy as big a launch in the US as previous portables. NPD stated that the 3DS sold about 100,000 fewer consoles than the DS and GBA.
Wii U – 425,000 units sold in 7 days
As noted earlier, the Wii U was no slouch at launch, and although its commercial performance was unable to match its predecessor, numbers were still very respectable. Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime noted that the console recorded stronger figures than other HD consoles at the time. The Wii U would go on to achieve 636,000 in its first month in the US. That fortune was not to continue, however, as the Wii U would go down in history as the company’s worst ever selling home console (not including the Virtual Boy).
Wii – 475,000 units sold in 7 days
Nintendo’s Wii took the world by storm, but you might be surprised to learn that it took a while to gain traction in the US market. The console would of course go on to become a stratospheric success for the big N, shaping the entire future impetus of the company to occupy a separate market space from other competitors such as Sony and Microsoft. The Wii’s fairly modest initial figures also highlight that a console’s overall success is a marathon, not a sprint.
Gamecube – 500,000 units sold in 7 days
Nintendo’s Gamecube enjoyed a very successful launch period. The powerful GPU comprising its hardware should have made the console an attractive platform for developers looking to push the boundaries of graphical technology on home console. Unfortunately, the markets interest in Sony’s PlayStation 2 and increasingly stiff competition from Microsoft with the Xbox saw sales plateau drastically moving forward.
Nintendo DS – 500,000 units sold in 7 days
Nintendo’s most successful console and the best-selling handheld console of all time, the DS’s initial launch was unsurprisingly strong. The DS wasn’t quite able to reach the same heights as its predecessor, the Gameboy Advance, but it would go on to exceed its total sales eventually.
GBA – 540,000 units sold in 7 days
The first full redesign of Nintendo’s ever-popular Gameboy console came in the form of the Gameboy Advanced. With a larger screen, color as standard, and more powerful internals, the GBA attracted huge interest both overseas and in North America. 540,000 units sold in North America over just 7 days forced Nintendo to emergency ship additional units from factories in Japan.
Switch – 906,000 units sold in 28 days
Looking back on the nascent commercial success of Nintendo’s consoles over the years really puts the Switch’s near 1 million sales in perspective. According to Nintendo, the console enjoyed the strongest opening weekend of any piece of Nintendo hardware. Estimates also place worldwide sales at around 1.5 million in its first week. The signs are so far positive for the Nintendo Switch, and although history warns us not to read too much into initial figures, Nintendo will certainly be hoping that a decent summer line-up of first party games, followed by Mario Odyssey in the Fall will continue the momentum.
Published: Apr 14, 2017 12:47 pm