As Microsoft and Sony slowly sunset their current-generation consoles, Nintendo is maintaining its momentum. The Nintendo Switch was the top-seller in September, according to industry-tracking firm The NPD Group.
“Nintendo Switch was again the best-selling hardware platform of September and remains the best-selling platform of 2019,” NPD analyst Mat Piscatella said.
Of course, the Switch debuted in 2017, and it is still in the meaty part of its life cycle. Nintendo also released the Switch Lite on September 20, which gave a boost to the platform’s sales. Earlier today, Nintendo said the Switch had more sold more than 15 million consoles.
PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, meanwhile, both launched in November 2013. And Sony and Microsoft have both confirmed that they will launch their next-gen consoles for holiday 2020. As you might expect, this has driven down demand for their older devices.
“Hardware spending in September 2019 fell 22 percent when compared to a year ago, to $240 million,” said Piscatella. “Year-to-date hardware spending has declined 21 percent versus year ago, to $1.9 billion. Nintendo Switch is the only platform with sales gains both in September as well as year-to-date.”
The accessory category also saw a decline in spending.
“Total September 2019 spending on accessories and game cards fell 7 percent when compared to a year ago, to $306 million,” said Piscatella. “Year-to-date sales of accessories and game cards have fallen 2 percent when compared to a year ago, to $2.6 billion.”
But at least Amiibo made a stunning return.
“Interactive-gaming-toy dollar sales jumped more than eight times when compared to September 2018,” said Piscatella. “[That was] driven by growth of Smash Bros. Series 1 Amiibo and Link’s Awakening Series 1 Amiibo.”