Will the Switch Become Nintendo's Greatest Hit?

According to Nintendo's latest earnings report, the Japanese gaming company sold 6.8 million Nintendo Switch units in the last quarter, marking a slight acceleration over the same period of last year. Since its release in 2017, Nintendo has now sold 132.5 million units of the popular hybrid console, making it the company's second best-selling device, trailing only the Nintendo DS, which sold 154 million units over its lifetime. At the current pace, it would take the Switch just four more quarters to overtake the DS and become Nintendo's greatest hit - a milestone that looks realistic at this stage, even if sales were to slow down further, as can be expected at this stage in a console's lifecycle.

As our chart illustrates, Nintendo’s history is one of hits and misses. While the Game Boy and the company's first two video game consoles for the living room were blockbuster successes at the time, the Nintendo 64 and GameCube didn’t sell as well and the experimental and often forgotten Virtual Boy (thanks to one of our readers for bringing it to our attention) failed miserably. The Nintendo DS and Wii, released in 2004 and 2006, respectively, marked Nintendo’s return to form, before the 2012 Wii U flopped completely and was quickly replaced by the popular Nintendo Switch.