Nintendo Hitting Its Switch Goals Will Put It Within Striking Distance of the PS2

Highlights

• Nintendo Switch sales projections suggest it could surpass the PlayStation 2 for the highest-selling console of all time.
• Recent numbers reveal 15.70 million units sold in the last fiscal year, bringing the Switch’s lifetime total to 141.32 million.
• Nintendo’s goal of selling 13.5 million more units this fiscal year could bring the Switch extremely close to the PS2’s all-time record.

Nintendo’s latest Switch sales projections could bring it extremely close to beating out the PlayStation 2 as the highest-selling console of all time. The Nintendo Switch has been shattering sales records left and right since it first launched back in 2017, surpassing the Nintendo DS as the best-selling system in Japan and outselling other landmark Nintendo platforms like the original Game Boy and the Nintendo Wii.

The latest Nintendo Switch sales numbers from the 2024 fiscal year were recently revealed during a financial earnings release, with 15.70 million sold over the past several months. While this is a slight drop from the Switch’s 2023 fiscal year numbers, it does elevate the console to 141.32 million units sold in total since March 2017, bringing the Switch to second place among the Big N’s legendary line-up of consoles and gaming handhelds.

Nintendo also revealed its sales goals for the next fiscal year during this latest report, and they could very well bring the Nintendo Switch closer than ever to becoming the highest-selling video game console of all time. As noted by Reddit user Paperdiego on r/NintendoSwitch, Nintendo wishes to sell 13.5 million Switch units over the coming year, bringing the console’s total to 154.82 million. This would be just 188,000 units shy of passing the record currently set by the PlayStation 2, which has sold 155 million units since 2000.

Nintendo Switch Could Almost Become the Highest-Selling Console

Other Reddit users have pointed out that the Nintendo Switch will continue to be sold even after the recently-confirmed Switch 2 hits the market, meaning that if the original Switch doesn’t clear the PS2’s record this year, it will in the future. The Nintendo Switch owes its massive financial success to a variety of different factors, including its novel blend of traditional and portable gaming and a laundry list of breakout first-party exclusives like The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Super Mario Odyssey. Last year’s The Super Mario Bros. Movie has also helped boost Switch sales in countries like Mexico and South America.

The Switch has been a major success story for the past seven years, and if Nintendo’s latest sales goals are met then it could come within reach of becoming the highest-selling console of all time in 2025. Even with Nintendo now looking toward the horizon with its long-rumored Switch successor, the current Nintendo hardware is continuing to make history in terms of financial success, and this will likely be the case for many years to come.