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Japan’s Nintendo Co Ltd sold 23% fewer Switch consoles in the April-June quarter than a year earlier after chip shortages, it said on Wednesday.
The Kyoto-based gaming company said it expects orders to improve “from late summer to autumn” and maintained its forecast to sell 21 million units in the year to the end of March 2023.
“Demand remains stable across all regions,” Nintendo said in a presentation.
Nintendo, the company behind “Super Mario,” sold 3.43 million units of its Switch console in the quarter, down from 4.45 million a year earlier. It sold 23.06 million units last year.
It is forecasting a second annual decline in sales of its Switch hybrid home/portable device, now in its sixth year on the market.
The company launched an upgraded model of the Switch with an OLED screen last October to boost interest in the system.
First-quarter software sales fell 8.6% to 41.4 million units, while operating profit fell 15% to 101.6 billion yen ($763 million), below analysts’ estimates.
Nintendo posted a ¥51.7 billion foreign exchange gain from the weaker yen.
Investors are gauging the unfolding of a gaming boom among consumers stuck at home during pandemic lockdowns.
Sony Group Corp last week reported a 15% decline in PlayStation user engagement compared to the previous year.
“Gaming is bigger now than ever, and a certain portion of users are staying in it, but the party is definitely over,” said Serkan Toto, founder of gaming industry consultancy Kantan Games.
Nintendo’s upcoming games to support demand by the end of the year include “Splatoon 3” coming out in September and “Pokemon Scarlet and Violet” in November.
