Nintendo Switch sales drop, company witnesses decline in revenue and operating profit

On Thursday, August 5, 2021, the Japanese portable console maker Nintendo announced a 22% fall in sales of Switch. For the period of April-June 2021, Nintendo's profit and revenue both are both decreased as compared to a year ago. While last year the company experienced a rise in demand as the COVID-19 pandemic was wreaking havoc, the lack of big titles this year can be considered as one of the factors for the declined sales. Keep reading to know more about the fall in demand for Nintendo Switch Console. 

Operating profit and revenue declines for Nintendo

Nintendo witnesses a 17.3% decline in operating profit 

Nintendo's overall revenue for last year fell 9.9% to about $2.94 billion while operating profit also witnessed a 17.3% decline year over year, standing at $1.09 billion. When comparing the sales of Nintendo Switch Console from last year, hardware sales decreased by 21.7% and stood at 4.45 million units, and software sales marked a 10.2% decline, standing at 45.29 million units being sold. However, Nintendo has sold over 89 million Switch consoles since its launch, which is a huge number. 

The absence of blockbuster titles have had an impact on both hardware and software sales

This year around, there were no successful Switch titles to power the sales. For reference, more than 10 million copies of Animal Crossing were sold last year, which increased the demand to twice that of the previous quarter. Recent titles such as Pokemon Snap sold around two million copies in the international market, accompanies by Mario Golf: Super Rush which sold over one million units. Animal Crossing still added an extra million copies to Nintendo's total sales for this year, by selling over 34 million copies internationally. 

Nintendo is counting on the Switch OLED 

Considering the release of Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD last month, Nintendo might expect a rise in software sales. Additionally, the Nintendo Switch OLED console will be out in October 2021 and is highly expected to add to Nintendo's hardware sales. Nintendo also has a few new titles in the bank for releasing around the Holiday season, to provide a push to its overseas sales and bring the revenue and profit figures back on track. The titles include Metroid Dread, Mario Party Superstars, WarioWare, and other remakes of Pokemon Diamond and Pearl. Stay tuned for other updates related to Nintendo and tech news.