Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gaming
  3. News

Strong holiday season pushes Nintendo Switch to record-breaking sales for 2018

Steven Petite
By
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Backed by a strong holiday season, the Nintendo Switch overtook the PS4 as the best-selling console of 2018 in the United States, according to the NPD Group. The feat is even more impressive when you consider that the PS4 won the monthly sales battle through October.

While exact figures aren’t known yet, the Switch’s 2018 sales exceeded a current-generation record previously owned by the PS4 for the 2015 calendar year. The Switch’s 2018 year proved to be the most lucrative since the Nintendo Wii in 2009. There’s no doubt that the Switch’s strong numbers contributed to an overall growth for the console industry at large, which went up eight percent from last year to a staggering $5.1 billion, the highest since 2009. All three major consoles — Switch, Xbox One, and PS4 — posted higher individual sales than in 2017.

Recommended Videos

For the Switch, the release of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate in December and Pokémon: Let’s Go in November undoubtedly pushed it ahead of its competitors. Despite only being available for roughly three weeks in 2018, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate was the best-selling Switch game of the year. The Let’s Go titles (Pikachu and Eevee) came in at six and seven on the top ten list. If there was any lingering doubt that Super Smash Bros. Ultimate could be a system seller, it has been defiantly erased.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Image used with permission by copyright holder

Though not all that unsurprising, three of the top five best-selling Switch games of 2018 came out in 2017: Mario Kart 8, Super Mario Odyssey, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Super Mario Party slotted at five).

Related

It makes sense that “older” games still drive Switch sales when you look at the overall top 10 best-selling games of 2018:

  1. Red Dead Redemption 2
  2. Call of Duty: Black Ops 4
  3. NBA 2K19
  4. Madden NFL 19
  5. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
  6. Marvel’s Spider-Man
  7. Far Cry 5
  8. God of War
  9. Monster Hunter: World
  10. Assassin’s Creed Odyssey

All ten of those games launched in 2018 and only two of them — Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and NBA 2K19 — are available on Switch. The top 20, by contrast, has a total of six games exclusive to Switch. The PS4 only had two exclusives make the top 20, and the Xbox One had none. It’s clear that people are buying the Switch for the experiences they cannot find on PS4 and Xbox One. And lots of folks are buying what Nintendo is selling.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Steven Petite
Steven Petite
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Steven is a writer from Northeast Ohio currently based in Louisiana. He writes about video games and books, and consumes…
Mother 3 is finally on Nintendo Switch … but only in Japan
Clause standing b y a bench in Mother 3.

Mother 3, the highly requested cult-classic RPG for the Game Boy Advance, is set to appear today on the Nintendo Switch Online service. But there's a catch: It's only available in Japan.

North Americans were first introduced to the Mother series under the name Earthbound on the SNES in 1995. As was common at the time, the game was renamed for the West in an attempt to avoid confusion. In 2006, a third entry was released in Japan for the GBA simply called Mother 3, but it has never had an official translation for Western audiences. Both Mother 2, aka Earthbound, and the original Mother, renamed Earthbound Beginnings, have been added to Nintendo Switch Online, but there has never been any indication that the third game would receive the same treatment.

Read more
Can you play the Nintendo Switch Lite on a TV?
nintendo new switch lite model fcc joy con drift blue

The Nintendo Switch Lite is the smaller, more affordable sibling of the standard Nintendo Switch. This makes it a great option for frugal shoppers, as it's capable of playing all the same games yet carries a much friendlier price tag. However, the Switch Lite doesn't share all the same features as the standard Switch. A big difference is that it won't fit in a traditional Switch dock. That means you'll need to pick up a third-party model if you want somewhere to store and charge your handheld while it's not in use.

But can you play the Nintendo Switch Lite on a TV while it's docked? And is it possible to play Switch Lite on a TV using an HDMI cable or other workaround? Here's everything you need to know about the device.
Can you play the Nintendo Switch Lite on a TV?

Read more
An AI company may have just leaked the Nintendo Switch 2’s name and release month
An image of the Nintendo Switch - OLED Model Mario Red Edition.

As part of the ongoing wave of AI-related news at CES 2024, Altec Lansing revealed an artificial intelligence-powered successor to GameShark called AI Shark. More interestingly, the press release regarding this software claims that the Nintendo Switch 2 will launch in September 2024.

"Formerly known as GameShark, AI Shark is set to redefine the gaming landscape with its revolutionary AI-enhanced technology," Altec Lansing explains in a press release. "The innovative gaming software is set to mark a significant leap forward in the gaming experience, bringing enhanced gameplay for beginner-level users. The official launch is planned to coincide with the Nintendo Switch 2 in September 2024."

Read more