Nintendo Switch 2 Slated To Outclass Original in Year-One Sales Figures (2025)

The Nintendo Switch 2 is a known quantity at this point, with leaks suggesting that an early-to-mid-2025 launch seems more and more likely. Now, research firm DFC Intelligence has published a report projecting Switch 2 sales to soar past its predecessor's first-year sales figures. According to the report, the upcoming Nintendo Switch 2 will sell between 15 and 17 million units in 2025 alone, and, given that it is the only one of the big-three consoles to get a major generational update next year, it looks like it will go largely uncontested.

By comparison, according to Nintendo's 2018 financial results, the original Nintendo Switch sold 15.5 million units in its first year on the market. The original Switch launched just before the start of the new fiscal year, though, on March 3 (Nintendo's fiscal year ends on March 31), and in its first 28 days on the market, the Switch reportedly garnered over 2 million sales. This puts the Switch 2 on track to surpass or at least match the first-generation Nintendo Switch, despite the Switch 2 facing mounting competition from the likes of the Steam Deck and Windows-based gaming handhelds. Statista data shows that the Nintendo Switch peaked at around 29 million units sold per year around 2021. Obviously, the circumstances surrounding the launch of the original Switch were somewhat different, with sales likely still riding the wave that gaming hardware saw during the COVID pandemic.

Of course, this is simply a projection based on currently available public information and industry opinions. When the original Switch launched in March 2017, the hybrid handheld-living room console that could also support split-screen multiplayer on-the-go was a rather novel prospect, and it helped that it had the backing of Nintendo's hard-hitting IP library behind it. This time around, though, it looks as if the Switch 2 will be backwards compatible with original Nintendo Switch games, which will be a driving factor for those upgrading from the original Switch, potentially boosting sales of the upcoming handheld.

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My boys still use that original Switch. Its been good to us. Put a screen protector on right away and good as gold.

Hasn't been dropped as much as the WiiU was thankfully. I probably dropped it more than they did

They will be getting one next Christmas

AusWolf said:

Whoa, slow down, tiger. Sales will hugely depend on specs, price and the attractiveness of available games. If there aren't any massive differences from the original Switch, I wouldn't expect too many people buying one. The Switch was so successful because it was the first handheld with real, PC-grade hardware in it. The Switch 2 has way more competition.

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This couldn't be more wrong.

1. Nintendo portables always sell like crazy.
2. The Switch did not have PC grade hardware in it.
3. There is no competition for it (no, those silly PC consoles don't count because they are PCs and not competing with it in any real form).
4. Even if Sony and Microsoft do release to compete with it everyone who's ever attempted to compete with Nintendo in this area has been destroyed by Nintendo and their under powered option.
5. Nintendo is not dependent on hardware brunt for sales. Nintendo is dependent on their own first party titles and using low end enough hardware they can sell it at a profit not a loss.
6. People will buy Nintendo even if the games aren't out at launch because everyone knows they will come out.

You clearly know very little about Nitendo and are making the mistake of thinking about things from the extremely warped mUh G4m1nG PC!@!!!!! mindset.

SOAREVERSOR said:

3. There is no competition for it (no, those silly PC consoles don't count because they are PCs and not competing with it in any real form).

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*)
There are those knock off handhelds which comes with or without games. Kinda cheap. Everyone knows there can be no legal way to license 50.000 games. I still see those "deals" made on certain pages for around 40€. I'm not in that area - I think they come with all the specifications and emulators.

*)
I also tried one game again on my bigger nerwer android tablet.
Many have a smartphone.

-- I really wonder in active use consoles from those 15 million units sold.

AusWolf said:

the attractiveness of available games

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SOAREVERSOR said:

5. Nintendo is dependent on their own first party titles [...]
6. People will buy Nintendo even if the games aren't out at launch because everyone knows they will come out.

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Switch 2 will have retrocompatibility on its side to drive sales. Even if games exclusive to it take some time to release, anyone already owning a Switch with pending backlog will have no shortage of great games. And someone with no Switch can just get the new console and get whatever great game on the NSW library they fancy.

Nhonho said:

Nintendo should release a "desktop" model of the Switch 2 for those who don't want to use it as a portable device. That way, people wouldn't have to pay for a screen they won't use.

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How successful was the PS Vita TV? Because what you described is precisely the Vita TV approach.

SOAREVERSOR said:

This couldn't be more wrong.

1. Nintendo portables always sell like crazy.
2. The Switch did not have PC grade hardware in it.
3. There is no competition for it (no, those silly PC consoles don't count because they are PCs and not competing with it in any real form).
4. Even if Sony and Microsoft do release to compete with it everyone who's ever attempted to compete with Nintendo in this area has been destroyed by Nintendo and their under powered option.
5. Nintendo is not dependent on hardware brunt for sales. Nintendo is dependent on their own first party titles and using low end enough hardware they can sell it at a profit not a loss.
6. People will buy Nintendo even if the games aren't out at launch because everyone knows they will come out.

You clearly know very little about Nitendo and are making the mistake of thinking about things from the extremely warped mUh G4m1nG PC!@!!!!! mindset.

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Same could be said of you knowing very little about the gaming market and believing Nintendo is infallible. You must be young.

1. Not true. The Virtual Boy was a failure. Arguably, the Wii U was a portable failure as well.
2. Sure
3. Steam Deck and handheld PC owners are the competition for handheld gaming. They target a similar audience of gamers who want flexibility and portability, even if marketed differently. I bought a Switch at launch because there was nothing really like it at the time, now there's plenty of options, so I'll be skipping Switch 2. This is also why Nintendo has recently been hellbent on killing Switch emulation now that handheld PCs exist or even powerful Android handhelds like Odin 2.
4. Competition might struggle, but it doesn't mean they’re outright “destroyed.”
5. Third-party developers sometimes skip Nintendo platforms because the lower-end hardware can’t support their games. This is why most AAA titles aren't available on the Switch, and those that are, run better on handheld PCs. The only things on Switch that aren't on handheld PCs are first party titles. But again, emulation is a thing.
6. Launch sales can suffer if a strong lineup isn’t available. The Wii U’s slow adoption was partly due to a lack of compelling launch titles, showing consumers aren't always willing to wait.

_roman_ said:

*)
There are those knock off handhelds which comes with or without games. Kinda cheap. Everyone knows there can be no legal way to license 50.000 games. I still see those "deals" made on certain pages for around 40€. I'm not in that area - I think they come with all the specifications and emulators.

*)
I also tried one game again on my bigger nerwer android tablet.
Many have a smartphone.

-- I really wonder in active use consoles from those 15 million units sold.

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Can't play the new Marios and Zeldas on those.

colossusrageblack said:

3. Steam Deck and handheld PC owners are the competition for handheld gaming. They target a similar audience of gamers who want flexibility and portability, even if marketed differently. I bought a Switch at launch because there was nothing really like it at the time, now there's plenty of options, so I'll be skipping Switch 2. This is also why Nintendo has recently been hellbent on killing Switch emulation now that handheld PCs exist or even powerful Android handhelds like Odin 2.

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Can't play new Nintendo games on those. Which is the main point of Nintendo consoles, and always have been. As you say the Switch did something besides that, but the main point is being a Nintendo console.

Anyway maybe I can finally get a used switch that is less than 70% of release price.

SOAREVERSOR said:

This couldn't be more wrong.

1. Nintendo portables always sell like crazy.
2. The Switch did not have PC grade hardware in it.
3. There is no competition for it (no, those silly PC consoles don't count because they are PCs and not competing with it in any real form).
4. Even if Sony and Microsoft do release to compete with it everyone who's ever attempted to compete with Nintendo in this area has been destroyed by Nintendo and their under powered option.
5. Nintendo is not dependent on hardware brunt for sales. Nintendo is dependent on their own first party titles and using low end enough hardware they can sell it at a profit not a loss.
6. People will buy Nintendo even if the games aren't out at launch because everyone knows they will come out.

Click to expand...

Your points have some merit, but we'll see. I'm on the opinion that basically all consoles (handheld or not) have been gravitating towards PC or PC-like hardware and cross-platform development, therefore, they do pose some competition to one another. I don't think the Switch 2 will be any different.

SOAREVERSOR said:

You clearly know very little about Nitendo and are making the mistake of thinking about things from the extremely warped mUh G4m1nG PC!@!!!!! mindset.

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Let's keep it friendly, shall we? There's no need to get personal. We're discussing opinions, after all.

Arkz said:

I'm sick of waiting for it, they're taking so damn long, and it's gonna be out of date at the door again. Will most certainly be weaker than a steam deck, worse specs across the board. And I wouldn't be surprised if the price is quite close to the old deck. But I crave a new Mario Kart, 3d Mario platformer, and eventual new big Zelda.

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First game I'm getting is Zelda. I truly, find it Switch 2 hard to compare to PC portable consoles. It has always been different with its exquisite titles you could not get anywhere else. What is also very important, Nintendo does not have to surpass any other handheld in specs. I dont want to play red dead redemption for instance on a handheld nor Baldur's gate etc. or any other title for that matter that is on a PC.
It does not matter if other can because the frames and the detail level is going to be the lowest possible. That kinda kills the game and games on PC (most of them) do not offer much except the graphics.

colossusrageblack said:

1. Not true. The Virtual Boy was a failure. Arguably, the Wii U was a portable failure as well.

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I wouldn't say nintendo wii u was a failure. Why would you say it was? they have sold around 14million units and these were competing with Nintendo 3DS from (released a year before) and play station vita. I would have called them failures if these sold 1million units or lets say below 5million. It was not a great sale but it was not a failure.

colossusrageblack said:

Third-party developers sometimes skip Nintendo platforms because the lower-end hardware can’t support their games. This is why most AAA titles aren't available on the Switch, and those that are, run better on handheld PCs. The only things on Switch that aren't on handheld PCs are first party titles. But again, emulation is a thing.

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Or you can say, Nintendo does not care for 3rd party developers and their common titles available on every PC platform. You can also say developers dont want to release something on a console where you have so many unique titles nobody would play their game. Porting the game from a PC is, I'm pretty sure, a nightmare for developers. So why even bother? They are looking for profit like every game company and releasing a common title that is on every pc platform you can imagine is quite pointless. THen you have a demanding engines they are using not even handhelds can cope with unless you like slide shows in 10fps.

AusWolf said:

Your points have some merit, but we'll see. I'm on the opinion that basically all consoles (handheld or not) have been gravitating towards PC or PC-like hardware and cross-platform development, therefore, they do pose some competition to one another. I don't think the Switch 2 will be any different.

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That would apply to pc handhelds but switch is totally different. Also Nintendo DS was totally something else. Because these have something else than just some hardware that can do this or that.Nintendo is not about matching with PC hardware, never was. Unlike pc handhelds which are trying to surpass one another which one is faster and uses less power at the same time, where you can play a PC games which are running pretty slow if you want to go with the newest games. Nintendo switch does not have that problem, because it doesn't matter.
I can't see, switch 2 being any different from switch except some improvements.

ratirt said:

That would apply to pc handhelds but switch is totally different. Also Nintendo DS was totally something else. Because these have something else than just some hardware that can do this or that.Nintendo is not about matching with PC hardware, never was. Unlike pc handhelds which are trying to surpass one another which one is faster and uses less power at the same time, where you can play a PC games which are running pretty slow if you want to go with the newest games. Nintendo switch does not have that problem, because it doesn't matter.

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Fair point. I guess Nintendo can sell any console just with Pokémon and Zelda alone.

ratirt said:

I can't see, switch 2 being any different from switch except some improvements.

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That could be a problem, though. Why would a Switch owner buy a Switch 2 if it doesn't offer much on top?

AusWolf said:

Fair point. I guess Nintendo can sell any console just with Pokémon and Zelda alone.

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Zelda is extraordinary no doubt about it. The idea, the plot everything is unique. That is what Nintendo is all about. Mario series is as well. There's plenty games of that kind.
That was not the point exactly and there are more titles than just Pokemon and Zelda, I only hope you do get my point fairly.

AusWolf said:

That could be a problem, though. Why would a Switch owner buy a Switch 2 if it doesn't offer much on top?

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There are improvements, but not as going from a 2060 to a 4070ti type of improvement.
I hope you understand that this is entirely different market and graphics as important as it is, it doesn't have to match the current best looking games in the PC market, which other handhelds are actually trying to accomplish. I don't know exactly what is going to change since all we currently know are rumors but I'm trying to paint a picture here, not to look at this, from a perspective of a PC gaming market.

AusWolf said:

Your points have some merit, but we'll see. I'm on the opinion that basically all consoles (handheld or not) have been gravitating towards PC or PC-like hardware and cross-platform development, therefore, they do pose some competition to one another. I don't think the Switch 2 will be any different.

Let's keep it friendly, shall we? There's no need to get personal. We're discussing opinions, after all.

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Nintendo has not though. Nintendo has always been off in their own corner doing their own thing and that's why they do so well. They didn't move to x86, they didn't also turn their consoles into a media center, and they don't really give a rip about online content. They make a console they can make a profit off of with a quirk they want to build their games around. Then they help their 3rd party studios they have a close relationship with to create titles as well. That's enough for them to sell.

The Switch already beat the PS2 in the US to become the best selling console of all time. It's on track to do that world wide. That's pretty crazy. That's on top of the fact that when it comes to portables they've so slaughtered the competition the market is riddled with companies that went under or no longer bother to compete.

The Switch 2 is going to do the same thing. The combination of hardware + software + laser focus on their own IP. They don't really compete with anyone. They are their own market and create stuff around it. Others try to ape it but fail. Case in point when the NES mini came out SEGA, SONY, and TG-16/Konami jumped in. They all flopped.

Prima.Vera said:

For some reasons I could never digg Switch compared to the Wii and most likely because of the content which was worst than Wii's.

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give it a second chance, there are lots of great games out now on the platform.