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<html><body><div><p><em>Lu-Hai Liang is a U.K.-based writer.</em></p><p>The Nintendo Switch 2 is the fastest-selling console ever, seizing the honor from Sony's PlayStation 5. Nintendo's latest quarterly financial report showed that 10.36 million units had been sold in the four months from its launch in June to Sept. 30.</p><p>This is twice as fast as the original Switch, while Sony's fastest-selling console, the PS5, took eight months to reach 10 million units in sales. Nintendo has raised its sales forecast for the Switch 2 for the financial year ending March 2026, from 15 million to 19 million units. Meanwhile, the original Switch continues to sell, and is just 10,000 units shy of the Nintendo DS, which is the Kyoto company's most successful console of all time with total sales of 154.02 million units.</p><p>I previously wrote that Nintendo would find it challenging to repeat the success of the Switch but that it would be foolish to discount the venerable games maker, which has a track record of confounding critics. On the basis of such a strong start, it appears that prediction has borne out. However, the real test will be in maintaining the momentum.</p><p>Launching at $450, the Switch 2 is Nintendo's most expensive console ever, and the sticker price worried industry observers, especially as households face inflated living costs. Exclusive games such as Donkey Kong Bonanza are also pricey, selling for $69. Yet the excellent sales numbers, including for games like launch title Mario Kart World, which is often bought as a bundle with the console, shows the price hasn't been a deterrent.</p><p>It is also not yet the holiday season, with Christmas being a high point for the games industry, and the latest figures don't measure the effect of Pokemon Legends: Z-A, which launched on Oct. 16. Nintendo is in a strong position going into the end of 2025 and with the recent announcement by Take-Two Interactive that GTA VI would be delayed to Nov. 19, 2026, it has the chance to "win" most of next year too. Nintendo may have been a little conservative with its sales forecasting.</p><p>The industry is changing. This will be the first console generation where prices have gone up even as the Xbox Series X and PS5 have aged. Previously, console prices went down as their manufacturers enjoyed shrinking costs for silicon and components thanks to the rapid development of computer chips. That is no longer the case. Sony Interactive Entertainment's VP of global marketing, Isabelle Tomatis, cited a "challenging economic environment" when Sony announced a $50 increase to all versions of the PS5 for the U.S. market in August.</p>        
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                        Pokemon Legends Z-A launched on Oct. 16. Nintendo is in a strong position going into the end of 2025.



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<p>The PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series are getting closer to the end of their lives, and talk of the inevitable "PS6" and next-gen Xbox have begun. The arrival of GTA VI was expected to stabilize diminishing sales of Microsoft and Sony's consoles (the Switch 2 likely won't see a version of the highly anticipated game due to its technical limitations) but it has been delayed into the end of 2026. Meanwhile, Nintendo is just getting started.</p><p>The Switch 2 maker is ramping up what it calls its "internal game development organization" along with initiatives to acquire game development studios to make them subsidiaries. This could mean Nintendo sees off the trouble that has stymied its rival console makers as PlayStation and Xbox have suffered irregular releases of the blockbuster "triple-A" games that maintain sales momentum. Adding more developers to its stable secures more IP and variety in this era of industry consolidation.</p><p>Unlike the first Switch, which was underpowered even when it launched, the Switch 2 offers a more capable platform, giving third-party developers more options. Yet the console is not the resource-intensive machine its rivals are, with some game makers suffering ballooning costs and lengthy development times this generation.</p><p>If Nintendo releases more box-office busting films like 2023's The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which raked in $1.36 billion globally, then that will only help the bottom line. Movies or TV shows adapted from video games tend to boost sales of their respective games. Nintendo is releasing a follow-up to the Super Mario Bros. Movie and working on a motion picture based on its beloved Legend of Zelda game series. The video games company is very much interested in movies going forward.</p><p>The Switch 2 has something of the zeitgeist about it. As consoles become more expensive, its $450 price now looks more compelling. Portability, convenience and accessibility could be taking precedence over the console arms race of ever more powerful hardware. Valve's popular Steam Deck, a portable console with a similar price, underlines the trend.</p><p>Maintaining a regular schedule of appealing games is never easy but Nintendo seems intent on keeping pace. It is not a given that the Switch 2 will repeat the astonishing success of its predecessor, even though it has notched up such an impressive start. But Nintendo has carved out a distinctive space in the console sector, with icons like Mario and Pikachu, and it can seem like the company has only itself to compete with in its niche. Children and adults alike -- Nintendo is ready to "catch 'em all."</p>
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From Switch 2 to Pokemon, Nintendo is ready to 'catch 'em all'

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