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On Tuesday, Nintendo (7974.T) announced an upward revision of its full-year Switch sales forecast to 15.5 million units, up from the previous estimate of 15 million units. The company attributed this adjustment to robust year-end sales, capitalizing on the demand for its aging console. With the hybrid home-portable Switch approaching its eighth year on the market, speculation is growing about Nintendo unveiling new hardware in the coming year.
Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa expressed the company's commitment to sustaining the momentum of the Switch business during an earnings briefing. Despite a decline of 8% in Switch unit sales during the first nine months of the financial year, the console's lifecycle has been extended by successful releases like "The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom" and "Super Mario Bros. Wonder."
The Switch, available in variations such as the handheld-only Switch Lite and a version with an OLED display, has surpassed the sales of the underperforming Wii U and is second only to the Nintendo DS handheld in total sales after surpassing the Wii.
Nintendo reported a record net profit of 408 billion yen for the April-December period. Looking ahead, industry experts, such as Serkan Toto, founder of game industry consultancy Kantan Games, anticipate the release of new Switch games, supported by the current model's substantial user base. Toto expects a successor device to launch later in the year with an estimated price tag of around $400.
Despite Nintendo shares closing down 0.5% before the earnings announcement, they have witnessed a 14% year-to-date gain.
Paraphrasing text from "Reuters" all rights reserved by the original author.
