Analysts have told CNBC that Nintendo is probably going to launch a new Switch console this year. The Switch, when it was released in 2017, was a groundbreaking hybrid device that allowed players to take gaming on the go in addition to playing on their TVs. Though the Switch has continued to sell well, Nintendo will likely need to introduce a successor, referred to as the "Switch 2," to maintain its popularity - especially as people continue to show enthusiasm for its iconic characters such as Mario and Zelda.
Analyst predictions suggest that Nintendo is poised to launch a new Switch console this year, as the Japanese gaming giant seeks to benefit from the enthusiasm for its iconic characters such as Mario & Zelda. The original Nintendo Switch debuted in March 2017, allowing players to switch from playing games on their TV screens to gaming on the move by attaching the controller to a tablet. This combination of console gaming with mobile convenience was a hit with gamers, and the Switch has since become the second-most successful console in the company's history, selling 132.46 million units.
Since the launch of the Switch, Nintendo's shares have skyrocketed by more than 200%. The console has enabled the company to remain buoyant with a steady and impressive array of first-party titles and iconic characters. Mario, Zelda and Pokemon games are among some of the Switch's most successful titles; however, indications of slowing sales mean Nintendo needs something new. In its September quarter results, Nintendo reported a 4% and 19% decline in revenue and profits respectively. Serkan Toto, CEO of Kantan Games, a Japanese based consultancy, has said to CNBC that the new device could be unveiled by the second half of 2024. The existing Switch has been on the market for almost 7 years and its sales are already beginning to wane, meaning it's high time for Nintendo to launch a fresh system this year. Piers Harding-Rolls, an analysis director at Ampere Analysis, forecasts the new console to be released during the fourth quarter of this year. According to Atul Goyal, managing director at Jefferies, the timeframe of the launch will be contingent on recent sales trends. If the Switch remains popular during the holiday period, then the new system could take off as early as the Fall; however, if Switch sales plunge in the December quarter then the new device would hit the shelves during Spring or Summer. Nintendo has yet to disclose its December quarter figures, and introducing a new console this year would give Nintendo the opportunity to capitalize on the influence of its celebrated movie releases. The Super Mario Bros. film has accumulated over $1 billion in the box office since it came out in April, and helped Nintendo bring in more revenue last June. Furthermore, in November, Nintendo declared their intentions to create a live-action adaptation of The Legend of Zelda, its most widely acclaimed character.
At this time, the company has remained largely silent on what's in store down the line. Analysts believe the successor to the Switch could take the 'hybrid' approach established by its predecessor; Harding-Rolls noted that we may see advanced capabilities for the console controllers as well. Toto from Kantan Games is anticipating an entirely new machine instead of just an update. He anticipates that Nintendo will have to make drastic changes due to seven years of technological advances. Backing this viewpoint, Moffett Nathanson analysts wrote in December that Nintendo will likely take an evolutionary, rather than revolutionary, approach, borrowing the "iPhone model" and giving Switch users a seamless transition to a more powerful machine.
Harding-Rolls commented that the performance of the new console could be impacted by its availability, but he saw it having the potential of matching the original Switch's first fourth-quarter sales, which would be in the vicinity of seven to eight million units. Moffett Nathanson analysts, however, asserted that the Switch 2 wouldn't reach or exceed the level of the current Nintendo console, given that the current one had had the advantage of people buying gaming systems while they were quarantined due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Nevertheless, the analysts argued that this new console "can match or even exceed the early performance of the Switch," but that it would likely falter in years four and beyond, as the "Covid-inflated comparisons of Nintendo's fiscal year in 2021 and 2022" are too hard to beat.
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