Several analysts have predicted that the Nintendo Switch “href =” https://www.videogameschronicle.com/platforms/nintendo/switch/ “> Nintendo Switch will be the best-selling console of 2021.
Offering predictions for next year in an GamesIndustry.biz article published on Monday, three industry watchers suggested that Nintendo “href =” https://www.videogameschronicle.com/platforms/nintendo/ “> Nintendo platform nearly four-year-old Sony Interactive Entertainment “href =” https://www.videogameschronicle.com/companies/sony/ “> Sony and Xbox Game Studios (Microsoft)” href = “https: //www.videogameschronicle. com / companies / microsoft / “> The latest Microsoft consoles, whose supply has been restricted since launch in November 2020.
Two of the analysts, Dr. Serkan Toto, from Ampere Analysis ‘Piers Harding-Rolls and Kantan Games’, also predicted that a new model of Switch will help boost sales of the Nintendo console this year.
“I hope that the Nintendo Switch device family will return to being the best-selling consoles in 2021, after a strong 2020,” said Harding-Rolls.
“Last year I was not convinced that there would be a new flagship model of Switch in 2020, but it makes more commercial sense to release an updated version in 2021. Currently, I have an updated version of the Switch in my predictions for 2021.”
Harding-Rolls expects Switch to sell approximately 24 million units this year and combined PS5 and Xbox Series X | S “href =” https://www.videogameschronicle.com/platforms/xbox/scarlett/ “> Xbox Series X / S sales reach 25 million.
Kantan Games’ Toto predicts that Nintendo will launch a “4K-enhanced” Switch model during its next financial year, which begins in April 2021.
“Anyone who expects the switch to lose power in 2021 will be very disappointed,” he said. “The Switch will also be the best-selling console this year, driven by more original games, a hardware update (see above) and the device that developed into a mass-market lifestyle product throughout 2020.”
The NPD Group “href =” https://www.videogameschronicle.com/companies/npd-group/ “> Mat Piscatella from the NPD Group also expects the Nintendo console to reach the top in 2021.
“Despite the launch of the PlayStation 5″ href = “https://www.videogameschronicle.com/platforms/playstation/ps5/”> PlayStation 5 and Xbox “href =” https://www.videogameschronicle.com/platforms/ xbox / “> Xbox series consoles, it will be the Nintendo Switch that will end up selling more console hardware units in 2021”, he predicted.
“I will take it a step further and suggest that this will be driven by content and promotional efforts, rather than the launch of a new iterative model.”
Several establishments have reported that Nintendo is preparing to launch a new Switch hardware in early 2021 and that it may have updated computing power and support for 4K graphics.
Asked about ‘Switch Pro’, as he was dubbed, during a Polygon interview published last month, Nintendo of America President Doug Bowser played down reports that the company is planning an imminent switch overhaul.
“Now, with the momentum we have, our focus will be on existing form factors,” he said.
“In the first place, we are always looking for technology,” added Bowser. “And as we know, technology is constantly evolving and changing. And we’re always looking at what’s to come to determine: how can this enhance and improve the gaming experience? And whether on a current platform or on a future platform, we’re always looking at that.
“However, we also now see – and we just talked about it – that the momentum on Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch Lite in the fourth year is strong. And we believe that we are changing the trajectory of another typical console life cycle.
“And we will continue, in the near future, to really rely on these platforms and the content that comes with them, because it is the symbiotic relationship that makes the real difference. And that’s why the Nintendo Switch is so different. “
Bowser also reiterated Nintendo’s belief that the Switch platform is “only in the middle” of its life cycle.
The switch was launched in March 2017 and sold more than 68 million units in September 2020, according to Nintendo.