• Nintendo has increased its forecast profits for the upcoming quarter to $3.32 billion.
• The gaming giant continues to move Switch consoles thanks to wildly popular exclusive titles like The Legend of Zelda.
• Rumours abound of a “Switch 2” which could see the light of day around March next year.

Despite being in the seventh year of its life cycle, the Nintendo Switch is still performing as a sales driver for its Japanese creator and gaming giant. Nintendo today announced that it was raising its forecasted operating profits for the upcoming quarter to $3.32 billion as gamers keep picking up the console thanks in part to new exclusive games.

The Nintendo Switch sold 6.84 million units in the first half of the year, according to the company, a slight increase in units sold compared to the same period last year. Boosting sales for those six months were The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom which launched worldwide in May.

Tears of the Kingdom, a rare direct storyline sequel, is the latest entry in the storied Zelda series. The game was praised for its sandbox nature, enjoyable gameplay and near-limitless scope. It has so far sold 19.5 million units as of September 2023.

A report from Reuters details that Nintendo expects to close out the year by selling 15 million Switch consoles, which overall is a decline of about 16.5 percent compared to last year. Now nearing its end of life and with downward trending sales, fans have been speculating that Nintendo is nearing the launch of the “Switch 2” – its next-generation console which will compete with the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.

No official word has been given about any new consoles from Nintendo, but rumours have been circulating for some time. Disparate reports indicate that the company is indeed working on a new device and has been in communication with partners about it and releasing developer kits. Polygon reports that the general decline in sales of the Switch has had some consider that the new console would be released sometime in the second half of 2024.

Nintendo is still planning games for the console up until the winter of 2024 – the ultimate game slated is Luigi’s Mansion 2 HD expected in the first half of next year. Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa also told the media that the company would focus on the Switch at least until March 2024.

Coincidentally, the original Switch launched in March 2017, so it is possible the company may target the same time for the launch of the new console.

[Image – Photo by Erik Mclean on Unsplash]