Nintendo has raised its profit forecast for the current financial year, with the Switch still going strong off the back of the launch of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
Nintendo announced its financial results for the six months ending September 30, 2023, and reported an impressive 21.2% year-on-year increase in sales to ¥796.2 billion (approx $5.3 billion), and an equally impressive 27% year-on-year increase in profit to ¥279.9 billion (approx $1.9 billion). The publisher said sales in the first half of the financial year were the largest since the launch of Nintendo Switch in March 2017.
Nintendo now expects to make a profit of ¥420 billion (approx $2.8 billion), up from ¥340 billion (approx $2.3 billion) for the financial year ending March 30, 2024.
With all eyes on Nintendo for the announcement of its next-generation console, sales of the Switch were up even as it neared seven years old. Nintendo sold 6.84 million Switch units during the six-month period, an increase of 2.4% year-on-year. The more expensive OLED model is the most popular option with 4.69 million units sold, followed by the standard Switch with 1.25 million units sold, then the Switch Lite at 900,000 units sold. This puts Nintendo Switch sales at 132.46 million overall.
Digging into the details, Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom has sold incredibly well at 19.5 million copies. The blockbuster success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which is the highest-grossing film based on a video game, boosted sales of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe to the tune of 3.22 million. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, by the way, has now sold an eye-watering 57 million copies and is comfortably the best-selling Switch game. Pikmin 4, meanwhile, sold 2.61 million.
So, what’s coming up from Nintendo? Super Mario RPG launches later this month, then there’s Mario vs. Donkey Kong in February, Princess Peach: Showtime! in March, Luigi’s Mansion 2 HD at some point summer 2024, and Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door down for some point next year. Metroid Prime 4 is still listed with a release window TBA.
Despite Nintendo's robust success during the six-month period, the Switch is clearly in overall decline. It sold close to 18 million units in the last financial year, down from 23 million sold the year before and 28 million the year before that. Nintendo's Switch sales forecast for the financial year remains at 15 million.
Nintendo is expected to launch its next generation console at some point in 2024, with development kits are reportedly now with partner studios. Apparently this Switch 2 can be used in portable mode, like the original Switch, and has an LCD screen as opposed to an OLED screen in order to keep costs down. It also comes with a cartridge slot for physical games. However, the crucial question of backwards compatibility with Nintendo Switch games remains unclear.
In May, Nintendo said it's the long-rumoured Switch successor wouldn't release until April 2024 at the earliest, and in September said it had moved on to a brand new The Legend of Zelda game, ruling out Tears of the Kingdom DLC. It seems likely this new Zelda game will launch on Nintendo's next console.
For more, check out everything we know about the Nintendo Switch 2.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
