The NintendoSwitchwas released in March 2017 and became a near-instant success for Nintendo. Since its launch, the hybrid console has managed to stay popular with fans andsell over 92 million units. As a result of these staggering sales numbers, it has already become one of the best-selling systems in the history of Nintendo. However, recent data indicates that the console shows no signs of slowing down.
Recently, new information became available disclosing the sales figures for theNintendo Switchand other video game consoles in the UK. Based on hardware data from GfK, it was revealed that 3.36 million consoles were sold in the UK last year. These numbers signaled growth in the video game hardware market as combined console sales for Nintendo, PlayStation, and Xbox were up 14% in 2021. Furthermore, these sales figures evidenced that Nintendo’s hybrid console continued to be extremely popular with consumers.
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According to this data, the Nintendo Switch was the best-selling console in the UK in 2021. While the console had trailed the PS5 for part of the year, the holiday shopping season helped Nintendo overtake its competitor. Based on the information from GfK, half a million Switch units were sold during November and December. These increased sales were partially due to aMario Kart 8bundle available over the holiday shopping period. In addition, the release of theNintendo Switch OLED modelhelped drive sales at the end of the year.
While the Nintendo Switch outperformed the other consoles on the market during 2021, it was only the second-biggest sales year for the console on record. Remarkably, it had sold even more units during 2020. However, a significant reason for that success was due to COVID-19 and its numerous lockdowns that caused console sales to spike.
Beyond these sales figures for the Switch in the UK, the hybrid console enjoyed success in other parts of the world. According to hardware data from Famitsu, the systemsold over 5.3 million units in Japan, more than 5 times that of all other consoles combined. These latest financial figures are doubtlessly exciting for Switch fans as it means the company appears to have even more incentive to continue to support the popular console moving forward.
It will be interesting to see how Nintendo follows up on this recent success as 2022 gets underway. So far, the company looks poised to have a successful year on the software side as games such asKirby and the Forgotten Land,Splatoon 3, andBreath of the Wild 2are expected to release this year. Time will tell if these upcoming games can keep Switches flying off store shelves throughout the coming year.
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