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[Luminoth-4545]

Nintendo's earnings report for the 4th quarter of the fiscal year ending March 31st 2023 has been published, this covers the three month period from January 1st to March 31st 2023. The Nintendo Switch shipped 3.07 million units of hardware and 41.85 million units of software bringing lifetime totals to 125.62 million for hardware and 1036.15 million for software. For the full fiscal year Nintendo Shipped 17.97 million units of hardware and 213.97 million units of software.

Year over year quarter 4 hardware sales are 25% (1.04 million) down from 4.11 million and software sales are 25% (13.92 million) down from 55.77 million.
Year over year fiscal year hardware sales are 22% (5.09 million) down from 23.06 million and software sales are 9% down (21.09 million) from 235.06 million.

Four titles sold over 1 million units this quarter - New releases Fire Emblem: Engage (1.61 million), Kirby's Return to Dreamland deluxe (1.46 million), Metroid Prime Remastered (1.09 million) plus evergreen juggernaut Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (1.79 million).

Nintendo are forecasting 15 million units of hardware and 180 million units of software shipped for the fiscal year ending March 31st 2024.

Hardware

Switch Hardware Q4: 3.07m
Regional Split Q4: Japan 550k , America's 1.34m, Europe 870k, Other 300k
Model Variants Q4: Standard 910k, Lite 620k, Oled 1.54m

Switch Hardware FY 2022-23: 17.97m
Regional Split FY 2022-23: Japan 4.37m, America's 6.97m, Europe 4.98m, Other 1.65m
Model Variants FY 2022-23: Standard 6.13m, Lite 2.62m, Oled 9.22m

Switch Hardware Total: 125.62m
Regional Split Total: Japan 29.59m, America's 49.00m, Europe 32.58m, Other 14.44m
Model Variants Total: Standard 89.58m, Lite 21.02m, Oled 15.02m

Global Shipment History

Software

Switch Software Q4: 41.85m
Regional Split Q4: Japan 7.53m, America's 18.90m, Europe 11.44m, Other 3.98m
Tie Ratio Q4: 13.63

Switch Software FY 2022-23: 213.97m
Regional Split FY 2022-23: Japan 45.79m, America's 87.00m, Europe 62.98m, Other 18.20m
Tie Ratio FY 2022-23: 11.91

Switch Software Total: 1036.15m
Regional Split Total: Japan 200.15m, America's 456.27m, Europe 300.91m, Other 78.82m
Tie Ratio Total: 8.25

Global Shipment History

Nintendo reports sales data for software charting in the top 10 or that has sold one million or more units within the current fiscal year (from 1 April 2022).

Software Top 10

Total sales followed by sales added to the total in Q4

• Mario Kart 8 Deluxe: 53.79m + 1.79m
• Animal Crossing New Horizons: 42.21m + 620k
• Super Smash Bros Ultimate: 31.09m + 650k
• Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild: 29.81m + 810k
• Pokémon Sword/Shield: 25.82m + 140k
• Super Mario Odyssey: 25.76m + 640k
• Pokémon Scarlet/Violet: 22.10m + 1.49m
• Super Mario Party: 19.14m + 350k
• New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe: 15.41m + 660k
• Ring Fit Adventure: 15.38m + 160k

New Releases

• Fire Emblem Engage: 1.61m New
• Kirby's Return to Dream Land DX: 1.46m New
• Metroid Prime Remastered: 1.09m New

Others

• Pokémon Legends Arceus: 14.83m + 200k
• Luigi's Mansion 3: 12.82m + 380k
• Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury: 11.38m + 560k
• Splatoon 3: 10.67m + 540k
• Mario Party Superstars: 10.17m + 790k
• Nintendo Switch Sports: 9.60m + 990k
• Kirby and the Forgotten Land: 6.46m + 340k
• Mario Strikers Battle League: 2.54m + 70k
• Xenoblade Chronicles 3: 1.86m + 50k
• Bayonetta 3: 1.07m + 30k

Million Sellers not updated this Quarter (1st party published)

Pokémon Let's Go: 15.07m
Pokémon BD/SP: 14.92m
Splatoon 2: 13.30m
Super Mario 3D All-Stars: 9.07m
Super Mario Maker 2: 7.89m
Legend of Zelda LA: 6.08m
Mario Tennis Aces: 4.28m
Clubhouse Games: 4.22m
DKC Tropical Freeze: 4.12m
Hyrule Warriors AOC: 4.00m
Kirby Star Allies: 3.98m
Legend of Zelda SS: 3.91m
Fire Emblem TH: 3.82m
1-2 Switch: 3.63m
Paper Mario Origami King: 3.34m
Yoshi's Crafted World: 3.01m
Metroid Dread: 2.90m
New Pokémon Snap!: 2.74m
Arms: 2.66m
Xenoblade Chronicles 2: 2.44m
Mario Golf Super Rush: 2.35m
Pikmin 3 Deluxe: 2.23m
Captain Toad TT: 2.13m
Octopath Traveller: 2.08m
Marrio + Rabbids Kingdom Battle: 2.00m
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: 1.89m
Miitopia: 1.68m
Xenoblade Chronicles DE: 1.68m
Big Brain Academy Brain vs Brain: 1.59m
Mario Kart Live Home Circuit: 1.58m
Pokkén Tournament DX: 1.54m
Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: 1.50m
Nintendo Labo Toy-Con 01 Variety Kit: 1.42m
Astral Chain: 1.28m
Wario Ware Get it Together!: 1.27m
Dr Kawashima's Brain training: 1.20m
Game Builder Garage: 1.06m
Bayonetta 2: 1.04m
Fire Emblem Warriors Three Hopes: 1.00m

Nintendo's earnings report information
https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2023/230509e.pdf
https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2023/230509_3e.pdf

Nintendo Switch sold-in numbers compared to other high selling platforms with substantial quarterly hardware data up to FY9

 

[SlimeGooGoo]

.

 

[SeraphJan]

For some one who aren't interested in racing game, Mario Kart was probably the only racing game I care to play. I guess the sales number reflects that niche too

 

[Lupin3]

Gonna be interesting to see if TotK will beat BotW in the end, or if it's gonna be the other way around.

 

[Portugeezer]

Kinda funny that this sold more than a lot of AAA titles out there

Came out just before the pandemic and lockdowns, I wonder how much that had to do with it.

 

[reksveks]

Next year's forecasts either doesn't account for a new Switch or implies there isn't a new switch in the next 12 months.

 

[Oberstein]

Kinda funny that this sold more than a lot of AAA titles out there

Ring Fit is probably the best new IP from Nintendo.

I hope to see a sequel for the Switch 2... and given the success, it wouldn't surprise me.

 

[Luminoth-4545]

Mario games sold extremely well this quarter, so much so that NSMBU made a return to the top 10.

 

[Ashler]

Dread forever stuck at under 3M

 

[Robb]

125.62 million for hardware and 1.036 billion for software

 

[L*][*N*K]

Metroid Prime Remastered: 1.09 million New

Metroid Dread: 2.90m

Metroid games are really not that popular, I understand why Dread is not selling well (Side Scroll, very hard) but Prime Remastered should have sold a lot better especially at a lower price, very high ratings and Switch has a massive player base, this worries me for MP4 because that game is sure going to be costly and Nintendo would expect it to do more than 2-3 million, maybe if they launch it like BoTW?

 

[Robb]

this worries me for MP4 because that game is sure going to be costly and Nintendo would expect it to do more than 2-3 million

Kind of doubt that, and if they have that expectation there has to be some major new gimmick included that they expect will broaden its appeal.

They’ve released Metroid on so many extremely successful systems at this point and in most cases it barely breaks 1M.

 

[DenchDeckard]

Is it actually possible for it to beat PS2? It would need another 30 million or more wouldn't it?

I really hope it does. Best console in years.

 

[UnNamed]

18 millions for this fiscal year is a huge number.

They can't just start over with a new console with these numbers, it would be stupid. Unless they plan to keep the original Switch on the market in some form while they release the next console.

 

[Robb]

Is it actually possible for it to beat PS2?

Definitely possible but it’ll probably depends a lot on what happens in the next 12 months.

Looking at this they’ll be at 140M next March, so if they keep selling Switch alongside the next gen system, finally give it a price drop and make cross gen games I think it’ll keep going for a few more years.

But who knows, maybe they’ll do a Sony and just stop Switch production when the next gen system is out to get more supply.

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

lol

Edit: Also, thanks a bunch for the very thorough OP!!

 

[Luminoth-4545]

Switch did indeed have the highest FY6 of any console ever, beating the DS' 17.53 million by 440 thousand. Nintendo's forecast of 15 million for FY7 would beat the 14.71 million record by PS2. But remember they did overshoot their previous forecast last year so it may not happen.

Switch far and away had Nintendo's best FY6 for software and their forecast of 180 million for FY7 would be around three times higher than Nintendo's current best FY7 of 60.82 million by DS.

 

[hemo memo]

The Switch has it all. It is an indies heaven. AAA 3rd party games. Amazing first party games. You can get both portable designed games and your home console experience.

 

[kyussman]

I've zero interest in Nintendo gaming but holy shit at some of those numbers,lol......they have a great little business here,these guys are going places!

 

[Dodo123]

Metroid games are really not that popular, I understand why Dread is not selling well (Side Scroll, very hard) but Prime Remastered should have sold a lot better especially at a lower price, very high ratings and Switch has a massive player base, this worries me for MP4 because that game is sure going to be costly and Nintendo would expect it to do more than 2-3 million, maybe if they launch it like BoTW?

Prime Remastered was shadow-dropped in February. We see sales till end of March. 1 million in 1.5 month is not a bad performance IMO, especially for a port.

 

[Luminoth-4545]

 

[Celine]

 

[Luminoth-4545]

Next year's forecasts either doesn't account for a new Switch or implies there isn't a new switch in the next 12 months.

Also that huge 180 million software forecast implies they have a decent amount of 1st party titles scheduled to release.

 

[DenchDeckard]

Is the switch the best console ever made? Not far from it. Some could argue.

 

[Go_Ly_Dow]

Xenoblade Chronicles DE: 1.68m
Xenoblade Chronicles 2: 2.44m
Xenoblade Chronicles 3: 1.86m + 50k

Hopefully the Xeno series sales and the DLC sales make Monolith a profitable studio. The studio has much technical and artistic talent and I hope Nintendo keeps increasing their budgets! Can't wait to see what they produce for the Switch 2.

 

[NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt]

Is the switch the best console ever made? Not far from it. Some could argue.

PS2 is still my GOAT but Switch is a close second

 

[Robins]

Kinda funny that this sold more than a lot of AAA titles out there

It's great that's why lol. At least for light indoor exercise.

 

[onQ123]

Kinda funny that this sold more than a lot of AAA titles out there

I talked about this when someone said that type of gaming was dead.

 

[Dick Jones]

lol

Edit: Also, thanks a bunch for the very thorough OP!!

You know a company is doing well when this clown is twisting successes to failures.

 

[OuterLimits]

The fact the Switch has sold 125 million and never received a price drop in 6 years is damn bonkers. The PS2 was dirt cheap the final years on the market.

 

[Gambit2483]

Geez Nintendo is determined to squeeze every ounce of sales they can out of this thing. With no AAA compelling software after Zelda.

It's going to get ugly in September/ October

 

[Ogbert]

Is it actually possible for it to beat PS2? It would need another 30 million or more wouldn't it?

I really hope it does. Best console in years.

With an aggressive price drop, it would sail past that milestone.

But Nintendo are tight bastards, so probably not.

 

[onQ123]

Next year's forecasts either doesn't account for a new Switch or implies there isn't a new switch in the next 12 months.

There is no reason for Nintendo to cut into their profits with a new console right now why would they hit reset on their user base when they don't have to?

 

[Ogbert]

The fact the Switch has sold 125 million and never received a price drop in 6 years is damn bonkers. The PS2 was dirt cheap the final years on the market.

It’s astonishing (and also infuriating).

I think people forget what the last few years of the PS2 were like. Incredible console, but a few tens on millions were strict DVD sales.

My parents had a PS2 to play films. My parents also listen to the Archers on radio 4.

It was a wild time in gaming.

 

[Luminoth-4545]

Decent results overall however the biggest disappointment of this report was the sales of Metroid Prime Remastered, it was about 900k short of what i expected. It looks like the shadow drop backfired.

 

[Luminoth-4545]

For the first time BOTW outsells Smash Bros Ultimate in a fiscal year and will probably eventually overtake it. It also looks certain that Super Mario Odyssey will pass Pokemon Sword and Shield by next quarter.

 

[KU_]

Geez Nintendo is determined to squeeze every ounce of sales they can out of this thing. With no AAA compelling software after Zelda.

It's going to get ugly in September/ October

Don’t disrespect Pikmin like that!

 

[Gambit2483]

Don’t disrespect Pikmin like that!

Let's be honest, as great as Pikmin is, it was always a AA niche franchise. Not exactly a system mover.

 

[Mozza]

Decent results overall however the biggest disappointment of this report was the sales of Metroid Prime Remastered, it was about 900k short of what i expected. It looks like the shadow drop backfired.

Not a massive surprise, the Metroid prime series has never been a massive seller, although with the Switch's installed user base, I did expect a little better.

 

[Gambit2483]

Decent results overall however the biggest disappointment of this report was the sales of Metroid Prime Remastered, it was about 900k short of what i expected. It looks like the shadow drop backfired.

What screwed them was their inept ability to provide any kind of decent supply after announcing a physical version to satisfy the insane demand.

People were ordering the game for a March release and being told they would recieve it in April. Talk about pouring cold water on burning hype and demand

 

[Nautilus]

The Switch is clearly slowing down now, but considering its age, how much it already sold, and how much software it is still selling, its still doing pretty great.

Nintendo already said that there is no new hardware until March 2024, so they are clearly aiming to ride the Switch out.

Fire Emblem Engage clearly doing worse compared to Three Houses. That's what happens when you try to appeal more to the old fans that almost killed the franchise. Still, its a great number, and Engage should do at the very least 2.5 million units. If that's the worst that FE will do going forward, then the franchise has nothing to worry about.

Now the real dissapointment here is XC 3. Good lord, those legs are horrendous!!!!!! 50k Xenoblade? Really? The worse reception the game got compared to XC 2, being the 3rd XC game on the system(And an expansion in the form of Torna), all took its tool on its legs. Its like Engage though: Even if its doing worse, its infinitely better than before it breakout hit. So considering that XC 3 will most likely finish anywhere from 2.2 to 2.5 million, its still good. But I can't hide my dissapointment with it.

And I don't undertand the dissapointment for Metroid Prime..1.09 million for a remaster of a game in a niche franchise is a GREAT number. Don't know why anyone expected much more than that.

Evergreen titles continuing to do better than ever is always great to see.

What I'm curious now is what Nintendo has for its second half. Nintendo confirmed no hardware for now, meaning that the Switch will need to get quite a few software to fill that massive gap. The next Direct will be greatly interesting.

 

[Nautilus]

18 millions for this fiscal year is a huge number.

They can't just start over with a new console with these numbers, it would be stupid. Unless they plan to keep the original Switch on the market in some form while they release the next console.

Pretty sure they do mean to keep it for a few years, just like the 3DS or the PS4.

 

[Hero_Select]

Will they do a price drop? It's crazy how the Switch still hasn't had a price drop. I wonder what the margins are for a console thats 6 years old and still selling at full price

 

[Nautilus]

Will they do a price drop? It's crazy how the Switch still hasn't had a price drop. I wonder what the margins are for a console thats 6 years old and still selling at full price

The only time I see them dropping the price is when the Switch 2 launches. To both give a more premium look to the new console to appear more expensive by comparison and to use the Switch as a entry level product.

 

[DeepEnigma]

Is the switch the best console ever made? Not far from it. Some could argue.

Was this written in ChatGTP?

 

[Nautilus]

Was this written in ChatGTP?

Why would it be?

 

[Astral Dog]

Not a massive surprise, the Metroid prime series has never been a massive seller, although with the Switch's installed user base, I did expect a little better.

I have no idea how to rate this launch it since most of these sales were 1)digital the retail version launched weeks later 2)the game was an after Direct bomb,there was zero marketing,so mostly the hardcore fans were aware of it
3)Nintendo promised more physical copies due to higher demand than expected

It was an unusual release for Nintendo.keep an eye on this one

 

[DeepEnigma]

Why would it be?

The formatting,

 

[SeraphJan]

But who knows, maybe they’ll do a Sony and just stop Switch production when the next gen system is out to get more supply.

IMO the only time a Console maker stop producing units are because the unit and its software no longer sustain them (They need to keep on pay bills and salaries), however look at Nintendo currently, I doubt it would happen, so they will probably just let the hardware runs until it naturally goes out of life

 

[Deerock71]

The Switch has it all. It is an indies heaven. AAA 3rd party games. Amazing first party games. You can get both portable designed games and your home console experience.

(But I agree with you)