Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa has explained why the company expects lower Switch 2 sales than analysts predicted. The main reason? The console’s higher price point.
Nintendo forecasts selling 15 million Switch 2 units during its launch window. This matches what the original Switch achieved in its first 10 months after release in 2017.
The Switch 2’s $449.99/£395.99 price tag presents “challenges to early adoption,” according to Furukawa. Nintendo hopes to overcome this hurdle by bundling software with the hardware and offering backward compatibility with original Switch games.
Production capacity isn’t limiting Nintendo’s sales expectations. The company has been ramping up manufacturing since before the recent hands-on events began. They’re prepared to produce more than the projected 15 million units if demand warrants.
US tariffs also didn’t factor into the sales forecast. Nintendo’s financial projections already account for existing tariffs of 10% on products from Japan, Vietnam, and Cambodia, and 145% on products from China.
For software sales, Nintendo expects to sell 45 million Switch 2 game units. This figure excludes copies of Mario Kart World included in console bundles. If achieved, this would surpass the original Switch’s software performance in its launch period.
Nintendo credits this optimistic software projection to “a more robust line-up” from publishers and the availability of Switch 2 Edition titles. The backward compatibility feature also gives new owners immediate access to the existing Switch library.
Maintaining momentum beyond the initial launch period remains a challenge, Furukawa acknowledged. The company plans to focus on growing the hardware install base to ensure long-term success.
The Nintendo Switch 2 will launch globally on June 5, 2025. Pre-orders are currently available in both the US and UK.
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