The PlayStation 2 has long been considered the most successful game console of all time, having sold over 160 million units worldwide. However, people have been predicting that the long life span of the Nintendo Switch may eventually threaten the undisputed dominance of the PlayStation 2—and this inevitability has reportedly come to pass.

Well-known industry analyst Mat Piscatella is reporting that data from the market research company Circana suggests the Nintendo Switch has now outsold the PlayStation 2 in the United States. This is a significant milestone for the console as the Switch has already outsold the PS2 in Japan, meaning this recent data suggests the Switch is now bigger than the PS2 in two of the world's biggest gaming markets.

It should be noted that neither the PS2 nor the Switch are actually the best-selling consoles ever in the United States, with that honour belonging to the Nintendo DS. The handheld is a stalwart, having sold only 6 million fewer units than the PS2 worldwide.

The lifespan of the Switch, originally released in 2017, has been a lucrative one for Nintendo. Following the relative failure of the Wii U (13.5 million), the Switch represents a massive bounce back for the Japanese conglomerate.

Although the Switch's numbers have been declining for a while, this trend is set to continue as Nintendo prepares to announce the Switch's successor. The new console is colloquially being referred to as the Switch 2 and will be backwards compatible with games that were originally released on the Nintendo Switch.

Given that Nintendo has confirmed it won't be revealing the Switch 2 until the end of this financial year (March 2025), we can probably expect the console to release for the holiday period 2025. This gives us an idea of some of the potential launch titles, like Pokemon Legends: Z-A which is set to release in 2025.

There is a constant rumour mill of prototype Switch designs, involving Chinese manufacturers and no small amount of intrigue. The reality is that we don't know what the new console will look like, but everyone suspects it looks like a bigger Nintendo Switch. As they say: If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Posted: Dec 22, 2024 8:26 pm
Related Forum: Gaming Discussion

Source: https://www.thegamer.com/nintendo-switch-sales-surpass-playstation-2-united-states/