Nintendo says it will continue to support Switch after Switch 2’s launch, as long as there’s demand

Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa has said the company will continue to support the original Nintendo Switch after the launch of Nintendo Switch 2, as long as there is demand from consumers.

Nintendo reported its latest earnings results on Tuesday, confirming that sales of the original Switch declined by 30% year-on-year in the nine months up to December 31. A few weeks after this sales period, the company finally announced Nintendo Switch 2, with a full reveal set for April.

However, company president Furukawa said in an earnings call, reported by Sankei, that he did not believe Switch 2’s announcement would have a significant impact on the current sales of the original console. He also said the company would continue to support Switch beyond Switch 2, as long as there is demand.

The Switch is now approaching eight years old, and although hardware sales are declining, it is still enjoying unprecedented demand for a console at this point of its lifecycle.

Nintendo confirmed on Tuesday that Switch sold 4.82m units over the holiday season, for a total of 9.54m since April 1, 2024, and 150.86m life-to-date. The Switch has to clear 154 million (Nintendo DS) and at least 160 million (PS2) to become the best-selling console in history.

Nintendo Switch 2 will be backwards compatible with original Nintendo Switch software, Nintendo has confirmed, which analysts have speculated could boost the new console’s launch sales.

Dr Serkan Toto, CEO of Tokyo-based game industry consultancy Kantan Games, told VGC Nintendo Switch 2 “cannot come soon enough” and questioned what games the company would use to fill the gap until launch.

Currently, Nintendo’s confirmed Switch release schedule includes only the upcoming Xenoblade remaster, with Metroid Prime 4: Beyond and Pokémon Legenda Z-A presently pegged for a broad ‘2025’ release window.

“It is now much clearer how Nintendo overestimated the life that is still left in the Switch at the start of the fiscal year,” Toto said. “Nintendo now revised the hardware sales forecast two times, and I expect them to miss even this lowered forecast.

“I’m not sure why they thought they would sell 14 million units this fiscal year with a very dry software slate. Switch 2 cannot come soon enough. I hope for them it is not scheduled for Fall, like not too few people believe.”