As one analyst predicts that the Nintendo Switch 2 will see a price increase this year, another analyst suggests that the Mario maker’s Switch successor may not maintain the same sales figures as its predecessor.
IGN reported an in-depth story about the Switch 2’s holiday season, speaking to several analysts around the world to understand whether it really had a bad holiday. The short answer? Not really, as declining sales are expected for a console with a somewhat established base. The long answer? Kind of, particularly because the Switch 2 didn’t have a big blockbuster exclusive to bolster sales going into the holiday season. Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is good–as evidenced by GameSpot’s 8/10 review–but it’s not a Mario or a Zelda, so the name cache wasn’t there to elicit fervent purchasing during Thanksgiving and Christmas. Ampere Analysis’ games industry analyst and researcher, Piers Harding-Rolls, told IGN that it’s for this reason–alongside the predictable success of the Switch due to environmental conditions–that the Switch 2 wouldn’t sell as well as the Switch did.
“When the original Switch launched, it followed a failing Wii U generation–there was a lot of interest, but hype and momentum built up in the run-up to the holiday sales at the end of 2017,” Harding-Rolls said. “This time around at the Switch 2 launch, demand was predictably high because of the success of the Switch. Following a record launch, it’s not surprising that Switch 2 sales have not been able to maintain the same massive sales lead [as] the original Switch. For the record, Switch 2 shipments in 2025 should outperform the original Switch in 2017 and over a shorter period of time. Then there is the whole macroeconomic situation, less disposable income, and higher-priced hardware. This may be softening demand to an extent, especially as lots of new games are still available on the original Switch.”
