Console Wars — Nintendos Switch becomes the third bestselling console ever The PlayStation 2 is still the bestselling console of all time.
Samuel Axon – Feb 8, 2023 1:32 pm UTC Enlarge / The Nintendo Switch (OLED model).Nintendo reader comments 13 with 0 posters participating Share this story Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Reddit
During its latestearnings report to investors, Nintendo revealed that its Switch game console sold 8.2 million units in the final three months of 2022, bringing the total number of Switch consoles sold to 122.55 million. That uptick slides the Switchwhich launched in March of 2017into the slot for the third-bestselling game console in history.
The two consoles ahead of it are the Nintendo DS handheld, in second place with 154 million total units sold, and Sony’s PlayStation 2 home console, in first place by a hair at a bit more than 155 million units. The recent series of sales allowed it to surpass both the Game Boy and the Game Boy Color, which together sold 118.69 million, and Sony’s PlayStation 4 (just over 117 million) for the top spot.
So the Switch is a distant third. Truth be told, it might not be around long enough to make it to the second- or first-place milestones.
Further ReadingSony: Would-be PlayStation 5 buyers should have a much easier time nowOther than the PlayStation 4, the Switch is the only console in the top five that is still being manufacturedthough PlayStation 4 production has slowed to a trickle, and it has reportedly only still been manufactured recently because Sony was having so much trouble meeting demand for the PlayStation 5. But since PlayStation 5 supply seems to finally now be meeting or exceeding demand in many regions, the PlayStation 4 surely has very little if any runway left at this stage.
The Switch, on the other hand, is still Nintendo’s latest, and no successor has even been announced, much less released, so it probably has many months left in it. It’s not clear if there will be enough for it to surpass the DS or the PlayStation 4, though. Sales of the Switch have slowed notably of late, and should that trend continue, it could nudge Nintendo to move forward with a successor. Advertisement
At six years oldand with a drastic technology deficit compared to the Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5 to bootwe wouldn’t be surprised to learn before too terribly long that the Switch is approaching the twilight of its cycle as well. It could happen tomorrow, or it could happen in two more yearsbut it’s definitely going to happen sooner than later.
Nintendo has scheduled a new Nintendo Direct livestream for today at 5 pm ET. The company says the stream will be about 40 minutes long, but new hardware isn’t likely, as Nintendo tweeted that the stream will be “mostly focused on #NintendoSwitch games launching in the first half of 2023.” reader comments 13 with 0 posters participating Share this story Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Reddit Samuel Axon Based in Chicago, Samuel is the Senior Reviews Editor at Ars Technica, where he leads the site’s gadget and reviews section. He covers Apple and display tech, as well as hardware and software for developers and creative professionals. He has been writing about technology for 15 years, and is an AR and game developer for iOS and other platforms. Email samuel.axon@arstechnica.com Advertisement Channel Ars Technica ← Previous story Next story → Related Stories Today on Ars