Nintendo Profits Skyrocket 121 Percent On Blockbuster Switch Sales

Nintendo said that sales of its hybrid Switch console are off to a "phenomenal start" and that it plans to keep the momentum going. Assuming it can, Nintendo forecasts a massive 121 percent jump in profit for its current fiscal year, taking aim at 65 billion yen (around $584 million in U.S. currency), up from 29 billion yen (around $264 million) for the fiscal year that ended March 31, 2017.

It was a strong end to the fiscal year thanks in part to the Switch, Nintendo's newest game console. Nintendo gambled on a hybrid design that allows the Switch to play games on the big screen TV at 1080p when docked, and also on the go with a built-in 6.2-inch 720p multi-touch display. While there was some skepticism among analysts about the dual-purpose design and potentially under powered guts (it's powered by an NVIDIA Tegra X1 SoC), consumers have come out in droves. The new official sales figure is 2.74 million units sold as of the end of March, along with 5.46 million software units.

The Switch is Nintendo's fastest selling console of all time. It also represents Nintendo's comeback effort after the Wii U failed to generate the same kind of interest as the original Wii. Lifetime sales of the Wii U are a paltry 13.56 million units, versus 101.63 million Wii sales date.

"Nintendo Switch, a new home console system that diversifies the ways you can play games, launched during this period on March 3 worldwide and is off to a promising start. In particular, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild has won immense popularity with recorded sales of 2.76 million units (the total units sold including the Wii U version is 3.84 million units) and 1-2-Switch has been generating buzz. Both of these games were released at the same time as the hardware," Nintendo said.

As was speculated, Nintendo's newest Zelda game has a better than 100 percent attach rate to the Switch, with the company having sold slightly more Breath of the Wild copies for the Switch than actual Switch consoles. It has been a driving force for the Switch. Looking ahead, Nintendo expects to maintain a high level of excitement for the Switch by releasing more first-part games and "by providing a continuous stream of appealing third-party titles across varying genres."