The Nintendo Switch has been out for almost four years, but it is still in high demand and right now is showing no signs of slowing down. It is unlikely to surpass the Nintendo DS as Nintendo’s best-selling hardware, but it clearly surpasses the Nintendo Wii and perhaps even the Game Boy, Nintendo’s third and second best-selling console, respectively. The aforementioned DS has approximately 154 million units sold. Again, this will be hard to beat. Still, Wii and Game Boy are 101 million and 118 million very acceptable.
As of November 2020, Nintendo has sold 68 million units of Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch Lite. To get to the hardware pieces mentioned, you will not only need a few more years on the market, but a few more years as Nintendo’s main console. That said, it looks like it will spend at least another 3-5 years as Nintendo’s main console, which means it should be, as long as current trends continue, that Nintendo’s second-best-selling console is coming to the end of its life.
Speaking to Polygon, Nintendo of America President Doug Bowser confirmed that the Nintendo Switch is at the “midpoint” of its life cycle. In March, the Nintendo Switch will be four years old, which means it’s safe to assume it will be Nintendo’s marquee console for about four years or so. Of course, a more powerful revision may be introduced at some point, but right now Nintendo denies that a “Nintendo Switch Pro” is in operation.
If the Nintendo Switch has a life cycle of about eight years, that would mean that Nintendo’s next console should be out around 2025. For now, that’s just an assumption, but that’s what Bowser suggests if he says the Switch is is halfway.
For now, all of this is a bit speculative, but at least it provides us with a rough roadmap for the future and more or less confirms that we won’t see a substantial new piece of hardware from the company for at least several years.
If Nintendo provides more information or clarification on Bowser’s comment, we’ll be sure to update the story. In the meantime, click here for more coverage of all things Nintendo, including the latest news, rumors, leaks, deals, guides, reviews, and more.