Nintendo Switch Console Defies Estimates

Research firm SuperData has reported that its analysis shows that Nintendo sold 2.4 million Switch consoles during its first month of release.

The home console/portable hybrid launched worldwide on March 3.

SuperData now projects that the Switch will sell 7.2 million consoles in 2017. That is up from its original forecast of 5 million units, showing that this is a better start than the research group was expecting, Business Insiders reports.

Industry-tracking firm The NPD Group noted yesterday that the Switch sold 906,000 consoles in March in the US, beating the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Nintendo also managed to sell 925,000 copies of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, meaning that the praised open-world game actually had an attach rate higher than 100%.

This is a strong start for the Switch, which is good news for Nintendo following the disappointing Wii U. That dead console has lifetime sales of 13.56 million since launching in 2012. If the Switch can manage 7.2 million in 2017, it’ll be halfway to matching its predecessor in just one year.

But Nintendo will need strong software to keep console sales going. It’s clear that the success of Breath of the Wild gave the Switch’s launch a boost. For the rest of the year, Nintendo is hoping that Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Arms, Splatoon 2, and Super Mario Odyssey can also move systems.

The system is not yet available in Iran, with no local company currently supplying it. Ninentdo has never had an official representative in the Islamic Republic, with the few consoles sold in the country being imported through unofficial channels.